Iran

According to Trump and Fox News MOST Americans are Dumb, Terrorist Lovers

Posted by on January 9, 2020 at 1:54 pm. 4 Comments :

It has been clear since his inauguration that Donald Trump was not a popular figure in American politics. He has never reached 50% in approval polls, and his policies have been universally disfavored by voters. What’s more, despite his frequent and desperate denials, support for his impeachment is growing.

Donald Trump TV Set

In the aftermath of Trump’s assassination of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani, the divisive rhetoric emanating from the White House has intensified. There has been a noxious effort on the part of Trump and his sycophants to portray anyone who disagrees with him as a traitor who supports the terrorists. That’s a tactic used unsuccessfully by the Bush administration to malign opponents of his invasion of Iraq. And now the StormTrumpers are employing it to attack his critics. GOP Congressman Doug Collins went so far as to say that Democrats “are in love with terrorists.”

That sort of ugliness has not been the exception from Republicans in recent days. They are desperately trying to claw their way out of the hole that Trump has dug for them. Trump’s reckless venture into international assassinations is not being met with approval by Americans or the world. And things aren’t getting any better for them as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi introduces a resolution to prohibit Trump from taking further rogue actions. That legislative move has triggered the Trump-fluffers on Fox News (video below):

Ainsley Earhardt: The president yesterday said the U.S. is ready to embrace peace. He’s calling for more economic sanctions on Iran’s already struggling economy. He did say that Iran is standing down, so why is the House putting up this resolution to try to limit the president’s powers?
Sarah Sanders: I can’t think of anything dumber than allowing Congress to take over our foreign policy. They can’t seem to manage to get anything done. I think the last thing we want to do is push powers into Congress’ hands and take them away from the president. Any Democrat that doesn’t understand that America is safer now that one of the most dangerous terrorists in the world is rotting in hell is completely naive and completely misses what we need to have in foreign policy.

First of all, Earhardt’s question was loaded with contradictions. She asserted that Trump was embracing peace while simultaneously imposing sanctions, which is a form of economic warfare. And that should be unnecessary if her claim that Iran is standing down is true.

While the question was a jumble of flagrantly biased presumptions, Sanders’ answer was downright demented. Apparently Sanders “can’t think of anything dumber” than the Constitution, which provides Congress with the sole authority to declare war. Congress also has the authority, under the doctrine of checks and balances, to impose limits on the executive branch’s aspirations to tyranny.

Furthermore, Sanders is among the Trump apologists who is suffering from the wishful thinking that the American people support Trump’s unlawful international adventurism. According to a new USA TODAY/Ipsos poll…

  • An 18 point majority (52%-34%), called Trump’s behavior with Iran “reckless.”
  • A 44 point majority (52%-8%), said the attack made it more likely that Iran would develop nuclear weapons.
  • By far, most Americans (55%-24%) believe the assassination made the United States less safe. Including nearly a third of Republicans.
  • By 47%-39%, those surveyed said Trump ordered the killing of Soleimani in an attempt to divert the focus from his impeachment.
  • And specifically addressing Pelosi’s resolution, a big majority (53%-33%) endorsed congressional action that would limit Trump’s ability to order military strikes or declare war without legislative approval.

So Trump, along with his surrogates and cult followers, are severely disengaged from the will of the public at large. This has been a common flaw in the thinking at the White House and their Ministry of Propaganda, Fox News. They persist in trying to convince the people that they believe what they plainly do not believe. And the Trumpies may be succeeding in convincing themselves that the fantasy they imagine is actually reality. That might make them feel a little better today, but it won’t help them in November.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Survey Finds Trump is Not Trusted By the Vast Majority of the World

Posted by on January 8, 2020 at 1:56 pm. 7 Comments :

There couldn’t be a worse time for the United States to be embroiled in an international conflict. These dire circumstances require a steady hand and the confidence of international allies. Instead, the U.S. has Donald Trump in the White House behaving with the typically frenetic, reckless impulsiveness that has tainted his presidency.

