This is insane

[Sandy Shanks]

This is insane. I have been following events in Washington for nearly 60 years. This is new, strange even by Trump's standards. The President is threatening a war with an adversary and the American people have no idea why. Congress is not helping. Supposedly, the Gang of Eight got an earful of the threat from Iran, and the full Congress will hear more next week.

The American people are being told nothing.

Politico reports, "Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are growing increasingly alarmed about developments in the Middle East.

"Sen. Mark Warner left a lengthy classified briefing on Iran Thursday afternoon with a provocative reaction: "It's very important that more members hear this story.'"

And the American people? Are we going to war without knowing why? What is our government hiding from us?

The briefings come amid fears of “credible” and "urgent" dangers to U.S. interests by Iran, Republican Senators said on Thursday. But Trump and the Republicans will not tell the people what those "credible and urgent dangers" are. This is really strange, even for Trump.

What makes this even more strange is that Iran has not attacked anyone and not started a war in two centuries.

Yet Trump wants us to believe that Iran will break that trend and attack the most powerful military force on the planet and is outgunned in every department, warships, warplanes, ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and outnumbered in troop levels. Trump wants us to believe that the Persians are suicidal.

Not only that, due to the mercurial nature of the American President and his extreme naïveté, there is little doubt that Iran has ordered her proxies the U.S. forces are off-limits. Hamas, Hezbollah, and Houthi have never attacked U.S. forces. The same could not be said of U.S. forces attacking them.

Shiite militias in Iraq have attacked U.S. forces, but that is a separate issue. The Shiites believe the American troops are occupiers. They get this silly notion because America invaded their country sixteen years ago and have stuck around since. Besides, that is old news. The Shiites have been attacking Americans since 2003. Also, they do so on their own authority, not that of the Iranian government.

Perhaps, this explains it.

JERUSALEM — Israel has been providing Washington with intelligence about potential Iranian attacks. Its prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has made Iran’s strategic ambitions an obsession. And as recently as February he floated the idea of war with Iran.

Israel Presses the Case Against Iran, but Not for War

 

[Sandy Shanks]

It is all a mistake.

Fox News reports, "A top Iranian general has told Iran-backed militias in Iraq to “prepare for proxy war” in the wake of heightened tensions between Iran and the U.S., which accused the militias of moving missiles toward American forces.

"Qassem Soleimani, a commander of Iran’s extraterritorial military operations Quds Force, called for a meeting with the militias three weeks ago, but the exact timing of the gathering remains unclear, the Guardian reported Thursday.

“It wasn’t a call to arms, but it wasn’t far off,” a senior intelligence [?] source told the newspaper."

Top Iranian generals have been issuing threats to American forces since our invasion of Iran's neighbor, Iraq, for sixteen years. It seems they don't like an American invasion force just across the border. What a bunch of troublemakers.

"The meeting likely played a role in the Trump administration’s decision this week to pull all non-essential government staff from Iraq." Well, SecState Pompeo is new at the job.

This is insane.

Turns out, according to the WSJ, this was all a big mistake.

Fox continued, "But intelligence collected by the U.S. government appears to also suggest that both Iran and the U.S. may have misread each other as being offensive rather than defensive, the Wall Street Journal reported.

"Iran apparently thought the U.S. was planning an attack on Iran, which prompted the regime to prepare for counterstrikes."

I told the government that last week. The "intelligence" no doubt came from the Trump White House with the good graces of guess who.

Fox adds, "At the same time, some within the Trump administration say that the same intelligence also suggests that Iran was planning to strike first. Such intelligence may have formed the basis of Pompeo’s claims during his meeting with the Iraqi top brass."

That is the most insane statement yet.

Hogwash! Trump has done this several times before. He creates crisis after crisis to distract from his myriad problems on the domestic front and the inability of his administration to govern. Trump thinks he is still a reality show host, and he thinks all of this is fun. If, in the process, it pisses off the liberals, all the better.

