Trump wants China to help protect the Strait of Hormuz, but as Robert Kagan told Bill yesterday, Iran has been allowing oil tankers bound for China through the Strait. Does Trump somehow not know this?
In the strictest sense of the word yes, presumably he had been told the reality, but what he doesn’t know are the limits of his own power and how little effect it has on others.
I seriously doubt he’s been told that reality. All those sycophants in the White House do is just be yes people. I doubt they even told him the reality of what’s happening. He’s probably just getting it from Faux News.
Given that we know he was told about the Iranian risk of blocking the straight, I suspect he gets more information than they sometimes let on. Does Donald pay attention or is he having one of his reveries? His sycophants of course don’t offer him any correction to his course of action.
If any of the information is given in a written brief you can bet your bottom dollar that Trump either doesn't read it, or if he does, doesn't understand what it says. Some people may give him written briefs just to cover their own ass - "yes, I gave him that information, it's not my fault he ignored it. I did my best!"
I am sure that Trump has likely been told a lot of things, usually in such a way that makes the teller look as good and as loyal as possible.
I am sure that he has been told some negative things, but usually framed very carefull under the rubric of fake new sor whatever. Look at what these people are lying about now, Mr. President.
How much Trump KNOWS about much of anything is open for debate. He has strong opinions and beliefs. Best not to get in the way of those as it will only piss him off and won't change the opinions or beliefs. he is a strong believer in his "gut" and works largely on that basis, as modified by whatever crap the people around him are lying to him about.
I doubt that we have had another President this clueless or this deeply inured in his own reality up to this point.
Honestly, I am beginning to believe Trump doesn't really know what's going on. He is being controlled by his advisors who appear to want absolute power and a Russian style dictatorship. Maybe Putin has more influence than it appears
That's brings a melody to mind, Disney's "Be Our Guest" and these lyrics I made up, based on Trump's idea of "strategy:".... I am Trump, I am Trump, Take your briefings to the dump. I don't want to read 'em, and who says I even need 'em? .... I can dance, I can prance, You may look askance, But my preenings are delicious, you just need to grant my wishes. .... I'll make war, Like ne'er before, But please don't be a bore, When it comes to pre-war planning, I'm afraid it's my unmanning. .... I'll react, That's a fact, But never will retract,' Cause my whims are always right, and I post 'em every night. .... So don't cry, Don't sigh, I know that we'll get by, 'cause - I'm the best, I'm the best, I'm the best!
What Disney movie had that song? Now I am thinking (about us all) that song from Little Mermaid, "You poor unfortunate souls". I kept seeing people asking questions that seemed to be asked and answered; Because he is Trump.
It's in Beauty and the Beast, but I believe Disney uses it for their hospitality venues in general. "Poor Unfortunate Souls" - ha ha - reminds me of Trump's Cabinet members! They certainly sold their souls, didn't they? And when I think of their souls, I am reminded of the wizened little victims that Ursula keeps hidden away.
The real question is does the Felon even care? And the real answer is "No", he only cares about himself and what can make him look good, i.e., strong, like his heroes Vlad and Xi.
The hypocrisy is off the charts as the same people who regularly post AI-generated images and videos of the convicted felon are decrying unnamed and allegedly AI-generated videos of battle and who accused the Biden administration of suppressing misinformation about COVID as an attack on "free speech" while they're accusing anyone who doesn't share the narcissist's wish-casting view of the war as "poisoning the airwaves" and being "domestic terrorists".
It's only hypocrisy if we mistake these statements as good faith efforts to understand the world through the lens of facts, cause and effect, etc.
But it's not good faith from Trumpists, they're not trying to be empirical. It's pure in group vs outgroup tribalism. When Trumpists do it, it is the in group, so it is right. When the enemies do it, it is the outgroup, so it is wrong.
The volk are righteous, pure, patriotic. Only the volk can defend free speech or use AI responsibly. Their enemies are spreading misinformation, attacking free speech, etc. To speak against Trump is domestic terrorism in this epistemology.
The thing is, it isn't hypocrisy. Hypocrisy entails that you (at some level) recognize the dissonance of what you are saying/doing. They (the MAGA faithful) do not. Everything is filtered through tribal affiliation.
They are speaking the truth as they see it. THAT's the problem.
Not quite. What the people on high are saying is actually what the people at the bottom believe or is adjacent to what they believe or what they would like to believe.
Which is why Fox lost a billion-dollar lawsuit—telling people what they want to hear. That is lying, not hypocrisy.
People used to say that Trump was “authentic.” There are two aspects to that “authenticity:”
1) Trump generally means what he says. If he says horrendous thing X, you can be fairly sure he is on board with that. If he says it and it flops, he will temporarily backpedal, but he will float it again after the slow creep of the Overton window makes it acceptable. He is truthful about how he feels about things (one of the few things he is actually truthful about—and the people can sense that);
2) Fortuitously, for Trump, a lot of the MAGA faithful share those feelings (primarily of victimization and the racism/sexism). Voters did not choose trump, Trump chose his voters.If he had thought he would have been successful with the Democrats he would have gone that way, but his natural inclination because of his mental disease and personality was GoP.
So it isn’t that the people are on high are being hypocritical, they are simply saying and doing things that are in accordance with what the base is thinking and would do if they had the opportunity.
There is some LYING going on at the individual level of many of these people on high, but the sentiments and beliefs generally expressed are the those of the movement. The lying comes in when those are not the sentiments/beliefs of the speaker—and it is a lie (about what the speaker believes), not hypocrisy.
And the aim of those lies is not so much to convince or persuade the base (they are already believers), it is to make sure that they do not get on the wrong side of Trump—so it is a lie based in naked self-interest. It is also MGAA virtue signaling. I am one o you, see!!
Remember that these people are not leading things, so much as responding to the demands of the base—and folding into those demands the various grifts and goals that THEY have. Most of these people have zero leadership ability. They are whores pleasing their Johns and grabbing what they can when they can.
I see it as a chicken and egg problem. The Felon and Co. say what they know the base wants to hear, whether they believe it themselves or not. Maybe the Felon believes it, but I sincerely he has any real beliefs other than perhaps what is good for him is good for the world whether the world knows it or not is irrelevant.
Another problem is the word "belief". In too many cases it is a case of wishful thinking that is validated by someone who wants you to like or vote for him so you speak your wish, hear it as the belief of someone "on high" and spout it back "with authority" and off to the races we go.
"And now Trump is calling on China to help keep the strait open."
In other words, the mad orange god king, having realized he fucked up, is looking for someone to bail him out from his fuck up. This is no different than any other time in his life when he's made stupid mistakes and other people have saved him from the consequences of those mistakes.
At some point in the not-so-distant future, historians are going to have a field day writing about how the United States produced so many unserious people like Hegseth who obtained political power. In the near term, however, we are screwed.
I am hoping that we actually have that 'no-so-distant future' at this point. Can this aging, sadistic, megalomaniac be stopped from destroying it all? I remember jokes about setting up some sorta Truman Show scenario for him so he could just live in his bubble and the rest of us could do the hard work of repairing some of the damage (some is irreparable, I thin). At this point, it may be the only solution. Let's get the man hooked up to some sort virtual reality until he dies. Ugh.
Your idea could only work if the people around him will make it happen. However those around him are doing their best to keep this nightmare going. None of them, Miller, Vought, Wiles, and others, will ever be this close to the power they have. They have no intention of giving it up. What they want is to impress the heir apparent, whoever that is, and remain.
Iran is already letting Chinese ships pass. So why does DJT want China's help? DJT doesn't have much capacity in processing thought. Like I have said many times: because he is Trump!
Democrats should have a field day with advertising showing how stupid these people are AND tying it directly to the Republicans who ALL voted them in during confirmation, when it was OBVIOUS that they did not have the skill set for the job and had many, many red flags in their resume, making them unqualified. Republicans want to blame Trump for their political woes, but they are directly responsible for the lack of knowledge and intelligence in our government, from top to bottom.
Unleashing a war as a demonstration of your power has the risk of also demonstrating the limits of that power which is something the Orange Julius has not learned. He does seem to realize his options aren’t good and asking others to help open the straight of Hormuz is the ultimate sign of weakness. Sometimes the idea of the power one could bring to bear is better than the actual demonstration — just ask Russia how well the Ukraine war demonstrated their power.
Trump begging for help was when it really hit me that we're going to lose this war. Our only ally in this conflict is busy blowing up Lebanon while Trump's going hat-in-hand to our former allies, and even our strategic foes, to spare him the fate of $10 gas prices.
Agreed, but when you have no plan, how do you expect to win even in Trumpian terms. DJT is good at creating problems, but never good at solutions which are always someone else’s problem. As for Lebanon the longterm solution would be to build up the Lebanese government. We could have helped do that as the Lebanese government wanted to take this opportunity to kick Hezbollah out, but it appears the last thing the Israelis want is a functioning Lebanese government.
