Here we go again — just as tensions seemed to be calming going into the weekend, with Trump distancing himself from some of the more out-front escalatory rhetoric from hawks like Bolton within his own administration last Friday, leave it to who else but Senator Lindsey Graham to ramp things up again. “We must deliver an overwhelming military response,” he tweeted in reference to Iran.
Following Saudi claims last week that Iran was behind a Houthi drone attack out of Yemen which targeted an ARAMCO pumping station and pipeline, and after the alleged “sabotage” attack on Saudi and other tankers near the Strait of Hormuz, Graham said early Monday it was “clear” that Iran has “attacked pipelines and ships of other nations” over the past weeks.
Just received a briefing from National Security Advisor Bolton about escalating tensions with Iran.
It is clear that over the last several weeks Iran has attacked pipelines and ships of other nations and created threat streams against American interests in Iraq.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) May 20, 2019
Interestingly, again we find Bolton pushing this narrative, per Graham’s tweet: “Just received a briefing from National Security Advisor Bolton about escalating tensions with Iran. It is clear that over the last several weeks Iran has attacked pipelines and ships of other nations and created threat streams against American interests in Iraq.”
And further appearing to acknowledge President Trump’s reluctance to let the hawks drag him into yet another useless and futile regime change war in the Middle East, Graham urged, “Stand firm Mr. President”.
So now it appears the hawks are waging a full frontal assault to goad the president into war, as even a statement from Iran’s foreign minister acknowledged earlier in the day.
“The fault lies with the Iranians, not the United States or any other nation. If the Iranian threats against American personnel and interests are activated we must deliver an overwhelming military response. Stand firm Mr. President,” Graham stated in a follow-up tweet.
Graham’s urging Trump to resist his initial instincts toward non-intervention, expressed during a Sunday Fox interview wherein the president stated bluntly, “I don’t want to fight” and “I’m not somebody that wants to go into war,” come on the heels of a lone missile attack on the US embassy in Baghdad Sunday, allegedly by an Iran-backed Shia militia.
However, Trump also followed with, “But you do have situations like Iran, you can’t let them have nuclear weapons — you just can’t let that happen.” But noticeably the expected US military action did not come following the apparently isolated embassy incident.
This is perhaps why the hawks are loudly renewing their campaign to convince the president to use greater muscle against Iran.
.@realDonaldTrump rightly deplores "military-industrial complex" pushing U.S. to #ForeverWars
But allowing #B_Team to trash diplomacy & abet war crimes—by milking despotic butchers via massive arms sales—achieves nothing but empowering that same complex.
Time to #DrainTheSwamp?
— Javad Zarif (@JZarif) May 20, 2019
Meanwhile, Iran has continued to appeal directly to Trump to resist the “goading” of the deep state. Iranian Foreign Minister Javan Zarif tweeted Monday: “@realDonaldTrump rightly deplores “military-industrial complex” pushing U.S. to #ForeverWars.” Zarif added, “Time to #DrainTheSwamp?”
The “Team B” reference has been a consistent motif pushed by Iran’s Zarif of late. As summarized in The Nation:
Who else wants war? It isn’t just Bolton, who has advocated war with Iran for many years. Joining Bolton on what Zarif calls the “B Team” are Bibi, bin Salman, and bin Zayed (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed, the effective ruler of the United Arab Emirates). Together, they represent Trump’s Coalition of the Killing.
So now an unprecedented public tug-of-war is playing out on the world stage: Bolton’s deep state axis is busy dragging Trump into war, while Iran and its allies attempt to appeal to the non-interventionist “drain the swamp” stance of Trump’s 2016 campaign.
via zerohedge
Why do you excuse Iran and hold them innocent —they are the ones that are acting like they want war-and if they keep it up that is what they will get-it is called suicide
If Israel and Saudi Arabia are so hung up to have a war with Iran, then let them fight it. The USA should do no more than protect their interests and citizens in the area.
Which is exactly what we would be doing if pulled into a war with Iran. Iran cannot engage Saudi Arabia or Israel without disrupting our interest or threatening any of our citizens. Lets not forget, Saudi Arabia and Israel are both our allies, any attack on them, would be considered an attack on us.
We have a hollowed outmountain out in nevada, it is filed with spent nuclear fuel rods
Set up a remote grinding operation, machine them to very smallparticles. Buy up about 2000 old cropdusting planes.
After about a 2 wekk attack on the anti aircraft facilitied in Iran Load the old crop duster up Fly over Iran dropping the muclera grindings on them.
6 months there will be no Iran, this is a sure fire cure for liberal dem bloodsucker too.
Appears Graham has gone in the direction of Bolton. Kerry is in Iran provoking war. Feinstein calls Iran. The democrats want a war. UN wants 600million illegals in America. Globalists want communist manifesto. OK that was easy
IF I was trump,,,,,,,,,,,, there’d be 3 more battle groups there along with carrier!! You’d be able to walk across those waters from deck to deck!!!!
IRAN HAS BEEN THROWING IT`S WEIGHT AROUND THE MIDDLE EAST BY ARMING THE HOUTHIS IN YEMEN, ARMING HEZBOLLAH IN LEBANON AND THE SYRIANS , HAMAS IN GAZA, ALL FOR THE PURPOSE OF INSTIGATING ANOTHER WAR. THEY WERE LUCKY TO HAVE OBAMA TREAT THEM AS EQUALS AND SEND THEM 150 BILLION PLUS 500 MILLION WHICH ENABLED THEM TO SUPPORT TERRORIST ACTIVITIES AND BUILD A NUCLEAR DEVICE. DIPLOMACY SEEMS TO BE FADING IN DEALING WITH THE MULLAHS IN IRAN. THEY WILL ONLY BECOME MORE THREATENING AND DANGEROUS IF LEFT TO CARRY ON THEIR NEFARIOUS TERRORIST ACTIVITIES WHICH INCLUDED ATTACKS ON FOREIGN VESSELS. WAR IS THE RESULT OF DIPLOMATIC FAILURE SO IT IS COMFORTING TO KNOW THAT THERE ARE SOME WHO RECOGNIZE THE POTENTIAL THREAT FROM IRAN IF THEY DO NOT CEASE THEIR WAR AND BE PREPARED TO ELIMINATE THE FUTURE THREAT OF A GREATER CONFLAGRATION.