In the meantime he creates policy by Twitter and refuses to be questioned by the White House press corps. He has become the secret President, a coward afraid to face the American people. No wonder he needs serious distractions. The whole nation got sucked into this one because Trump is just crazy enough to start a war with Iran to distract from his troubles, and he is militarily challenged.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

President Trump with Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan and Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.CreditCreditSarah Silbiger/The New York Times

The Times reports, "Iran has unloaded missiles from at least two small boats in its territorial waters in what two American officials said on Friday was a sign of easing tensions in the brewing confrontation between Washington and Tehran.

"In recent days, American officials [read Trump White House] have described satellite photographs showing fully assembled missiles being loaded onto multiple boats in multiple Iranian ports. The pictures were cited as evidence for concern that the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps was targeting United States naval ships in the Persian Gulf and nearby waters.

"But over the past two days, Iranian forces removed the missiles from two of the boats, according to a Defense Department official and a congressional official. The boats, called dhows, had sailed between the Iranian ports of Jask and Chabahar in the Gulf of Oman, the officials said."

The two slow moving boats reached their destination and the boats were unloaded.

The Times added, "But the unloading of the missiles on the two small boats, coupled with the unhindered passage through the strategically important Strait of Hormuz on Thursday of two Navy destroyers, the U.S.S. McFaul and the U.S.S. Gonzalez, prompted some officials [read Trump sycophants] to claim that a recent show of United States firepower may have deterred the threat of Iranian attacks on American forces."

On top of the report quoted above, this is just too funny. Somebody took Trump aside and said, "Hey a$$hole, this isn't a freaking game. Back off."

Trump can't back down fast enough. What an idiot. Trump, who has no military experience, wants us to believe the mighty U.S. navy was concerned about two slow moving boats ferrying missiles from one Iranian port to another.

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

This is insane. I have been following events in Washington for nearly 60 years. This is new, strange even by Trump's standards. The President is threatening a war with an adversary and the American people have no idea why. Congress is not helping. Supposedly, the Gang of Eight got an earful of the threat from Iran, and the full Congress will hear more next week.

The American people are being told nothing.

Politico reports, "Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are growing increasingly alarmed about developments in the Middle East.

"Sen. Mark Warner left a lengthy classified briefing on Iran Thursday afternoon with a provocative reaction: "It's very important that more members hear this story.'"

And the American people? Are we going to war without knowing why? What is our government hiding from us?

The briefings come amid fears of “credible” and "urgent" dangers to U.S. interests by Iran, Republican Senators said on Thursday. But Trump and the Republicans will not tell the people what those "credible and urgent dangers" are. This is really strange, even for Trump.

What makes this even more strange is that Iran has not attacked anyone and not started a war in two centuries.

Yet Trump wants us to believe that Iran will break that trend and attack the most powerful military force on the planet and is outgunned in every department, warships, warplanes, ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and outnumbered in troop levels. Trump wants us to believe that the Persians are suicidal.

Not only that, due to the mercurial nature of the American President and his extreme naïveté, there is little doubt that Iran has ordered her proxies the U.S. forces are off-limits. Hamas, Hezbollah, and Houthi have never attacked U.S. forces. The same could not be said of U.S. forces attacking them.

Shiite militias in Iraq have attacked U.S. forces, but that is a separate issue. The Shiites believe the American troops are occupiers. They get this silly notion because America invaded their country sixteen years ago and have stuck around since. Besides, that is old news. The Shiites have been attacking Americans since 2003. Also, they do so on their own authority, not that of the Iranian government.

Perhaps, this explains it.

JERUSALEM — Israel has been providing Washington with intelligence about potential Iranian attacks. Its prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has made Iran’s strategic ambitions an obsession. And as recently as February he floated the idea of war with Iran.

Israel Presses the Case Against Iran, but Not for War

What makes this even more strange is that Iran has not attacked anyone and not started a war in two centuries.

Except for all the terror attacks they committed...….and funded.

 

[Bob Blaylock]

What makes this even more strange is that Iran has not attacked anyone and not started a war in two centuries.

I'm old enough to remember when the Khomeniacs took over Iran, attacked our embassy (an open act of war) and held our diplomats prisoner for well over a year. That was a lot less than two centuries ago. I'm old, but I'm not that old.