Donald Trump

Wednesday morning we saw Trump deliver a speech wherein he once again took credit for “solving” a problem of his own making. He also reminded America and the world how poorly equipped he is to be relied on in a crisis. He spent much of his oratory ranting about how evil our enemies are and chest-thumping about how big our missiles are. That’s when he wasn’t maligning our country’s previous president, Barack Obama, someone for whom Trump still can’t control his crippling jealousy.

Trump also displayed his pitiful ignorance by proposing nonsense like his intention to “ask NATO to become much more involved in the Middle East process.” If he had any knowledgeable and experienced staffers left, he might ask them what NATO is an acronym for and why it would be inappropriate to involve it in the Middle East. Unfortunately, Trump’s managerial ineptitude has decimated his administration. Consequently, the U.S. currently is governed by “acting” department heads, including Homeland Security, Director of National Intelligence, and White House Chief of Staff.

Trump’s reputation for being a pathological liar has resulted in a serious crisis of confidence at home. A majority of voters still say Trump committed impeachable offenses. It is impossible for most Americans to believe anything he says, much less assertions with the life and death importance of justifications for war. It has already been reported that Trump’s initial claims about the need to assassinate Iran’s military commander, Qasem Soleimani, were unsupported by any credible intelligence. Even his Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, walked back the claim that there was an “imminent threat” of attacks by Iran, which Trump used to validate his aggression. Now, a new survey by Pew Research confirms that that sentiment is also a worldwide phenomenon:

“As has been the case throughout his presidency, U.S. President Donald Trump receives largely negative reviews from publics around the world. Across 32 countries surveyed by Pew Research Center, a median of 64% say they do not have confidence in Trump to do the right thing in world affairs, while just 29% express confidence in the American leader.”

Notably, at the end of Obama’s term as president, confidence in him was at 64% in the same poll done in 2017. Trump’s low ratings are likely driven by his bellicose persona and ignorance of world affairs. But they are also tied to the unfavorable opinion that the world has of his policies. According to the Pew survey he is underwater on everything from tariffs, to climate change, to his border vanity wall, to immigration generally and, particularly relevant with regard to current affairs, his withdrawal from the Iran nuclear weapons agreement. And in the poll’s comparison of Trump to other world leaders…

“The survey asked all respondents about four international leaders in addition to President Trump: German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Trump receives the highest negative ratings among the five leaders.”

Let that sink in. The world has more confidence in Putin and Xi, than in Trump. It’s also interesting to note that the animosity toward Trump does not stem from any general disdain for America. In fact, in the thirty-three countries surveyed, most (54%) have a favorable opinion of the United States. Although that number has declined since Trump’s election, it remains positive. However, as with most things, Trump has a drastically different view of reality, especially with regard to his reception in the world, as he repeatedly – and falsely – tells us on Twitter that…

So it’s important to remember that Trump’s problems are only America’s problems for so long as he is representing us. Therefore, the sooner we can remedy that problem, the better it will be for this nation and for the world.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Fox News Host and Trump-Fluffer Wants the U.S. to Be More Like the Terrorists

Posted by on January 7, 2020 at 12:56 pm. 1 Comments :

The White House narrative on Iran is falling apart. Donald Trump claims that he ordered the assassination of Qasem Soleimani due to intelligence that indicated he represented an “imminent threat” to the U.S. But reports from the Pentagon do not confirm the charge and officials say that any evidence is “razor thin.”

Donald Trump

Meanwhile, when asked to substantiate the allegation, Trump’s press Secretary, Stephanie Grisham, said that she couldn’t. She merely repeated the baseless speculation that American lives were saved. She also complained that people wouldn’t simply trust Trump and take his word about the whole affair. That, of course, is the wholly warranted result of his having lied non-stop throughout his presidency. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also failed when asked to provide confirmation that Iran was plotting attacks on the U.S. In fact, he resorted to a completely different “justification” that relied solely on past events.

Now the propagandists of Trump World are trying to spin his threat to destroy cultural sites as appropriate and lawful military targeting. Never mind that it is an explicit violation of both U.S. and international law. On Fox News Tuesday morning, Pete Hegseth of Fox and Friends sought to demonize rational Trump critics as treasonous saying that “I think with friends like these Democrats, who needs the Iranians” (video below). He went on to complain that Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is “out of her mind” for tweeting correctly that Trump had proposed committing war crimes. And then he unleashed this grotesque commentary:

“I don’t care about Iranian cultural sites, and I’ll tell you why. If they could, if Iran could, if you understand the Islamic Republic of Iran, of Islamists, if the could, if they had the power, they would destroy every single one of our cultural sites and build a mosque on top of it.”

