Walking Points >> Mar 4
Today, we’re covering a quick roundup of the Trump admin’s worst players and why they’re fundamentally unqualified to lead this nation through war.
No matter how old you are, these people are writing the narrative of the rest of our lives. We will be dealing with Iran, as well as the rest of their global and domestic antics, for decades. The opportunity cost is staggering.
▶ Pete Hegseth dishonoring the entire history of the US military as he brags about destroying a country wholesale
▶ Marco Rubio’s snivelling back and forth as he tries his best to turn his lies into condescension
Let’s dive in.
Pete Hegseth’s embarrassing boasting & slip of the tongue
A defining trait of American culture coming out of WWII was that we are the strongest nation on Earth, and we treat that status with the solemnity that it deserves. Iraq and Afghanistan nearly destroyed that image wholesale.
Anything left of it is surely gone as we enter the depths of Trump’s second term.
In case you wondered if the unrepentant alcoholic Fox News host-turned head of the Department of War Defense would bring gravity to the proceedings, he did not. You probably knew that already. We can save this for the War Crimes trial:
“US and Israeli airpower every minute and every day until we decide it’s over. And Iran will be able to do nothing about it … Death and destruction from the sky all day long. We are punching them while they are down, which is exactly how it should be.”
War is bad, and war is serious. We should demand that those who wage it in our name, with our dollars, treat it as such.
Pete also treated us to yet another revealing slip that this whole thing is, indeed, Israel’s mission. He says it right here:
To our steadfast partner, Israel, your mission is being executed with unmatched skill and iron determination.
Bonus: More of Pete’s disrespect for the American people
Pete can’t tell, because he has a clinical lack of self-awareness and might lack empathy altogether, but the American people are aware that since we can’t ask questions ourselves, we rely on the press to do so. So when he derisively belittles journalists who ask questions on our behalf, it’s more and more infuriating each time.
We’ve had six soliders die in his and Trump’s war, which according to Pete, will last as long as Trump wants. When asked about their deaths, he complains:
This is what the fake news misses. We’ve taken control of Iran’s airspace & waterways without boots on the ground. But when a few drones get through or tragic things happen, it’s front page news.
Yes, Pete. Because we don’t give a shit about taking control of Iran’s waterways. We give a lot of shits about you letting American soldiers die for your apparent entertainment.
Marco Rubio is bad at lying
Listen to Marco Rubio’s trembling voice as he breathlessly forces his way through this lie:
We went proactively in a defensive way … we knew that if Iran was attacked, they would attack us … had we not done so, there would have been hearings on Capitol Hill …
Nearly every time Rubio lies to escape accountability, he throws in a line to imply that the press or the Woke Left would complain either way. It’s entirely imaginary and indicative of the victimhood he traps himself within. Marco Rubio has no inherent agency. He just reacts.
Of course, when Marco talks about Iran being attacked, he is talking about Israel attacking Iran. We know that because he said it himself, yesterday:
We knew Israel we going to strike Iran … if we didn’t act first, Americans would suffer higher casualties.
I said it in yesterday’s post, and I’ll say it again - Demcorats need to hammer home how fundamentally unfit this administration is to navigate through a complex war with global stakes. Many, many military experts told us this before we elected him President in 2024.
The Walking Points »
Trump and Hegseth fired dozens of eminently qualified military leaders in their quest to remake the military in their image. Media figures and Democrats should be doing everything they can to elevate these voices and remind America the full scope of not only why this is happening, but why it’s happening so stupidly.
Trump’s carelessness is sacrificing our political futures. Say goodbye to solving real, intractable political problems during your lifetime. We’ll be spending decades just to get back to 2024’s status quo.
Are you over the age of 50? Congrats. You’ll be watching US/Middle East developments for the rest of your life.
Are you over the age of 20? Well, you can wait until you’re a senior citizen before America pulls itself out of this mess. Maybe when you retire we’ll figure out NATO’s replacement.
Thanks for reading - one more thing.
Walking Points is meant to spark new conversations - please consider sharing this work with a friend.
Then, talk to your friend about it. Maybe ask them to pass it along. And so on.
Until next time,
Nick