How Trump Went From America First to Make Iran Great Again Back in 2020, after Donald Trump ordered the killing of Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani, diplomats warned of likely retaliation and expressed skepticism about the president’s rationale. “There is so much distrust of Trump in the region and among our allies,” former ambassador to NATO Nicholas Burns told Vanity Fair at the time, “that he must now reveal specific and credible information” as to why he acted.
Fast-forward five years, and following the weekend bombings of Iranian nuclear facilities, Eric Lutz writes how Trump and “his advisers can’t get the message straight on regime change.” Both JD Vance and Marco Rubio said regime change wasn’t the goal, while Trump later appeared to suggest that it was. (As for providing specifics, Rubio said it was “irrelevant” whether the US had seen intelligence indicating that Iran was, indeed, building a nuclear weapon.)
“It is tempting to say that Trump’s comments muddied the administration’s message on the Iran strikes,” Lutz writes. “But, of course, the only message that has ever really mattered in the Trump administration is the one coming directly from him. Especially this second time around, the government speaks with one voice, and it is his.”
Unsurprisingly, Republicans have largely rallied behind Trump, though Bess Levin finds Marjorie Taylor Greene “sick of” foreign wars. Greene insisted that her opposition to attacking Iran wasn’t out of “disloyalty” to Trump since “critical thinking and having my own opinions is the most American thing ever.”
Lutz also heads to a baseball field in Sioux City, Iowa, where he catches up with J.D. Scholten, a Democratic state rep and minor-league pitcher, to discuss his decision to take on Republican senator Joni Ernst. “People feel cheated,” Scholten says. “The economy is working as it’s meant to, but it’s not working for everybody. And that’s the thing.”
Plus, Tom Kludt speaks with ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne about the reported $10 billion sale of the Lakers, and Erin Vanderhoof explores MAHA’s obsession with parasites. Thanks for reading.
—Michael Calderone, editor |