This is a bizarre argument even if you ignore his stuttering introduction. Hegseth is saying that it’s acceptable to behave like terrorists because terrorists behave that way. He is, in effect, advocating that the U.S. adopt the tactics of terrorists. What’s next? Would Hegseth approve of Americans beheading prisoners of war? Would he favor sending suicide bombers into the lobbies of hotels where Muslims were guests? Would he support flying planes into skyscrapers in Tehran? After all, the terrorists do that, so why shouldn’t we?

The question is, did that disgusting illogic come from Trump, or did Hegseth plant it in Trump’s befuddled head? Because the President said pretty much the same thing on Monday:

“They’re allowed to kill our people. They’re allowed to torture and maim our people. They’re allowed to use roadside bombs and blow up our people. And we’re not allowed to touch their cultural site? It doesn’t work that way.”

This is representative of Trump’s total absence of morality. He and his cult followers believe that they can commit any crime they like with impunity. And they will also tell any lie to support their atrocities. For instance, Trump’s former ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, said on Monday that Democrats were “mourning the loss” of Soleimani. She was challenged repeatedly to provide a single example of that reckless and hateful assertion, but went into hiding rather than respond.

This tendency to endorse such repugnant acts shows how far Trump and his regime have diverged from any semblance of civil society. It marks them as aspiring terrorists themselves because, if they approve of these tactics, what separates them from the heathens they pretend to oppose? They believe that any act, no matter how heinous, is justified if your enemy would do it. But the American people, whose principles are in tact, would surely disagree and admonish Trump that “It doesn’t work that way.”

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

HEY FOX NEWS: Opposing Trump’s Derangement Is Not Support for Iran’s Terrorism

Posted by on January 6, 2020 at 3:14 pm. 5 Comments :

The debate over Donald Trump’s order to assassinate a top Iranian military commander is beginning to take on the familiar tones of the Bush administration’s dishonest and unlawful invasion of Iraq nearly twenty years ago. Following the assassination of General Qasem Soleimani there has arisen a cry from the Trump camp for an unquestioning embrace of the mission that still has not been justified or defined.

Donald Trump, Fox News, Hate Again

Bush’s rationale for invading Iraq was rooted in deliberate falsehoods about nonexistent weapons of mass destruction. His national security team would not provide any proof of the claim, but insisted that the American people get on board and support the President on blind trust. Bush famously admonished rational skeptics that “Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists.”

This is precisely how the Trump administration is framing its assault on Soleimani and his subsequent threats against Iran. Those threats include outright declarations of Trump’s intention to commit war crimes by targeting “cultural sites” with “disproportionate” force. And Trump is getting plenty of help from his State TV Ministry of Propaganda, Fox News. The memo must have gone out over the weekend to portray all of Trump’s critics as unpatriotic and supporters of Iranian terrorism.

That, of course, could not be farther from the truth. It is not only possible, but necessary for free thinkers to raise questions about Trump’s actions. After all, he has refused to provide any evidence of his implausible contention that Iran was plotting attacks on the United States. And his resume of flagrant lying about all things great and small make him wholly unbelievable as a source for anything more significant than the weather (and he has blatantly lied about that as well).

That, however, isn’t what you’ll from Fox as their sycophantic shills campaign to canonize the Liar-in-Chief. It was evident early on with Trump’s favorite morning program, Fox and Friends, where co-host Ainsley Earhardt engaged in friendly banter with co-host Steve Doocy and squealed giddily that…

Earhardt: I find it so interesting that people are critical of the president’s decisions, of our intelligence community’s decisions, our general’s decisions.
Doocy: They want details.
Earhardt: Well, they can’t have it. They can’t have it. Everything can’t be made public.

