If this were Obama's "first significant act."

[Baitball Blogger]

First of all, the attack on Syria was not Trump's "first significant act." The first one occurred when the Navy Seal and several civilians were killed.

Second, I agree that something had to be done after Syria used chemical weapons on innocent people, but, I had to ask myself, if this were Obama, we wouldn't get any kind of support for the action. Instead, people would be looking at it as an attempt to take attention away from domestic troubles.

Here's the chain of events:

1) Evidence against Trump regarding his ties to Russia begins to coalesce and is evident as his loyalists come under investigation.

2) A strong ally of Putin gasses his own people, for no apparent reason. Children were targeted and the video is just too much to bear. Action must be taken.

3) BEFORE we take action, someone in the National Security Council finds his balls and boots Bannon out.

4) The Syria airport was targeted AFTER Russia was warned that we were coming.

5) Today's news wipes away all of Trump's domestic trouble as his supporters get into warring mode.

You can bet, that if this was Obama in the oval office, that these talking points would be the only thing we would be hearing from the right. But, instead we are about to hear the predictable clamor that military action overseas is supposed to make a president immune to criticism because it is not patriotic.

[CousinIT]

1. It's good to be rich white male trash.

The privilege afforded 45 that is not afforded people of color or women is STUNNING.

[Vogon_Glory]

2. IOKALAYAAR, It's Wonderful!

IOKALAYAAR It's OK As Long As You Are A Republican! The fawning and lame reporting by the disgraceful US mainstream corporate media washes away most Trumpkin blunders like floodwaters wash away gravel on a dry mountain riverbed.

[Baitball Blogger]

3. It just occurred to me that if this was orchestrated for that purpose,

and Russia did help create this as a distraction, it is the most mentally sick Wag the Dog created and is a War Crime that deserves action.

[BumRushDaShow]

4. As the results of the campaign come out

it more and more points towards a coordinated, manufactured action.

The unemployment rate came out today and businesses created an "anemic" (what they would have called it if Obama was still in office) 98,000 jobs. This is supposed to be the "jobs" President.

You have -

1.) Failure to get a Muslim ban (twice)
2.) Failure to repeal/replace Obamacare
3.) Failure of the entire NSC infrastructure with the booting of Bannon, resulting in Bannon attacking Kushner
4.) Failure to create jobs (and it was reported that the job numbers for the previous 2 months were revised downwards)

The only things he was able to do was to torpedo enforcement of environmental regs and rollbacks of discrimination protections for workers contracting to the federal government.

[karynnj]

5. Immediate vs long term effects

1) The evidence on Trump/Russia is still there and not going away. The real case will have to be made quietly, competently and definitively by the FBI and other intelligence agencies. This happens whether it is the lead story on the news or not.

2) Assad has gassed his people before as well as barrel bombing schools, hospitals etc. I suspect more people died on several days of the worst Aleppo attacks than in this. That is not to diminish the horror -- just to say that this is not out of line with what Assad does. In fact, you could say that while he continued killing by all other methods, after the US/Russia agreement that took the chemical weapons, he did not use that kind of chemical weapons while Obama was President - though he used chlorine.

3) McMasters had said from the time he was first asked that Bannon did not belong there. It is clear that McMasters won that battle in getting Trump to agree that Bannon did not belong there.

4) We had to warn Russia because if we hit Russian personnel or assets, this would be a complete disaster. I agree that meant that Syria knew that they were going to be attacked and where - even if Russia told them nothing explicitly.

5) Yes, the news will be all this attack ... and for some period of time, it could raise Trump's approval. However, unless this magically unlocks the logjam that has prevented a ceasefire holding well for long and really does lead to a diplomatic solution - no matter how fragile, it will not be seen as a great victory. Note that Syria is very far from "mission accomplished" in Iraq -- and we know how far "Mission Accomplished" really was from a real victory. This is more like the Clinton attack on Sudan.


Another point is that this will force Trump to try to get a real policy on Syria. As it is, many have argued that Tillerson's inept statements that seemed to to be comfortable with Assad staying - though sounding close to Obama administration comments that the government would ultimately be decided by Syrians - did not include that the Syrian diaspora, which uniformly hates Assad, would get votes as well. That was a hard fought for provision in the UN resolution that the US/Russia/Iran/Syria et all agreed to.

What will be interesting is what Trump does now. Will he try to join the diplomatic effort? I guess he could add this to Kushner's responsibilities. (even though he will not have the support of a team like those previous Secretaries of State counted on to help them do this detailed, complicated job) Kushner might have more diplomatic skill than Tillerson -- though comparing them might be like dividing by zero.

[Baitball Blogger]

6. Nice rounded response.

Thank you.

[alarimer]

7. It's funny that bombing the crap out of some place is what makes someone "presidential."

Well, not funny, but sad, really. Peacemaking and diplomacy is what should REALLY make someone presidential. But it is exactly the opposite of what Trump is all about.

Fortunately this is Trump we're talking about. In a few days, weeks or months, he will do something that will cool their ardor bigly.

[Baitball Blogger]

8. True. He doesn't have the best track record with foreign diplomacy or action.