A president of contradictions ...
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Influenced by Israel’s hawkish Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump has laid down maximalist demands, including curbs on Iran’s missile range, conditions that Tehran argues would compromise its security and defense.
Even if Trump were pursuing regime change, he would be contradicting his own promises on the campaign trail. In a November 2024 interview, he said, “We can’t get totally involved in all that. We can’t run ourselves, let’s face it.”
Since returning to the White House in January 2025, Trump has ordered several military strikes, though limited ones, against countries such as Yemen, Nigeria and Venezuela, moves that run counter to his promise to wind down US military engagements.
Now, with such a massive deployment to the Middle East, he has put the entire region and, by extension, the global economy at risk.
Iran’s Leader has warned that any attack would trigger a regional war. Alireza Tangsiri, commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps’ Navy, has said his forces stand ready to close the Strait of Hormuz – a waterway through which some 20% of the world’s oil passes – on orders from higher authorities.
It is striking that a president who casts himself as a messenger of peace and covets the Nobel Peace Prize would at the same time contemplate a war against Iran, the fallout of which is impossible to predict.
The notion of “peace through strength” appears to really hit the spot for the paradox-filled president but he totally misses that it is basically a synonym for bloodshed and violence or at best, it is just a euphemism for war.
If the flames of such a conflict spill over beyond Iran and engulf the wider Middle East, particularly if energy flows are disrupted, experts warn oil prices could skyrocket above $150 a barrel. That seems to be the last thing Trump would want.
With US midterm congressional elections looming in November and the prospect of impeachment if Republicans lose ground, Trump would do well to think twice about striking Iran and several times over about his pledge to end endless wars.