Are you kidding? We're going to be raking in the dough! FFrom the taxpayers who are already paying more due to tariffs. Who knew my local restaurant had such deep pockets?
He doesn't even care about the price of gas. I'll bet he hasn't driven a car in decades. He doesn't care how much real people pay at the pump, he only cares that it is making him look bad in the press and he is getting blamed for his foolishness. He cannot take that.
But the price of gas only concerns him because it negatively affects his approval ratings. Ditto for the stock market, the economy, and pretty much everything else. I wouldn't be at all surprised if he launched this war mainly because he thought it would make his approval ratings go up, like the Iraq War temporarily did for George W Bush.
Begging for help, then vilifying them when they refuse to put their own ships at risk for a leader who has openly denigrated them non-stop from the moment he took office. While Trump is President, we have no allies.
The Felon and his sycophants are going to lose this war, "in our name" only, which is the only connection I, as a card-carrying American, ever want to see, just as that same criminal organization is destroying democracy "in our name" as "our" government. And, given the polls, I am not in the minority in that view-point.
The only one seemingly unaware of the limits of our power was Orange Julius himself. The Iranians certainly knew. Trump thought a sucker punch would take care of everything.
Hegseth is a guy who was a low-level officer and never had a major combat or organizational command. He then became a talking head on TV and was a also a financebro, IIRC.
Also a drunk sexist. Probably his most endearing quality to Trump, besides having the "right look." Pretty sure having a good headshot is a major factor in Trump appointing you to something.
Well, he's asking for help, now, but wait until he starts making threats. I guarantee you he's going to start threatening other countries. He's going to switch from "Please help us reopen the Strait of Hormuz!" to "Help me reopen the Strait, or else!"
This already happened yesterday. I.e., asking Nato allies to send ships to the Strait, otherwise "something bad may happen to Nato".
What's clearly nuts is that the US Navy does not want to send warships right now because of risk of being damaged/sunk, so why would Nato allies want their ships to be sunk instead? Hence the slow walking of replies.
Hugh, you are thinking three levels above the Felon's IQ as a "Stable Genius", i.e., the one who is told to shovel out the shit, and piles it in front of the only door, from the inside.
Oh, you mean his usual bloviating that hardly counts as a "threat" because it doesn't go into specifics? I barely consider "something bad might happen" to be a serious threat, and neither should any NATO ally. One of the things I hate about Trump is that he's still cognizant enough to keep his statements *just this side* of legal, without crossing the line into making specific, actionable threats.
Be sure that China is taking copious notes on the best the hardware American military has, too. Bkz Kegsbreath and Trump would only want the top of the line gear going in Iran.
"Is there any way of convincing the world that Trump doesn’t represent America? Should we even try?"
What difference does it make if we convince the world Trump doesn't represent America? That doesn't solve or fix any of this, and he's got almost three years left in office, maybe much more depending on how things play out around elections. So let's not even try to convince anyone Trump doesn't represent us, because it won't change any of the consequences of our electing him.
The one way to maybe convince the world Trump doesn't represent us would be to remove him from office, but that's not going to happen, even though it should, and even if he were removed from office, we cannot undo what he's done. We cannot undo starting a war in the Middle East. We cannot undo firing tens of thousands of government employees and losing the legacy knowledge that left with them. We cannot easily undo staffing large swaths of the government with Trump loyalists who are there not for their competence but their fealty and incompetence. The Trump stench will not be easily deodorized, and the ignorant can long savor their victory over the elites as government ceases to function, corruption permeates all levers of power, and we struggle to pull ourselves out of this fascist quicksand.
We cannot undo much of the suffering and death that Trump has caused, but we must do everything we can to take the government back from the MAGA movement.
The world wants to have a good relationship with America because we still have many smart, innovative, and caring people, and more importantly, we have a lot of money and like to spend it.
To regain some sense of trust, many of the leaders of the MAGA destruction have to face some consequences. Bondi, Hegseth, Noem, RFK, Gabbard, Miller, Vought, and others have not only broken laws, they have made people suffer and die. They have also used their office for vast personal gains. We need to reestablish law and order in our government and make that clear to the world.
He is gonna walk away, if he doesn't die or stroke out, first. There is no world in which this guy recieves his just desserts. People like him do not--which is one of the reasons there ARE people like him.
We need to add justices to the SC when Dems regain power. A more balanced court may find that much of his corrupt behavior had nothing to do with "presidential actions."
I'd love to see accountability. It's just going to increase polarization though, because our media environment is toxic and getting worse and the voters cannot view reality critically and dispassionately. And I anticipate lots of blanket pardons before we even get the chance.
The amount of malfeasance to investigate in just one year of this administration is daunting. I cannot imagine how much investigating another three years will require.
If we were really going to be serious about showing the world we aren't Trump's America, the first person to be indicted should be Elon Musk. That would send a message to a whole lot of people and interests.
There is maybe a path forward but it starts only when people are held accountable and Trump is removed from office and it's so hard to see that happening. That's the reality, but that does not mean we give up.
I think we have to jail Trump. Maybe hand him, Hegseth, Noem, Bovino, Miller, etc., over to the ICC, arguments for US sovereignty be damned. Nuremberg 2.0.
If we don't stop them, if we don't hold them accountable, then this is, in fact, who we are. We did Obama era, "they go low we go high," we did Biden era obsessive-proceduralism and an attempt to restore norms by force of will.
In 2029, we need Truman, we need Stimson, we need Supreme Court justice Robert H Jackson. We need to hold trials. We need punishments sufficient to discourage would-be American autocrats and kleptocrats.
The only thing certain to stop the terror is death. I never wish death on anyone, but I won’t be sad. The chance of redemption or repentance seems to be zero
Oedipus had to jab his eyes out and wander many years destitute to show the gods that he truly repented for his past errors and cruelty in order to receive redemption from Zeus at Colonus.
Not a chance anyone in the Trump regime would have anywhere near that ability to feel contrition.
Democrats taking back control of both houses of Congress in November would be a rebuke to Trump that our allies will understand. That is the best we can do to prove Trump doesn’t represent America for the moment.
Polymart bets now that Democrats take the Senate. We know the House is a foregone conclusion. But still Republican are lockstep with DJT. (Even though they are shitting in the pants worrying.
"The Trump stench will not be easily deodorized, and the ignorant can long savor their victory over the elites as government ceases to function, corruption permeates all levers of power, and we struggle to pull ourselves out of this fascist quicksand."
This. The stench will last decades, our erstwhile allies will not trust us again for that long. Nor should they.
Mr. Gates, while you may be right in your grim assessment that it won’t make any difference whether or not Americans demonstrate their disgust and revulsion towards trump, I believe that it will matter.
One way or another, there is a future beyond trump. If the rest of the world confidently knows that it has allies in rebuilding a de-trumpified America, this future can only be better.
Plus, I take some solace in imagining every democracy in the world taking a good hard look at their own political systems and asking themselves, “have we done everything that we can to guard against the forces that allowed trump to prosper in the US?”. Certainly, a lot of political candidates on the far right in various countries lost their momentum once everyone could see what trump-style nonsense really meant in practice. Now, we are providing lessons in how to wake up a previously apathetic/disengaged populace to fight for democracy.
I don't know how to make a difference globally. I can only make a difference in my little, personal world, and yes, here it is very important for people to know we are safe to be with and we are disgusted by corruption, sexual violence, nonsexual violence, and discrimination.
Absolutes will not serve in this moment. No you cannot undo what has already been done. But you can stop it, you can make up for it, you can take a different and better course. All these are options on the table going forward.
Stop it: end Trump's reign of terror
Make up for it: stand down and buck up for reparations
Take a different and better course: diplomatic resolution only, no military action to gain your ends.
I just don't see how to get this common sense to the people in charge. How do we convince Sam Alito that the US should use discretion? How do we convince John Roberts that maybe the rich people shouldn't have all the power and get to pick a king? How do we convince Lindsey Graham that dead soldiers are not a good thing? How do we convince Amy Coney Barrett that her decisions hurt real, actual children? I just don't see any of those things happening. They worked too hard and too long to get us to this point, they're not going to reverse course now.
You can't. I am afraid that unless they dial it back, whoever can be un-elected needs to be un-elected, and whoever can be impeached be impeached and convicted and removed.
These are tools that can be used by the next adult administration.
This is why we desperately need SC reforms when Dems take power again. Add to their number, install term limits with fairness for who chooses replacements.
