According to media reports, the USA was about to strike Iran in retaliation for the shooting down of our drone over international waters when President Trump called the strike off. What does this mean? After all, Trump had just approved the strike and now was changing his mind, or so the reports say. What is going on?
It seems to me that there's more here than is being reported. Remember, the people involved in this decision are only those at the pinnacle of our national security apparatus. The President, vice president Pence, the Secretary of State, the Acting Secretary of Defense, the National Security Advisor and a few of their staff make up that group. These are not people likely to leak to the media within minutes of the decision being made. Rather, these are people who may be using the media to get out a message that they want Iran to hear. That message to the mullahs is simple: the USA could and almost just did launch a major retaliation against Iran, one which would do great damage to Iran's facilities. The USA pulled back at the last instant from doing so. Don't let something like shooting down the drone or attacking tankers happen again. Next time there won't be a last minute reprieve.
Look, it may be that the President just had a change of heart since he clearly doesn't want a war with Iran. That would not surprise me except for the immediate leak of the story and the lack of any apparent push back from the White House on that story. Notice that the story also making the rounds that the USA warned Iran yesterday that a strike was coming was immediately denied as false by the White House. There has been no real response to the story about calling off the raid. It makes it seem that the White House wants that story out there.
Think of it this way: if the USA had actually struck Iran, people would likely have died. Iran might have felt compelled to strike back. We could be at war right now. If, instead, we launch a flight of many planes and then call them back, all that it cost was some jet fuel. There's no casualties, no war but still a message to the Iranians.
Clearly, the only people who know for sure what is the meaning of these events are the few people who were gathered in the Situation Room of the White House yesterday. It will take a while before the rest of us get the complete story.
It seems to me that there's more here than is being reported. Remember, the people involved in this decision are only those at the pinnacle of our national security apparatus. The President, vice president Pence, the Secretary of State, the Acting Secretary of Defense, the National Security Advisor and a few of their staff make up that group. These are not people likely to leak to the media within minutes of the decision being made. Rather, these are people who may be using the media to get out a message that they want Iran to hear. That message to the mullahs is simple: the USA could and almost just did launch a major retaliation against Iran, one which would do great damage to Iran's facilities. The USA pulled back at the last instant from doing so. Don't let something like shooting down the drone or attacking tankers happen again. Next time there won't be a last minute reprieve.
Look, it may be that the President just had a change of heart since he clearly doesn't want a war with Iran. That would not surprise me except for the immediate leak of the story and the lack of any apparent push back from the White House on that story. Notice that the story also making the rounds that the USA warned Iran yesterday that a strike was coming was immediately denied as false by the White House. There has been no real response to the story about calling off the raid. It makes it seem that the White House wants that story out there.
Think of it this way: if the USA had actually struck Iran, people would likely have died. Iran might have felt compelled to strike back. We could be at war right now. If, instead, we launch a flight of many planes and then call them back, all that it cost was some jet fuel. There's no casualties, no war but still a message to the Iranians.
Clearly, the only people who know for sure what is the meaning of these events are the few people who were gathered in the Situation Room of the White House yesterday. It will take a while before the rest of us get the complete story.
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