The year has certainly started like a lion

The above is an update with the President’s statement – “I am ready and prepared to take whatever action is necessary” – plus the following:

_______________ Below is the original post
After today, my impression is that the Americans know, and always have known, who their most dangerous enemies are and where to find them. Now their enemies know that as well. The rest below is from Instapundit.

“BOMB-O-GRAM FOR GENERAL SOLEIMANI!” Iraqi TV: Iranian military commander General Soleimani killed in Baghdad strike. “Gen. Qassim Soleimani, the head of Iran’s elite Quds Force, was killed in an airstrike at Baghdad’s international airport Friday, Iraqi television and three Iraqi officials said. The strike also killed Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the deputy commander of Iran-backed militias known as the Popular Mobilization Forces, or PMF, the officials said.”

Weird, just after the Iranians attacked our embassy, the senior guys behind it get personally whacked by an “airstrike” of unexplained origin. Whatever could have happened?

UPDATE: Oh, this is sweet. Pointed out in the comments, Khamenei to Trump: “You can’t do anything.” Oh?

ANOTHER UPDATE: Trump Authorized Strike That Killed Iran’s Soleimani: Pentagon. Iraqi paramilitary commander also dead in attack on Baghdad airport road; group accuses U.S.

Good riddance to bad rubbish. I’ll bet Trump has the next step gamed out, too. The Iranians still seem to think they’re dealing with Obama, or post-2005 G.W. Bush.

MORE: Oops! Trump undermines another journalistic prediction.

STILL MORE: Nice to have a president who isn’t too fearful to strike:

I’ve wondered here before why the Bush Administration was so wimpy with regard to Iran starting in 2005. (It was easier — *cough* Valerie Jarrett *cough* — to see why the Obama Administration was). But it’s good that Trump isn’t.

MORE STILL:

Just what are China’s ambitions?

And why shouldn’t they worry us? From The Economist:

Zoologists use a mild-sounding term—“displacements”—for moments when a strong, young mountain gorilla confronts the dominant male in his group. Behind the jargon lies a brutal reality: a drawn-out, bloody conflict looms. China’s leaders similarly use prim, technical-sounding terms to describe their confrontation with America. In closed-door briefings and chats with Western bigwigs, they chide the country led by President Donald Trump for responding to China’s rise with “strategic anxiety” (ie, fear). They insist that China’s only crime is to have grown so rapidly.

However, behind that chilly, self-serving analysis lurks a series of angrier, more primal calculations about relative heft. These began before Mr Trump came to office, and will continue even if an initial trade truce is made formal (Mr Trump says he will sign one on January 15th). They will endure long after November, when American voters next choose a president. China has spent decades growing stronger and richer. It already senses that only one country—America—can defy Chinese ambitions with any confidence. Its leaders have a bleak worldview in which might makes right, and it is a fairy tale to pretend that universal rules bind all powers equally. Increasingly, they can imagine a day when even America ducks a direct challenge, and the global balance of power shifts for ever.

Why some people dislike Donald Trump

Having gone into Quora on Donald Trump, my inbox is now filled with Quora Q&A on the American President. This has just come up, as an answer to the question, Why Do Some People Dislike Donald Trump? I found it quite interesting in that not a single reason among the ten listed relates to any policy questions. These people have no idea what makes their lives work or where their safety or personal wealth comes from.

About 60% (or more) of us dislike Donald Trump. Most avid Faux News watchers, and Republicans, will tell you all of the wrong reasons why we despise him.

Here are the real reasons.

