Trump declared victory in Iran. Big speech, flag backdrop, the works. One problem — he didn’t accomplish a single thing he said the war was for. Iran can still attack its neighbors. The nuclear program is intact. And the regime is more entrenched than ever because nothing rallies a population like getting bombed by a foreign power. Zero for three, but the photo op looked presidential, so I guess that’s the bar now.
This is Bush’s “Mission Accomplished” banner except dumber, because at least Bush waited a few weeks before the lie fell apart. Trump’s doing it live while the stated war objectives are still posted on the Pentagon’s own website. The whole thing was sold as existential — eliminate Iran’s ability to strike its neighbors, destroy the nukes, help the Iranian people overthrow the regime. None of that happened. What happened is defense stocks went up, oil prices went through the roof, and working people on both sides got the tab. But he stood behind a podium and said the word “victory,” and for the 28 percent still buying it, that’s apparently enough.