That’s an astonishing commentary from the folks who have been lambasting the intelligence community as dishonest and corrupt and anti-Trump “Deep State” traitors, for the past three years. Nor have they been especially respectful of generals, three of whom Trump has fired from senior White House posts, while maligning them fools and insisting that he knows more than all of them.

Earhardt is also arguing that Trump should be permitted to withhold the intelligence that would justify his actions. That’s a bizarre position from someone supposedly in the “news” business whose job is to investigate and report on the government and the politicians who occupy it. Not that there have ever been any actual reporters on Fox News. They are there for one purpose only: to advance the propaganda of the Trump administration and, more broadly, the conservative agenda.

The notion that the media should accept and defend Trump’s secrecy was further articulated later in the day on Fox by commentator Katie Pavlich. During a debate with Democratic consultant Richard Fowler, who argued that the American people should be shown the intelligence that informed Trump’s decision, Pavlich shot back, “You’re not entitled to seeing it because people like you don’t believe in intelligence.”

Once again, this is coming from someone who has been a staunch critic of the intelligence community for years. And she’s directing this thinly veiled personal insult at “people like” Fowler, whose support for America’s intelligence agencies is well documented. What’s more, it’s absurd to suggest that disagreeing with Trump is also disagreeing with the intelligence community. There is absolutely zero evidence that intelligence was the basis for anything that Trump has done. If it was, there is surely some portion of it that he could make public.

The gist of the Fox News position is that anyone who doesn’t devotedly follow Trump and blindly believe whatever he says without question, is unpatriotic. They contend that requiring Trump to explain himself and his decisions is tantamount to sacrilege. They fail to comprehend that true patriotism requires politicians to continually justify themselves, particularly if they are known to be pathological liars.

Americans are not supposed to be regarded as, or treated like, sheep led by aspiring dictators who cannot be challenged or questioned. But according to the Fox Doctrine, Trump must be worshiped as a prophet sent by God to lead the nation into a dystopian future. That’s not how America works. Even if Trump’s lackeys appear on Fox and accuse his critics of “hero worship” of Soleimani, simply because they won’t submit to Trump’s holy version of reality. Which is what Kellyanne Conway did this morning:

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Trump-Fluffers at Fox News Begin War Mongering Before Soleimani’s Body is Cold

Posted by on January 3, 2020 at 12:48 pm. 8 Comments :

On the second day of the new year Donald Trump launched a new conflict in the Middle East, this time with the region’s largest military, Iran. Contrary to his frequent promises to withdraw the United States from the Middle East, Trump’s assault is likely to result in another prolonged war that will be costly in both lives and dollars.

Donald Trump

No American will mourn the demise of General Qasem Soleimani. He was the leading purveyor of Iran’s international terrorism and was responsible for hundreds fatalities among both Americans and civilians in Iraq, Syria, and elsewhere. But the mission to assassinate Iran’s second highest military leader in Iraq was nevertheless a provocative act that could lead to further unnecessary tragedies for the U.S. and the region.

This is particularly apparent since Trump has no coherent strategy, policy, or end game. He failed to consult members of Congress as the law requires and, therefore, had no legal authorization for the attack. And in a flurry of syrupy, worshipful retweets, Trump included one by disgraced pundit Dinesh D’Souza that shamefully implied that had Trump told Congress they would have told Iran. To date, the only one who has disclosed state secrets to hostile foreign nations is Trump when he speaks to Putin.

In fact, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tweeted that he discussed this attack with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in advance. So Trump informed Russia, but not Congress. It’s also notable that, by targeting an individual, as opposed to military assets, Trump possibly violated international laws against assassination.

Trump’s initial justification for the attack is that it was executed in order to prevent imminent future attacks on Americans. However, he provided no evidence of any such threat. It sounds very much like the false assertions of the Bush administration alleging nonexistent weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Also familiar is the statement by Pompeo, who baselessly claimed that “We have every expectation that people not only in Iraq, but in Iran, will view the American action last night as giving them freedom.” That recalls Dick Cheney’s preposterous assertion that “My belief is we will, in fact, be greeted as liberators [in Iraq].”