From where I am sitting right now in beautiful London UK there is no point in trying to convince anyone that Trump doesn’t represent America. Although help in WWII was greatly appreciated there has always been another side envy of America mixed with resentment of American smugness and arrogance. I moved here in the 1980’s and at that time America was putting huge investment into Britain. The results were mixed even then lots of people got rich and lots of companies got taken over and modernised, in a very necessary way. On the other hand plenty of people lost their jobs, the wealthy became greedier and more rapacious and many old companies were stripped of their assets and went under. There was I recall a great deal of tension, because guess what Americans were bullies even then. To make it even worse americas crappy culture, bad tv, shitty food and lack of respect for tradition was repulsive to many Europeans.
I was stationed in England in the 80's and the WWII generation loved us but the younger generations kept us at arm's length and didn't trust us (couldn't blame them then or now). Luckily I was able to make friends with some locals Part of the "test" was seeing how I reacted when they would take the piss at my expense. I guess it was to see how arrogantly American I was.
What we really can't undo is the awareness that, despite what the whole world had seen, just enough Americans either voted for him or decided not to vote at all.
I have noticed in the past week that on sites like Washington Post and the Guardian, people in others countries are posting comments like "Your ENTIRE country is responsible for this. Not just the Trump voters" They are pissed at all of us.
We must try! Yes, it may seem impossible right now, but who would have thought that Trump could do as much damage as he has done in such a short time. Fixing everything that has been broken will take time and effort, but it will never happen if we don’t try.
Yes, too many in Germany played "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil" and America MUST NOT go down that path. To either accept what is happening, or lay down and play dead as if all is futile will both foretell the end of American Democracy. We have to fight in whatever way we can. Protests changed Civil Rights, and the War in Vietnam. We can do it again. Remember, the majority of Americans did not go out and protest during the '60s and '70s, but enough of the minority did to make it uncomfortable for government. Combine that with an aggressive, truthful press, and that is one winning strategy.
You are so right. The only way to show the world that Trump does not represent us is to remove him from office. I still have hope that there may be some Republicans who realize how much damage he is doing to their chances in the next election and will band together to get rid of him.
One of the most interesting comments about the war this weekend was from Trump himself, who said "This should have always been a team effort..." Really? And you realized that only after insulting several of our one-time allies. And then later in the day, you threatened our allies again when they were reluctant to enjoy your little excursion. This does not seem like artful deal making.
Except that if everything went Trump's way, he would take *all* the credit for the operation in Iran. But now that it's not going well, he wants to distribute the responsibility for the failure so it doesn't rest on him. It's childish and narcissistic, and therefore perfectly Trumpish.
I have to say I would not want to be on a team that had Trump on it, exactly for the reason you state. All successes would be his, all failures would be mine.
Except a team effort would have meant articulating why we went to war and what the objectives the goals are, and then working getting our allies on board with what we wanted to accomplish. It is only a *team* effort now has boxed himself in and looking for an out. Our allies may also be realizing that with Trump it is never a team effort.
Bill's Sunday interview with Robert Kagan was excellent, if not totally depressing. Kagan is right, Trump has two choices, put all his chips in, or fold. Either he never understood Iran held at least a straight flush with their command over the Straight of Hormuz or he thinks a full house with three planes over two ships is a royal flush. Which, given his current mental state, he might.
Actually Trump should be impeached for treason since he unilaterally took the oil sanctions off Russia at the same time Russia is providing targeting information to the enemy. Aiding and abetting our enemy's ally to attack the US should qualify as treason.
I agree. Trump will never reactivate those sanctions, Once again, it's up to the Congress to do their job. In this case their job is at least in part to invoke the Countering Foreign Aggression Act of 2017, which provides that only Congress can remove Russia financial sanctions.
White House doctors are doing America a disservice as they avoid giving Trump any real IQ assessments. I'll bet he does not have the verifiable mental ability to make rational decisions. What a cluster f.
I’m sure all the free speech warrior manosphere podcasters will rise up at this gross threat against the first amendment. Any day now! As a tweet from dieworkwear rightly pointed out last week, I sure am glad that the world is burning because Joe Rogan decided to learn about politics at the ripe young age of 58!
So shocked to see that when you relentlessly bully your allies they aren’t actually very inclined to help you with your illegal war. Who could have seen that coming?!
Looks like this time it’s Trump who doesn’t have any cards.
And we will all pay the price, right now literally and if Stephen Miller has anything to say about it, figuratively, too. Wheeeeeeeee.
As I have come to anticipate and celebrate a daily bit of Egger wit, no disappointment this morning with this zinger - "Because he’s not insane, Carr wants to frame his threat as mere concern for fair coverage. But the president he’s channeling, who is insane, isn’t really bothering"....
Depressing news presented with a spoonful of sugar.
“I worry the Iran war, as it continues, could open the same opportunity. Trump would not be the first leader in history to find a foreign war useful for domestic consolidation.”
Thank you Bill, well said and the sum of all of our worst fears! Yet, when you consider all his actions combined, one can easily surmise that this was precisely the point!
We’ve forced the Europeans to move military and other assets to Greenland and th Middle East. The tariffs were unnecessary, and applied to allies, while Trump removes sanctions after sanctions on Russia.
And now, we can’t arm Ukraine or our European Allies because we are burning through our munitions like they grew in trees—3-5 years to replace these munitions and we’re running out of interceptors. In addition, we’ve lost close to $6 billion in equipment and jets, and our radar capabilities have been greatly diminished.
Not to mention, Russian is making $150 million a day, while the Europeans pay $100 a barrel—another drag on their economies.
Further, Iran is destroying our aerial refueling tankers which diminishes our ability to refuel the fighter jets: fewer refueling jets means fewer sorties, which means less coverage of our air power and more risk of both friendly and hostile fire. Let that sink in!
Here's another terrifying thought. Ukraine is estimated to be able to produce 7 million drones of varying abilities in this fiscal year. Imagine how many Iran is going to be able to build and then tell me how in any scenario we can keep the Straight of Hormuz open. Drone warfare has changed everything. Our military capability was predicated on deterring missiles, not drones. Iran could easily be the next Ukraine and the US the next Russia. Putting troops on the ground would be utterly insane given Russia's inability to cope with Ukraine's drone capabilities.
Excellent comment, and 100% agree. Just so you know, Iran has been producing the Shahed drones for Russia for years. The Russians have improved their performance and capabilities tremendously.
And the Hourhis’s, who haven’t entered the war are masters of asymmetrical warfare at sea and operate from the Red Sea, through the Gulf of Aden, and all the way to the Horn of Africa. Not to mention, they’ve been stocking up on Shahed drones for years, and can mass produce cheaper Iranian drone’s: Sammad-3.
This administration is clueless! What were hey expecting a cake walk? Iran borders by Iraq and Afghanistan. They’ve been studying our capabilities for two generations, and now we’ve played straight into their hands.
Not only have we lost the war, we’ll have no friends—and the Iranian people, just like the Afghani’s and Iraqi’s before them, as well as the rest of the western world; will never forget our plethora of betrayals over the years! I think both Japan and Taiwan have also gotten the memo!
Yes they were expecting a cakewalk. That's why a SecDef is usually someone who has experience through the military ranks up through general or if a civilian through the civilian equivalent. Major Martini and his minions think war is a video game.
There is a saying that generals are fighting the last war .Champaign Pete sure is. Ukraine showed the future of warfare. Russia has found that out. but US hasn't yet.
True, and when you consider how states were being gouged during COVID because Trump wouldn’t release the National Emergency Supply of PPE’s and respirators; that will pale in comparison to this grift.
FYI: Trump Jr’s drone companies received multi-billion drone contracts. Let that sink in!…:)
I've come to appreciate that, when MAGA and the GOP are upset about corruption on the Dem's side, they are really mad at how little it was. The bigger the level/amount of corruption, the more they approve of that person. I mean, they were upset at Hunter's $50k/month payment from Burisma, but Trump getting a plane, Jared working his business deals while negotiating ... something, the Trump boys getting into crypto and drones. Admirable entrepreneurs, all!
“And as every expert I’ve read says, the only way to guarantee keeping the strait open is to control the Iranian coastline from which most of the attacks originate. And you can only control the coastline with ground forces. If you ask me right now, I would say Trump is going to use ground troops, and we’re going to be in this war for months at minimum.”
Either way, the next time Khomenei rears his ugly head will be to announce that Iran has several nukes capable of being deployed by land and sea!
And one thing is for sure; we are no longer the leader of the free world and our currency will no longer be the reserve currency of the world. Nor will the US be a safe haven country during depressed economic times.
Trump brought change alright, the type of change that leads us straight off an economic cliff! IMHO…:)
BRICS began in the aughts as an effort to oppose the hegemony of the US dollar. My theory is that Trump was led to believe that shivving NATO would earn him a seat at the head of that table. I believe the reality is that he, and we, are what's for dinner.
