Tag Archives: Iran war

This Might Save America Money In The Long Run

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On Tuesday, Legal Insurrection posted an article about a Trump administration proposal to rebuild energy sites in the Middle East. I hate to add to government spending, but this might pay off in the long run by lowering energy prices and keeping them there. As I write this, crude oil prices are about $90 a barrel because of the war in Iran. I have a feeling that war will end in the near future. If the war ends in a way that secures peace in the area, investment in the energy sites that were destroyed in the war would probably be a good idea.

The article quotes The Wall Street Journal:

Under Trump’s plan, the U.S. would seek a matching contribution from eight Middle Eastern partners—Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Iraq and Jordan—with the goal of generating a $10 billion investment fund. The investment would be called the Partnership for Allied Trust and Construction, or Pact.

Discussions on the fund are under way, and the terms of the arrangement could change, U.S. officials said. It is unclear when, or even if, other countries will sign on.

Some Middle East officials said the initiative appeared to be Washington’s attempt to cast the Strait of Hormuz as a less consequential energy route and show the U.S. and its allies as united in confronting Iran. They added that creating a fund to rebuild destroyed energy sites without a peace deal with Tehran would be premature, as the regime could target fresh infrastructure with drones and missiles.

Iran has been attacking oil refineries, gas facilities, oil fields, nuclear plants, and ports since February. Before we start rebuilding, we need to make sure that there will be no further attacks. If that condition is met, this is probably a good idea.

Providing Aid And Comfort To The Enemy

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In case no one has noticed, we are at war. We are (hopefully) preventing a terrorist regime from gaining access to atomic weapons. Because they are also developing delivery systems that would allow those atomic weapons to reach us, we are concerned and want to stop them. Unfortunately, there are some very petty people in Congress who put their own pettiness above the interests of their country.

On Tuesday, The New York Post posted an article about Representative Thomas Massie’s filing of article of impeachment against Secretary of War Pete Hegseth.

The article reports:

Rep. Thomas Massie filed articles of impeachment against Secretary of War Pete Hegseth Tuesday for allegedly committing “high crimes and misdemeanors” by waging the Iran war without congressional approval.

…Attorney General Todd Blanche defended Hegseth while leading a press briefing in the Rose Garden.

“Secretary Hegseth is doing a phenomenal job, and the secretary of war doesn’t just go off and do things. He follows the law. And so the DOJ plays a role in that, and we play an active role in making sure the law is complied with,” Blanche told a Post reporter.

“You called it a war. I disagree with that characterization, as does most of Congress. And so there’s been votes on whether it’s a war and what to do.

“Why votes through Congress, which have determined that he’s not doing anything wrong and the president’s not doing anything wrong, should result in articles of impeachment — I guess you’ll have to talk to Massie about that.”

Massie (R-Ky.) made the surprise announcement on the House floor, accusing Hegseth of violating the War Powers Resolution of 1973, which requires congressional authorization to conduct military operations lasting longer than 90 days.

“Peter Brian Hegseth, in his capacity as Secretary of Defense, has executed unlawful orders in contravention of Section 2(c) of the War Powers Resolution of 1973,” Massie declared.

This is simply sour grapes because President Trump got tired of Massie’s shenanigans and supported his opponent in the primary election. As much as I don’t like war, I like the idea of Iran getting a nuclear bomb even less. I also think that if Americans had access to the intelligence that the President had before the war they would wholeheartedly support the war.

The Blockade Begins Again

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On Wednesday, Breitbart posted an article about the continuing war with Iran. Peace is a wonderful idea, but it requires two parties negotiating in good faith. We haven’t really had that.

The article reports:

The United States launched a fresh wave of strikes on Iran on Tuesday after President Donald Trump vowed to reimpose a naval blockade, prompting Tehran to respond with strikes on targets in countries around the region.

Trump said a negotiated deal was still possible, but fighting surged to a scale unseen since an April ceasefire. Iran hit two ships in the Strait of Hormuz, killing a crew member, according to the United Arab Emirates.

