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U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks from the State Department briefing room on June 13, 2019 in Washington, DC. Pompeo said, "It is the assessment of the U.S. government that Iran is responsible for today's attacks in the Gulf of Oman. These attacks are a threat to international peace and security, a blatant assault on the freedom of navigation, and an unacceptable escalation of tension by Iran." (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
I Don't Trust This Administration* With a Lemon Zester, Let Alone a War With Iran
Mike Pompeo is fighting way above his weight class
Jun 13, 2019
I am not buying this in the least. I remember the Iraq lies. I know this administration is truthless from top to bottom and all the way out both sides. I don't trust the Saudi government as far as I can throw a bone saw. And this president* feels very much like he's being run to ground at the moment and needs a distraction. And his Secretary of State is a third-rate congresscritter from Kansas who once advised American soldiers to disobey lawful orders, and who's fighting way above his weight class. Also, too, John Bolton is eight kinds of maniac.
So, no, I'm not buying this. From CNBC:
"Iran is lashing out because the regime wants our successful maximum pressure campaign lifted," Pompeo said. "No economic sanctions entitle the Islamic Republic to attack innocent civilians, disrupt global oil markets and engage in nuclear blackmail."
"The international community condemns Iran's assault on the freedom of navigation and the targeting of innocent civilians," he said, adding that the U.S. will defend its forces, interests and partners. The White House said President Donald Trump was briefed on the matter and blamed Tehran of being behind a similar attack on May 12 on four tankers in the same area. Meanwhile, the Pentagon said in a statement that the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet received two separate distress calls from the oil tankers shortly after the attacks.
They may even be right. The British seem to think so. Then again, the British followed us into the Iraq quagmire, too. I don't trust this administration* with a lemon zester. I'm sure as hell not going to trust it with a war. From CBS News:
On Wednesday, after talks with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, Abe had warned that an "accidental conflict" could be sparked amid the heightened U.S.-Iran tensions, which he said must be avoided. His message came just hours after Yemen's Iranian-backed Houthi rebels attacked a Saudi airport, striking the arrivals hall before dawn and wounding 26 people Wednesday. Tensions have escalated in the Mideast as Iran appears poised to break the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, an accord the Trump administration first unilaterally backed out of last year. Khamenei, meanwhile, reiterated his regime's long-standing insistence that it does not seek to obtain nuclear weapons, but he added that "America could not do anything" to stop Iran if it did.
Gunboat diplomacy conducted by grifters. Lovely.
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Charles P. Pierce
Charles P. Pierce is a writer-at-large for Esquire and his work has appeared in the New York Times Magazine, the LA Times Magazine, the Nation, the Atlantic, Sports Illustrated and The Chicago Tribune, among others.
I am not buying this in the least. I remember the Iraq lies. I know this administration is truthless from top to bottom and all the way out both sides. I don't trust the Saudi government as far as I can throw a bone saw. And this president* feels very much like he's being run to ground at the moment and needs a distraction. And his Secretary of State is a third-rate congresscritter from Kansas who once advised American soldiers to disobey lawful orders, and who's fighting way above his weight class. Also, too, John Bolton is eight kinds of maniac.
So, no, I'm not buying this. From CNBC:
"Iran is lashing out because the regime wants our successful maximum pressure campaign lifted," Pompeo said. "No economic sanctions entitle the Islamic Republic to attack innocent civilians, disrupt global oil markets and engage in nuclear blackmail."
"The international community condemns Iran's assault on the freedom of navigation and the targeting of innocent civilians," he said, adding that the U.S. will defend its forces, interests and partners. The White House said President Donald Trump was briefed on the matter and blamed Tehran of being behind a similar attack on May 12 on four tankers in the same area. Meanwhile, the Pentagon said in a statement that the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet received two separate distress calls from the oil tankers shortly after the attacks.
They may even be right. The British seem to think so. Then again, the British followed us into the Iraq quagmire, too. I don't trust this administration* with a lemon zester. I'm sure as hell not going to trust it with a war. From CBS News:
On Wednesday, after talks with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, Abe had warned that an "accidental conflict" could be sparked amid the heightened U.S.-Iran tensions, which he said must be avoided. His message came just hours after Yemen's Iranian-backed Houthi rebels attacked a Saudi airport, striking the arrivals hall before dawn and wounding 26 people Wednesday. Tensions have escalated in the Mideast as Iran appears poised to break the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, an accord the Trump administration first unilaterally backed out of last year. Khamenei, meanwhile, reiterated his regime's long-standing insistence that it does not seek to obtain nuclear weapons, but he added that "America could not do anything" to stop Iran if it did.
Gunboat diplomacy conducted by grifters. Lovely.
Charles P. Pierce
Charles P. Pierce is a writer-at-large for Esquire and his work has appeared in the New York Times Magazine, the LA Times Magazine, the Nation, the Atlantic, Sports Illustrated and The Chicago Tribune, among others.
I am not buying this in the least. I remember the Iraq lies. I know this administration is truthless from top to bottom and all the way out both sides. I don't trust the Saudi government as far as I can throw a bone saw. And this president* feels very much like he's being run to ground at the moment and needs a distraction. And his Secretary of State is a third-rate congresscritter from Kansas who once advised American soldiers to disobey lawful orders, and who's fighting way above his weight class. Also, too, John Bolton is eight kinds of maniac.
So, no, I'm not buying this. From CNBC:
"Iran is lashing out because the regime wants our successful maximum pressure campaign lifted," Pompeo said. "No economic sanctions entitle the Islamic Republic to attack innocent civilians, disrupt global oil markets and engage in nuclear blackmail."
"The international community condemns Iran's assault on the freedom of navigation and the targeting of innocent civilians," he said, adding that the U.S. will defend its forces, interests and partners. The White House said President Donald Trump was briefed on the matter and blamed Tehran of being behind a similar attack on May 12 on four tankers in the same area. Meanwhile, the Pentagon said in a statement that the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet received two separate distress calls from the oil tankers shortly after the attacks.
They may even be right. The British seem to think so. Then again, the British followed us into the Iraq quagmire, too. I don't trust this administration* with a lemon zester. I'm sure as hell not going to trust it with a war. From CBS News:
On Wednesday, after talks with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, Abe had warned that an "accidental conflict" could be sparked amid the heightened U.S.-Iran tensions, which he said must be avoided. His message came just hours after Yemen's Iranian-backed Houthi rebels attacked a Saudi airport, striking the arrivals hall before dawn and wounding 26 people Wednesday. Tensions have escalated in the Mideast as Iran appears poised to break the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, an accord the Trump administration first unilaterally backed out of last year. Khamenei, meanwhile, reiterated his regime's long-standing insistence that it does not seek to obtain nuclear weapons, but he added that "America could not do anything" to stop Iran if it did.
Gunboat diplomacy conducted by grifters. Lovely.
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