March 11, 2026
"President Trump told Axios in a brief phone interview Wednesday that the war with Iran will end 'soon' because there is 'practically nothing left to target.’”
"'Little this and that... Any time I want it to end, it will end,' Trump said during the five-minute call."
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57 comments:
"Soon" is pretty vague. Almost no matter when it ends, Trump can say he was right and the media can say he was wrong (I mean lied).
I've been doubting this guy's judgment for a long time and usually was proven wrong.
I'm doubting it again. I hate this talk.
He must have heard from Begley.
No more targets in a mountainous country with plenty of hidey-holes and an unlimited energy supply and leaders with an explicit economic goal of standing alone? And with plenty of bonus buyers for oil in China and elsewhere?
Hmmm?
Perhaps no more targets that he cares about. No more targets will not lead to "UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER."
That's the difference between us and the Trump haters--we stopped second guessing him when he proved to be right far more often than we did.
Now, no matter how alarmed I am by something Trump says or does, I wait a while to see how it plays out.
Oops, I meant to start that with:
CJinPA said...I've been doubting this guy's judgment for a long time and usually was proven wrong.
And under the new regime, there ain't crap I can do about it. Not edit, not delete, not nuthin. Blogger keeps getting worse.
Not taking him literally, but seriously. If the IRGC controls 40% of GDP, as I've been reading, then there is probably a substantial distance between 'out of targets' and 'unconditional surrender', and I'm left to speculate what vehicle would close that distance. Probably not air support, and probably not completely tidy.
I'd like to know more about the IRGC. How is their money made, and where is it kept? International banking, hmm? Petroleum revenues, how paid, hmm?
I'd be running guns to civilians, and lots of starlink setups. Is it possible for the present Iranians in control, including the IRGC, to stifle satellite links? Is the internet really shut down there?
The Chosen, whose viewership overlaps a lot with MAGA, has a running gag with the word 'soon.' Whenever someone asks JC when a thing is going to happen, he says 'soon.' The value of 'soon' varies - we are at nearly 2000 years for his second coming, for example.
I wonder if Trump is deliberately riffing on this. Even if he isn't, a lot of his followers will pick up on it. CC, JSM
Unlike in Afghanistan with all of those military targets that took 20 years to take down.
Trump has Biden-brain.
In Trump's entire career he has self-contradicted himself to keep his options open. He will run the war until Iran is on its knees. He's just saying this today to take the heat off of him.
And don't forget that Bibi had a tweet where he told the world that some big things were coming so that the Iranian people can rise up and throw out the mullahs and IRGC.
…haven’t we heard that talk from military strategists before? I think Bouncing the Rubble has been mentioned…
Lee Smith on X: "We're getting the Iran echo chamber back together." / X https://share.google/UsYZJdCrKc54Gj3hR
tim maguire said...
And under the new regime, there ain't crap I can do about it. Not edit, not delete, not nuthin. Blogger keeps getting worse.
No delete in Firefox, had to use Chrome. Coincidentally, Google owns both Chrome and Blogger.
? I'm using Firefox, latest version, and the trash can has always been there, and still is.
Missiles impact during a pro-government rally in Tehran
No, they don't run away in fear, thanks God the missiles don't hit the crowd, just nearby. Even the Israelis are admitting that regime change is out of the question.
re trashcan, after I updated MacOS I lost it, but I had to go to Chrome, and it works there every time. You can use it just to delete, if you don't like Chrome.
It could be disinformation, but apparently the Kurds in Syria, that we sold out to al Qaeda, which now runs that country, are telling their brethren in Turkey and Iran "don't do it," because they will just get sold out in the end, and then Iran and Turkey will mop them up for their disloyalty.
"Perfidy" seems like a great strategy, if you are Bill Clinton, George W Bush, or Barrack Obama, or Donald Trump, but eventually Charlie Brown will figure out the bit about the football, in real life. And now there is easy global communication for these groups we used to exploit, to compare notes.
I use Brave, and the trashcan has also always been there, mocking me, like the telltale heart or the raven, nevermore.
The IRGC makes its money from oil, natural gas and chemicals. The have the worlds largest processing facility. But, they can't make money if they can't ship the product and that is becoming an issue for them - so I've heard. They're running out of cash to pay their administration. If you're constantly be targeted and the you can't get paid, then what? It's all going to come to a head soon.
Great Britain is the only place where their money and assets are safe in the west. Russia and China are options, but really, would you put your money there when you have GB on your side?
I would imagine there's probably a good amount of Obama's pallets of cash buried under tons of rubble right now.
Jaq: "thanks God the missiles don't hit the crowd, "
Now we really know what side you're on. Anyone in that country who supports the mullah regime is a legitimate target. They're not on the Mall - they're in Tehran. They have no rights the US is bound to observe. Just like when the Soviets shot anyone with a swastika. Or the Krauts flat out killed the Soviet political comissars.
