War criminals Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, and Benjamin Netanyahu must be arrested, tried, convicted, and punished for “Crimes Against Humanity.”
Trump’s Presidency is now condemned by 67% of the American people. This supermajority will not rest until Trump—and his Neo-Nazi enablers—are removed from office, prosecuted for treason, convicted, and punished as dictated by the Constitution.
I did not notice the WH threatening to retaliate as he did Spain, UK, France, Italy, Austria & Switzerland. The withdrawal of 14% - but not all as threatened - of US service members from Germany was in response to strong criticism from German Chancellor Metz . He’s losing his ‘juice’ as the tariff court declared his last round of global tariffs illegal and other countries show him some of their cards & https://www.euractiv.com/news/trump-has-yet-to-decide-response-to-allies-denial-of-military-bases-rubio/
At least equally important, the reporting on the US failure to more significantly degrade Iran’s stands in stark contrast to the concerns over the cavalier depletion of certain portions of US stockpiles.
It’s what Project 2025 was about - the unitary executive theory - implementing the theory that presidents are all powerful executives with free rein. We have a very helpful GOP Congress and GOP appointed SCOTUS Justices who grease the skids. Leonard Leo worked behind the scenes for many years to remake SCOTUS. https://www.salon.com/2024/07/26/the-man-set-the-stage-for-an-imperial-presidency-if-wins/
Lying has become a major part of the fabric of Washington, so much so that had everyone who ever heard Trump and his "administration" say anything had taken it with a pinch of salt, the Capital would be covered a mile deep by now! Trump's unholy alliance with that other sociopath, Bibi, is responsible for all this misery and mayhem, and congress should have the courage to do something about it, but they seem to prefer losing their next elections to facing off with the Orange Madman!
The Art of the Deal doesn’t work at war. What works is The Art of War, a 2,500-year-old treatise by a Samari Warrior, Sun Tzu. Trying to manage a war by making it a deal is like bringing a real estate contract to a wildfire.
The Art of War is less about battle itself and more about perception, positioning, timing, deception, psychology, adaptability, and understanding the nature of conflict before conflict erupts. None of which Trump considered beforehand.
One of the Art of War's core principles is that the highest form of warfare is not brute force, but shaping conditions so thoroughly that victory occurs before the battle fully begins. E.g., getting Congress and the public on board, consulting with allies and experts on the Iranian culture and history, and understanding the long-term consequences. None of which Trump considered beforehand.
Trump thinks in transactions, leverage, optics, and short-term advantage. Iran thinks in terms of survival, territory, ideology, sacrifice, and time.
A deal assumes both parties ultimately want resolution. A war assumes one side wants domination, exhaustion, or collapse. Iran is dominating. Trump is quickly being exhausted (political capital, reputation, and billions diverted to the war and away from people). His capacity to end the war is shrinking.
In business, compromise can create profit. In war, compromise can be interpreted as weakness, hesitation, or an opening to exploit. That’s the confusion. The U.S. is the weaker party, given that asymmetric warfare can be employed. Closing the Straight with drones is just one example.
The language of negotiation and the language of existential conflict are not the same language. One asks, “What can we trade?” The other asks, “What are we willing to lose to prevail?”
It's clear that Donald Trump has lost the war. Iran now has all the leverage. The longer the war continues, the stronger Iran gets, and the weaker Trump becomes. Iran understands the Art of War, while Trump has applied his Art of the Deal to war, and it simply doesn't work; it loses.
No matter how he spins it, everybody knows he lost. But this time, unlike the 2020 election and his denial, given the global exposure, everyone on the planet will know he lost. He can't lie his way out of this one. "The sh*t has hit the fan."
Thank you for this analysis. All that I will add is that daily, Trump, his family, and wealthy supporters are making billions on inside trades. For them, this war is a deal. For the people of the U.S. and the rest of the world, this war is a disaster.
It’s really hard for me to understand what is going on in Washington. How can Congress jut let trump do what he is doing. And, I really can’t understand how the states can be broken up into new voting areas just to benefit the republicans. This is mind boggling to me.
Trump and followers have both spent and cheapened America. The country is morally and materialisticay downgraded. Those that understand this must figure a way out, soon!
Thank you, Dan, for this information. I think by now that most rational people know that the orange haired and faced baby in the White House is a liar. We can't believe anything that he or his administration tell us (:
Of course it is. Everything trump and his blow-hard administration says is purely bad fiction. He is a lying thief since he "took" the presidency 8 years ago. He's in the middle stages of dementia and his congress still doesn't have the courage to stop him.
Gee, shades of Vietnam! Wasn't it the lying by the government about such things as, oh, the condition of the enemy and the numbers of American killed and wounded, that gave so much fuel to the anti-war demonstrators and eventually brought the end of the war! It's not the crime, it's the cover-up. No skin in the conflict has meant a rather casual view on the part of the American government regarding casualties and factual reporting, ever since WWII. In that war, throwing more men into the breach was pretty much the only tactic available at the time, since both sides were pretty well matched for armaments. It was only later in the war, after the American war machine back home went into high gear and was pumping out tanks, shells, torpedoes and every other weapon we could, that we had anything but men to fill the gaps and hold the line. Trump and Hegseth, having never experienced war from any personal viewpoint, are just nasty little boys, playing war with those little plastic soldiers and whooping with glee. The bloodstains will never come out.
