by Paul Dragu, The New American:
Many Americans are shocked at how quickly the Trump administration seems to have regressed from one that prioritized diplomacy to one that’s itching to drop bombs on a foreign country half a world away.
In many ways, Donald Trump is unlike any president in recent memory. During his first term, he presided over one of the most peaceful four years in a long time — relatively speaking, of course. The most glaring accomplishment, if non-actions can be categorized as such, was that he did not catapult the United States into a new, drawn-out war. This is a low bar, but it speaks to the tragedy that is America’s interventionist foreign policy.
TRUTH LIVES on at https://sgtreport.tv/
But over the last week, the American people have watched “the president of peace” launch volley after volley of threats to let loose the lethal might of the U.S. military at a country that even his U.S. intelligence agencies don’t believe is building nuclear bombs. And, for those who view anything the corrupt and unethical intel institution says with deserved disbelief, consider the recent admission of Rafael Grossi, the director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Grossi told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour that, regarding Iran, “we did not have proof of a systematic effort to move into a nuclear weapon.” Grossi, however, does point out that the lack of proof doesn’t mean Iran wasn’t secretly building nuclear weapons.
“We did not have any proof of a systematic effort to move into a nuclear weapon.” @iaeaorg Director General affirms his agency’s findings about Iran’s nuclear program. pic.twitter.com/TmHx7rtfjJ
— Christiane Amanpour (@amanpour) June 17, 2025
Flipping the Switch
For those on the outside, the switch — the moment Trump began floating the idea of waging war against Iran — was flipped after Israel’s surprise attack on Iran, launched June 12. Trump’s rhetoric immediately changed. In the following days, the president lobbed one bellicose statement after another. However, reports suggest the administration has incrementally come under the spell of war hawks who’ve crept ever closer to the president’s ear over the last few months.
Influencing the President
A recent report from Politico suggests that a certain “pugnacious” general known as “The Gorilla,” who is an Iran hawk, has corralled for himself enormous influence with Trump. “U.S. Central Command chief Gen. Erik Kurilla,” Politico reports, is “pushing for a strong military response against” Iran. The report says that nearly every one of his requests have been greenlit, “from more aircraft carriers to fighter planes in the region.” He is, reportedly, “overruling other top Pentagon officials and playing a quiet but decisive role in the country’s next steps on Iran.”
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has given Kurilla an unusually high degree of authority. He’s been very good at getting what he wants. Sources told Politico:
[Kurilla] has had more face time with the president than most other generals, according to one of [four] people, who, like others, was granted anonymity to discuss internal conversations. Kurilla is also at the end of his tenure leading U.S. Central Command, meaning he may be less fearful about pushing the president.
Kurilla’s arguments to send more U.S. weapons to the region, including air defenses, have gone against Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine and Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby, who have urged caution in overcommitting to the Middle East, according to the four people.
One of Politico’s sources said that Kurilla wants to take “every” military asset from other theaters and bring it to the Middle East, which is likely an exaggeration due to the irrationality of such a suggestion. Nevertheless, a great deal of matériel has indeed been sent to the Middle East as of late. Early this week, the USS Nimitz carrier strike group was deployed to the Middle East. That happened after the USS Thomas Hudner destroyer was sent to the region as well. And that’s not counting the intelligence assets that are unofficially on the ground and other weaponry being sent there. The article also mentions the addition of new deployments of F-22, F-35, and F-16 fighter planes.
Read More @ TheNewAmerican.com