Agreed, we’re on the menu. Putin gave the US a master class in Shady diplomacy; he saw a bunch of greedy Americans willing to sell their souls for wealth and power, helped get one elected, and now we will be relegated to the dustbin of history; as what, no one knows, not even Putin or Trump!
Bottom line, If Russia is currently the world’s largest gas station with nukes, I can wait to see what becomes of us!…:)
Good point, and as for credit, they’re going to run out sooner than they think. Over 80% of Christmas purchases were on credit, less 20% pay off the balances. Not to mention, 20% of all purchases were using buy now, pay later. And I’m sure those people have already maxed out their credit cards.
Factor in car loans and leases, student loans, mortgages underwater, Trump’s BBB—large deficits, perpetual war costing billions a day; and we’re heading into the perfect storm—and straight off an economic cliff!
Yeah, I originally typed "until our people run out of money," but we're past that point so I edited it. The thing is, though, we've been past that point since the 1980s and the bottom hasn't fallen out yet, so everyone thinks it never will. Meanwhile, the younger generation is struggling to find jobs outside of delivering pizzas to stoners.
I don't know what to think. Logic says this all has to crash, but previous presidents and Fed chairs and Congress have managed to keep it going against all odds since the Reagan Revolution, when we all decided debt and greed are good. I don't know. I was actually an economics major in college. Money used to seem real to me. But after the last couple of years, it all seems like a fantasy world without logic or math.
Everything you say—you’ll get no argument from me; however, never before have we had such incompetents running this nation whose allegiance is to a man and ideology, as opposed to the safety and national security of this nation.
Sure, we’ve had charlatans and crooks in office; but thy drew a line. Trump has no bottom, his crimes—incalculable, and his allegiance is to no one but himself.
Bottom line, it’s almost impossible, even for qualified individuals at the Fed to save us from Trump and MAGA, when MAGA and Trump are deliberately undermining any possible solutions to all the chaos Trump and his minions manage to pile “higher and deeper”!
Whats the adage: “you can save people from the world, but you can’t save them from themselves.”
Right now, MAGA is America—they control all the levers of power, and if Trump continues with his destructive policies, while Congress and SCOTUS continue to enable his reckless and impulsive behavior; then don’t expect the Fed to be our Knight in shining armor! They are good, but no one is that good!
The only time he tells the truth is when it’s about his agenda. And no one can claim—who voted for him, that he didn’t say that, “I’ll do to America what I did to my businesses”: and the rest is history!
After all, we’re now not only broke, but he turned this nation into the world’s biggest JOKE! So in the end, we got exactly what we paid for!
Yep. I recently tried talking to my MAGA neighbors about the illegal attacks on Iran, and all of them immediately came to Trump's defense and said he was absolutely doing the right thing.
I asked what exactly Iran had done to us -- specifically, not potentially. And they just ignored my question and said that Trump was going to take over Iran for the oil, and we would all benefit from having Iranian oil in the future.
You can't talk to people when they are locked in a cult and see defending whatever the cult leader does, no matter how illegal or irrational.
I see. So if I stole your neighbor’s car because it would benefit me and wife, that’s OK. I’m shocked these people can turn on a faucet without injuring themselves.
Your neighbors are not serious people. It’s the us/them thinking that offends me the most. Iran’s oil is not ours to take. And if your neighbors were actually serious adults, they’d march down to the local recruitment office to aid our theft of another country’s resources. Since they won’t, that tells me everything I need to know.
Also, my neighbors are (who could have guessed?) too old to join the military -- but you can bet they won't allow their grandchildren to volunteer in a war they are all too willing to support "for the oil."
Remember those Venezuelan oil tankers we confiscated? Well while they sit they cost millions to simply to maintain. All the while, judges will say they are illegal to detain anyway! Art of the deal!
Thanks. Unfortunately, too many people are suffering from delusions of grandeur. The long term effects of this administration will be catastrophic; and haunt us for decades to come, if not for all eternity—closer the truth.
Sadly, our youth is in for some rude awakening’s, because Trump has brought us closer to the brink than most people can comprehend at this point. We were on the decline, but now all economic advantages are gone.
Let me get this straight...Trump throws a party (war), but doesn't invite these guys to come to the party (war) itself. Instead, he demands they come and clean up the mess AFTER the party (war)?
Mr. Carr can only threaten the licenses of over-the-air broadcasters, whose market share continues to erode. He has zero authority over streamers, cable channels, news aggregators, web sites, Substack, etc. And TV license renewals are years apart. His real power is to disrupt merger deals.
TV is dead. I don't even think kids watch movies anymore. Trump lives in 1986 and doesn't realize it. But unfortunately, he has a lot of people around him who get that internet thing.
"I used to be with it, but then they changed what it was. Now what I'm with isn't it, and what's it seems weird and scary to me, and it'll happen to you, too." - Grandpa Simpson
Did they learn nothing from the Jimmy Kimmel debacle? Go ahead and take away the broadcast licenses from networks and then watch the epic backlash. All those Americans who don't really pay attention to the news are absolutely certain to pay attention to the cancellation of their favorite TV shows. I can't wait to see MAGA world's reaction when they cancel Sunday Night Football and grandma's game shows and soap operas.
Threats to remove licenses can be two things at the same time - ominous and farcical.
Trump wants China to help protect the Strait of Hormuz, but as Robert Kagan told Bill yesterday, Iran has been allowing oil tankers bound for China through the Strait. Does Trump somehow not know this?
"Does Trump somehow not know this?"
I think you just answered your question.
In the strictest sense of the word yes, presumably he had been told the reality, but what he doesn’t know are the limits of his own power and how little effect it has on others.
Because apparently Congress doesn't exist anymore.
The Imperial Congress is fully behind the Emperor’s heroic policies! Long live the Trump Imperial Empire!!!!
I seriously doubt he’s been told that reality. All those sycophants in the White House do is just be yes people. I doubt they even told him the reality of what’s happening. He’s probably just getting it from Faux News.
Given that we know he was told about the Iranian risk of blocking the straight, I suspect he gets more information than they sometimes let on. Does Donald pay attention or is he having one of his reveries? His sycophants of course don’t offer him any correction to his course of action.
If any of the information is given in a written brief you can bet your bottom dollar that Trump either doesn't read it, or if he does, doesn't understand what it says. Some people may give him written briefs just to cover their own ass - "yes, I gave him that information, it's not my fault he ignored it. I did my best!"
Because he is Trump.
Because he is Trump
‘Does Trump not know …”
Evergreen question
Nope.
He simply ignores facts he does not like. They become “fake news”.
"A man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest"......... Paul Simon
Righton, Dave😉. Of course, the Felon is a "man" only in the irrefutable biological sense.
I am sure that Trump has likely been told a lot of things, usually in such a way that makes the teller look as good and as loyal as possible.
I am sure that he has been told some negative things, but usually framed very carefull under the rubric of fake new sor whatever. Look at what these people are lying about now, Mr. President.
How much Trump KNOWS about much of anything is open for debate. He has strong opinions and beliefs. Best not to get in the way of those as it will only piss him off and won't change the opinions or beliefs. he is a strong believer in his "gut" and works largely on that basis, as modified by whatever crap the people around him are lying to him about.
I doubt that we have had another President this clueless or this deeply inured in his own reality up to this point.
The messenger doesn't want to be shot.
Occam's razor says stupidity.
Honestly, I am beginning to believe Trump doesn't really know what's going on. He is being controlled by his advisors who appear to want absolute power and a Russian style dictatorship. Maybe Putin has more influence than it appears
That's my theory, that Putin is coaching Trump on how to become a dictator.
Why would this fat felon know anything?
He is Trump!
That's brings a melody to mind, Disney's "Be Our Guest" and these lyrics I made up, based on Trump's idea of "strategy:".... I am Trump, I am Trump, Take your briefings to the dump. I don't want to read 'em, and who says I even need 'em? .... I can dance, I can prance, You may look askance, But my preenings are delicious, you just need to grant my wishes. .... I'll make war, Like ne'er before, But please don't be a bore, When it comes to pre-war planning, I'm afraid it's my unmanning. .... I'll react, That's a fact, But never will retract,' Cause my whims are always right, and I post 'em every night. .... So don't cry, Don't sigh, I know that we'll get by, 'cause - I'm the best, I'm the best, I'm the best!
This is very clever! I think it needs to be posted more publicly, with the words sung to the melody. The song is from "Beauty and the Beast".
What Disney movie had that song? Now I am thinking (about us all) that song from Little Mermaid, "You poor unfortunate souls". I kept seeing people asking questions that seemed to be asked and answered; Because he is Trump.
It's in Beauty and the Beast, but I believe Disney uses it for their hospitality venues in general. "Poor Unfortunate Souls" - ha ha - reminds me of Trump's Cabinet members! They certainly sold their souls, didn't they? And when I think of their souls, I am reminded of the wizened little victims that Ursula keeps hidden away.
