Thoughts on the Trump presidency

[dgl]

We also have to remember that the people in Iran with the guns/weapons might like their authoritarian role and not give a damn what most of the population want if they get to shoot people. Then again you need authority of some description, just not people who are mad with power.

At the moment there won't be a revolution if the people that want it are just going to get killed if they try, that's the mistake Trump has made (amongst many others).

 

[Annetts key]

This video outlines issues with Trump's health:

MeidasTouch host Ben Meiselas reports on Donald Trump’s health crashing as the war takes a massive toll on him as well.
His physical health is rapidly deteriorating before our eyes, as is his cognitive abilities.

It shows a rash on his neck. Discusses his hands, his apparent inability to walk in a straight line, his increasing inability to stay on topic rather than rambling.

 

[Russel]

This video outlines issues with Trump's health:

It shows a rash on his neck. Discusses his hands, his apparent inability to walk in a straight line, his increasing inability to stay on topic rather than rambling.

Interesting, but, we've seen very similar videos about Putin, claiming he was at deaths door 4 years ago.

 

[Annetts key]

Interesting, but, we've seen very similar videos about Putin, claiming he was at deaths door 4 years ago.

This video doesn’t directly predict when Trump will die.

IMHO it does though hint at Trump's decline as his dementia gets worse.

 

[Russel]

We are not even clear what the objective(s) of the U.S. are...

So how does the U.S. define success?

Is this being kept intentionally vague though, so Trump can say mission accomplished when it suits him?

This video doesn’t directly predict when Trump will die.

Oh I know, I'm just saying we've seen similar videos about Putin

 

[Annetts key]

This video outlines issues with Trump's health:

It shows a rash on his neck. Discusses his hands, his apparent inability to walk in a straight line, his increasing inability to stay on topic rather than rambling.

Forgot to say, the bit showing Marjorie Taylor Greene ranting at Trump at the end is entertaining. Starting at about 11mins 49 secs.

 

[The exile]

The US removed one man and his wife. The socialist government is very much still there, under his Vice President.

It seems fairly clear that Trump views the leader as “being” the country. I suppose that coming from the right the idea that “there is no such thing as society” conflates so nicely with a simplistic view of statehood. As most Germans will tell you, conflating the leader and the state usually doesn’t end well for either (though the Kims seem to be doing very nicely thank you). The sad thing is that those are the only kind of leaders currently available as a benchmark for someone occupying the position that could once claim to be “the leader of the free world”

 

[JamesT]

It seems fairly clear that Trump views the leader as “being” the country. I suppose that coming from the right the idea that “there is no such thing as society” conflates so nicely with a simplistic view of statehood. As most Germans will tell you, conflating the leader and the state usually doesn’t end well for either (though the Kims seem to be doing very nicely thank you). The sad thing is that those are the only kind of leaders currently available as a benchmark for someone occupying the position that could once claim to be “the leader of the free world”

I think for Venezuela that was true. Maduro, and Chavez before him, operated on a cult of personality with an inner circle that were personally loyal and you risked jail or worse for opposing him.
We'll have to see how it goes with Rodríguez, but releasing political prisoners is a good start.

 

[DarloRich]

It is being reported by the Independent that a US submarine has sunk an Iranian warship off Sri Lanka

A US military submarine carried out the deadly strike on an Iranian warship off Sri Lanka’s coast.

Speaking during a press conference on Wednesday, US defense secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed that the US had “torpedoed” the vessel in international waters.

US submarine launched deadly strike on Iranian warship off Sri Lanka, officials say

More than 100 missing and 78 injured after sinking of Iranian frigate Iris Dena, according to reports

www.independent.co.uk

 

[brad465]

US navy have torpedoed (literally) an Iranian ship:

Iran latest: US submarine sank Iranian warship in Indian Ocean with torpedo, defence secretary says

Earlier, the Sri Lankan navy said around 140 people were missing after an Iranian ship sank near the island. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is giving a news conference at the Pentagon now - watch live on this page.

www.bbc.co.uk

US sinks Iranian warship with torpedo in Indian Ocean - Hegseth​

Hegseth says that in the Indian Ocean, the US sank "an Iranian warship that thought it was safe in international waters".

"Instead it was sunk by a torpedo," he says.

Hegseth did not name the Iranian ship that was attacked.

