Oman has never fought the United States. Not once. Not in any war, any proxy conflict, any diplomatic standoff in the country’s entire modern history. It’s been a US ally for decades, hosts American military facilities, and has spent years brokering back-channel talks between Washington and Tehran because somebody in the region had to be the adult. And on Monday, on Fox News, between segments about boat parades, the president of the United States said — direct quote — “If Oman gets in the way, we’ll bomb the shit out of them.” Because Oman is close to a deal with Iran to manage shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. A deal to keep cargo moving. That’s the crime.
This is the second time he’s threatened Oman. The 60-day negotiation window he agreed to in June expired with no deal, no path, nothing — and instead of acknowledging that his administration failed to close, he pointed at the smallest country near the problem and said the word “bomb” on cable television like he was calling a play. Oman has four million people. Its GDP is smaller than the annual revenue of Home Depot. And the guy who couldn’t get Iran to the table wants you to believe the problem is the mediator.
The thing that should scare you isn’t the threat itself. It’s that nobody in the room pushed back. Not the host, not the chyron, not the next segment. Threatening to bomb an ally for trying to negotiate peace got the same energy as a trade policy update. That’s not a president losing his grip. That’s a country that stopped flinching.