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| Donald Trump |
President Trump tweeted Friday morning that the United States military was “cocked and loaded” for a strike against Iran on Thursday night, but that he reversed himself 10 minutes to ‘go time’ after a general informed him 150 people would probably die in the attack.
I believe the two phrases Glorious Leader was mangling were “locked and loaded” and “guns were cocked.”
From the New York Times:
The president said in a series of tweets just after 9 a.m. that he was prepared to retaliate against three sites in Iran for that country’s shooting down an American drone, but that he was “in no hurry.” He indicated that the death of 150 Iranians would not be “proportionate to shooting down an unmanned drone.”
It was unclear why Mr. Trump would have been getting information about possible casualties so late in the process of launching military action. Such information is typically discussed early in the deliberations between a president and national security officials.
Trump also indicated that new sanctions have been imposed on Iran, but didn’t go into detail.
Folks on both sides of the political spectrum criticized Trump for the strike and reversal.
Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyoming) told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt: “The failure to respond to this kind of direct provocation that we’ve seen now from the Iranians, in particular over the last several weeks, could in fact be a very serious mistake.”
And in the Twitterverse:
Who feels comfortable with an erratic Trump as commander-in-chief at this moment? https://t.co/f7HOmQQXRw— Preet Bharara (@PreetBharara) June 21, 2019
There’s absolutely nothing about this aborted Iran strike that looks good on the world stage tonight. Nothing. Nothing strategic. Nothing geopolitically advantageous. Nothing reflecting well on US political leaders. Nothing reassuring to allies. Only a projection of incompetence.— David Jolly (@DavidJollyFL) June 21, 2019
“Hundreds of casualties” would only have been the beginning. Where would Iran strike? What next? This was/is so reckless and dangerous. https://t.co/91kx9jJegl— Michelangelo Signorile (@MSignorile) June 21, 2019
Trump didn’t realize UNTIL TEN MINUTES BEFOREHAND that a planned airstrike would kill over a hundred people and would therefore be grossly disproportionate to the loss of a UAV?To say this is amateur hour would defame amateurs.
— George Conway (@gtconway3d) June 21, 2019
Donald Trump appeared to threaten Syria and Russia Wednesday morning in a tweet post that vowed missiles fired at Syria “will be coming, nice and new and ‘smart!'”
From The New York Times:
President Trump put Syria and Russia on notice Wednesday morning in a Twitter post, promising that missiles fired at Syria “will be coming, nice and new and ‘smart!’” and telling the Kremlin that it should not partner with a “Gas Killing Animal who kills his people and enjoys it!” After the threat, the president said in a separate tweet that relations between the United States and Russia are worse than ever.
On Tuesday, the Russian ambassador to Lebanon, Alexander Zasypkin, warned the United States and its allies that any missiles fired at Syria would be shot down, according to a Reuters report. There were already indications that Syria was moving key aircraft to a Russian base in the Mediterranean Sea, taking pains to protect important weapons systems.
Russia vows to shoot down any and all missiles fired at Syria. Get ready Russia, because they will be coming, nice and new and “smart!” You shouldn’t be partners with a Gas Killing Animal who kills his people and enjoys it!— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 11, 2018
Our relationship with Russia is worse now than it has ever been, and that includes the Cold War. There is no reason for this. Russia needs us to help with their economy, something that would be very easy to do, and we need all nations to work together. Stop the arms race?— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 11, 2018
Remember when Trump said attacking Syria would lead to “very bad things happening?”
AGAIN, TO OUR VERY FOOLISH LEADER, DO NOT ATTACK SYRIA – IF YOU DO MANY VERY BAD THINGS WILL HAPPEN & FROM THAT FIGHT THE U.S. GETS NOTHING!— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 5, 2013
And remember when Trump tweeted that “broadcasting” our military moves wasn’t smart?
Why do we keep broadcasting when we are going to attack Syria. Why can’t we just be quiet and, if we attack at all, catch them by surprise?— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 29, 2013
@walaa_3ssaf No, dopey, I would not go into Syria, but if I did it would be by surprise and not blurted all over the media like fools.— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 29, 2013
From CNN:
The United States launched a military strike Thursday on a Syrian government target in response to their chemical weapons attack that killed dozens of civilians earlier in the week.
On President Donald Trump’s orders, US warships launched 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles at a Syrian government airbase where the warplanes that carried out the chemical attacks were based, US officials said.
The strike is the first direct military action the US has taken against the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the country’s six-year civil war and represent a substantial escalation of the US’ military campaign in the region, which could be interpreted by the Syrian government as an act of war.
“Tonight, I ordered a targeted military strike on the air field in Syria from where the chemical attack was launched,” Trump said during short remarks to reporters at Mar-a-Lago, where he ordered the strike just hours earlier. “It is in this vital national security of the United States to prevent and deter the spread and use of deadly chemical weapons.”
He added: “There can be no dispute that Syria used banned chemical weapons, violated its obligations under the Chemical Weapons Convention and ignored the urging of the UN Security Council. Years of previous attempts at changing Assad’s behavior have all failed and failed very dramatically.”
Trump’s decision marked a dramatic shift in his position on whether the US should take military action against the Syrian President’s regime — which Trump opposed during his campaign for president — and came after the President was visibly and publicly moved by the images of this week’s chemical weapons attack.
In 2013, when Bashar al-Assad killed over 1,400 of his own people with chemical weapons, Trump (as a private citizen) tweeted more than 20 times that President Obama should stay out of Syria.
Watch below from CBS News: