Strait Talk

Yesterday, Trump not only said that we supposedly control the Strait of Hormuz – but also he’s going to charge tankers 20%!!!!  This comes, of course, after all the outrage at the idea of Iran charging a toll, since (as the outrage went) these are free and open waters, and no one should be charging a toll.  And now Trump says he wants to charge 20%!!! 

But that’s only the first and second level of stupidity.  (The first being that he thinks we “control” the Strait of Homuz, since that didn’t work the first time he trotted that idea.  While it’s a great concept if this was as recent as five years ago when mines could block a strait, but cleared by experts, drones now actually exist.  And Iran has shown it has the capability to use them to bomb tankers.)

Even more stupid is that with a 20% charge to oil tankers, that can only serve to ensure the price of gas will be higher at the pump than it would otherwise.  Quite the concept anytime, but especially in an election year.  And especially coming from the guy who said “affordability” was a hoax, a made up word.  And who said, when asked if he thought about Americans’ financial situation when negotiating with Iran, answered, “Not even a little bit.”  And who refused to sign the bipartisan bill to lower housing costs. 

And even still more still is that it’s so unnecessary, since it’s hard to imagine many tankers even trying to get through the Strait of Homuz – even for free -- before there’s a signed peace treaty, even for free, since (with the continued threat of drone attacks) insurance companies wouldn’t insure them.  The issue, of course, isn’t the United States “controlling” the Strait, but that Iran has drones that can attack tankers.

When discussing this on MSNOW yesterday, former Lt. General Mark Hertling said that Trump is now at the point “of what the military calls ‘Mission Creep.’”  When they cut back to the roundtable discussion, Eddie Glaude said, “Let me translate what General Hertling was saying into everyday English.  He was saying that Trump doesn’t have any idea what he’s doing.”

And of course, bombing has begun again in Iran – after Trump has sent out his triumphant tweet about how there was a ceasefire, the war was over, the Strait of Hormuz was open and “Let the oil flow!” 

The price of gas is up, by the way.

 Trump was asked yesterday by Kaitlin Collins with CNN, “You’ve been bombing Iran for four months now. If this just the new normal for the American people?”  His response was, “Well, you know we were in Vietnam for 19 years.  We’re here for four months.”

That would be, more accurately, “still here” and still bombing.  Which avoids the question, of course.  Because he doesn’t have a clue what he’s doing or how to end this idiotic war he started for no reason, after tearing up a treaty.

I suspect that “We’re here for four months” and comparing your war to Vietnam is not the answer most MAGOP party leaders wanted to hear going into a General Election.  Nor do most Americans.

I also suspect that just because Trump says he's going to do all this doesn't mean he will.  After all, among many other things, we're still waiting for the wall Trump said 10 years ago he was going to build and that Mexico would be paying for.  But this sends such a horrible message to the world on what other countries should do about their own actual waterways.  But then, sending horrible messages seems to be Trump's stock in trade.

All this aside (and you'd need more bulldozers than are at work destroying the East Wing of the White House to push this all aside), your reminder that the Strait of Hormuz was open before and free before Trump chose to attack Iran.  After he tore up the treaty we had with them.  And that his stated reason for going to war with Iran was to get rid of their nuclear material -- which he'd said just months before he had "obliterated".  Though he now says Iran's nuclear material still exists, but is “so far down underground, I don't care about that.”   Which says there was no reason for attacking Iran.

Which explains what the military means when it says you have “Mission Creep”. 

And even more, when it’s being run by the biggest creep of all.