 

[william the wie]

Well it seems that rdean has had children and his line has bred true

 

[C_Clayton_Jones]

This is insane. I have been following events in Washington for nearly 60 years. This is new, strange even by Trump's standards. The President is threatening a war with an adversary and the American people have no idea why. Congress is not helping. Supposedly, the Gang of Eight got an earful of the threat from Iran, and the full Congress will hear more next week.

The American people are being told nothing.

Politico reports, "Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are growing increasingly alarmed about developments in the Middle East.

"Sen. Mark Warner left a lengthy classified briefing on Iran Thursday afternoon with a provocative reaction: "It's very important that more members hear this story.'"

And the American people? Are we going to war without knowing why? What is our government hiding from us?

The briefings come amid fears of “credible” and "urgent" dangers to U.S. interests by Iran, Republican Senators said on Thursday. But Trump and the Republicans will not tell the people what those "credible and urgent dangers" are. This is really strange, even for Trump.

What makes this even more strange is that Iran has not attacked anyone and not started a war in two centuries.

Yet Trump wants us to believe that Iran will break that trend and attack the most powerful military force on the planet and is outgunned in every department, warships, warplanes, ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and outnumbered in troop levels. Trump wants us to believe that the Persians are suicidal.

Not only that, due to the mercurial nature of the American President and his extreme naïveté, there is little doubt that Iran has ordered her proxies the U.S. forces are off-limits. Hamas, Hezbollah, and Houthi have never attacked U.S. forces. The same could not be said of U.S. forces attacking them.

Shiite militias in Iraq have attacked U.S. forces, but that is a separate issue. The Shiites believe the American troops are occupiers. They get this silly notion because America invaded their country sixteen years ago and have stuck around since. Besides, that is old news. The Shiites have been attacking Americans since 2003. Also, they do so on their own authority, not that of the Iranian government.

Perhaps, this explains it.

JERUSALEM — Israel has been providing Washington with intelligence about potential Iranian attacks. Its prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has made Iran’s strategic ambitions an obsession. And as recently as February he floated the idea of war with Iran.

Israel Presses the Case Against Iran, but Not for War

It’s insane because Trump as president is insane.

 

[Harpy Eagle]

This is insane. I have been following events in Washington for nearly 60 years. This is new, strange even by Trump's standards. The President is threatening a war with an adversary and the American people have no idea why. Congress is not helping.

Congress abdicated its Constitutional duty and the the power to declare war to the Executive Branch with the signing of the AUMF in 2001. Now the President no longer needs to bother with Congress for little things like a war.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

This is insane. I have been following events in Washington for nearly 60 years. This is new, strange even by Trump's standards. The President is threatening a war with an adversary and the American people have no idea why. Congress is not helping. Supposedly, the Gang of Eight got an earful of the threat from Iran, and the full Congress will hear more next week.

The American people are being told nothing.

Politico reports, "Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are growing increasingly alarmed about developments in the Middle East.

"Sen. Mark Warner left a lengthy classified briefing on Iran Thursday afternoon with a provocative reaction: "It's very important that more members hear this story.'"

And the American people? Are we going to war without knowing why? What is our government hiding from us?

The briefings come amid fears of “credible” and "urgent" dangers to U.S. interests by Iran, Republican Senators said on Thursday. But Trump and the Republicans will not tell the people what those "credible and urgent dangers" are. This is really strange, even for Trump.

What makes this even more strange is that Iran has not attacked anyone and not started a war in two centuries.

Yet Trump wants us to believe that Iran will break that trend and attack the most powerful military force on the planet and is outgunned in every department, warships, warplanes, ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and outnumbered in troop levels. Trump wants us to believe that the Persians are suicidal.

Not only that, due to the mercurial nature of the American President and his extreme naïveté, there is little doubt that Iran has ordered her proxies the U.S. forces are off-limits. Hamas, Hezbollah, and Houthi have never attacked U.S. forces. The same could not be said of U.S. forces attacking them.

Shiite militias in Iraq have attacked U.S. forces, but that is a separate issue. The Shiites believe the American troops are occupiers. They get this silly notion because America invaded their country sixteen years ago and have stuck around since. Besides, that is old news. The Shiites have been attacking Americans since 2003. Also, they do so on their own authority, not that of the Iranian government.