Immediately following Trump’s attack, Fox News predictably leaped to his defense with a vigor that can only be described as gleeful. Although he was on vacation, Sean Hannity called into his own program to insist that Iran had “put American lives in jeopardy and the president very quickly acted,” and that it was “a huge victory and total leadership by the president.” But Brian Kilmeade of Fox and Friends was representative of the Fox position when he rebutted Geraldo Rivera’s criticism of the attack by gloating that “I will cheer this on. I am elated.”

Make no mistake. This is the host of a popular Fox News program expressing his elation about a potential war that would result in untold casualties of Americans for a purpose that no one in the Trump administration has been able to define.

If you’re looking for a plausible reason for why Trump would take this action at this time, look no further than the news that broke earlier the same day. The release of newly unredacted emails from Trump’s national security personnel that state unequivocally that Trump knew his withholding of military aid to Ukraine was illegal. The discovery of this provides additional urgency for the Senate to agree to call witnesses and to introduce documents when it takes up Trump’s impeachment.

Trump knows this, and it escalates his fear that impeachment could result in his removal from office. So in order to deflect from the growing political peril he is enduring, Trump appears to have taken the course of action that he once falsely accused President Obama of considering: Start a war with Iran:

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Trump’s Sick Affection for Tyrants Now Includes Iran, He Says ‘I’m Gonna Be Their Best Friend’

Posted by on June 22, 2019 at 11:36 am. 1 Comments :

America is undergoing an unprecedented assault from within that emanates from the highest reaches of its government. From the very beginning of his presidency, Donald Trump has exhibited a perverse affinity for murderous dictators all over the world. This fetish began with Russia’s Vladimir Putin, extended to North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, and stretched further to include China’s Xi Jinping and others.

Donald Trump, Ayatollah

Now Trump is putting on display his love for yet another deadly and abhorrent regime. This is one that has famously articulated its desire for “death to America.” And it has been a threat to the United States and its allies for decades. Which makes it all the more disturbing that Trump told reporters on Saturday morning that he wants to “Make Iran Great Again.” Yep. those are his exact words. And what’s more, he expressed his personal hope that “I’m gonna be their best friend.”

This outpouring of affection for a hostile regime that is one of the world’s biggest sponsors of terror was triggered by the recent clash between Iranian and U.S. forces in the Strait of Hormuz. After Iran shot down an American surveillance drone, Trump ordered a retaliatory strike that he later rescinded. It was a display of incompetence, chaos, and lies that can only serve to damage America’s interests and reputation.

So naturally Trump took it upon himself to hail his ineptitude it as a stroke of brilliance. And on Saturday, during his peculiar “chopper talk” session with the press, Trump said this:

This is eerily similar to Trump’s comments regarding North Korea. He seems to believe that dangling the prospect of an American-provided economic expansion is what all of these dictators are yearning for. And he also believes that he can engineer that economic boom for any foreign country he chooses. All they have to do is submit to whatever he says with unbending obedience.

Furthermore, Trump insists that if Iran agrees to some unspecified terms regarding their nuclear capabilities, he will see to it that they become a wealthy nation. What’s troubling about this is that he is making no demands with regard to Iran’s support for terrorism or their human rights atrocities both inside and outside of Iran. He’s saying that if Iran agrees to a rollback in their nuclear programs (which they already did under President Obama), Trump will embrace them and enrich them so they can finance more savagery throughout the world.

And the cherry on top of this nightmare pie is that Trump is promising to be Iran’s best friend. You know, the “death to America” folks. Trump even gave Iran a pat on the back for not shooting down another plane on Friday. In this highly suspicious story, Trump thanked Iran saying “I think that was a very wise decision, and I think that’s something that we very much appreciate.” Let that sink in. Trump is sending his “appreciation” to Iran for not shooting down our plane. How thoughtful.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Meanwhile, Trump offers nothing but animus and scorn for our friends and allies. He lambastes Mexico, Canada, and Europe at every opportunity. Still, Trump is spreading his friendship pretty thin. He has promised to be best buddies with Russia, North Korea, and China. Never mind the horrific roles they play on the international stage. And set aside how these offers of fellowship are reserved for hateful tyrants. Now we can add Iran to the list of brutal governments that have won Trump’s heart. How does any of this advance American interests?