I view this war as Trump's effort to band-aid his ego, since he's getting shot down and universally disliked everywhere he goes. Not a single world leader - except for his buddies Kim Jong Un and Putin - has the time of day for him, and most have been liberally quoted in sharing their disappointment over the turn America has taken under the tangerine tsar. It won't be long before he is being politely but firmly turned away from the door by the other Western powers, like a smelly mendicant looking for approval or a handout. What can we expect from a so-called leader who hurls threats and insults at the country with which he is supposedly negotiating a peace deal?
So - a hands-down winner as the absolute WORST president EVER, Most despised and disliked and disbelieved EVER, and I can't think of a single positive action he has taken (never mind what he SAYS he has done) while in office. He is the very epitome of "If his lips are moving, he's lying." He lies about things which nobody cares about - thing on a level with whether he prefers butter or mayo on his sandwiches - in the same tone and with the same aplomb as who is paying for his abomination of a wound on the White House. Hegseth is his Dobby, ever-willing to serve and placate his master (with apologies to the REAL Dobby!), so getting ANY truth about the war is completely dependent on media sources outside the country - did anyone wonder why the president might have an interest in shutting down the free press in America?
This cannot stand. Apparently Trump has the hearts of the Republicans in the House and Senate in a safe in his office, and they will not save us, or their country. They ALL need to be primaried, and they ALL need to removed to someplace where they can no longer do America harm. Oh - and ditto the Supreme Court. It is abundantly apparent that all of Trump's appointees lied through their teeth during their approval interviews by Congress, so THAT needs fixing as well - along with some REAL ethics rules with REAL consequences. We can no longer trust our fellow man to do the right thing, to think of their country first, so now we need to bind them with rules and laws.
War criminals Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, and Benjamin Netanyahu must be arrested, tried, convicted, and punished for “Crimes Against Humanity.”
Trump’s Presidency is now condemned by 67% of the American people. This supermajority will not rest until Trump—and his Neo-Nazi enablers—are removed from office, prosecuted for treason, convicted, and punished as dictated by the Constitution.
We all know who is lying. He’s always lying. About everything. All the time.
These incompetent bozos can no longer hide behind videos of explosions & their bombast. Other reporting indicates Saudi Arabia was not the only ME once upon a time ally of the US to act on their outrage. Kuwait did also. https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/saudi-arabia-kuwait-lift-restrictions-us-military-access-bases-airspace-wsj-says-2026-05-07/
I did not notice the WH threatening to retaliate as he did Spain, UK, France, Italy, Austria & Switzerland. The withdrawal of 14% - but not all as threatened - of US service members from Germany was in response to strong criticism from German Chancellor Metz . He’s losing his ‘juice’ as the tariff court declared his last round of global tariffs illegal and other countries show him some of their cards & https://www.euractiv.com/news/trump-has-yet-to-decide-response-to-allies-denial-of-military-bases-rubio/
At least equally important, the reporting on the US failure to more significantly degrade Iran’s stands in stark contrast to the concerns over the cavalier depletion of certain portions of US stockpiles.
This shouldn’t shock any one of us we know when Trump and this administration opens their mouth when they’re breathing they’re lying
Hello! Has always been lying! It's called pathological! It does not change!!
Why? WHY is this allowed to continue!!? One man cannot possibly have absolute control of our country.
I am not versed in government issues, but this is unbelievable and unacceptable.
It’s what Project 2025 was about - the unitary executive theory - implementing the theory that presidents are all powerful executives with free rein. We have a very helpful GOP Congress and GOP appointed SCOTUS Justices who grease the skids. Leonard Leo worked behind the scenes for many years to remake SCOTUS. https://www.salon.com/2024/07/26/the-man-set-the-stage-for-an-imperial-presidency-if-wins/
Lying has become a major part of the fabric of Washington, so much so that had everyone who ever heard Trump and his "administration" say anything had taken it with a pinch of salt, the Capital would be covered a mile deep by now! Trump's unholy alliance with that other sociopath, Bibi, is responsible for all this misery and mayhem, and congress should have the courage to do something about it, but they seem to prefer losing their next elections to facing off with the Orange Madman!
The Art of the Deal doesn’t work at war. What works is The Art of War, a 2,500-year-old treatise by a Samari Warrior, Sun Tzu. Trying to manage a war by making it a deal is like bringing a real estate contract to a wildfire.
The Art of War is less about battle itself and more about perception, positioning, timing, deception, psychology, adaptability, and understanding the nature of conflict before conflict erupts. None of which Trump considered beforehand.
One of the Art of War's core principles is that the highest form of warfare is not brute force, but shaping conditions so thoroughly that victory occurs before the battle fully begins. E.g., getting Congress and the public on board, consulting with allies and experts on the Iranian culture and history, and understanding the long-term consequences. None of which Trump considered beforehand.