  1. Trump is an embarrassment. We are now forced each morning to learn what new and embarrassing things the leader of the nation we used to be proud of has said or done on the world stage.
  2. Trump is a raging, malignant narcissist. Many of us knew what that meant. We already knew what problems are associated with this disorder. It meant he couldn’t love our country – or its citizens. And he doesn’t. And he can’t. But we were still standing here loving our nation. He’s never even spoken to us — even after all this time. He either calls us names (Losers, Haters), or he speaks “on behalf of the nation” without knowing our beliefs or thoughts. 1.5+ years into this and he still only talks to his “base”.
    1. His severe narcissism also makes him extremely predictable and most people in our Intelligence community will tell you how dangerous that is. Many of us, who already grew up with a bully knew this. We did not need to re-learn this and did not want to watch it slowly play out in the real world.
  3. Trump is amoral and exceedingly unethical. We didn’t (and still don’t) want to try to explain this to our children and grandchildren. We believe our President should be a role model and of the highest integrity. We also used to gain inspiration from our Presidents (both Republican and Democratic)… now we are just ashamed. We’ve been cringing daily for a-year-and-a-half now.
  4. Trump is a liar bent on making (or keeping) his “base” angry and afraid. He spins everything and tells his “followers ” the press is their enemy. This is for his benefit alone (narcissist) and not for the good of the nation. He lies every single day, to all sorts of people, and refuses to see that a divided nation is a weakened nation. Why? Because he has Narcissistic Personality Disorder.
  5. Trump isn’t intelligent. He speaks in a childish way and half the time sounds like a moron. He has convinced a good portion (maybe 38%) of the nation that he is smart (he has a “big brain”) but none of us who have already survived the torture of living with a narcissist believe what he says — or that he is intelligent. We see the commoner that he is.
  6. Trump is not prepared or qualified for the presidency. He knows next to nothing about governance, and will not bother to learn about it because he only serves, and cares about, himself. At least 60% of us thought our nation didn’t have time to wait for him to “get up to speed” and many of this same group also knew he’d never make a real effort to learn the job requirements — ever.
  7. Trump spits in the faces of women, minorities, Muslims, Mexicans, black people, other nations (including allies), and Democrats. He’s a despicable xenophobe, racist, misogynist, and philanderer. He’s a total wreck of a man-baby and an example of the worst behavior possible. This is intolerable to us.
  8. We (60% or more) don’t believe that simply being wealthy qualifies a person for any political office. It does not prove ability—especially when one is born into it. It certainly does not prove honesty, integrity, or accountability. Yet, we still want these qualities in our president and our politicians.
  9. We (the 60%+) knew (or at least those of us who’ve studied political science) we would most likely have a Republican president after 8 years with a Democratic president and we were willing to work with most any of them — except Trump.
  10. Trump has lowered the respect and trust the United States previously had in the world.

After all that, there is then this added on at the end:

Now, these are NOT the reasons we despise trump.

a. Because the Democrats didn’t win the election.

b. Because Hillary Clinton did not win.

c. Because a so-called Republican won the election.

d. Because we are “snowflakes”. In fact it takes much more courage to care about those less fortunate than ourselves and use our time and resources to help them. It takes real selflessness to see problems in society and try to fix them — even if we see later we failed. It takes real strength of character to see that some parts of society are being treated badly and then change ourselves and/or our laws to make things better for everyone. It virtually takes NO courage to only care about ourselves. In fact, we couldn’t be that selfish if we tried.

You didn’t add in the possibility that you are fools who are blind to reality, which is pretty close to the right answer.

Back to the 70s?

Is this Iran working with the American Deep State?

US EMBASSY ATTACK IN BAGHDAD
PRO-IRAN MOB
‘DEATH TO AMERICA’
DIPLOMATS IN SAFE ROOM
TRUMP: TEHRAN WILL PAY

UPDATE: It’s now six hours later. This is from Instapundit.

TRUMPY’S NO JIMMY: Iranian militias attack U.S. embassy in Baghdad, Trump sending 4,000 troops. Plus: “More than 100 U.S. Marines arrived at the U.S. embassy in Baghdad earlier Tuesday to help bolster security after the mob of Iranian-backed Shite militiamen tried to storm the U.S. embassy in Baghdad.”

