We're calling THAT a victory?
There's still way more that we don't know than that we do, but on first glance what happened a couple of days ago looked like a massive (but also mostly welcome) TACO Tuesday. Trump posted a truly insane message about destroying the Iranian "civilization" -- probably intentionally getting into the madman character for negotiation purposes, while threatening to attack Iranian power plants, bridges, and trains.
Trump had painted himself into something of corner by making this same threat repeatedly and continuing to back down. So he was left with two choices: some semi-miraculous graceful way out or making a terrible tactical mistake in the war.
Pakistan gave him the former, or at least the appearance of it, with a two-week ceasefire proposal that both sides claimed to accept though really it seems that only the US accepted it.
Trump posted on social media that an Iranian 10-point plan was a reasonable starting point for a negotiation. But it wasn't. Not even close.
A Closer Look at Iran’s 10 Demands—and Which the U.S. Might Accept - WSJ
And Iran immediately violated the key demand of the US in this interim period: Iran Tightens Its Grip on Hormuz Despite Cease-Fire - WSJ
Somehow, the Trump administration is saying that the strait is actually open even though Iran is saying it isn't and ships aren't transiting the strait.
Sec of War Pete Hegseth gave a ridiculous press conference on Wednesday morning that was much chest-thumping, talking about how many targets we hit, how many bombs we dropped, etc. I don't know whether he is as confident as he sounded but he shouldn't be. (Of course, I have very little respect for him to begin with. I think he's completely out of his depth even though I appreciate his commitment to making sure the US military is a lethal fighting force.)
Meanwhile, Iran is talking as if they think they've won. And they're as close to being right as we are. Indeed, they are emboldened, now saying they plan to charge a toll for ships going through the strait, which has never been done before and is not legal.
Trump proposed the ludicrous idea of a "joint venture" with Iran whereby the US and Iran would share in the toll income. Wow. Donald Trump mulls 'joint' toll program with Iran in Strait of Hormuz amid ceasefire
On Wednesday, the administration walked it back: Trump Iran ceasefire updates: Strait of Hormuz toll confusion remains
Here's the thing: Trump is often quite good at seeing big picture strategic issues worth pursuing...and then, especially lately, politically out-of-touch when it comes to actual tactics. The longer this war goes, the more "on tilt" and confused and floundering he seems.
Most people offering this sort of commentary were against the war to begin with; I wasn't. That said, I've understood all along that the hawkishness of Lindsey Graham is nuts and that Trump likely misunderestimated the determination and ability of the Iranian regime to survive. It sure doesn't help Trump that he keeps saying there's been regime change when clearly there hasn't. If Trump is at the point where he is selling the war by lying to America, that's a bad place for him to be.
One sign of how bad a place the GOP is in right now was on display in Georgia's runoff election to replace Marjorie Taylor Greene. Trump won that district by 39 points. Greene beat the same Democratic candidate by 29 points. On Tuesday, the Republican won by 12 points. Wow. Democrats have been massively outperforming in recent months, flipping lots of GOP-held seats in various federal and state and local races.
Trump-backed Republican wins Georgia-14 special election House seat | Fox News
Oh, and then there's this: Wisconsin Swings to the Left - WSJ
Going to war and winning is one thing, a situation Republicans running for office can work with. But going and tying or being perceived as losing, is a political death sentence for Republicans in elections that are only 7 months away.
The stock market had its best day in a year. I think traders are too optimistic but I hope I'm wrong.
At the moment, I look at the framework that Trump agreed to and think, "wow, that looks almost like American surrender."
Thursday update: Trump must be hearing the comments
Even in trying to address the criticism that he's basically surrendered, he does a bad job. What American wants our military to be involved in "conquest" though, to be fair, he probably doesn't really understand the word precisely.
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Today's Guests
Joe Cunningham is a former Democratic member of Congress, the first Democrat to win SC-1 in 40 years. He was also a leader of the No Labels group (which was when he was on the show before.)
He has a new book...which I suspect that today's very left-wing Democratic Party will ignore just as the GOP ignores any calls to return to being something like the party of Reagan. (Calls you really don't hear anymore because they're so pointless.)
Life of the Party: How Democrats Lost America's Trust — and How They Can Win It Back - Kindle edition by Cunningham, Joe. Amazon.com
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Zach Goodman is the new KOA Rockies Color Analyst. We'll talk with him about his first few games as a color guy for MLB and about the Rockies great series against Houston: Rejuvenated Rockies win fourth straight, complete sweep of Astros at Coors Field
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Dan Hoffman was a three-time CIA Station Chief, including in Moscow and reportedly in a war zone in the Middle East. We'll talk with him about various aspects of the Iran war.
Daniel Hoffman | Intelligence & Security Advisor at BGR
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Other Stuff
Water is (appropriately) going to get more expensive: Denver Water approves drought pricing, will apply to May usage - Denver Gazette
Denver Water to implement 'drought pricing' on outdoor water use | 9news.com
Denver Water implements drought pricing for first time in over 20 years
Sure, the price increases will annoy people, but this is very much a purpose of prices: to cause buyers and/or sellers to consumer or produce more or less of a thing. That said, this is a situation where suppliers have zero control over the amount of the product (water) available so the purpose is (again, appropriately) to get people to use less water. There i sno choice.
It's not just Denver: Brighton rolls out drought restrictions for outdoor water
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I was a Dodgers fan (as we lived between San Diego and Los Angeles at the time) for much of the time that Davey Lopes played for the Dodgers along with the rest of that legendary infield: Dodgers great Davey Lopes, an infield fixture and record-setting base stealer, dies at 80
Speaking of baseball, and of the Rockies, a topic from Jeana: Purple Reign: Rockies donning a ‘beautiful’ faux fur coat for home run celebrations - Wonder where I can find a similar coat, she asks
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Sticking with sports, my other favorite NHL team: Capitals ticket prices surge amid Alex Ovechkin retirement rumors - Axios Washington D.C.
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A piece of Denver (gas station) history for sale: Denver: 84-year-old gas station in Bonnie Brae up for sale
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If I were gonna buy a plushie, it might be this one: Meet ‘Rise’ the official mascot of the Artemis II moon mission
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Lakewood voters turn back zoning changes: Officials, residents respond to Lakewood rezoning special election results - Denver Gazette
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Today's Videos
Jessica!
I hope the guy never gets his car back, though perhaps that isn't legal