But earlier the Sri Lankan navy reported the IRIS Dena went down in the Indian Ocean, with around 140 people on board missing.

 

[EYFanatic]

So he didn't call for "thuggish behaviour" while I agree his rhetoric and tone is very alarming, he didn't actually call for it.

Neither did Hitler with the Jews, but we know what happened...

 

[DoubleLemon]

There is a lot of support for regime change. Clearly, there are alternative ways of achieving it. I do not know what proportion want a full US invasion, or what proportion think the air approach is sufficient though.

are these the same people who only a few months ago were saying no more wars and if the dens get in they would invade and would start a war. the thing they were veermently against. the spineless two faced hypocritical snowflakes that is maga??? those people?

 

[Bletchleyite]

There is a lot of support for regime change. Clearly, there are alternative ways of achieving it.

The US has done it before by arming the group they wanted to win, though in the case of the Taliban it rather backfired on them.

 

[DoubleLemon]

Really, don't think all of them would. Likely some of the press want to distance themselves from Trump; not as if he's a popular figure as far as UK populous is concerned?

they are going insane about the current response. no matter what is decided the right wing will be screaming like the petulant children they are. they are traitors and want to destroy the UK because they see profit it in. that's why they like Trump. he's giving them a template to use. look at Reform lies about the election.

 

[Topological]

are these the same people who only a few months ago were saying no more wars and if the dens get in they would invade and would start a war. the thing they were veermently against. the spineless two faced hypocritical snowflakes that is maga??? those people?

None of the Iranians I know voted for Trump if that is what you are trying to get at. To be fair, a large number of them were not eligible. My profession is overwhelmingly Democrat.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 4 Mar 2026 ==

The US has done it before by arming the group they wanted to win, though in the case of the Taliban it rather backfired on them.

Yes, that was not ideal. Perhaps they learned?

Either that, or Trump just could not work out which side he actually likes. There needs to be a few boardroom firings and a TV series.

 

[thenorthern]

Oh come on. Are you seriously suggesting that just because the admin hasn't said the quiet part out loud it isn't clear what their policy is? If the policy wasn't for thuggish behaviour, officers exhibiting it would have been relieved of their duties.

You made the claim that he was encouraging "Thuggish behaviour" not me.

 

[Krokodil]

You made the claim that he was encouraging "Thuggish behaviour" not me.

And they are.

When their first response to a couple of pretty blatant murders by their officers was to claim that the officers have "absolute immunity" and block a criminal investigation (instead ordering your prosecutors to investigate the widow) then they are encouraging more violence.

 

[jon0844]

And they are.

When their first response to a couple of pretty blatant murders by their officers was to claim that the officers have "absolute immunity" and block a criminal investigation (instead ordering your prosecutors to investigate the widow) then they are encouraging more violence.

And look at their recruitment videos too. They're clearly going after literal thugs.

 

[ainsworth74]

It would seem the administration has cottoned onto the fact that they're burning through their stockpiles of munitions at an alarming rate:

WASHINGTON, March 3 (Reuters) - The Trump administration plans to meet with executives from the biggest U.S. defense contractors at the White House on Friday to discuss ‌accelerating weapons production, as the Pentagon works to replenish supplies after strikes on Iran and several other recent military efforts, five people familiar with the plan told Reuters.

Companies including Lockheed Martin and Raytheon parent RTX, along with other key suppliers, have been invited to attend the meeting, the people said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the discussions are private.

The meeting underscores the urgency felt in Washington to shore up weapons stocks after the Iran operation ⁠drew heavily on munitions. Since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022 and Israel began military operations in Gaza, the U.S. has drawn down billions of dollars' worth of weapons stockpiles, including artillery systems, ammunition and anti-tank missiles. The conflict in Iran has consumed longer-range missiles than those furnished to Kyiv.

[...]

Tomahawk missile maker Raytheon has a new agreement with the Pentagon to eventually ramp production to 1,000 units annually. The Pentagon currently plans to buy 57 of the missiles in ⁠2026 at an average cost of $1.3 million each.

https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/defense-executives-plan-meet-white-house-strikes-iran-diminish-stockpiles-2026-03-04/

I don't know how many Tomahawk cruise missiles the US has used so far in Iran but I would lay good money it's more than 57 and is probably making a dent on that 1,000 per annum figure that they're hoping to get to eventually...