Perhaps, this explains it.

JERUSALEM — Israel has been providing Washington with intelligence about potential Iranian attacks. Its prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has made Iran’s strategic ambitions an obsession. And as recently as February he floated the idea of war with Iran.

Israel Presses the Case Against Iran, but Not for War

What makes this even more strange is that Iran has not attacked anyone and not started a war in two centuries.

Except for all the terror attacks they committed...….and funded.

It is true that Iran supports Hezbollah, Hamas, Houthi, and the Shiite militia. They are Iran's allies much like Israel is our ally.

Let's put this in perspective. Israel receives over $3 billion in direct foreign assistance each year, which is roughly one-fifth of America's entire foreign aid budget. We also provide Israel some of the most sophisticated weaponry in the world, and our fighters and bombers stand ready to give Israel assistance if she is attacked. That is far more monetary assistance than Iran's proxies get a year. https://ifamericaknew.org/stat/usaid.html

Israel continues to threaten Iran with extinction. “This situation will require Israel to intensify its intelligence efforts in Iraq, with the possibility of taking operational steps there if Iranian proliferation becomes a military threat”.Israel threatens to attack Iran bases in Iraq

Now here is my question. Is the U.S. responsible for everything the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) does?

Is Iran responsible for everything Hezbollah, Hamas, Houthi, and Shiite militias do or do those organizations have their own leadership and their own agenda?

Also, you missed my point. The Iranian government hasn't attacked anyone in over two centuries.Trump would have us believe the Persians are suicidal and are going to attack the most powerful military on the planet. Ridiculous.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

The Iranian nuclear agreement, or JCPOA, had one goal: Keep Iran more than a year away from the capability to build a nuclear weapon.

"Designing an agreement that would assure it would take Iran a year or more to “break out” and make the fuel to build a bomb — giving the United States, Israel and others plenty of time to respond — was the driving force behind the 2015 nuclear deal that was negotiated under former President Barack Obama."

According to the IAEA, tasked with monitoring Iran's nuclear activities, that deal was working when Trump withdrew the United States from it in May 2018, calling it a “disaster.”

Iran had shipped roughly 97 percent of its nuclear fuel out of the country, leaving only a modest stockpile, and was obeying the limits on producing more. But now that deal is gone and taking its place are threats, increased sanctions, and warnings to our allies to respect Trump's new sanctions.

Now Iran is threaten to do exactly what Trump did ... leave the JCPOA.

The United States insists on “zero enrichment for Iran,” according to Brian H. Hook, the State Department’s special envoy for Iran. That would assure Tehran could produce no new nuclear material, and thus never get closer to building a weapon than it is now.

Which is exactly what the JCPOA was doing when Trump pulled us out the agreement.

"It was a telling moment in a strange, circular week of mutual threats and missed signals between bitter adversaries." Due to his incompetence and naïveté, Trump has boxed himself into a corner. Trump has insisted that he could confront Iran without leading to a military conflict, but, of course, he does not tell us how. Other officials in his administration have, effectively, set a red line that they said Tehran would cross at its peril.

“We are restoring deterrence while working toward a new and better deal,” Mr. Hook said. “We lost deterrence under the Iran deal.”

Really? Trump remains confused. No one has specified what kind of reaction — military or otherwise — would be ordered if Iran built up enough of a stockpile of uranium and took other steps that would cross that threshold.

Welcome to the Trump administration, a headless creation lacking purpose and options to achieve that purpose if it had one.

The New York Times assisted me with this post. To Contain Iran, Trump’s Newest Line in the Sand Looks a Lot Like Obama’s

 

[Likkmee]

This is insane. I have been following events in Washington for nearly 60 years. This is new, strange even by Trump's standards. The President is threatening a war with an adversary and the American people have no idea why. Congress is not helping. Supposedly, the Gang of Eight got an earful of the threat from Iran, and the full Congress will hear more next week.

The American people are being told nothing.

Politico reports, "Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are growing increasingly alarmed about developments in the Middle East.