He is The Trump.
Someone forwarded this to me. Totally AI, but well-done and you have to laugh. And then realize that it's telling what is actually happening. https://substack.com/@deanblundell/note/c-228595357
🤣
Nope. Because he is Trump
The real question is does the Felon even care? And the real answer is "No", he only cares about himself and what can make him look good, i.e., strong, like his heroes Vlad and Xi.
The hypocrisy is off the charts as the same people who regularly post AI-generated images and videos of the convicted felon are decrying unnamed and allegedly AI-generated videos of battle and who accused the Biden administration of suppressing misinformation about COVID as an attack on "free speech" while they're accusing anyone who doesn't share the narcissist's wish-casting view of the war as "poisoning the airwaves" and being "domestic terrorists".
It's only hypocrisy if we mistake these statements as good faith efforts to understand the world through the lens of facts, cause and effect, etc.
But it's not good faith from Trumpists, they're not trying to be empirical. It's pure in group vs outgroup tribalism. When Trumpists do it, it is the in group, so it is right. When the enemies do it, it is the outgroup, so it is wrong.
The volk are righteous, pure, patriotic. Only the volk can defend free speech or use AI responsibly. Their enemies are spreading misinformation, attacking free speech, etc. To speak against Trump is domestic terrorism in this epistemology.
The thing is, it isn't hypocrisy. Hypocrisy entails that you (at some level) recognize the dissonance of what you are saying/doing. They (the MAGA faithful) do not. Everything is filtered through tribal affiliation.
They are speaking the truth as they see it. THAT's the problem.
It is not the MAGA faithful who are initiating the hypocrisy, that comes "from on high". They only regurgitate what they hear from THEIR sources.
Not quite. What the people on high are saying is actually what the people at the bottom believe or is adjacent to what they believe or what they would like to believe.
Which is why Fox lost a billion-dollar lawsuit—telling people what they want to hear. That is lying, not hypocrisy.
People used to say that Trump was “authentic.” There are two aspects to that “authenticity:”
1) Trump generally means what he says. If he says horrendous thing X, you can be fairly sure he is on board with that. If he says it and it flops, he will temporarily backpedal, but he will float it again after the slow creep of the Overton window makes it acceptable. He is truthful about how he feels about things (one of the few things he is actually truthful about—and the people can sense that);
2) Fortuitously, for Trump, a lot of the MAGA faithful share those feelings (primarily of victimization and the racism/sexism). Voters did not choose trump, Trump chose his voters.If he had thought he would have been successful with the Democrats he would have gone that way, but his natural inclination because of his mental disease and personality was GoP.
So it isn’t that the people are on high are being hypocritical, they are simply saying and doing things that are in accordance with what the base is thinking and would do if they had the opportunity.
There is some LYING going on at the individual level of many of these people on high, but the sentiments and beliefs generally expressed are the those of the movement. The lying comes in when those are not the sentiments/beliefs of the speaker—and it is a lie (about what the speaker believes), not hypocrisy.
And the aim of those lies is not so much to convince or persuade the base (they are already believers), it is to make sure that they do not get on the wrong side of Trump—so it is a lie based in naked self-interest. It is also MGAA virtue signaling. I am one o you, see!!
Remember that these people are not leading things, so much as responding to the demands of the base—and folding into those demands the various grifts and goals that THEY have. Most of these people have zero leadership ability. They are whores pleasing their Johns and grabbing what they can when they can.
I see it as a chicken and egg problem. The Felon and Co. say what they know the base wants to hear, whether they believe it themselves or not. Maybe the Felon believes it, but I sincerely he has any real beliefs other than perhaps what is good for him is good for the world whether the world knows it or not is irrelevant.
Another problem is the word "belief". In too many cases it is a case of wishful thinking that is validated by someone who wants you to like or vote for him so you speak your wish, hear it as the belief of someone "on high" and spout it back "with authority" and off to the races we go.
or another way of putting it is that they are speaking the truth as they hear it from Fox news.
"And now Trump is calling on China to help keep the strait open."
In other words, the mad orange god king, having realized he fucked up, is looking for someone to bail him out from his fuck up. This is no different than any other time in his life when he's made stupid mistakes and other people have saved him from the consequences of those mistakes.
At some point in the not-so-distant future, historians are going to have a field day writing about how the United States produced so many unserious people like Hegseth who obtained political power. In the near term, however, we are screwed.
I am hoping that we actually have that 'no-so-distant future' at this point. Can this aging, sadistic, megalomaniac be stopped from destroying it all? I remember jokes about setting up some sorta Truman Show scenario for him so he could just live in his bubble and the rest of us could do the hard work of repairing some of the damage (some is irreparable, I thin). At this point, it may be the only solution. Let's get the man hooked up to some sort virtual reality until he dies. Ugh.
Your idea could only work if the people around him will make it happen. However those around him are doing their best to keep this nightmare going. None of them, Miller, Vought, Wiles, and others, will ever be this close to the power they have. They have no intention of giving it up. What they want is to impress the heir apparent, whoever that is, and remain.
I mean, I was mainly joking because this is getting dark. I don't see many ways out without economic or worse catastrophe . . .
They are on a fool's errand.
Where's his daddy when he needs him?
Moscow?
Or China.
Or Tel aviv.
Where’s the Israeli Navy?
Why aren’t they helping?
Are they busy with some unarmed Gazan fishermen that need to be blown up?
Iran is already letting Chinese ships pass. So why does DJT want China's help? DJT doesn't have much capacity in processing thought. Like I have said many times: because he is Trump!
And he has no cards.
The Restored United States of America Truth and Reconciliation Commission will have much to write about.
Democrats should have a field day with advertising showing how stupid these people are AND tying it directly to the Republicans who ALL voted them in during confirmation, when it was OBVIOUS that they did not have the skill set for the job and had many, many red flags in their resume, making them unqualified. Republicans want to blame Trump for their political woes, but they are directly responsible for the lack of knowledge and intelligence in our government, from top to bottom.
Why isn’t the Israeli navy helping open the straight?
Unleashing a war as a demonstration of your power has the risk of also demonstrating the limits of that power which is something the Orange Julius has not learned. He does seem to realize his options aren’t good and asking others to help open the straight of Hormuz is the ultimate sign of weakness. Sometimes the idea of the power one could bring to bear is better than the actual demonstration — just ask Russia how well the Ukraine war demonstrated their power.
Trump begging for help was when it really hit me that we're going to lose this war. Our only ally in this conflict is busy blowing up Lebanon while Trump's going hat-in-hand to our former allies, and even our strategic foes, to spare him the fate of $10 gas prices.
Agreed, but when you have no plan, how do you expect to win even in Trumpian terms. DJT is good at creating problems, but never good at solutions which are always someone else’s problem. As for Lebanon the longterm solution would be to build up the Lebanese government. We could have helped do that as the Lebanese government wanted to take this opportunity to kick Hezbollah out, but it appears the last thing the Israelis want is a functioning Lebanese government.
At least Netanyahu, not sure we can tar all Israelis with the same brush.
The price of gas is all that concerns him, other than the lack of a chorus of adulation for starting the war.
Are you kidding? We're going to be raking in the dough! FFrom the taxpayers who are already paying more due to tariffs. Who knew my local restaurant had such deep pockets?
LOL
and the stock market concerns him, along with those other two
He doesn't even care about the price of gas. I'll bet he hasn't driven a car in decades. He doesn't care how much real people pay at the pump, he only cares that it is making him look bad in the press and he is getting blamed for his foolishness. He cannot take that.
I question whether he knows how to drive and is licenced to do so--or has ever been.
But the price of gas only concerns him because it negatively affects his approval ratings. Ditto for the stock market, the economy, and pretty much everything else. I wouldn't be at all surprised if he launched this war mainly because he thought it would make his approval ratings go up, like the Iraq War temporarily did for George W Bush.
I would be surprised--stunned, in fact--to learn that Trump had any non-self-centered motive for the war.. Trouble is that dog don't wag.
And all intended to distract from his pedefile days. We have not forgotten you vile turd.
"Brother, can you spare a dime"?
Begging for help, then vilifying them when they refuse to put their own ships at risk for a leader who has openly denigrated them non-stop from the moment he took office. While Trump is President, we have no allies.
The Felon and his sycophants are going to lose this war, "in our name" only, which is the only connection I, as a card-carrying American, ever want to see, just as that same criminal organization is destroying democracy "in our name" as "our" government. And, given the polls, I am not in the minority in that view-point.
We are definitely losing.
The only one seemingly unaware of the limits of our power was Orange Julius himself. The Iranians certainly knew. Trump thought a sucker punch would take care of everything.
Hegseth seems pretty clueless himself and he’s the one running the military.
