Yesterday Rush Limbaugh interviewed President Donald Trump. As one might expect, the primary subject was the latest news, the drone strike killing of Qasem Soleimani (voanews.com), the Iranian Qud Force Commander. Here is a link to the interview, America’s Anchorman Interviews President Trump (Jan 6, 2020) (rushlimbaugh.com).
Why read the interview? Limbaugh let Trump speak without arguing with him. He gave Trump an opportunity to clearly explain why he had Soleimani killed. That is, we don’t have to filter out the news media hostility to all things Trump.
Consider what is going on. Because of the drone strike killing of Soleimani, the Iranian leadership is unhappy and wants to hit us back. However, they were already hitting us, and Soleimani was planning another attack. Therefore, when Trump had Soleimani killed, he was interfering with the execution of an attack in the planning, he was showing Iran we have the capability to hit them back harder, and he was pointing out to the Iran’s leaders that he is willing to use that capability. That is, Trump was demonstrating that Iran has much more to fear from us than we do from them.
Because they are determined to take of Iraq, like as not Iran will still try to intimidate the United States and drive us out of the country. If we want Trump to stand firm, then we need to understand why he made the choice he made and voice our support.
Qasem Soleimani was dangerous man, a terrorist. Because he had killed lots of people (including hundreds of Americans) and intended to kill more, killing him was a good decision.
Citizen Tom 
“Most Americans don’t believe……” How do you or I know what “most Americans” believe? “Even if Trump were telling the truth about imminent threats, he has no credibility.” No credibility with whom? “Trump has been impeached, and he is waiting for his trial for removal.” Actually, he has not been impeached, because the articles of impeachment have not been sent to the senate. He is waiting for a trial, but not for removal, rather more probably exoneration. “The government and the people are incredibly divided right now and Trump is a divisive (not even close to a uniting) figure.” What good is a “uniting” figure, if we are uniting over lies? Check out the New York Times 1619 project, designed to unite us over a fake history of our country. Divisive is not per se bad, uniting is not per se good. It depends on what you are uniting around; Trump lies, the mass media lies worse. Since we have no certain way to know what is true behind the facade, then our choice of believing Trump or eulogizing a known mass murderer/planner of innocent deaths is divisive, and should be.
IAC,
You can believe the polls or you can believe your own lying eyes. Trump is a con man from way back and now he is way out of his depth. Three wives and counting wrongly believed Trump’s promises too. People believed Trump when he scammed them in to buying his fake degrees and participating in his bogus charity.
And now you believe Trump has a strategy? Yea sure….
I didn’t eulogize a state sponsored terrorist, but it doesn’t a genius to write the eulogy for Trump presidency as the most mendacious and incompetent in American history, if America still has a history after Trump. Looks like Bill C and W caught a break.
I fully agree. He must go. If not in this life then the next. 🙂
@tsalmon
Well, could be wrong, but it looks like Trump won this round. That means we won because Trump is on our side. Obama was not.
A few things:
1. Because Trump treats the truth like a second home that he rarely visits, most Americans don’t believe anything he says. Even if Trump were telling the truth about imminent threats, he has no credibility.
2. Trump has been impeached, and he is waiting for his trial for removal. If Clinton’s military attacks during a similar period were suspected by many, myself included, that the tail was wagging the dog, given Trump’s mercurial nature and lack of any intelligible foreign policy strategy on anything, much less in killing Soleimani, the suspicion that Trump is just trying to change the subject will be even greater. With any luck the worst result of this unplanned fiasco will be, like N. Korea’s nuclear threat and like China trade war, Trump will declare a worse status quo than before as some kind of victory, and tuck his Cadet Bone Sour tail back in.
3. The government and the people are incredibly divided right now and Trump is a divisive (not even close to a uniting) figure. However, perhaps the only thing that Trump’s die hard supporters and Trump most adamant haters are they are united about that we all are tired of these endless stupid wars in the Middle East. We have sacrificed trillions of dollars and thousands of lives and don’t even need the oil anymore. Why do we want to take sides between Islamic religious tyrants in their own stupid version of the Reformation Wars?