"Sen. Mark Warner left a lengthy classified briefing on Iran Thursday afternoon with a provocative reaction: "It's very important that more members hear this story.'"

And the American people? Are we going to war without knowing why? What is our government hiding from us?

The briefings come amid fears of “credible” and "urgent" dangers to U.S. interests by Iran, Republican Senators said on Thursday. But Trump and the Republicans will not tell the people what those "credible and urgent dangers" are. This is really strange, even for Trump.

What makes this even more strange is that Iran has not attacked anyone and not started a war in two centuries.

Yet Trump wants us to believe that Iran will break that trend and attack the most powerful military force on the planet and is outgunned in every department, warships, warplanes, ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and outnumbered in troop levels. Trump wants us to believe that the Persians are suicidal.

Not only that, due to the mercurial nature of the American President and his extreme naïveté, there is little doubt that Iran has ordered her proxies the U.S. forces are off-limits. Hamas, Hezbollah, and Houthi have never attacked U.S. forces. The same could not be said of U.S. forces attacking them.

Shiite militias in Iraq have attacked U.S. forces, but that is a separate issue. The Shiites believe the American troops are occupiers. They get this silly notion because America invaded their country sixteen years ago and have stuck around since. Besides, that is old news. The Shiites have been attacking Americans since 2003. Also, they do so on their own authority, not that of the Iranian government.

Perhaps, this explains it.

JERUSALEM — Israel has been providing Washington with intelligence about potential Iranian attacks. Its prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has made Iran’s strategic ambitions an obsession. And as recently as February he floated the idea of war with Iran.

Israel Presses the Case Against Iran, but Not for War

Vee go varr with Iran. Vee mean you go, vee vatch, like always. Shalom.
Don't forget ziss month chekk.

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

This is insane. I have been following events in Washington for nearly 60 years. This is new, strange even by Trump's standards. The President is threatening a war with an adversary and the American people have no idea why. Congress is not helping. Supposedly, the Gang of Eight got an earful of the threat from Iran, and the full Congress will hear more next week.

The American people are being told nothing.

Politico reports, "Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are growing increasingly alarmed about developments in the Middle East.

"Sen. Mark Warner left a lengthy classified briefing on Iran Thursday afternoon with a provocative reaction: "It's very important that more members hear this story.'"

And the American people? Are we going to war without knowing why? What is our government hiding from us?

The briefings come amid fears of “credible” and "urgent" dangers to U.S. interests by Iran, Republican Senators said on Thursday. But Trump and the Republicans will not tell the people what those "credible and urgent dangers" are. This is really strange, even for Trump.

What makes this even more strange is that Iran has not attacked anyone and not started a war in two centuries.

Yet Trump wants us to believe that Iran will break that trend and attack the most powerful military force on the planet and is outgunned in every department, warships, warplanes, ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and outnumbered in troop levels. Trump wants us to believe that the Persians are suicidal.

Not only that, due to the mercurial nature of the American President and his extreme naïveté, there is little doubt that Iran has ordered her proxies the U.S. forces are off-limits. Hamas, Hezbollah, and Houthi have never attacked U.S. forces. The same could not be said of U.S. forces attacking them.

Shiite militias in Iraq have attacked U.S. forces, but that is a separate issue. The Shiites believe the American troops are occupiers. They get this silly notion because America invaded their country sixteen years ago and have stuck around since. Besides, that is old news. The Shiites have been attacking Americans since 2003. Also, they do so on their own authority, not that of the Iranian government.

Perhaps, this explains it.

JERUSALEM — Israel has been providing Washington with intelligence about potential Iranian attacks. Its prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has made Iran’s strategic ambitions an obsession. And as recently as February he floated the idea of war with Iran.

Israel Presses the Case Against Iran, but Not for War

What makes this even more strange is that Iran has not attacked anyone and not started a war in two centuries.

Except for all the terror attacks they committed...….and funded.

It is true that Iran supports Hezbollah, Hamas, Houthi, and the Shiite militia. They are Iran's allies much like Israel is our ally.