Yeah, that's definitely fair. Good call by the senators who confirmed him.
And everybody else they confirmed from the Star Wars cantina.
Didn't you know tough guy Hegseth has a death sentence on twelve systems? (Dr. Evazan, Cantina Scene, A New Hope).
Hegseth is a guy who was a low-level officer and never had a major combat or organizational command. He then became a talking head on TV and was a also a financebro, IIRC.
Also a drunk sexist. Probably his most endearing quality to Trump, besides having the "right look." Pretty sure having a good headshot is a major factor in Trump appointing you to something.
Not exactly qualifications to run DoD.
He also seems severely damaged.
Hegseth is clueless.
Like pounding a 14 year old in the head when she bites your penis?
Shhhh Janet, Janet, Janet.
We started a whole regional war in order NOT to talk about that!!!
: )
Good one!
It has, although he is on the receiving end.
Well, he's asking for help, now, but wait until he starts making threats. I guarantee you he's going to start threatening other countries. He's going to switch from "Please help us reopen the Strait of Hormuz!" to "Help me reopen the Strait, or else!"
This already happened yesterday. I.e., asking Nato allies to send ships to the Strait, otherwise "something bad may happen to Nato".
What's clearly nuts is that the US Navy does not want to send warships right now because of risk of being damaged/sunk, so why would Nato allies want their ships to be sunk instead? Hence the slow walking of replies.
Hugh, you are thinking three levels above the Felon's IQ as a "Stable Genius", i.e., the one who is told to shovel out the shit, and piles it in front of the only door, from the inside.
Is it unpatriotic to say “Hey Fifth Fleet! You had ONE fucking job”!
How many trillions have we spent on the Fifth Fleet and Gulf bases over the last few decades?
And it can’t even enter the gulf, let alone keep the straight open?
There’s not ONE naval ship in the gulf right now which is WILD to me.
Oh, you mean his usual bloviating that hardly counts as a "threat" because it doesn't go into specifics? I barely consider "something bad might happen" to be a serious threat, and neither should any NATO ally. One of the things I hate about Trump is that he's still cognizant enough to keep his statements *just this side* of legal, without crossing the line into making specific, actionable threats.
It's just the opening he needs to pull out of Nato and align himself even more closely with Putin.
I am just waiting to hear all the bullshit that will spew out of the Republicans at that point.
I think Trump just proved that sometimes you are most powerful when you don't use your power.
Aah as in descretion.
Discretion is not a word in the MAGA dictionary.
never was
Be sure that China is taking copious notes on the best the hardware American military has, too. Bkz Kegsbreath and Trump would only want the top of the line gear going in Iran.
The fear of what "could" happen is more powerful a disincentive than proof of what does (not) happen when it is used.
Does he ever learn?
Betting against him learning had a pretty good track record.
"Is there any way of convincing the world that Trump doesn’t represent America? Should we even try?"
What difference does it make if we convince the world Trump doesn't represent America? That doesn't solve or fix any of this, and he's got almost three years left in office, maybe much more depending on how things play out around elections. So let's not even try to convince anyone Trump doesn't represent us, because it won't change any of the consequences of our electing him.
The one way to maybe convince the world Trump doesn't represent us would be to remove him from office, but that's not going to happen, even though it should, and even if he were removed from office, we cannot undo what he's done. We cannot undo starting a war in the Middle East. We cannot undo firing tens of thousands of government employees and losing the legacy knowledge that left with them. We cannot easily undo staffing large swaths of the government with Trump loyalists who are there not for their competence but their fealty and incompetence. The Trump stench will not be easily deodorized, and the ignorant can long savor their victory over the elites as government ceases to function, corruption permeates all levers of power, and we struggle to pull ourselves out of this fascist quicksand.
We cannot undo much of the suffering and death that Trump has caused, but we must do everything we can to take the government back from the MAGA movement.
The world wants to have a good relationship with America because we still have many smart, innovative, and caring people, and more importantly, we have a lot of money and like to spend it.
To regain some sense of trust, many of the leaders of the MAGA destruction have to face some consequences. Bondi, Hegseth, Noem, RFK, Gabbard, Miller, Vought, and others have not only broken laws, they have made people suffer and die. They have also used their office for vast personal gains. We need to reestablish law and order in our government and make that clear to the world.
And trump must pay. He should be charged and convicted for his crimes.
Of course. Trump cannot be allowed to walk away from the destruction he has caused. It must be clear that no president can cross these lines again.
He is gonna walk away, if he doesn't die or stroke out, first. There is no world in which this guy recieves his just desserts. People like him do not--which is one of the reasons there ARE people like him.
I love the sentiment of Maryann and Oldandintheway, but DJT will walk. SCOTUS has seen to that.
Taking bribes by starting a crypto trading exchange and selling Meme coins is not part of the job of a president.
Also: it’s treason to secretly coordinate with Netanyahu and Putin instead of Congress.
If SOTUS protects him then we need an AG who will investigate them and their corruption.
We need to add justices to the SC when Dems regain power. A more balanced court may find that much of his corrupt behavior had nothing to do with "presidential actions."
Oh I don't know...he put a target on his back for the Iranian's he bombed. Even if they seemingly lose, they won't forget.
He does not believe that is likely or even possible. It never rally entered his mind. Probably still hasn't and won't.
I'd love to see accountability. It's just going to increase polarization though, because our media environment is toxic and getting worse and the voters cannot view reality critically and dispassionately. And I anticipate lots of blanket pardons before we even get the chance.
The amount of malfeasance to investigate in just one year of this administration is daunting. I cannot imagine how much investigating another three years will require.
If we were really going to be serious about showing the world we aren't Trump's America, the first person to be indicted should be Elon Musk. That would send a message to a whole lot of people and interests.
Truth AND Consequences
New game show; Truth and consequences: after Tump.
There is maybe a path forward but it starts only when people are held accountable and Trump is removed from office and it's so hard to see that happening. That's the reality, but that does not mean we give up.
I think we have to jail Trump. Maybe hand him, Hegseth, Noem, Bovino, Miller, etc., over to the ICC, arguments for US sovereignty be damned. Nuremberg 2.0.
If we don't stop them, if we don't hold them accountable, then this is, in fact, who we are. We did Obama era, "they go low we go high," we did Biden era obsessive-proceduralism and an attempt to restore norms by force of will.
In 2029, we need Truman, we need Stimson, we need Supreme Court justice Robert H Jackson. We need to hold trials. We need punishments sufficient to discourage would-be American autocrats and kleptocrats.
The only thing certain to stop the terror is death. I never wish death on anyone, but I won’t be sad. The chance of redemption or repentance seems to be zero
Agree 100%.
Oedipus had to jab his eyes out and wander many years destitute to show the gods that he truly repented for his past errors and cruelty in order to receive redemption from Zeus at Colonus.
Not a chance anyone in the Trump regime would have anywhere near that ability to feel contrition.
and take every red cent he has, just take it
Kotzsu, from your lips to God's ears!
Democrats taking back control of both houses of Congress in November would be a rebuke to Trump that our allies will understand. That is the best we can do to prove Trump doesn’t represent America for the moment.
That, and tens of millions of Americans in the streets on March 28th.
https://www.nokings.org/
Polymart bets now that Democrats take the Senate. We know the House is a foregone conclusion. But still Republican are lockstep with DJT. (Even though they are shitting in the pants worrying.
Does Polymart remind anybody else of "The Gamesters of Triskelion?"
Time to invest in Depend.
It would be a very small step in the right direction, if we make it to the next election.
"The Trump stench will not be easily deodorized, and the ignorant can long savor their victory over the elites as government ceases to function, corruption permeates all levers of power, and we struggle to pull ourselves out of this fascist quicksand."
This. The stench will last decades, our erstwhile allies will not trust us again for that long. Nor should they.
Nor.
Should.
They.
*CORRECT*
Mr. Gates, while you may be right in your grim assessment that it won’t make any difference whether or not Americans demonstrate their disgust and revulsion towards trump, I believe that it will matter.
One way or another, there is a future beyond trump. If the rest of the world confidently knows that it has allies in rebuilding a de-trumpified America, this future can only be better.
Plus, I take some solace in imagining every democracy in the world taking a good hard look at their own political systems and asking themselves, “have we done everything that we can to guard against the forces that allowed trump to prosper in the US?”. Certainly, a lot of political candidates on the far right in various countries lost their momentum once everyone could see what trump-style nonsense really meant in practice. Now, we are providing lessons in how to wake up a previously apathetic/disengaged populace to fight for democracy.
I don't know how to make a difference globally. I can only make a difference in my little, personal world, and yes, here it is very important for people to know we are safe to be with and we are disgusted by corruption, sexual violence, nonsexual violence, and discrimination.