Trump thinks in transactions, leverage, optics, and short-term advantage. Iran thinks in terms of survival, territory, ideology, sacrifice, and time.
A deal assumes both parties ultimately want resolution. A war assumes one side wants domination, exhaustion, or collapse. Iran is dominating. Trump is quickly being exhausted (political capital, reputation, and billions diverted to the war and away from people). His capacity to end the war is shrinking.
In business, compromise can create profit. In war, compromise can be interpreted as weakness, hesitation, or an opening to exploit. That’s the confusion. The U.S. is the weaker party, given that asymmetric warfare can be employed. Closing the Straight with drones is just one example.
The language of negotiation and the language of existential conflict are not the same language. One asks, “What can we trade?” The other asks, “What are we willing to lose to prevail?”
It's clear that Donald Trump has lost the war. Iran now has all the leverage. The longer the war continues, the stronger Iran gets, and the weaker Trump becomes. Iran understands the Art of War, while Trump has applied his Art of the Deal to war, and it simply doesn't work; it loses.
No matter how he spins it, everybody knows he lost. But this time, unlike the 2020 election and his denial, given the global exposure, everyone on the planet will know he lost. He can't lie his way out of this one. "The sh*t has hit the fan."
Thank you for this analysis. All that I will add is that daily, Trump, his family, and wealthy supporters are making billions on inside trades. For them, this war is a deal. For the people of the U.S. and the rest of the world, this war is a disaster.
"The war is not over". You got that right!
It’s really hard for me to understand what is going on in Washington. How can Congress jut let trump do what he is doing. And, I really can’t understand how the states can be broken up into new voting areas just to benefit the republicans. This is mind boggling to me.
!!!!!!!
Trump and followers have both spent and cheapened America. The country is morally and materialisticay downgraded. Those that understand this must figure a way out, soon!
To my horror, the MAGA cult is still alive and well.
Thank you, Dan, for this information. I think by now that most rational people know that the orange haired and faced baby in the White House is a liar. We can't believe anything that he or his administration tell us (:
Thanks for telling the story like it is.
“$25b” cost, admits Hegseth readily, so
the actual must be >exponential.
Of course it is. Everything trump and his blow-hard administration says is purely bad fiction. He is a lying thief since he "took" the presidency 8 years ago. He's in the middle stages of dementia and his congress still doesn't have the courage to stop him.
Gee, shades of Vietnam! Wasn't it the lying by the government about such things as, oh, the condition of the enemy and the numbers of American killed and wounded, that gave so much fuel to the anti-war demonstrators and eventually brought the end of the war! It's not the crime, it's the cover-up. No skin in the conflict has meant a rather casual view on the part of the American government regarding casualties and factual reporting, ever since WWII. In that war, throwing more men into the breach was pretty much the only tactic available at the time, since both sides were pretty well matched for armaments. It was only later in the war, after the American war machine back home went into high gear and was pumping out tanks, shells, torpedoes and every other weapon we could, that we had anything but men to fill the gaps and hold the line. Trump and Hegseth, having never experienced war from any personal viewpoint, are just nasty little boys, playing war with those little plastic soldiers and whooping with glee. The bloodstains will never come out.
I view this war as Trump's effort to band-aid his ego, since he's getting shot down and universally disliked everywhere he goes. Not a single world leader - except for his buddies Kim Jong Un and Putin - has the time of day for him, and most have been liberally quoted in sharing their disappointment over the turn America has taken under the tangerine tsar. It won't be long before he is being politely but firmly turned away from the door by the other Western powers, like a smelly mendicant looking for approval or a handout. What can we expect from a so-called leader who hurls threats and insults at the country with which he is supposedly negotiating a peace deal?
So - a hands-down winner as the absolute WORST president EVER, Most despised and disliked and disbelieved EVER, and I can't think of a single positive action he has taken (never mind what he SAYS he has done) while in office. He is the very epitome of "If his lips are moving, he's lying." He lies about things which nobody cares about - thing on a level with whether he prefers butter or mayo on his sandwiches - in the same tone and with the same aplomb as who is paying for his abomination of a wound on the White House. Hegseth is his Dobby, ever-willing to serve and placate his master (with apologies to the REAL Dobby!), so getting ANY truth about the war is completely dependent on media sources outside the country - did anyone wonder why the president might have an interest in shutting down the free press in America?
This cannot stand. Apparently Trump has the hearts of the Republicans in the House and Senate in a safe in his office, and they will not save us, or their country. They ALL need to be primaried, and they ALL need to removed to someplace where they can no longer do America harm. Oh - and ditto the Supreme Court. It is abundantly apparent that all of Trump's appointees lied through their teeth during their approval interviews by Congress, so THAT needs fixing as well - along with some REAL ethics rules with REAL consequences. We can no longer trust our fellow man to do the right thing, to think of their country first, so now we need to bind them with rules and laws.
THIS is why we can't have nice things.
Thanks Michelle. All your words ring true to me.