Let's put this in perspective. Israel receives over $3 billion in direct foreign assistance each year, which is roughly one-fifth of America's entire foreign aid budget. We also provide Israel some of the most sophisticated weaponry in the world, and our fighters and bombers stand ready to give Israel assistance if she is attacked. That is far more monetary assistance than Iran's proxies get a year. https://ifamericaknew.org/stat/usaid.html

Israel continues to threaten Iran with extinction. “This situation will require Israel to intensify its intelligence efforts in Iraq, with the possibility of taking operational steps there if Iranian proliferation becomes a military threat”.Israel threatens to attack Iran bases in Iraq

Now here is my question. Is the U.S. responsible for everything the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) does?

Is Iran responsible for everything Hezbollah, Hamas, Houthi, and Shiite militias do or do those organizations have their own leadership and their own agenda?

Also, you missed my point. The Iranian government hasn't attacked anyone in over two centuries.Trump would have us believe the Persians are suicidal and are going to attack the most powerful military on the planet. Ridiculous.

Israel continues to threaten Iran with extinction.

I thought Israel had nukes? Why haven't they already caused Iran's extinction?

Is the U.S. responsible for everything the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) does?

Of course not.

Is Iran responsible for everything Hezbollah, Hamas, Houthi, and Shiite militias do or do those organizations have their own leadership and their own agenda?

Are you conflating the only democracy in the Middle East with the terror groups Iran supports?

The Iranian government hasn't attacked anyone in over two centuries.

Yes, I saw your lie the first time you posted it.

Trump would have us believe the Persians are suicidal

The Persians, no, the Imans, probably.

 

[BlackFlag]

What makes this even more strange is that Iran has not attacked anyone and not started a war in two centuries.

I'm old enough to remember when the Khomeniacs took over Iran, attacked our embassy (an open act of war) and held our diplomats prisoner for well over a year. That was a lot less than two centuries ago. I'm old, but I'm not that old.

Yeah that was what, 20 years or so after the U.S. implemented a plan to overthrow Iran’s democratically elected government (an act of open war) during a time of peace?

 

[Sandy Shanks]

The Iranian nuclear agreement, or JCPOA, had one goal: Keep Iran more than a year away from the capability to build a nuclear weapon.

"Designing an agreement that would assure it would take Iran a year or more to “break out” and make the fuel to build a bomb — giving the United States, Israel and others plenty of time to respond — was the driving force behind the 2015 nuclear deal that was negotiated under former President Barack Obama."

According to the IAEA, tasked with monitoring Iran's nuclear activities, that deal was working when Trump withdrew the United States from it in May 2018, calling it a “disaster.”

Iran had shipped roughly 97 percent of its nuclear fuel out of the country, leaving only a modest stockpile, and was obeying the limits on producing more. But now that deal is gone and taking its place are threats, increased sanctions, and warnings to our allies to respect Trump's new sanctions.

Now Iran is threaten to do exactly what Trump did ... leave the JCPOA.

The United States insists on “zero enrichment for Iran,” according to Brian H. Hook, the State Department’s special envoy for Iran. That would assure Tehran could produce no new nuclear material, and thus never get closer to building a weapon than it is now.

Which is exactly what the JCPOA was doing when Trump pulled us out the agreement.

"It was a telling moment in a strange, circular week of mutual threats and missed signals between bitter adversaries." Due to his incompetence and naïveté, Trump has boxed himself into a corner. Trump has insisted that he could confront Iran without leading to a military conflict, but, of course, he does not tell us how. Other officials in his administration have, effectively, set a red line that they said Tehran would cross at its peril.

“We are restoring deterrence while working toward a new and better deal,” Mr. Hook said. “We lost deterrence under the Iran deal.”

Really? Trump remains confused. No one has specified what kind of reaction — military or otherwise — would be ordered if Iran built up enough of a stockpile of uranium and took other steps that would cross that threshold.

Welcome to the Trump administration, a headless creation lacking purpose and options to achieve that purpose if it had one.

The New York Times assisted me with this post. To Contain Iran, Trump’s Newest Line in the Sand Looks a Lot Like Obama’s

The secretive, imperial President is putting on a huge show to distract Americans from his multiple problems on the domestic front. Yesterday he personally destroyed what little was left of the effectiveness of the Trump government. Trump announced he won't attempt any further bipartisanship until the congressional investigations conclude. He is still on the hook with the Mueller Report, and every day his guilt ridden behavior continues. He has several problems with his tax and financial records, and he has lost two federal court decisions this week alone, suggesting he will lose many more. The courts want a President who will obey the Constitution.