Absolutes will not serve in this moment. No you cannot undo what has already been done. But you can stop it, you can make up for it, you can take a different and better course. All these are options on the table going forward.
Stop it: end Trump's reign of terror
Make up for it: stand down and buck up for reparations
Take a different and better course: diplomatic resolution only, no military action to gain your ends.
I just don't see how to get this common sense to the people in charge. How do we convince Sam Alito that the US should use discretion? How do we convince John Roberts that maybe the rich people shouldn't have all the power and get to pick a king? How do we convince Lindsey Graham that dead soldiers are not a good thing? How do we convince Amy Coney Barrett that her decisions hurt real, actual children? I just don't see any of those things happening. They worked too hard and too long to get us to this point, they're not going to reverse course now.
You can't. I am afraid that unless they dial it back, whoever can be un-elected needs to be un-elected, and whoever can be impeached be impeached and convicted and removed.
These are tools that can be used by the next adult administration.
This is why we desperately need SC reforms when Dems take power again. Add to their number, install term limits with fairness for who chooses replacements.
From where I am sitting right now in beautiful London UK there is no point in trying to convince anyone that Trump doesn’t represent America. Although help in WWII was greatly appreciated there has always been another side envy of America mixed with resentment of American smugness and arrogance. I moved here in the 1980’s and at that time America was putting huge investment into Britain. The results were mixed even then lots of people got rich and lots of companies got taken over and modernised, in a very necessary way. On the other hand plenty of people lost their jobs, the wealthy became greedier and more rapacious and many old companies were stripped of their assets and went under. There was I recall a great deal of tension, because guess what Americans were bullies even then. To make it even worse americas crappy culture, bad tv, shitty food and lack of respect for tradition was repulsive to many Europeans.
I was stationed in England in the 80's and the WWII generation loved us but the younger generations kept us at arm's length and didn't trust us (couldn't blame them then or now). Luckily I was able to make friends with some locals Part of the "test" was seeing how I reacted when they would take the piss at my expense. I guess it was to see how arrogantly American I was.
At least this Trumpian blowout should blow up any American smugness and arrogance, so there’s that.
Though there is a certain irony of the British complaining about smugness and arrogance. I do wonder who we Americans inherited those traits from.
What we really can't undo is the awareness that, despite what the whole world had seen, just enough Americans either voted for him or decided not to vote at all.
I have noticed in the past week that on sites like Washington Post and the Guardian, people in others countries are posting comments like "Your ENTIRE country is responsible for this. Not just the Trump voters" They are pissed at all of us.
Not totally fair to you and me but I definitely get it. And folks like us, Harris voters, clearly don't represent the US.
We must try! Yes, it may seem impossible right now, but who would have thought that Trump could do as much damage as he has done in such a short time. Fixing everything that has been broken will take time and effort, but it will never happen if we don’t try.
Yes, too many in Germany played "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil" and America MUST NOT go down that path. To either accept what is happening, or lay down and play dead as if all is futile will both foretell the end of American Democracy. We have to fight in whatever way we can. Protests changed Civil Rights, and the War in Vietnam. We can do it again. Remember, the majority of Americans did not go out and protest during the '60s and '70s, but enough of the minority did to make it uncomfortable for government. Combine that with an aggressive, truthful press, and that is one winning strategy.
By definition in a representative democracy, Trump DOES represent America.
You are so right. The only way to show the world that Trump does not represent us is to remove him from office. I still have hope that there may be some Republicans who realize how much damage he is doing to their chances in the next election and will band together to get rid of him.
Hopefully the world sees the polls: 35- 39 %.
One of the most interesting comments about the war this weekend was from Trump himself, who said "This should have always been a team effort..." Really? And you realized that only after insulting several of our one-time allies. And then later in the day, you threatened our allies again when they were reluctant to enjoy your little excursion. This does not seem like artful deal making.
Except that if everything went Trump's way, he would take *all* the credit for the operation in Iran. But now that it's not going well, he wants to distribute the responsibility for the failure so it doesn't rest on him. It's childish and narcissistic, and therefore perfectly Trumpish.
I have to say I would not want to be on a team that had Trump on it, exactly for the reason you state. All successes would be his, all failures would be mine.
He's an incredible example of failing upwards. He's a dealmaker like a mob boss is a negotiator.
Except a team effort would have meant articulating why we went to war and what the objectives the goals are, and then working getting our allies on board with what we wanted to accomplish. It is only a *team* effort now has boxed himself in and looking for an out. Our allies may also be realizing that with Trump it is never a team effort.
Hey Art of the deal!
Bill's Sunday interview with Robert Kagan was excellent, if not totally depressing. Kagan is right, Trump has two choices, put all his chips in, or fold. Either he never understood Iran held at least a straight flush with their command over the Straight of Hormuz or he thinks a full house with three planes over two ships is a royal flush. Which, given his current mental state, he might.
Actually Trump should be impeached for treason since he unilaterally took the oil sanctions off Russia at the same time Russia is providing targeting information to the enemy. Aiding and abetting our enemy's ally to attack the US should qualify as treason.
I agree. Trump will never reactivate those sanctions, Once again, it's up to the Congress to do their job. In this case their job is at least in part to invoke the Countering Foreign Aggression Act of 2017, which provides that only Congress can remove Russia financial sanctions.
Amen.
White House doctors are doing America a disservice as they avoid giving Trump any real IQ assessments. I'll bet he does not have the verifiable mental ability to make rational decisions. What a cluster f.
Three planes and two ships a full house; good one Colleen!
Who is going to help us first? The people we insulted, the people we threatened, or the people we tariffed?
This sounds like a promising theme for a parody of the book, The Little Red Hen.
I’m sure all the free speech warrior manosphere podcasters will rise up at this gross threat against the first amendment. Any day now! As a tweet from dieworkwear rightly pointed out last week, I sure am glad that the world is burning because Joe Rogan decided to learn about politics at the ripe young age of 58!
America, where we all learn things long after we've run our mouths about them. :)
So shocked to see that when you relentlessly bully your allies they aren’t actually very inclined to help you with your illegal war. Who could have seen that coming?!
Looks like this time it’s Trump who doesn’t have any cards.
And we will all pay the price, right now literally and if Stephen Miller has anything to say about it, figuratively, too. Wheeeeeeeee.
I miss Joe.
Amen!
Quadruple that!!!!
As I have come to anticipate and celebrate a daily bit of Egger wit, no disappointment this morning with this zinger - "Because he’s not insane, Carr wants to frame his threat as mere concern for fair coverage. But the president he’s channeling, who is insane, isn’t really bothering"....
Depressing news presented with a spoonful of sugar.
“I worry the Iran war, as it continues, could open the same opportunity. Trump would not be the first leader in history to find a foreign war useful for domestic consolidation.”
Thank you Bill, well said and the sum of all of our worst fears! Yet, when you consider all his actions combined, one can easily surmise that this was precisely the point!
We’ve forced the Europeans to move military and other assets to Greenland and th Middle East. The tariffs were unnecessary, and applied to allies, while Trump removes sanctions after sanctions on Russia.
And now, we can’t arm Ukraine or our European Allies because we are burning through our munitions like they grew in trees—3-5 years to replace these munitions and we’re running out of interceptors. In addition, we’ve lost close to $6 billion in equipment and jets, and our radar capabilities have been greatly diminished.
Not to mention, Russian is making $150 million a day, while the Europeans pay $100 a barrel—another drag on their economies.
Further, Iran is destroying our aerial refueling tankers which diminishes our ability to refuel the fighter jets: fewer refueling jets means fewer sorties, which means less coverage of our air power and more risk of both friendly and hostile fire. Let that sink in!
Here's another terrifying thought. Ukraine is estimated to be able to produce 7 million drones of varying abilities in this fiscal year. Imagine how many Iran is going to be able to build and then tell me how in any scenario we can keep the Straight of Hormuz open. Drone warfare has changed everything. Our military capability was predicated on deterring missiles, not drones. Iran could easily be the next Ukraine and the US the next Russia. Putting troops on the ground would be utterly insane given Russia's inability to cope with Ukraine's drone capabilities.
Excellent comment, and 100% agree. Just so you know, Iran has been producing the Shahed drones for Russia for years. The Russians have improved their performance and capabilities tremendously.
And the Hourhis’s, who haven’t entered the war are masters of asymmetrical warfare at sea and operate from the Red Sea, through the Gulf of Aden, and all the way to the Horn of Africa. Not to mention, they’ve been stocking up on Shahed drones for years, and can mass produce cheaper Iranian drone’s: Sammad-3.
This administration is clueless! What were hey expecting a cake walk? Iran borders by Iraq and Afghanistan. They’ve been studying our capabilities for two generations, and now we’ve played straight into their hands.