4. How many National Security Advisors have we had now? How many Defense Secretaries? The State Department has been gutted and its morale is in the toilet. Trump has managed to lobotomize our National Security leadership. All the adults have left the room and only lackeys, ego massagers and yes men remain. Even if Trump actually listened to anyone, all he has is demagogues and third string grifters to advise him. Yesterday, our military formally advised the Iraqi government that we were pulling out our troops, only to have that notification rescinded with the claim that it was a clerical error. Oops? I wonder who will be forced to fall on his sword for that screw up.
5. We cannot have a little war with Iran. I’ve operated in the Persian Gulf and participated in Desert Shield and Desert Storm. The Persian Gulf is exactly that: an Iranian lake with a 50 mile wide opening at one end and the Fifth Fleet floats in it like big boats in a bath tub. At 20,000 feet, I could see the whole thing on a clear day. For any serious American commander there, no strategic middle ground exists between a fragile peace and all out devastating domination of the sea, the air and most of the land of Iran. It’s all or nothing military scenario, not too unlike what we have in Korea. Are Trump’s boys going to lead the charge? And after that, after we devastate and demolish Iran, do you think it ends? Iran lost a million men in its war against Saddam Hussein, a war where we backed a tyrant and even gave him the chemical weapons to use against Iran that he later used against his own people. Do we really think we are going to bomb them into becoming a Jeffersonian democracy? How has that worked out for us in Iraq and Afghanistan?
@tsalmon
Trump kills an Iranian responsible for killing hundreds of American soldiers and untold numbers of other people, and that is your response? 🤨
Your first point is not true.
Your second point says more about Liberal Democrats than it does Trump. Your second point says more about the Liberal Democrat news media than it does Trump. You want to know something? Listen to this: https://cms.megaphone.fm/channel/mark-levin-podcast?selected=WWO1308743368. At 95 minutes into the audio, Mark Levin interviews Senator Ted Cruz.
Your third point is not germane. Trump did not create this mess. He is dealing with the situation on the ground. Soleimani was in Iraq stirring up trouble. When he could be exterminated, it would have irresponsible to let that rat continue to spread a plague of violence.
Your fourth point ignores what Obama left behind, the deep state. Trump is now getting rid of those people, but they almost took down his administration with a pack of lies.
Your fifth point is silly. It is an excuse for doing nothing. The United States is the world’s most powerful nation. Iran is the world’s leading purveyor of terrorism. To maintain law and order, we have to find some way to control Iran. We don’t have a choice. Obama tried to buy off Iran. Appeasement. That chicken shit did not work. Never does.
Tom,
You also thought it was a great idea for us to go into Iraq to go after nonexistent WMD when the Bush Neocons were just lying you into a multi-trillion dollar nation building scheme. You probably still believe that debacle, that strategic catastrophe in US foreign policy which inexorably lead to every other predictable negative unintended consequence that has happened since, that was all part if the great Republican scheme to bring about Fukuyama’s End of History scheme and spark endless world peace.
Now you believe Donald Trump actually has a plan, but that those wascally wabit Democrats with their diabowical Deep State (also known as “The State”) are continuously thwarting our virtuous and always ingenious dear leader’s bwilliant secwet plans. Maybe Trump has some of those worthless degrees from Trump University he can sell you too if you give him your house and savings.
It was absolutely not one bit a good decision… killing the guy in that manner. But given neither of us knows for sure until events go forward, it’s all speculation. But here’s the broader picture here, Tom…You think Trump made a good decision because you blindly worship Trump for being Trump. I think his decision was entirely arbitrary and without thought about anything simply because I have an intimate relationship with Trump…. I know him after three years… and he always assumes what he wants is what the nation wants.
@Doug
Funny! Thanks. I can use a good laugh. Here is my serious response. 😉
We cannot predict the future. So, if we have to know the future to make a good decision, we cannot make a good decision.
We cannot read minds. That includes you, fortunately. So, we cannot judge the quality of each other’s decisions using our mind reading skills. Nice (https://www.etymonline.com/word/nice#etymonline_v_6918) try.
Anyway, I doubt you have an intimate relationship with Trump. Melania does, but not you.