So, arguably, Trump wants to change the subject. How better to do that than spread fear that this naive, militarily challenged President wants a dreadful Middle East war with Iran and its many terrorist proxies.

Trump is considering ratcheting up tensions with Iran by sending thousands of troops to the Middle East — a sign he may be preparing for a serious fight.

Or, is this just another meaningless threat to distract the American people? That is Trump's favorite ploy. He used the "exciting" tactic when he was the host of a reality show. He still uses it.

According to multiple reports, the Pentagon will brief Trump administration officials Thursday on a plan to increase America’s troop presence in the region. It’s unclear exactly how many service members might be deployed, but reports put the number somewhere between 5,000 and 10,000.

This clearly has to do with the weeks-long standoff between Washington and Tehran. Earlier this month, the Trump administration said it had intelligence showing that Iran planned to attack Americans in the Middle East. As a result, the US put an aircraft carrier, bomber planes, and anti-missile batteries in the region, though it’s not clear exactly where.

The Trump administration still hasn't told us what that intelligence was. It has not informed Americans what Iran has done to cause so much sabre rattling, leading many to believe Iran has not changed its behavior in the last forty years, and there are no new threats.

It is all Trump. As far as we know, only Trump is issuing threats, not the Iranians. No more than usual, anyway.

Those moves, National Security Adviser John Bolton proclaimed, were meant “to send a clear and unmistakable message to the Iranian regime that any attack on United States interests or on those of our allies will be met with unrelenting force.”

Of course, if Iran attacks the U.S. or its allies. That is a huge "if" because it would be suicidal. Bolton does not provide any Iranian threats. He just says there are some, an old trick of the Trump administration. Just saying it makes it so, and we mortals are supposed to believe it.

There are still a lot of unknowns about this scenario. For example, it’s still unclear who, exactly, Pentagon officials will brief in the White House. And no one knows if sending more of America’s sons and daughters to the Middle East is the preferred option, or if it’s a break-glass-in-case-of-emergency plan.

That says it all for the Trump administration. No one knows anything.

Trump will not want to get his hands dirty. He will not receive the briefing. Possibly his SecState and/or NSA will. Always it is someone else who does the dirty work. Trump stays above the fray. He foolishly thinks that absolves him of the responsibility of incredibly dumb policies -- like stirring up a Middle East hornet's nest.

This source helped me with this analysis.

The Pentagon’s plan to send up to 10,000 troops to the Middle East is about Iran

 

[william the wie]

yeah, you are right. Your take is bugnuts crazy

 

[Wry Catcher]

Trump knows he's dirty, trump knows he is soon to be exposed as a crook, trump knows he will soon be losing the vast majority of Republicans who fear trump is sending their party to the trash heap with the Wigs.

Q. What's the trump to do?

A. Wag the Dog

 

[Ambivalent1]

Trump knows he's dirty, trump knows he is soon to be exposed as a crook, trump knows he will soon be losing the vast majority of Republicans who fear trump is sending their party to the trash heap with the Wigs.

Q. What's the trump to do?

A. Wag the Dog

Prove he's dirty kid.
Empirically.

 

[Staidhup]

No Bismarckian move here, no war, no threat, just repositioning the chess pieces. A lot about nothing.

 

[koshergrl]

What makes this even more strange is that Iran has not attacked anyone and not started a war in two centuries.

I'm old enough to remember when the Khomeniacs took over Iran, attacked our embassy (an open act of war) and held our diplomats prisoner for well over a year. That was a lot less than two centuries ago. I'm old, but I'm not that old.

Yeah that was what, 20 years or so after the U.S. implemented a plan to overthrow Iran’s democratically elected government (an act of open war) during a time of peace?

You're just a straight up enemy of the US, aren't you, little troglodyte?

 

[BluesLegend]

Drop a few nukes on them that will fix their attitude problem instantly.