…Bahrain said it had intercepted “several treacherous aerial attacks launched by Iran” and accused Tehran of targeting civilians, after explosions and sirens were heard in Manama.

Trump’s declaration on the Hormuz blockade and the scale of the renewed fighting have called into question efforts to bring a permanent end to the war.

Iran started blocking the strait after US-Israel attacks in February, which prompted Washington’s blockade on Tehran’s ports — but restrictions eased after the sides agreed a preliminary deal in June.

President Trump initially said that he would charge a 20% toll on ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz to cover the cost of defending it. However, he has altered that plan–replacing the toll with trade and investment deals that various Gulf States will be making with America.

The article concludes:

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi responded mockingly on X that Trump was “absolutely right” that whoever guarantees safe passage should be compensated, but that Tehran would charge less for this service, noting that “20% is of course too much”.

Washington has vehemently opposed Tehran’s desire to charge tolls in the strait, which international law generally forbids.

Despite all signs to the contrary, Trump said Monday that a deal with Tehran to end the war was still possible.

Until there is a change of leadership in Iran, I don’t expect peace.

The Stalling Is Going To End Shortly

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President Trump is running out of patience with the Iranians in the peace negotiations.  It has become obvious that the Iranians really don’t want to negotiate–they just want to hold out until the midterm elections hoping that by that time the war will no longer have the support of the American voters.

On Thursday, The New York Post reported:

President Trump said he is readying new strikes on Iranian infrastructure — after warning that the Islamic Republic will “have to pay the price” for taking “too long” to negotiate a peace deal.

The commander-in-chief said he is “getting close to ordering new strikes against Iranian power plants and bridges” in a phone call with Fox News’ chief foreign correspondent Trey Yingst on Wednesday.

Trump also accused Iran in the phone call of “tapping the United States along when it comes to the negotiating process.”

The current cease-fire has not been two impressive–everyone has continued their drone strikes, only somewhat less frequently.

The article notes:

It came as the president took to Truth Social to warn of retaliatory strikes against Iran following the shooting down of a US Apache helicopter on Monday near the Strait of Hormuz.

“They’ve taken too long to negotiate a deal that would have been great for them, now they will have to pay the price!!!” Trump wrote in a thunderous post Wednesday morning, after stating that the country’s military infrastructure and leadership were in disarray.

“Iran’s Military is a complete and total mess. Much of it, like their Navy and Air Force, doesn’t even exist anymore – They have been completely defeated. Iran is all talk and no action. The Bully of the Middle East is DEAD!!! ” he added.

It really is time to end Iran’s funding of terror in the Middle East. If we need to destroy Iran’s infrastructure to do that, I am okay with that.

Some Random Thoughts And X Posts About The Rescue Of American Airmen

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On April 6th, Hot Air posted an article about the rescue of the two American airmen shot down over Iran. The article included a lot of X posts that illustrated the difference between some America’s view of the rescue and the European view of the rescue.

My favorite quote from the article was a statement by Former CENTCOM commander Ret. Gen. Frank McKenzie, who PERFECTLY described the situation– “It takes a year to build an aircraft — and it takes 200 YEARS to build a military tradition where you don’t leave anybody behind!”

The article included the following X post:

The article notes:

As soon as the news broke of the downed F-15, a massive divide became evident: Trump’s opponents, to a person, shouted that this was proof that the United States was losing, that Iran had the upper hand, and, worst of all, a creeping sense that some of these people felt absolute glee.

…Not all, of course. It is never all, but the overwhelming sentiment seemed to be satisfaction, and even a creeping hope that Iran would capture our pilot and WSO. And when the pilot was recovered, the intensity of the left’s seeming hope that the WSO’s fate would be determined by Iran was…disturbing.

This is another X post from the article:

I am not sure if we can ever bridge the divide that we see developing in western civilization. We have not had to defend our civilization in this generation, and I am not sure we will be able to defend it if we are called to do so.