Just re-found this article. It’s a couple of days old, but it’s still an important piece of “background” news. It’s good to know some people weren’t as DENSE as the orange tin god. They warned him. It (obviously, as you will see) didn’t make a lick of difference. He went ahead anyhow, and now the very thing he was warned about has come to pass. With appreciation to Raw Story:
President Donald Trump was warned before launching military action against Iran that Tehran could try to shut down the vital Strait of Hormuz – a move now helping drive up oil prices and fuel economic fears. That’s according to a new Wall Street Journal report, which revealed Friday that Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine told Trump in multiple briefings that U.S. officials long believed Iran would deploy mines, drones, and missiles to close the critical shipping lane.
Hello, Captain Obvious? Now, Trump is not only an imbecile but an ignorant imbecile. He was TOLD. Dadgum. Anyone else would have had second thoughts and planned better before assaulting Iran. But no, Trump thought he knew better than everyone else and went full steam ahead anyhow. As we all know, look where it got us.
Trump acknowledged the risk, according to people familiar with the internal discussions, but proceeded anyway with what the Journal described as “the most consequential foreign-policy decision of his two presidencies.” “He told his team that Tehran would likely capitulate before closing the strait – and even if Iran tried, the U.S. military could handle it,” the publication said. But two weeks into the conflict, Iran has instead targeted cargo ships and blocked tankers, contributing to a surge in oil prices that have stoked economic fears across the U.S.
Fear is an understatement. Near panic is a better phrase. It’s just going to get worse, especially the longer the war drags on. It’s dragging already. It’s making all of us crazy, and we still don’t know *why*. At least the bunker bombing made a little bit of sense, but it didn’t do nearly as much damage as Trump bragged it had. We’re pretty sure they moved everything *before* the bombs dropped.
Administration officials said Trump was confident U.S. forces could deliver a swift victory and had discussed contingency plans such as escorting commercial vessels through the strait. “With the strait nearly closed, the Pentagon is now concerned that any American warships escorting tankers through the strait would be targets unless the U.S. destroys Iranian vessels and coastal defense weapons, including drones and missiles,” according to the Journal’s report on Friday. The possibility of the closure of the critical passageway was one of a handful of scenarios Trump’s top general and other advisers outlined for the president in the run-up to the war.
Swift victory, my arse. There’s no swift about this, except for Iran blocking the Strait. As mentioned yesterday, the Strait is relatively narrow, putting everyone passing through in the crosshairs. At least others thought about the Strait. It’s not much comfort, but now we know that Trump *had* been told about this, and multiple times. He should have listened.
Beware the Ides of March. See you soon!
Friends, I know everyone begs you for money. I promise that among all those asking for spare change, we are the smallest and the hardest-working. We’re a group of old, disabled people, except for one writer in his mid-50s. The rest of us are in our sixties and seventies, and this is a labor of love. All we’re asking for is the chance to keep telling the truth about Trump and help ensure democracy survives. If you can help, please do. Thank you. Ursula
For every Dan Cain there are 5 MAGAt imbeciles murmuring sweet flattery in Trumpler’s unwounded earhole and encouraging him to act the big tough guy he so wants to be. Facts and logic haven’t got a snowball’s chance in hell.
Regrettably, 99% of the time, this is correct. Depressing, just like a whole bunch of Trump things.