Conservative Columnists Accuse Trump of Wagging the Dog with Rouhani to Hide From Russia

After Trump’s Twitter meltdown aimed at Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, two respected conservative columnists advised that the world ignore Trump’s attempt to distract from his Russia debacle.

“Trump is trying to change the subject to Iran. Let’s not let him,” Max Boot wrote in the Washington Post.

Referring to Trump’s desperate attempt to look strong, Boot pointed out that Trump is wagging the dog and doing what he – falsely- accused Obama of doing.

“’In order to get elected, @BarackObama will start a war with Iran.’ That was Donald Trump tweeting in 2011.
As usual, Trump is doing exactly what he accuses his opponents of doing, in this case wagging the dog,” Boot wrote.

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Boot says Trump’s performance in Helsinki, when he sided with Putin against his own country, shows that Hillary Clinton was right, “This is part of a pattern. During a presidential debate, when Hillary Clinton accused Trump — presciently — of being a Russian puppet, he shot back: ‘No, you’re the puppet.’ The humiliation in Helsinki confirmed Clinton’s warning — and explains Trump’s rhetorical escalation against Iran.”

Think of Trump on Iran like the blustering, self-described BMOC who just got handed his walking papers in public by the hottest girl in school. That’s Trump trying to regroup his “Strongman” persona by trying to bully Iran on Twitter — like the Junior High School Student he is at his core.

Conservative Jennifer Rubin also in The Post wrote, “Ignore Trump’s clueless bluster on Iran.”

Rubin pointed out that we should be more concerned that we have no policy on Iran and are in fact encouraging their aggression by our passivity and indulgence of Russia, “Commentators might become alarmed that Trump’s rhetoric will set off a rhetorical escalation that leads to increasing conflict on the ground in the Middle East tinderbox. Instead, we should be more concerned that we have no Iran policy to speak of and, in fact, are encouraging Iranian aggression by our passivity in Iran and indulgence of its ally Russia.

Aaron David Miller, a veteran of Middle East negotiations, tells me: ‘One of my former bosses, George Shultz, used to say that when you don’t have a policy, the temptation grows to give a speech, or in Trump’s case to tweet. We have no coherent Iran policy.'”

Rouhani warned Trump earlier not to play with Iran or he would regret it. “Iran faces increased U.S. pressure and looming sanctions after Trump’s decision to withdraw the United States from a 2015 international deal over Iran’s nuclear program.

Addressing a gathering of Iranian diplomats, Rouhani said: “Mr Trump, don’t play with the lion’s tail, this would only lead to regret,†the state new agency IRNA reported.”

Donald Trump can’t actually lead this country not only because he is inept, but also because his interests do not correspond with those of the country. That is why his tax cuts have actually corresponded with a DROP in wages, rather than the touted rise in wages. Trump’s interests are with the top 1%, the mutually corrupt, and the dictators of the world who are deft at taking public resources and enriching themselves and their cronies with them.

Trump can’t stand up to Putin for some reason, and since he refuses to explain why, he is trying to wag the dog on Iran.

I am quoting two conservative thinkers for two reasons – one, because when it comes from “Trump’s side” the criticism has more of a sting due to the sharp divide in our country right now (thanks, Russia!) and therefore can’t be dismissed as just proof of the “partisan divide”, and two, because it’s hard to find intelligent debate these days and both of these columnists are true to their values and are not hypocrites. Tough to find these days on the Right.

I might not agree on the hawkish tone with Iran, but I celebrate the debate of ideas over teams.

It’s time for Republicans to get on Team USA if they must be on a team, because right now they’re choosing Trump’s Team Russia. This all comes back to Russia.

Trump’s weakness on Russia is why he is also being weak with Iran in action, and that’s why he’s blustering like a fool on Twitter. Trump never could have gotten Osama bin Laden like Obama did, because he would have been on Twitter bragging, “WE KNOW WHERE YOU ARE DON’T MESS WITH US WE ARE GOING TO GET YOU AT 8 PM ON SATURDAY EVENING! YOU WILL BE SORRY! TAKE THAT!”

With Trump, it is not clear that he is on our side. Not now, and not ever- which is why he made such a big deal out of his “MAGA” theme. It is, of course, the very opposite of what he stands for.

Do not get distracted by Trump’s wagging the dog on Iran. Russia, Russia, Russia. Russia explains all.


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