And the war will end sooner if people were literally afraid of their lives to show any support for the regime. The regime already makes any opponent afraid for their lives. Goose, gander and all that. CC, JSM
Do you honestly think if Bomber Harris or Curtis LeMay had the technology to spot and target a Nazi rally, they wouldn't have immediately napalmed it? CC, JSM
"Little this and that..."
Nuthin' But A "G" Thang
On what me and my homey Snoop Dogg came to do
It's like this, and like that, and like this, and uh
It's like that, and like this, and like that, and uh
It's like this, and who gives a fuck about those?
So just chill, 'til the next episode
Trump becomes more believable in terms of "practically nothing left to target" when and if the straits of Hormuz are open to shipping. Up to that point it's just BS.
So even with war going on IRGC are able to access Western Banking system?
Quite likely they are also participating in the insurance pools for cargo cover and collect premium
They probably are burning off their inventory
The Pentagon tells Congress that the first week of the Iran war cost more than 11.3 billion dollars.
Trump sent yet another mixed signal: he declared the conflict was nearly over, then hours later indicated it was far from finished.
Trump shows no interest in anything that has happened before him and is unconcerned with what will transpire after him. He’s like a director who does not shoot films but only trailers for movies that will never be made.
This is the central ethos of modern postwar American mass culture where the entire culture orbits around television and the visual media. Who and what is immediately popular moves the entire economy. Ratings, viewers, weekend attendance, eye-balls, clicks — these are metrics of rising ascendance or crashing irrelevance. It is all one big Me Generation focused entirely on Now.
Trump is this culture; he is both product of and embodiment of it. Trump only cares about how he looks on TV and visual media and if he is popular with the audience. His mind does not understand how he can be a ratings leader and not have won the majority vote. Only a fraudulent election could contradict the ratings. Right?
Not enough targets? If we run out of schools, there are still Little League fields, orphanages, and Chuck E Cheeses.
Right, Waq and Kak?
Soon covers a number of days. I'd say soon is about April 1, 2026.
Trump is giving himself lots of wiggle room. He always does.
Dunham said...
"The Pentagon tells Congress that the first week of the Iran war cost more than 11.3 billion dollars."
That's less than the Somalis stole.
"That's less than the Somalis stole."
Less than the Democrats allowed the Somalis to steal.
"In Trump's entire career he has self-contradicted himself to keep his options open. He will run the war until Iran is on its knees. He's just saying this today to take the heat off of him.
"
Also, why telegraph your plans to anyone else?
Brent is back up to just shy of $100 again, and 400 million barrels from the SPR are not the same as 400 million barrels from the Persian Gulf, and the refineries are not necessarily tuned for the stuff in SPRs around the world.
https://comexlive.org Tiniest skosh under $99 at the time of this posting.
Oh yeah, and urea production is shutting down there, it requires the NG whose production has been shut down, and if the war ended today, which it won't, it will be a month before that is on-line. So look for higher food prices as fertilizer prices get bid up, or farmers simply use less. Turns out that a significant share of world fertilizer comes through the Strait.
Iran is going to demand that the sanctions are permanently lifted before it re-opens the Strait, or we could take it Iwo Jima style, using ground troops, but we would have to conquer most of Iran to stop them from hitting ships using the Strait.
NY Times says, the NYT, not me, that Trump wants an off ramp, but Israel wants the war to keep going, a war that they can't fight by themselves, BTW, that is being fought for what Netanyahu considers to be Israel's national interest, not those of the United States.
It's not antisemitic to say it.
Also, the US will refuse to lift santions, and all that means, when the US refuses to lift sanctions, is "this isn't settled yet, it's just that we need a breather." And the Iranians know that, so just because Trump wants to go back to the status quo ante, well, people in Hell want icewater too.
When weve achieved our objectives for this part of the mission
Its not that complicated
Gas prices surge, pinching Americans and handing the GOP a new midterm headache ~ FOX News
"Gas prices climb to $3.53 per gallon, up 59 cents over the past week, according to GasBuddy"
Never seen a man punch himself in the nuts.
If Iran can keep the price of oil up, they may be able to effect regime change in America or, at least, regime change in the House and Senate. That's a big if, but it's possible.......I wouldn't bomb the crowd, but it would be neat if they dropped leaflets on the crown telling them that some of their partners are urging the US to bomb the crowds, but we probably won't do it and thanks for your attention to this matter........I suppose the IRGC can wreak some vengeance here and there, but I don't see how they can possibly win. God forbid they inflict substantial harm. This war is nasty but it can get considerably nastier.
The power plants in Iran exist not by the grace of Allah but by the grace of Trump. How nasty do they want to make the war?
The power shortages after the firsr phase of the iraq war plagued the provisional authorities for years
In his first term Trump eliminated ISIS rather quickly. Maduro was in and out. He has trained us to expect these short timeframes. From our past experience these things go on for years and decades. This Saturday it will be and entire two weeks and everyone is saying "forever war". Trumps past success has set this expectation. In Trump war terms, another two weeks is a lifetime.
Oil is the most manipulated market in history right now.