UNFIT: Trump Okays Strike on Iran Without a Casualty Assessment, and Other Unpresidential Acts

Posted by on June 21, 2019 at 12:08 pm. 3 Comments :

There has been frequent speculation about the shaky temperament of Donald Trump and his mental unfitness for the office of the presidency. This has been observed in his pathological lying, infantile name-calling, nerve-rattling ignorance, affinity for murderous dictators, aversion to American intelligence agencies, and brazen disrespect for the law.

Donald Trump

Nevertheless, Trump continues to provide more evidence of how pitifully incompetent and unprepared he is for the duty he’s assumed. The latest demonstration of that is his response to the charge that Iran shot down an American drone. His first comment on the matter was (naturally) a threatening tweet that said only that “Iran made a very big mistake!” However, he followed that up by suggesting that he literally believes that what Iran did was accidental. Which makes his decision to strike back with military force (for an accident?) somewhat peculiar. But no more peculiar than his reversal of that decision, which he explained in another series of tweets. Let’s examine this tweetstorm:


Obama did not “give” money to Iran. Trump is referring to money that was Iran’s to begin with. It had been frozen in foreign accounts. Obama’s deal released the funds upon completion of the nuclear agreement. Also, Obama did not give Iran a “free path to nuclear weapons.” He secured a decades-long prohibition of further development of their nuclear capabilities which at the time were within a year of completing a functional weapon. Trump’s knee-jerk blaming of Obama is ironic considering that Trump had falsely accused him of plotting to attack Iran nine times before he was president.

Trump complaining about the nuclear agreement with Iran not being ratified by Congress is laughable considering his proclivity for executive orders and appointments of numerous “acting” cabinet officials (ominously including Secretary of Defense, Secretary of Homeland Security, and U.N. Ambassador) who have never been confirmed by the Senate. And Trump’s claim that Iran is now “Bust!” doesn’t jibe with reality. There’s no evidence that their military capabilities have been reduced in any way.


This first tweet contains several notable rhetorical errors. First of all, all drones are unmanned. Secondly, “International Waters” is not a pronoun. Third, it’s “locked and loaded” not “cocked.” Fourth, it’s “sites,” not “sights.”

More importantly, if it’s true that Trump approved a military strike, but only asked for a casualty assessment ten minutes before it began, he is even more disengaged and incompetent as Commander-in-Chief than we thought. However, casualty assessments are routinely given during mission briefings, and reports say this one was no exception. So Trump is likely lying about when he learned of the potential fatalities. Even Chris Wallace of Fox News was curious why Trump didn’t ask that question sooner, prompting him to wonder if Trump “has the stomach to launch this kind of attack.”

Trump often says that he has “rebuilt” the military which he describes disparagingly as having been “depleted.” In doing so, he is insulting every American officer and soldier who served prior to his election. Never mind the fact that his demeaning assertion is wholly unfounded.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Taken in total, these tweets are nothing more than Trump seeking to excuse his inadequacies, assign blame to others, and exalt himself as a national savior. They do nothing to advance a solution to rising tensions in the Middle East (which he has exacerbated), or to protect America’s interests. Like just about everything else he does, it was focused solely on glorifying himself and canonizing the image that he wants others to have of him. Unfortunately for Trump, that will only work on the glassy-eyed Deplorables that make up his cult following.

Wag the Dog: Trump’s Threats to Iran Mirror His False Accusations Against Obama

Posted by on June 20, 2019 at 11:12 am. 2 Comments :

If there’s one thing we know about Donald Trump, it’s that he will say anything to exalt himself and slander his opponents. It doesn’t matter whether there is any speck of truth to his ranting. And during times of crisis, this character flaw presents a very real risk to the welfare of the nation. The danger that Trump is putting us in has never been better demonstrated than by his saber-rattling over Iran.

Donald Trump, Barack Obama

The reports about the shooting down of a U.S. drone are still lacking substantive evidence of whether or not it had violated Iranian airspace. And it would foolish to take Trump’s word for anything given his propensity for lying. What’s more, these rising tensions are directly attributable to Trump’s own policies. He thought that by pulling out of the six-nation agreement to denuclearize Iran that Iran would would back down and submit to further, unspecified restrictions. Instead, Iran has become more aggressive and confrontational.

