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A president who writes off half the country can’t expect to garner support from a crisis of his own making.
So that was not exactly the Cuban missile crisis.
In apparent retaliation for the killing of Iran’s top terror commander, Iran fired short-range ballistic missiles in the direction of military bases inside Iraq. The missiles inflicted no casualties on U.S. or allied forces.
The truly horrible news seems instead to be an accident: the crash of a Ukrainian Airlines flight to Tehran, which killed all 176 people aboard. The largest group among them consisted of 63 Canadian nationals. The cause of the crash remains uncertain. As of early this morning, the Iranian authorities had recovered the aircraft’s black boxes, but said they did not intend to send them to the plane’s manufacturer, Boeing. If a poorly aimed rocket struck the plane, then Iran has truly escalated the crisis. Otherwise, a night that opened with bellicosity closed in the shared grief of accidental tragedy.
But imagine that Iran had gotten luckier (or unluckier) with its missile aiming. Or that the Iranian regime had chosen—or still chooses—a more lethal response to the killing of Qassem Soleimani. Where would we be then?
The Trump administration and its supporters seem to have hoped for a “rally around the flag” effect from the killing of Soleimani. This did not happen. The fundamental geology of Donald Trump’s presidency remains unchanged: A large majority of Americans do not trust him, do not support him, and will not follow him. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has complained that European allies do not support the Trump administration’s actions. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell laments that Democrats in Congress will not support the president either.
The first poll after the killing of Soleimani shows 53 percent of Americans disapproving of Trump’s handling of Iran, a number similar to what other polling registered in September and October. What has changed is that 39 percent “strongly disapprove” of Trump’s policy—a number up 10 points since before the Soleimani killing. Americans do not want war with Iran, and they do not trust Trump to lead such a war if it erupts.
Trump’s governance itself is legally in question right now. The president has been impeached. Unlike the Clinton impeachment of 1998–99, this process commands the approval of a majority of Americans. On average, more than 50 percent believe the Senate should remove Trump from office. That’s not sufficient to force the Senate to respond, especially not a Senate majority that itself was elected with the support of only a minority of Americans. But it’s certainly sufficient to deprive the president of the legitimacy to lead the nation to war.
The United States finds itself in the dangerous situation of having a president in power but without authority.
He is the least trusted president in the history of polling. Two-thirds of Americans regard him as dishonest. Sixty-one percent say he does not respect democracy.
Continued: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/ar...ynK65LHJrXDrus
So that was not exactly the Cuban missile crisis.
In apparent retaliation for the killing of Iran’s top terror commander, Iran fired short-range ballistic missiles in the direction of military bases inside Iraq. The missiles inflicted no casualties on U.S. or allied forces.
The truly horrible news seems instead to be an accident: the crash of a Ukrainian Airlines flight to Tehran, which killed all 176 people aboard. The largest group among them consisted of 63 Canadian nationals. The cause of the crash remains uncertain. As of early this morning, the Iranian authorities had recovered the aircraft’s black boxes, but said they did not intend to send them to the plane’s manufacturer, Boeing. If a poorly aimed rocket struck the plane, then Iran has truly escalated the crisis. Otherwise, a night that opened with bellicosity closed in the shared grief of accidental tragedy.
But imagine that Iran had gotten luckier (or unluckier) with its missile aiming. Or that the Iranian regime had chosen—or still chooses—a more lethal response to the killing of Qassem Soleimani. Where would we be then?
The Trump administration and its supporters seem to have hoped for a “rally around the flag” effect from the killing of Soleimani. This did not happen. The fundamental geology of Donald Trump’s presidency remains unchanged: A large majority of Americans do not trust him, do not support him, and will not follow him. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has complained that European allies do not support the Trump administration’s actions. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell laments that Democrats in Congress will not support the president either.
The first poll after the killing of Soleimani shows 53 percent of Americans disapproving of Trump’s handling of Iran, a number similar to what other polling registered in September and October. What has changed is that 39 percent “strongly disapprove” of Trump’s policy—a number up 10 points since before the Soleimani killing. Americans do not want war with Iran, and they do not trust Trump to lead such a war if it erupts.
Trump’s governance itself is legally in question right now. The president has been impeached. Unlike the Clinton impeachment of 1998–99, this process commands the approval of a majority of Americans. On average, more than 50 percent believe the Senate should remove Trump from office. That’s not sufficient to force the Senate to respond, especially not a Senate majority that itself was elected with the support of only a minority of Americans. But it’s certainly sufficient to deprive the president of the legitimacy to lead the nation to war.
The United States finds itself in the dangerous situation of having a president in power but without authority.
He is the least trusted president in the history of polling. Two-thirds of Americans regard him as dishonest. Sixty-one percent say he does not respect democracy.
Continued: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/ar...ynK65LHJrXDrus
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