The US is probably winning the race to degrade Iranian capabilities faster than they're using up their weapons stocks. But that remains, for me, the real race.

 

[DarloRich]

It would seem the administration has cottoned onto the fact that they're burning through their stockpiles of munitions at an alarming rate:

Who to believe? The demented tango man OR the people who actually build the rockets?

One says they have endless suppliers, the other says they can't meet demand!

Let's blame Biden!

 

[Krokodil]

The drunken "Secretary of War" Pete Hegseth claims that the action near Sri Lanka was the:

first sinking of an enemy ship by a torpedo since World War Two

The General Belgrano self-immolated then, did it? The Pakistanis would like a word too, they sank an Indian frigate.

 

[dgl]

It would seem the administration has cottoned onto the fact that they're burning through their stockpiles of munitions at an alarming rate:

https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/defense-executives-plan-meet-white-house-strikes-iran-diminish-stockpiles-2026-03-04/

I don't know how many Tomahawk cruise missiles the US has used so far in Iran but I would lay good money it's more than 57 and is probably making a dent on that 1,000 per annum figure that they're hoping to get to eventually...

The US is probably winning the race to degrade Iranian capabilities faster than they're using up their weapons stocks. But that remains, for me, the real race.

Oh well, at least someone is doing well out of it, too bad it's not the people that matter.

 

[Russel]

Who to believe? The demented tango man OR the people who actually build the rockets?

One says they have endless suppliers, the other says they can't meet demand!

Let's blame Biden!

If the US is burning through their supply, that may well be the deciding factor on how long this war lasts.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 4 Mar 2026 ==

Sky News live coverage has a post (20:28) outlining the US objectives, taken from a speech by Karoline Leavitt, if I'm reading this correctly, no mention of regime change...

1. Destroy Iran's Navy;
2. Destroy its ballistic missile capacity;
3. Ensure its proxies in the region can no longer harm Americans;
4. Ensure it can never obtain a nuclear weapon.

SKY News Live Coverage

 

[Cowley]

Sky News live coverage has a post (20:28) outlining the US objectives, taken from a speech by Karoline Leavitt, if I'm reading this correctly, no mention of regime change...




SKY News Live Coverage

It’s almost like there’s not really a plan?

 

[Russel]

It’s almost like there’s not really a plan?

It's only took them 4 days to come up with the objectives!

Though, as I mentioned earlier, are the goals intentionally being kept vague so Trump can declare victory when he wants to walk away from the mess he's created?

 

[brad465]

It’s almost like there’s not really a plan?

They're so bad they don't even have a concept of a plan either.

 

[najaB]

Difficult to say, with Venezuela, he got lucky in that the US removed the socialist government there and the former dictator is now in custody.

The current president was the previous vice-president and to the best of my knowledge the officers of government remain unchanged.

Not much of a "removal" if you ask me.

 

[ainsworth74]

The current president was the previous vice-president and to the best of my knowledge the officers of government remain unchanged.

Not much of a "removal" if you ask me.

And in some respects why the Iranian intervention is more dangerous. They've gone around killing so much of the regime there that there might come a moment when it starts to splinter and then we could really be off to the races for internal conflict within Iran.

But, at the same time, the regime has clearly spent a lot of time establishing it's structures and processes so despite so many people being killed outright it is currently still limping along with a strong grip on the country at large being maintained.

We keep coming back to how ludicrously risky this all is and the plan still seems to have simply been:

Step 1: Bomb the Iranian Regime.
Step 2: Kill the Iranian leadership and enable them to be toppled from power.
Step 3: ????
Step 4: Iran becomes a prosperous, safe, vibrant country with equal rights for all.

Though they appear to now be getting stuck on Step 2 currently as the regime remains in power.

 

[Cowley]

We keep coming back to how ludicrously risky this all is and the plan still seems to have simply been:



Though they appear to now be getting stuck on Step 2 currently as the regime remains in power.

We’re going to need you to come up with a solid plan for stage 3 if we get there @ainsworth74, because we may need to email it to them at some point.

 

[brad465]

The current president was the previous vice-president and to the best of my knowledge the officers of government remain unchanged.

Not much of a "removal" if you ask me.

"Meet the new boss, same as the old boss" energy.