So Trump’s plan backfired badly. And now we are on the brink of a conflict that nobody wanted. Or maybe not. Trump himself has speculated about the benefits of a war with Iran. He has openly expressed his opinion that it would be helpful in a reelection campaign. That would be especially true for a candidate with approval numbers as dismal as Trump’s But he wasn’t talking about himself:

Could Trump have possibly been more wrong, more often? That’s nine times between November 2011 and November 2013 that Trump accused President Obama of plotting to incite a war with Iran. And, of course, none of it was true. However, his belief that such a plan would be beneficial to a candidate in a tough reelection campaign says a lot about what he may be thinking now that he finds himself in that position today. Is he trying to improve his own floundering prospects in the manner that he believed would have been successful for Obama? Will Republicans take his advice to “be careful” now that the political tables have turned?

If so, he’s doing it very badly. After tweeting what appeared to be a direct threat that “Iran made a very big mistake!,” Trump backpedalled saying “I find it hard it believe it was intentional.” In other words, he’s now floating the notion that it was literally a mistake. It’s a weakening that can only serve to embolden Iran.

Trump is pursuing this ill-advised strategy a time when his administration is bereft of experienced, qualified advisors. He currently has no Secretary of Defense, no U.N. Ambassador, no Secretary of Homeland Security, and a war mongering National Security Advisor (John Bolton) with whom he has had painfully public disputes, including on the subject of Iran. This does not bode well for America. And it’s another reason why Trump should have been impeached long ago. It’s not too late – hopefully.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Wagging the Dog? Trump and Fox News are Prepping America for a Contrived War with Iran

Posted by on May 10, 2019 at 2:05 pm. 4 Comments :

A quick glance at Donald Trump’s Twitter feed Friday morning reveals that the current level of his psychotic anxiety is exceeding any that he has suffered since his inauguration. He posted twenty-five tweets or retweets in a span of two hours. And nine of those were related to just one subject: the disastrous tariffs that he imposed on China.

Donald Trump Revolt

Trump is still deliberately lying about how tariffs work. He insists that they produce revenue that goes straight from China into the U.S. treasury. The truth – which he has been told repeatedly – is that tariffs are charged to the importer (the U.S. company) and then passed on to American citizens. But he is frantically trying to make excuses for the harm he’s doing to American businesses and consumers, as well as to the stock market that lost more than 500 points since his renewed tariff threats.

The Trump administration appears to be manufacturing international controversy at a time when his approval ratings are sinking and his legal jeopardy is exploding. These negative trends were triggered by the release of the redacted version of special counsel Robert Mueller’s report on Trump’s unsavory connections to Russia and his obstruction of justice. Subsequent to that release, Democrats in Congress have escalated their investigations into Trump’s criminality. Their issuance of lawful subpoenas has resulted in a presidential tantrum wherein he has declared that he will refuse to cooperate in defiance of the law. That is setting up what many are calling a constitutional crisis.

However, Trump is also engaging in a foreign policy adventure that is ultimately far more troubling and dangerous. On Friday his Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, made some comments that are unambiguously hostile toward Iran. Fox News reported these comments (video below) complete with the overtones of doom that they imply:

“Secretary of State Pompeo says that any attack on U.S, interests by Iran, or U.S. citizens, will be met with a swift and decisive US response. The Secretary says in a statement that ‘We do not seek war. But Iran’s 40 years of killing American soldiers, attacking American facilities and taking American hostages is a constant reminder that we must defend ourselves.'” […]

“Citing an unspecified threat, the administration set up a deployment of the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group for the Persian Gulf. Four B-52 bombers have also landed in the region.”

It hardly seems necessary to say that “any attack on U.S, interests” would not be tolerated. That goes for Canada as much as it does for Iran. So why did Pompeo feel it was necessary to make such a pointless and obvious comment at this time?

The Fox News reporter spoke of “an unspecified threat” as provoking this action. But any prelude to war should be predicated on something more substantial than “an unspecified threat.” At least George Bush’s Secretary of State, Colin Powell, pretended to have a vial of Iraqi anthrax as evidence to declare a phony war. What’s more, Congress has to pass an Authorization for Use of Military Force before the President can march American soldiers off to war.

