The Inconsistency of President Trump’s Marketing of the Iran War Should Make Us Question What Is Happening

President Donald Trump’s war in Iran has been a rollercoaster of a ride, with one day being a bunch of threats and the next one being attempts for peace. In reality, it seems like the president is bluffing his way through a conflict that he realizes should never have been started, but he cannot just back down without appearing as a failure. Perhaps he should have learned from the Iraq fiasco that he criticized just a few months ago, but he suddenly suffered from amnesia and thought that starting a new war would be a good idea, despite his campaign promises to the contrary. The war is a disaster, as he claimed that he “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear program already, but he still keeps insisting that we need to continue bombing the country to prevent it from obtaining nuclear weapons. He said that he destroyed Iran’s military, but yet, the country is still fighting back and blocking the Strait of Hormuz. One day he wants to destroy the Persian civilization, and the next one, he says that he is just kidding and would like to make a deal.

There is no consistency or clear goals or objectives, and for all of the faults of George W. Bush and Barack Obama in waging undeclared and unjust wars, at least they tried to lay out the purpose and pretended to get authorization from Congress. The Authorization for the Use of Military Force of 2001 became a blank check to engage in conflict in any country around the world, but President Trump has not even done that or asked for debate in Congress or for approval by the American people. He just did what he wanted and did not care about what we thought. In fact, he even outright admitted that he was not calling Operation Epic Fury a war, simply because he would need permission from Congress. He is blatantly violating Article I Section 8 of the Constitution, and he basically said that the old document means nothing and that he can do what he wants. Yet, his supposedly constitutionally-minded supporters, such as Mark Levin or Ted Cruz, cheer on these unilateral and dictatorial actions and disregard the Constitution (ironically, they claim that liberals disregard the Constitution for their agendas, but they are doing the exact same thing).

Even the rescue mission of the airmen from the downed F-15E fighter jet has raised suspicion surrounding the narrative. If you read the mainstream media, it was a daring mission conducted by Navy Seal Team 6, Delta Force, and the United States military; and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) intentionally caused disinformation to Iran so that there was a disruption that allowed the rescuers to have more time to retrieve the second airman (it also used new Ghost Murmur technology to locate the airmen by following their heartbeats via “quantum magnetometry”). The military utilized MQ9 Reaper drones and B-1 Bombers to surround the area and keep it safe from enemy fire, and it was a great patriotic act of heroism, so the narrative goes. Aside from the fact that the American taxpayers lost a C-130 transport plane, two Black Hawk helicopters, and an F-15 (millions of dollars of equipment gone down the drain in a war that never should have been), it is now being debated about whether the operation was a distraction from the real mission; and this would have been to recover enriched uranium on the ground. Although we cannot prove that this was the case, we do know that the Trump administration was considering doing just that (using special forces on the ground to retrieve nuclear materials). It has been noted that it should not require sixty-four fighter jets, forty-eight refueling tankers, thirteen rescue aircraft, several other crafts, and hundreds of special forces troops to rescue two people (some of the transport planes were deployed near Isfahan and Natanz nuclear site and not near where the jet crashed). It seems pretty clear that something else was going on with it, and since the Trump administration will not be honest, we should be suspicious.

On Easter Sunday (April 5), President Trump released a completely non-Christian social media post saying “Open the F***in’ Strait, you crazy b*****ds, or you’ll be living in Hell…Praise be to Allah,” and that Tuesday (April 7) would be “Power Plant Day” and “Bridge Day,” as a reference to his promise to destroy civilian infrastructure (a war crime) if no deal was reached. Of course, not too long ago, Trump argued that he cared about the Iranian people and wanted to free them from their oppressive government, and then, he changed his tune to “a whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again” (threat of genocide against the Iranian people). Of course, when Iran did not comply with his demands by the arbitrary deadline set, he backed down and agreed to a two-week ceasefire with peace talks initiated based on Iran’s ten-point plan, which included removing American troops from the Middle East, eliminating economic sanctions, releasing frozen assets, and reparations caused from the damage of the war.

Almost immediately after the ceasefire agreement began, both sides accused each other of violating it. For example, Kuwait claimed that Iranian drone attacks continued, and Iran argued that the United States flew a drone over Iranian airspace. Iran continued to control the Strait of Hormuz, but the worse violation of the ceasefire came from Israel. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided that he would disregard the truce and continue carpet bombing Lebanon (saying that Lebanon was not covered under it, but that was not true), killing 203 people in a single day (Israel has killed 2,000 people in Lebanon alone since the war in Iran began, and it has displaced over 1 million people from their homes). Israel has no regard for human life, and it will destroy cities and villages like they are nothing just to get back at its enemies (civilians should have nothing to do with the fight). The goal here seems to be for Israel to capture southern Lebanon and expand its territory.

Israel not only attempted to sabotage the peace deal before it took place in Islamabad, Pakistan on Saturday-Sunday (April 11-12), but we are now finding out that Netanyahu made a call to Vice President JD Vance, who was heading up the talks for the United States, in the middle of the proceedings. It seems that the negotiations went sour after that point, so it is assumed that Israel attempted to prevent any permanent deal from being reached, though we cannot know for sure what was said. Vance claimed that the United States offered Iran the best terms, which have not been made public, that it could stomach but that Iran was being difficult, but that appears not to be the case. Something fishy was going on in Pakistan, but the public has so far been left in the dark. Netanyahu is facing a yearslong criminal trial for corruption (fraud, bribery, and breach of trust) back home, and he has asked for a delay to testify while uncertainty remains around a future deal, but the war (along with the one in Gaza) gives him an opportunity to stay in power and avoid accountability and drag out the trial.

Since the peace talks have broken down, President Trump has resumed threatening Iran with severe actions if it does not come back to the table. He proposed obstructing Iranian ports and destroying any Iranian warships that came near his new blockade, which prompted Iran to respond by saying that it would do the same against ports in the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman (against American allies). This is like a blockade of a blockade in order to get the original blockade from blockading. It is a bit poetic, if you do not think about it too much. Of course, this is likely just another bluff like his threats to wipe out the Iranian civilization were, but the reality of the situation is that President Trump cannot make up his mind and is playing games (perhaps to manipulate the oil market because of the increasing prices).

As we approach the potential next round of talks headed by JD Vance, the United States is demanding that Iran shut down its already-obliterated nuclear facilities (make that make sense) and suspend all uranium enrichment into the future and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which Trump has declared that the United States does not need because we have our own oil (clearly, he is lying, because oil, whether produced domestically or internationally, is based on the global market). The president has inconsistent marketing when it comes to this war, and we the people are left to pay whatever cost is incurred from the irresponsible actions in the Middle East. The Trump administration will not even give us the satisfaction of having a congressional debate over the necessity of this war, but what do you expect from a dictator who cares only about the interests of himself, his friends, Israel, and the military-industrial complex?

Thank you for reading, and please check out my book, The Global Bully, and website.