The Iranians won’t like the way this plays out.

Meanwhile, Democrats are already attacking Trump. Adriana Cohen writes, so much for the water’s edge. Silly Adriana. That’s only for Democratic presidents.

Meanwhile, blue-check lefties have rushed out to call this Trump’s Benghazi. But unlike Hillary, Trump didn’t leave the staff to die, he sent help.

Or as Trump notes:

Related: FLIR Video • Marines Arrive At The U.S. Embassy In Iraq.

Australia in the news

From Trump Rids Major U.S. Container Port of Chinese Communist Control:

It all started with a 40-year container terminal lease between the Port of Long Beach in southern California and Hong Kong. The Obama administration proudly signed the agreement in 2012 giving China control of America’s second-largest container port behind the nearby Port of Los Angeles. One of the Trump administration’s first big moves was to get the Communists out of the Port of Long Beach. After a national security review and federal intervention, the Long Beach terminal business, which handles millions of containers annually, is finally being sold to an Australian company called Macquarie Infrastructure Partners. That essentially kills China’s decades-long contract with the Obama administration.

Democrats do not deserve to live in a democracy

They want to be taken care of, not to run their own lives. They want others to feed them, clothe them and house them, not to produce and earn these things for themselves. They believe that they can remain personally free where they are dependent on others for much of what they receive. But the issue is much much more than just their ignorance.

Donald Trump was elected president and is president based on the rules of the democratic game. The Democrats are using every means they can devise – legal and illegal – to overturn that election. Their media conspirators are in it up to the hilt, lying at every turn and ignoring any news that shows a positive picture of America that can be attributed to the president. They lie and cheat at every turn. They are corrupt and dishonest. And on their side there is no disgust or shame in what they are doing. There are no higher principles they are defending.

Impeachment because the Dems have nothing else whatsoever

Trump will change what the word “impeachment” means to the country more than impeachment will change the Trump presidency. We are only days away from the word becoming meaningless.

Scott Adams

Multiple Democrats Vote Against Impeachment, Only Democrats Vote For It

History Will Judge Democrats Harshly for ‘Toxic Political Stunt’ Impeachment

Limbaugh: The 1 thing Dems haven’t calculated in Trump impeachment

Limbaugh On Impeachment Day: It’s Now Official, Media Knows They’ve Failed

The Party of Infanticide “Prayerfully” Considers Impeachment 

Donald Trump becomes 3rd president in US history to be impeached  – from our ABC

McConnell: Impeachment Process Senators Unanimously Approved for Clinton Is ‘Good Enough for Pres. Trump’ 

The Five Quotes From Trump’s Letter Most Likely to Make History

 
And this is what the President was doing while the impeachment vote was taken.

 

PDT’s letter to the Speaker

I went looking for Donald Trump’s letter to Nancy Pelosi on google and eventually gave up since every one linked on the first six pages was from some deranged media source which meant to link I would have to also link to their comments that went straight into the headline. So here it is for you to read for yourself taken from The White House: Dear Madam Speaker. It is a statement for the record putting down for the sake of history a summary of the insanity that has gripped the American political system since 2016.

You can also find a discussion of the letter here: Trump Unbound posted at Powerline. Here is the conclusion from the letter also found at the link.

It is time for you and the highly partisan Democrats in Congress to immediately cease this impeachment fantasy and get back to work for the American People. While I have no expectation that you will do so, I write this letter to you for the purpose of history and to put my thoughts on a permanent and indelible record.

One hundred years from now, when people look back at this affair, I want them to understand it, and learn from it, so that it can never happen to another President again.

These people he is dealing with are nutters. Beyond delusional, beyond even madness, but evil. The American economy is booming, constitutional freedoms are being entrenched more deeply and in every direction. There is no crisis, other than the terror no doubt felt among Democrats that they may really be about to lose their grip on power for a generation.

Nevertheless, impeachment next.