What makes these circumstance even more disturbing today than they were in 2003 is that Trump has demonstrated that he doesn’t give a fig about the Constitution or any other democratic principle. He denigrates the First Amendment by constantly referring to the media in Stalinist terms as “the enemy of the people.” He’s trying to burn down the wall between church and state, while erecting a wall on the southern border to deny asylum seekers refuge. He orchestrated the horrendous policy of separating families and imprisoning children in cages. He sought to ban immigrants based on their religion. And his claims of executive privilege to prevent investigators from getting his tax returns or talking to his associates are brazenly illegal.

Trump’s mental health has long been the subject of speculation as fitting the description of a malignant narcissist. Everything is about him and his perceived awesomeness. No lie is too over the top. And his frothing paranoia stirs incessant fears of “witch hunts” and conspiracies and harassment. And all of that leads to a twisted temperament that is likely to become unhinged as the law catches up with him. That’s when psychologists say that a patient like Trump can be most dangerous.

Consequently, it isn’t much of a stretch to imagine that Trump might contrive crises if he believes it will help him escape accountability for his crimes. They might involve trade disputes with China. Or caravans of murderers, rapists, and drug dealers, invading America from the south. Or nuclear standoffs with North Korea. Or even a fabricated war with Iran that arises out of nowhere, for no reason, but demands an immediate and deadly response.

This is a time that Americans need to be vigilant and steadfast to deny Trump any possibility of entangling the country in yet another pointless war that only serves the interests of a self-serving, authoritarian regime. Trump has laid to rest the old comforting platitude that “it can’t happen here.” It can. But only if the American people allow it.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.

Fox News Helps GOP Congresswoman Spread Debunked Lies that Obama Paid Iran $1.5 Billion

Posted by on July 26, 2018 at 5:51 pm. NO Comments :

Just in case you were looking for another example of Fox News casting off all pretense of being an honest news enterprise, they provided an excellent one Thursday morning. Donald Trump’s favorite TV show, Fox and Friends, invited Republican congresswoman Liz Cheney to discuss matters related to the Trump administration’s diplomatic agenda for Iran since Trump broke the agreement the United States made previously. And yes, that’s Dick Cheney’s daughter.

Fox News Friends

The segment began with Ainsley Earhardt reminding viewers that Donald Trump recently posted a deranged, all caps tweet that warned Iran to “NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE.” It cannot be overstated that this was the President threatening the nuclear annihilation of men, women, and children, of a foreign adversary over mere words.

Much of the conversation centered on Cheney’s impressions of Trump’s National Security Advisor, John Bolton, and his efforts to prevent Iran from advancing their nuclear ambitions. Of course, President Obama had already put an end to that prior to Trump blowing it up in his obsessive fetish to undo all things Obama. But Cheney was then asked specifically how the current administration’s approach to Iran differed from their predecessor. Which seems like a planted question that really had no purpose other than to bash Obama’s achievements. Cheney took full advantage of that saying:

“Oh it’s hugely different. If you look at the fact that Barack Obama paid $1.5 billion – U.S. taxpayer money – paid the Iranians to get them to enter into the nuclear agreement.”

The only problem with that response is that is utterly and provably false. PolitiFact, and every other fact-checker, has documented that the monies disbursed to Iran when the deal with the Obama administration (and by the way, six other nations) was executed, was Iran’s money to begin with. The U.S. was merely releasing funds that it had sequestered as part of the sanctions that were imposed on Iran in order to bring them to the negotiating table.

After Cheney made her wholly dishonest claim about these funds, Earhardt failed to challenge her or to let Fox’s viewers know that she was lying. So that false information was disseminated once again to Fox’s already ignorant and ill-informed viewers. And as if that weren’t enough, Fox News later posted a video clip of the segment on Twitter that featured Cheney’s remarks, but still didn’t point out that they were false. This is typical of Fox’s practice of mangling the news so that it misrepresents reality and feeds disinformation to an audience that can’t distinguish truth from fiction anyway.

How Fox News Deceives and Controls Their Flock:
Fox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.
Available now at Amazon.