Not only have we lost the war, we’ll have no friends—and the Iranian people, just like the Afghani’s and Iraqi’s before them, as well as the rest of the western world; will never forget our plethora of betrayals over the years! I think both Japan and Taiwan have also gotten the memo!
Yes they were expecting a cakewalk. That's why a SecDef is usually someone who has experience through the military ranks up through general or if a civilian through the civilian equivalent. Major Martini and his minions think war is a video game.
Someone should tell them there is no reset button and then see how long they keep playing.
There is a saying that generals are fighting the last war .Champaign Pete sure is. Ukraine showed the future of warfare. Russia has found that out. but US hasn't yet.
Remember when Trump raged about the cost of the equipment we left in Afghanistan. Maybe he thought that was small beans.
True, and when you consider how states were being gouged during COVID because Trump wouldn’t release the National Emergency Supply of PPE’s and respirators; that will pale in comparison to this grift.
FYI: Trump Jr’s drone companies received multi-billion drone contracts. Let that sink in!…:)
I've come to appreciate that, when MAGA and the GOP are upset about corruption on the Dem's side, they are really mad at how little it was. The bigger the level/amount of corruption, the more they approve of that person. I mean, they were upset at Hunter's $50k/month payment from Burisma, but Trump getting a plane, Jared working his business deals while negotiating ... something, the Trump boys getting into crypto and drones. Admirable entrepreneurs, all!
Exactly!…:)👍
But Hunter Biden! Now, THAT was an outrage!
Touché!…:)
His laptop and paintings oh my!!!
The Don and Eric Drones
“And as every expert I’ve read says, the only way to guarantee keeping the strait open is to control the Iranian coastline from which most of the attacks originate. And you can only control the coastline with ground forces. If you ask me right now, I would say Trump is going to use ground troops, and we’re going to be in this war for months at minimum.”
Either way, the next time Khomenei rears his ugly head will be to announce that Iran has several nukes capable of being deployed by land and sea!
And one thing is for sure; we are no longer the leader of the free world and our currency will no longer be the reserve currency of the world. Nor will the US be a safe haven country during depressed economic times.
Trump brought change alright, the type of change that leads us straight off an economic cliff! IMHO…:)
BRICS began in the aughts as an effort to oppose the hegemony of the US dollar. My theory is that Trump was led to believe that shivving NATO would earn him a seat at the head of that table. I believe the reality is that he, and we, are what's for dinner.
Agreed, we’re on the menu. Putin gave the US a master class in Shady diplomacy; he saw a bunch of greedy Americans willing to sell their souls for wealth and power, helped get one elected, and now we will be relegated to the dustbin of history; as what, no one knows, not even Putin or Trump!
Bottom line, If Russia is currently the world’s largest gas station with nukes, I can wait to see what becomes of us!…:)
We're WalMart with nukes. At least until our people run out of credit.
Good point, and as for credit, they’re going to run out sooner than they think. Over 80% of Christmas purchases were on credit, less 20% pay off the balances. Not to mention, 20% of all purchases were using buy now, pay later. And I’m sure those people have already maxed out their credit cards.
Factor in car loans and leases, student loans, mortgages underwater, Trump’s BBB—large deficits, perpetual war costing billions a day; and we’re heading into the perfect storm—and straight off an economic cliff!
Yeah, I originally typed "until our people run out of money," but we're past that point so I edited it. The thing is, though, we've been past that point since the 1980s and the bottom hasn't fallen out yet, so everyone thinks it never will. Meanwhile, the younger generation is struggling to find jobs outside of delivering pizzas to stoners.
I don't know what to think. Logic says this all has to crash, but previous presidents and Fed chairs and Congress have managed to keep it going against all odds since the Reagan Revolution, when we all decided debt and greed are good. I don't know. I was actually an economics major in college. Money used to seem real to me. But after the last couple of years, it all seems like a fantasy world without logic or math.
Everything you say—you’ll get no argument from me; however, never before have we had such incompetents running this nation whose allegiance is to a man and ideology, as opposed to the safety and national security of this nation.
Sure, we’ve had charlatans and crooks in office; but thy drew a line. Trump has no bottom, his crimes—incalculable, and his allegiance is to no one but himself.
Bottom line, it’s almost impossible, even for qualified individuals at the Fed to save us from Trump and MAGA, when MAGA and Trump are deliberately undermining any possible solutions to all the chaos Trump and his minions manage to pile “higher and deeper”!
Whats the adage: “you can save people from the world, but you can’t save them from themselves.”
Right now, MAGA is America—they control all the levers of power, and if Trump continues with his destructive policies, while Congress and SCOTUS continue to enable his reckless and impulsive behavior; then don’t expect the Fed to be our Knight in shining armor! They are good, but no one is that good!
As Dick Cheney once said; "deficits mean nothing. Reagan proved that".
With his six bankruptcies, I never voted for him since I did not want him to bankrupt America. It seems he has larger aspirations.
The only time he tells the truth is when it’s about his agenda. And no one can claim—who voted for him, that he didn’t say that, “I’ll do to America what I did to my businesses”: and the rest is history!
After all, we’re now not only broke, but he turned this nation into the world’s biggest JOKE! So in the end, we got exactly what we paid for!
Someone commented we should pay attention when he uses the term hoax because whatever he is calling a hoax is usually the truth.
I never voted for him because I knew he is a scumbag.
Yep. There are a myriad of examples from his past that support this. I just used one.
While his cult cheers him on...
Yep. I recently tried talking to my MAGA neighbors about the illegal attacks on Iran, and all of them immediately came to Trump's defense and said he was absolutely doing the right thing.
I asked what exactly Iran had done to us -- specifically, not potentially. And they just ignored my question and said that Trump was going to take over Iran for the oil, and we would all benefit from having Iranian oil in the future.
You can't talk to people when they are locked in a cult and see defending whatever the cult leader does, no matter how illegal or irrational.
I see. So if I stole your neighbor’s car because it would benefit me and wife, that’s OK. I’m shocked these people can turn on a faucet without injuring themselves.
It's about personal greed, as you suggest. That's what motivates so many in the cult.
Your neighbors are not serious people. It’s the us/them thinking that offends me the most. Iran’s oil is not ours to take. And if your neighbors were actually serious adults, they’d march down to the local recruitment office to aid our theft of another country’s resources. Since they won’t, that tells me everything I need to know.
Yes, of course, those were exactly my points.
Also, my neighbors are (who could have guessed?) too old to join the military -- but you can bet they won't allow their grandchildren to volunteer in a war they are all too willing to support "for the oil."
Remember those Venezuelan oil tankers we confiscated? Well while they sit they cost millions to simply to maintain. All the while, judges will say they are illegal to detain anyway! Art of the deal!
Too bad we can't plant someone to whisper into Dementia Donnie's resurrected ear, "Send ICE to Iran, they're experts at catching brown people".
lol, and wonderful solution!
Agree. Not enough people are focusing realistically on the damage Trump is doing to our economy. This is grim.
Thanks. Unfortunately, too many people are suffering from delusions of grandeur. The long term effects of this administration will be catastrophic; and haunt us for decades to come, if not for all eternity—closer the truth.
Sadly, our youth is in for some rude awakening’s, because Trump has brought us closer to the brink than most people can comprehend at this point. We were on the decline, but now all economic advantages are gone.
Let me get this straight...Trump throws a party (war), but doesn't invite these guys to come to the party (war) itself. Instead, he demands they come and clean up the mess AFTER the party (war)?
Huh.
I'm guessing that's how every party Trump ever threw played out.
Yes, and he demands that they BYOB and offer gifts for him as well!
That's correct!
cripe, he's had 3 ( I think ) since his incursion / WAR began
AKA "Watch Parties"
Mr. Carr can only threaten the licenses of over-the-air broadcasters, whose market share continues to erode. He has zero authority over streamers, cable channels, news aggregators, web sites, Substack, etc. And TV license renewals are years apart. His real power is to disrupt merger deals.
TV is dead. I don't even think kids watch movies anymore. Trump lives in 1986 and doesn't realize it. But unfortunately, he has a lot of people around him who get that internet thing.
"I used to be with it, but then they changed what it was. Now what I'm with isn't it, and what's it seems weird and scary to me, and it'll happen to you, too." - Grandpa Simpson
Doh!!
Wait til Amazon Web Services decide they want to pick and choose what streamers/outlets/sites/etc get out there.
Did they learn nothing from the Jimmy Kimmel debacle? Go ahead and take away the broadcast licenses from networks and then watch the epic backlash. All those Americans who don't really pay attention to the news are absolutely certain to pay attention to the cancellation of their favorite TV shows. I can't wait to see MAGA world's reaction when they cancel Sunday Night Football and grandma's game shows and soap operas.
Threats to remove licenses can be two things at the same time - ominous and farcical.