First, we were told that the Iranian Navy was totally destroyed and then we were told except for 16 mine laying ships. Iran just struck Oman's largest oil storage facility. Thai ship hit in the Strait earlier. Second, they said that the US Navy was escorting tankers except that was apparently just a brazen lie. Third, they said the war was almost over but then they said we are hitting them harder than ever today. Now this blatant effort at lowering the price.
I thought Trump was going to refill the strategic stockpile when oil was $60? Did he forget to do that before he started this mess?
The fact that Trump started this war with the US strategic petroleum reserve only half full tells you that this is not going to plan.
No matter what happens, Trump has done more damage to the crazy Mullahs in the past 12 days than anyone has in the last 45 years. The Straight of Hormuz will open up soon. The rest of the world needs it, and will not let Iran hold it hostage. Trump can pull out now, and it's still a win. He's not putting boots on the ground in Tehran. Maybe Hormuz will have to be protected, but that seems worth it.
I thought Trump, the business genius, was going to refill the strategic stockpile when oil was $60? Did he forget to do that before he started this mess?
The fact that Trump started this war with the US strategic petroleum reserve only half full tells you that this is not going to plan.
Grok
@grok
Yes, it's true. In March 2020, amid crashing oil prices (WTI ~$20-30/bbl, briefly negative), the Trump admin pushed $3B in the CARES Act to buy domestic crude and refill the SPR (which had room). Senate Democrats removed it; Schumer listed it as a win in his summary: "Eliminated $3 billion bailout for big oil." His spokesman and press releases highlighted the exclusion. Sources: Roll Call (3/25/20), CNBC, Schumer's Senate site.
https://x.com/grok/status/2030687165525483631
But yeah- Trump.
"Aggie said...
? I'm using Firefox, latest version, and the trash can has always been there, and still is."
Thanks. Mine works also. Was gone over a month.
Speaking of Iraq, it would appear that a couple of tankers have been hit and are on fire, at an Iraqi loading area. That's a couple of hundred miles north from the Straits of Hormuz - but just a scant few miles from neighboring Iran. Iraq doesn't really have much for territorial waters in the Persian Gulf, just a little wedge between Kuwait and Iran, with the Euphrates/Tigris (Shatt al Arab) river.
Althouse Spam filter working like a charm on comments, not-so-much-on actual spam 😂
"oil and gas prices will drop rapidly again, potentially even lower than before the strikes began" ~ WH Caroline Leavitt
"Based on what Steve and Jared and Pete and others were telling me, Marco is so involved, I thought they were going to attack us. ~ Donald Trump
Trump has obviously realized, way too late, that this is a monumental eff up. He's desperate for an exit and has started blaming everybody else, as per usual.
Not only do the supply interruptions mean higher fuel prices are now guaranteed until the autumn at least, they also mean higher inflation is inevitable across the economy. And disruptions in other supply chains (everything from helium to urea) are just going to make the inflation shock worse.
At least now Americans can feel safe from the Iran threat they never felt unsafe from...
@SETSA on oil prices.
If the closure of Hormuz prompts Saudi Arabia to build oil pipelines from the Gulf to the west instead of its absurd "The Line" city, it'll be a net positive.
Given ship insurance rates, oil pipelines would be a very cheap way chop Iran's regional influence by half.
When you start a war, you don’t get the only vote in deciding when It ends. Trump may be running out of targets but Iran has not.
This is looking like Covid where Trump created the impression initially that the crisis would be over in a few weeks but instead lasted a couple of years.
"The Pentagon tells Congress that the first week of the Iran war cost more than 11.3 billion dollars."
The annual Pentagon budget is roughly $900 Billion. That's $18 Billion a week. A few billion here and there is not a big deal.
IMO there are lots of areas where defense spending can be and ought to be audited and substantially cut. Fighting actual wars is one of the places where defense spending seems to be appropriate (although I am sure there is big money being made).
It is fun to watch democrat traitors start to care about where money is being spent.
But you loved your learnig centers and all of your NGO bs.
Special Envoy for The Shield of the Americas said...
Althouse Spam filter working like a charm on comments, not-so-much-on actual spam 😂
"oil and gas prices will drop rapidly again, potentially even lower than before the strikes began" ~ WH Caroline Leavitt
"Based on what Steve and Jared and Pete and others were telling me, Marco is so involved, I thought they were going to attack us. ~ Donald Trump
Trump has obviously realized, way too late, that this is a monumental eff up. He's desperate for an exit and has started blaming everybody else, as per usual.
Most Americans realize that this will result in lower oil prices in the long run. It is obvious why this is the case.
We aren't as stupid and gullible as you.
I know 2 weeks......
Brent crude is 99$ and WTI is 87.50 and going down.
Boatbuilder
Proctor & Gambol make twice as much in a year than the top five military contractors combined. There is orders of magnitude more waste and fraud in the entitlement end.
Left Bank of the Charles said...
"When you start a war, you don’t get the only vote in deciding when It ends. Trump may be running out of targets but Iran has not."
They have run out of the means and the will to reach those targets. War is logistics. Iran no longer has any.
Rusty--it's not an either/or thing.
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