There’s plenty of news on the Iran war
You can find a good roundup at Ace’s. Plus, the Iranian president says that Iran is at “full-scale war” with the US.
Hasn’t that been the case for quite some time? Their approach at the moment continues to be to make passage through the Strait difficult and to bomb the Gulf States and other Arab countries in order to harm US military personnel based there and to get those states to pressure the US to stop.
None of this is new.
Two or three (two killed, one missing) US military members were killed over the weekend in Jordan:
The Pentagon said the soldiers were supporting Operation Inherent Resolve, the name for the U.S. mission against the Islamic State group.
One more military member died from a drone attack in Iraq. However, the article says that was a “controlled detonation” – so was it an accident in which an unexploded drone was being purposely detonated and something went wrong? Seems that way, but the articles I’ve found on the subject aren’t entirely clear.
RIP.
Stupid of the Iranians because that ends the clock on the unconstitutional war powers act.
Might help President Trump in this war with members of Congress other other side. Iran declares open war let’s go at em full bore.
Jeez, I do not understand why we have stood down the Israelis. Let them pick off the leaders again–negotiating with any of them is a waste of time, and turn on all Economic Fury measures again. We don’t win this until somebody topples the regime–that’s most likely something Israel can do. I wonder if Vance is lebbying Trump to hold the Israelis back so he can continue negotiating. If so, Trump should tell JD to sit down and shut up.
I like Rubio or DeSantis over Vance any day.
@ Bill (8:15 PM) I wholeheartedly agree. Hope GOP doesn’t do what Dems did last election feeling they had to go w/ VP.
Jeez, I do not understand why we have stood down the Israelis.
A – f-ing – men.
“Hope GOP doesn’t do what Dems did last election feeling they had to go w/ VP.”
I’m increasingly persuaded that Vance is another Pence. That’s been in the GOP’s playbook at least since Bush Sr. told Reagan he didn’t really mean it with his “Voodoo Economics” charge.
“Jeez, I do not understand why we have stood down the Israelis.”
Well, it’s what we always do… “Just War Doctrine” you know.
Once an enemy’s ability to directly threaten you is nullified, wiping out a mortal enemy would entail the use of ‘disproportionate force’. Think our ROEs when ‘pacifying’ Afghanistan.
The following analysis, astonishing in its breadth and for the way it pulls together global political, sociological and historical trends and movements, might be a bit OT…but just a little bit:
“Naming the Threat: Third-Worldism”—
https://www.zinebriboua.com/p/naming-the-threat-third-worldism
H/T Powerline blog.
Reminder:
1. This conflict ends when Muslims reform the Islamic religion.
Everything else is whack-a-mole that lasts for various durations.
They intend to “liberate” everything that is not already dar-el-Islam, and will lie cheat steal and behave with brutal lack of constraint and honor.
Not all cultures are alike, kiddies.
So: forget about Trump “solving” this or ending this “cycle of violence”… President Thomas Jefferson was fighting Muslim pirates…
2. This administration is juggling the Iranian situation with other foreign threats, a longer-term realignment that dumps useless European weenie-allies.
AND an all-important domestic race to wake up enough Americans to save the Republic. The immediate challenge is the midterms.
He MUST be perceived as honoring the “no new foreign entanglements” promise he made – which plays well with both patriots and peaceniks.
He must also hold fast to the new Trump Doctrines of foreign policy… it would be lovely to establish a democratic Iranian republic in the heart or dar-el-Islam, but it must not be perceived as Cold-war style American imperialism, and it must not (appear to) leave American boots on the ground… he has repeatedly tested the waters and invited the Iranian people and the Shah’s descendants to step up. Apparently we’re not there yet.
Within those constraints this administration is carrying out a deep, brilliant strategy… Repeatedly boxing out the Chinese and Russians… Repeatedly refocusing the financial world back to America.
But this approach may leave those wanting a Big Beautiful Victory disappointed.
I discount almost all the reports of daylight between the USA and Israel as misinformation – finally an administration willing to fight lies and taqiyya with misdirection.
Meanwhile Israel is establishing a sterile zone in the north, mopping up in Gaza….
This administration is constantly playing 3-D chess and acheiving several things at once… no satisfying spectacle, but effective.
Excellent comment.
Me? I don’t know WHAT to believe anymore…
(I know what I’d like to believe…but that’s not going to pay the rent.)
Anyway, here’s a pair of articles—there’s no end to them—that demonstrate the problem with the current rampant dishonesty and lunacy:
“WHEN THEY TELL YOU HOW THEY WIN, BELIEVE THEM”—
https://instapundit.com/811487/
“THIS IS NO STORY, JUST LIKE OBAMA’S DEAD CHEF”—
https://instapundit.com/811542/
I doubt that anyone in the Trump administration does or says much that isn’t approved by Trump. Trump has bashed Israel a lot in this Iran conflict: has trump bashed Israel in this Iran war?
Partnering up with Israel in the beginning was a great move; however, typical Trump flip-flopping and chaos has been going on since someone thought they could ‘Make a Deal’—bargain with Iran, IMHO.
Iranians had a chance to revolt against the regime and they didn’t. Why do Iranians still have electricity? Water? Cut off the electricity and see if the Iranians finally stand up and revolt…I dunno, but playing patty cake with them makes them look in control, IMHO.
CRINK: China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea. If Iran is bad for America then so are the other three…
Re: Vance – Unless Don Jr. runs (for the love of all things, please no), Vance is the closest thing to a continuation of the Trump movement. He is chasing the energy of the populist right that Trump unleashed. You want all those young men and minorities who watch Joe Rogan and voted for Trump? There would be no Trump 47 without them. And they’re probably not going to vote for Rubio and certainly not for DeSantis. The only thing that Trump has brought to the GOP that (might) outlast his own cult of personality is represented by Vance, Joe Rogan, and Tucker Carlson.
I’m not saying that Rubio and DeSantis couldn’t win. They are actually my 1 and 1A preferences for 2028. They would just have to draw middle class normies who abandoned the GOP over Trumpian sleaze. Especially if the Dems run Kamala or a DSA candidate, this is plausible and maybe even likely. (And if the GOP really wants to make sure Dems don’t take the White House in 2028, they should run Nikki Haley. She would unlock a vast swath of normie voters who, sadly, are probably unavailable to Rubio or DeSantis. And the whole “we need Trump because Nikki Haley is a war monger” argument really hasn’t aged well.)
And I’m saying this as someone who initially liked Vance. I thought his book was brilliant, made a great and necessary argument about culture, and that he had a great potential as a future leader. I’m dismayed now by his footsie with Tucker and his “the Jews did it” argument over the Iran MOU. I think that Trump put him in an impossible situation when he made a quagmire in Iran over Vance’s contrary advice, but even given that, Vance hasn’t covered himself in glory and that’s becoming a pattern.
Backward looking and topic adjacent, nevertheless, worth a read. From Lillian H. Meuller:
https://x.com/i/status/2079542143815758146
Of course The New Yorker downplays the extent of the Biden Admin perfidy, but then we’d expect no less.
Once again for CC™-R The Great Orange Whale is the root of all evil, today it is turning J D Vance into a puppet without agency.
Don Trump Jr., is The Little Orange Whale?