President Trump sounds as if he is searching for a way out of the trap that the hawks in his administration have set for him. Will he make it out in time?
yet again that the administration – contrary to the facts – has authorization to start a war with Iran."[W]e always have the authorization to defend American interests," said Pompeo."Remember, they now have attacked U.S. aircraft."
The cheerleaders for war have wasted little time in beating the war drums louder still. Sen. Marco Rubio foolishly echoed Pompeo's claims that the administration has the authority for strikes on Iran, saying Trump"doesn't need Congressional authorization to defend our nation against attacks." Sen. Tom Cotton, to no surprise, stated on Face the Nation that"[t]hese unprovoked attacks on commercial shipping warrant a retaliatory military strike.
This narrative fails to recognize that it was maximum pressure that triggered Iran's escalatory moves to begin with. And, just like in the lead-up to the war in Iraq, these hawks assert an urgent need to respond militarily to a threat of uncertain magnitude, while minimizing the costs of starting a war with Iran.
Yet Iran would not respond to American attacks by rolling over and playing dead. It's far more likely that Iran retaliates, perhaps by launching missiles in a bid to sink U.S. navy vessels. Or, else Iran could strike a U.S. military base or attack America's regional partners in Saudi Arabia or Israel.
President Trump, meanwhile, sounds as if he is searching for a way out of the box that the hawks have set for him.
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