The Don is in a deep pile of doodoo. His fantasies of a bang, bang war (pun intended) have not come to fruition. We still don’t know why we got into this war, and still don’t have an exit strategy.
The Iranians control the Strait of Hormuz and oil prices are rising, threatening the world economy. The Iranians are adding insult to injury by allowing some ships to pass through that are not aligned with the U.S. Can you imagine how apoplectic The Don is about that? The man believes he is in control of everything; the tantrum-prone toddler can’t fathom that he is not invited to the party. That usually happens when you have bullied and disparaged the host.
The Don has gone from “we don’t need any help” to whining “please, please, please” to Western allies who have refused to get involved in his war. He even asked China for help. That’s a doozy of an ask since China supports Iran.
In another absurd move, The Don has removed sanctions from Russia so they can sell their oil to help stop the bleeding. Man, is the guy lost or what? Russia makes money selling oil which helps them in their war in Ukraine while it gives intelligence to Iranians about locations of U.S. facilities. Man, is the guy lost or what? Maybe he is playing 4 dimensional chess, but most likely he is desperate, has no plan and is moving pieces around the board without any strategy.
The Don is intent on gaining control of the Strait, and we now have 2,500 troops prepared to put boots on the ground. The war is escalating. The Don’s rage is intensifying. Someone so vengeful and narcissistic making decisions makes a bad situation worse. He is a gut-feeling kind of guy, and right now his gut is ulcerous. When The Don isn’t winning he is apt to do anything to turn the table.
Not only isn’t the war going as planned, but the majority of the public is opposed to it. He and his cronies are desperate to take control of the narrative; so it’s no surprise that his attempt to do this is fraught with lies, disinformation and a desire to suppress the truth. Case in point was The Don’s blaming of Iran for the bombing of a school that killed more than 100 children. All initial reports pointed to the U.S. being responsible (which was verified a few days after his accusation.) The government also withheld the number of the military injured and is still not providing details of the extent of injuries.
Pete Hegseth has been leading the way. A spokesperson for the Pentagon announced that the independent military magazine “Stars and Stripes” will “modernize its operations, refocus its content away from woke distractions that siphon morale, and adapt it to serve a new generation of service members.”
In other words, they will be making sure that nothing is printed that they don’t want. Tim Richardson, program director of journalism and disinformation of PEN America had this to say: “Service members and military families rely on Stars and Stripes for independent reporting, not for material shaped or dictated by the very officials the paper is supposed to hold accountable.”
In September, Hegseth unveiled a policy that required media outlets to pledge not to gather information unless defense officials had formally authorized its release. Most established news agencies chose to give up their press passes instead of agreeing to the policy.
Hegseth wants news shows to only display positive information. How dare news organizations state that the “Mideast war intensifies” when it should be promoting “Iran increasingly desperate.”
The Don assailed media companies calling them “criminal” and “unpatriotic.” His FCC chairman, Brendan Carr, is threatening broadcasters’ licenses: “Broadcasters must operate in the public interest, and they will lose their licenses if they do not,” Carr wrote. Carr accused broadcasters of “running hoaxes and news distortions”, and warned them to “correct course before their license renewals come up.”
CNN has been accused of “Lying to Undermine Operation Epic Fury’s Crushing Success.” Hegseth sent a chill through reporters at a conference where he said: “The sooner David Ellison takes over that network, the better.” Ellison is best known in the journalism world for shaking up the CBS news leadership where he has installed more conservative journalists.
The Don falsely claimed that Iran has been “working in close coordination with the Fake News Media” showing a fake video (created by his administration!) of the USS Abraham Lincoln on fire. He wrote, “You can say that those Media Outlets that generated it should be brought up on Charges for TREASON for the dissemination of false information!”
Though we haven’t seen the severe tactics of Russia and China with regard to controlling of free speech and the media, The Don’s threats mirror that. The Don’s envy of Putin and Xi is palpable. If he had his way he would be doing that very thing here. So far, much of the media is fighting back and trying to see through the fog of war to report the truth. The Don is working hard to obfuscate and create a campaign of disinformation to deflect criticism. The problem for The Don is the public isn’t buying it. When George W. Bush started the war in Iraq most of the public had been convinced that it was a just cause. He made his case to the public and congress who overwhelmingly approved it. The Bush administration did its share of controlling the narrative and striking out against naysayers, but the had the country on their side. The Don doesn’t, so his attempts are not persuading anyone.
Some rightwing podcasters and media favorites continue to oppose The Don. My favorite putdown comes from Megyn Kelly who tore into Matt Walsh, a rightwing podcaster, for his support of the war. She accused of him of having a “micro penis.” Yahoo. We are back full circle. It’s fair game to return to discussions of The Don’s little hands and what it represented. The problem with micro penis people is that they need to swing a big dick to compensate. In the hands of a madman, who knows what can happen?
The Grand Offal Party 