Trump

[lsz]

Not sure it makes much difference if funds came from “unfrozen assets” or a cheque. And given the waste under USAID, it’s a drop in the bucket from a US perspective. The issue is what it allows Iran to do.

It is amazes me how you avoid any acknowledgment of any counter point

It was part of an agreement to monitor their nuclear program, a negotiation which was made. It was not perfect by any means but that was something that used to happen…compromise

Like acknowledging that there are few perfect solutions. Like dropping the bombs is imperfect as are most agreements like the one Trump backed out of.

I do wonder is there anything Trump could do that you would not defend?

 

[lsz]

Iran was given 50b+ by Obama or by the Democrats. Once Iran got the money they can do what ever they want with it. It's hard to put conditions on something that's not yours anymore. I would imagine outfitting an outside Army to do your bidding would be a huge cost.

Yes you can not control where money goes but to say that they were given money is highly misleading as there is a substantial difference between that and what happened (it also feeds into a narrative of wasteful spending which, in this case, is not accurate)

 

[SeaEagleRock8]

I do wonder is there anything Trump could do that you would not defend?

or has done!

 

[47MVEagle]

Why is it when questionable behaviour is pointed out your first response is always to avoid looking at the point being raised?

It's called 'Whataboutism'.

 

[Brookie1973]

It is amazes me how you avoid any acknowledgment of any counter point

It was part of an agreement to monitor their nuclear program, a negotiation which was made. It was not perfect by any means but that was something that used to happen…compromise

Like acknowledging that there are few perfect solutions. Like dropping the bombs is imperfect as are most agreements like the one Trump backed out of.

I do wonder is there anything Trump could do that you would not defend?

I acknowledged your counterpoint, and disagreed with it. I think you are misunderstanding disagreement with lack of acknowledgement.

I do wonder if there is anything Trump has done that you agree with?

 

[Brookie1973]

Yes but then at least he did come out and explain, provide briefs etc.

Why is it when questionable behaviour is pointed out your first response is always to avoid looking at the point being raised?

As I said it has been questionable from previous presidents including Obama

Are you saying Trump has not explained why they bombed the Iranian nuclear facilities and held no briefings? That is manifestly false.

I never avoid points that are raised. I think what you really mean is you get frustrated if I don’t always agree with the points you raise. I make no apologies for that.

 

[Brookie1973]

You’re not wrong… us Australians can’t really do much. Our government can denounce it, sure, but they’ll probably just follow the US stance as usual. Even then, not much will change. For at least the past 20 years Netanyahu has held the keys. Indirectly, US has plenty of responsibility by enabling them. In other times during the conflict, Israel was more sympathetic and it was instead Jewish or Muslim religious extremists, divided groups or violent Arab/Palestinian resistance that delayed peace efforts

I don’t doubt for a minute that modern-Iran is a threat with Nuclear weapons. Although I’ve always wondered, can a dictatorship really sustain themselves without some perceived or real external threat? To Iran, a US-Israel partnership is a very real threat. Particularly given how ruthless Israel has been in Gaza. As it stands they’ve got the US (with nuclear weapons) and Israel (who refuse to confirm or deny) trying to tell them they can’t even consider having nuclear weapons… that’s not really lending itself to build any sort of trust, which I’d argue is step 1

US currently preaches isolationism, so one choice would’ve been to continue quietly supporting Israel while otherwise staying out of the situation in Gaza/Iran. Another was to public ally denounce it, drop support and otherwise stay out of it. In terms of getting involved, one option was to declare that no further support would be provided. US to apply pressure until Netanyahu ceases and owns up to what they’ve done in Gaza. Support not to return until Israel commits to adhere to a new vision for peace. Final option was to ignore the Gaza situation, continue funding and assist in attacking Iran… Trump and a select few of his team jumped at the latter option. Overall I think it is shortsighted and a shame

Again, thanks for engaging in a civil way. It’s very refreshing. I can understand the position against the US/Israel, but I can also understand the position of Israel as a small country surrounded by countries that either simply dislike them or have vowed to completely wipe them from the map. Again, I think the problem is unsolvable.

 

[lsz]

I acknowledged your counterpoint, and disagreed with it. I think you are misunderstanding disagreement with lack of acknowledgement.

I do wonder if there is anything Trump has done that you agree with?

I think that the border was out of control and locking that down has been good.

As for everything else in this term it is far too early to comment either way. As for his last term there was some good work with warp speed and getting the vaccine out as quickly as he did.

Lets play the same game and get you to do the same for Biden?

 

[lsz]

Are you saying Trump has not explained why they bombed the Iranian nuclear facilities and held no briefings? That is manifestly false.

I never avoid points that are raised. I think what you really mean is you get frustrated if I don’t always agree with the points you raise. I make no apologies for that.

I’m just trying to understand what’s changed since the briefing by Tulsi Gabbard in March?

Here’s a relevant link for context:

Trump administration postpones classified briefings for lawmakers on Iran

President Donald Trump’s administration has postponed classified briefings for Senate and House members on Tuesday as lawmakers are looking for more answers about Trump’s directed strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities over the weekend and his announcement on Monday that the two countries had reached

apnews.com

As for not agreeing with me I stopped expecting that a long long time ago. What frustrates me is that any time I ask what you do disagree with Trump on, you never give a straight answer. Instead, you redirect to Biden or someone else (like his health coverage, etc).

Even something as basic as the President swearing publicly shouldn’t be partisan. I don’t think it’s unreasonable to expect elected officials of ANY party to uphold a basic standard of conduct.

CNN (yeah, I know ‘fake news’ and all that) actually summed this up well when they ran this Fox News clip:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1937708207067333048

"

 

[Brookie1973]

I think that the border was out of control and locking that down has been good.

As for everything else in this term it is far too early to comment either way. As for his last term there was some good work with warp speed and getting the vaccine out as quickly as he did.

Lets play the same game and get you to do the same for Biden?

That’s great. Honestly, I think it is the first time anyone on these boards that I can respectively say is left of centre has acknowledged something positive about Trump.

As for Biden, I may have to ponder it and get back to you. Nothing immediately springs to mind. I’m not being glib, I just can’t think of anything. Can you give me something I can agree with?