THE AMERICAN POSEIDON ADVENTURE

Most Americans, and much of the world, do not support the war in Iran. Trump is constantly asked for the rationale, and his answer changes depending on the last thing he heard or thought about. But this is not Trump’s war alone. It is Congress’s war. It is a Republican war; bought and paid for by their failure to honor the oath of office they swore.

They have coddled and shielded Trump’s erratic, unbridled behavior as he steers the ship of state onto the shoals. It is no different from how he managed every transactional business he ran. Real estate is easy when you begin with money. It takes little intellect and no leadership. Simply purchase and let the market take its course. A baboon might do as well, perhaps even better?

But when judgment and leadership are required, Trump has failed repeatedly: an airline, casinos, a private university, multiple business ventures, and even a foundation. How do you fail at running a charitable foundation? You get caught cheating.

Trump’s Republican supported, unilateral decision to attack Iran was also shaped by outside pressures: Netanyahu’s maneuvering and the decision of Saudi and Emirati investors to call in the political debts tied to their investments in Trump and his family’s ventures. Regular Americans will never see any benefit. The beneficiaries will be Trump himself, his investors, and the munitions companies sitting back with the Cheshire smile that accompanies both woe and wealth.

Our military continues to perform as the dedicated professionals they are. Unfortunately, they have been placed in harm’s way by leaders who cannot think clearly and do not seem to care. Particularly disturbing is the attitude of Pete Hegseth, who at times appears to revel in a blood-and-guts dialogue as he reports on the carnage we have inflicted on Iran and its people. His briefings sound less like sober military updates and more like the rallying chants of the Schutzstaffel SS under Heinrich Himmler. It sounds profoundly un-American and certainly un-Christian and immoral to me. Yet it mirrors the same lack of empathy Trump displays when describing episodes of destruction and slaughter.

Trump’s response to the bombing of an Iranian girls’ school that reportedly killed more than one hundred children exposes the constant troubling relationship he and his cabinet have with facts. First, he offered the opinion that the deaths were Iran’s fault. Then, when reports indicated a Tomahawk missile destroyed the school, he claimed Iran possesses Tomahawk missiles, which it does not. Wouldn’t any competent commander-in-chief know that?

The next day his press secretary defended his “right to express an opinion.” But the president’s words carry consequences. A commander-in-chief has an obligation to speak carefully, precisely, and truthfully. Finally, when confronted again and asked whether he accepted responsibility, Trump replied: “I don’t know about it.”

Our blood and treasure are now at risk and the man who ordered the attack can only say, “I don’t know about it.” He should know. He has a responsibility to know. He also has a responsibility to show a modicum of humanity and respect for the gravity of the decisions he makes and the consequences they carry.

Instead, we are witnessing what looks less like leadership and more like adolescent displays of testosterone masquerading as strategy. Bloodlust and bluster may be fine for video games, but not when American lives and the nation’s safety are at stake.

The feckless, reckless, and faithless conduct of the Republican majority in Congress will continue until ordinary Americans, people living paycheck to paycheck, struggling with rising costs, whose children will disproportionately bear the burden of war, put a stop to it.

And the only way to stop this violation of our constitutional principles and immoral leadership is simple: VOTE.

VOTE!!!

RESIST!!! & EDUCATE!!!