Antiwar News with Dave DeCamp, 03/31/26
Source: Antiwar.com
“US-Israeli Strikes Pound Civilian Targets in Iran, US Deploys 3rd Carrier to Mideast, and More.” (03/31/26)
Author: Thomas L. Knapp
Trump never actually had a plan
Source: Los Angeles Times
by Jonah Goldberg
“When Trump does something unexplainable or indefensible, the best explanation and best defense for his superfans is to simply say the ways of Trump are mysterious, but rest assured he has a plan. Entering our second month of the war with Iran, the superfans who oppose this war, for various reasons, are left in a pickle. How could this leader with an oak spine, unassailable instincts, deep knowledge and wisdom make such a mistake? How could the man they’ve defended as a genius for so long make what is in their eyes such a monumental blunder? He was misled, of course. … The leader cannot fail, he can only be failed.” (03/31/26)
The Folly of Little Metal Men
Source: Desultory Scribblings
by Tyler Harris
“The attempt to rechristen the DOD the ‘Department of War,’ it could be argued, is itself a hallmark of attempting to larp the tough guy while trivializing institutions the administration does not fully understand or value. I think the problem is deeper, however, than just immature bravado. I think senior civilian leadership in this administration has an overwhelmingly gamified way of thinking about war.” (03/31/26)
https://tylerjohnharris.substack.com/p/the-folly-of-little-metal-men
Trump whines at allies, signals Iran war may end without opening Hormuz
Source: Axios
“President Trump on Tuesday attacked European allies for not doing more to support the U.S. in its war with Iran and signaled they will have to reopen the Strait of Hormuz on their own. This was the third time in recent days that Trump signaled publicly he could end the war in Iran without reopening the Strait of Hormuz. The U.S. would be leaving other countries to clean up a hugely consequential economic quagmire and restore the flow of roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil supply. When asked about Trump’s post on Tuesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stopped short of calling the strait’s reopening a core objective.” (03/31/26)
https://www.axios.com/2026/03/31/trump-europe-strait-hormuz-iran-uk-france
In Iran, the US Manufactured an Enemy and Lost All Its Friends
Source: Antiwar.com
by Ted Snider
“As recently as March 3, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi said the IAEA ‘has found no evidence that Iran is building a nuclear bomb.’ On March 18, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard told a Senate Intelligence Committee that since the first round of bombing Iran in Operation Midnight Hammer, ‘[t]here has been no efforts … to try to rebuild their enrichment capability.’ … The United States opted for an offensive war of choice. The White House made that choice unilaterally. That is not hegemony: that is primacy that expects its vassal states to follow. NATO allies and EU friends were not consulted. Gulf States and Muslim partners lobbied with ferocity against it. Neither the American relationship with NATO nor with the Gulf States will end, but both have been badly damaged and will not look the same in the future.” (03/31/26)
Ron Paul Liberty Report, 03/31/26
Source: Ron Paul Liberty Report
“Trump Looking For ‘Off-Ramp?’ It’s Not That Easy.” (03/31/26)
SCOTUS rules against Colorado’s “conversion therapy” ban on First Amendment grounds
Source: CBS News
“The Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled in favor of a Colorado counselor who challenged a state law that bans ‘conversion therapy’ for minors, ruling that lower courts failed to apply ‘sufficiently rigorous First Amendment scrutiny’ in the case. The high court ruled 8-1 that Colorado’s law, when applied to talk therapy provided by counselor Kaley Chiles, regulates speech based on viewpoint. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson was the lone dissenter. The Supreme Court reversed a decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit that found the law did not violate Chiles’ free-speech rights. The appeals court instead concluded that it regulates professional conduct and only incidentally burdens speech. The ruling from the high court is a narrow one and requires the lower courts to apply a more stringent level of review when evaluating the constitutionality of Colorado’s law.” (03/31/26)
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/supreme-court-colorado-conversion-therapy-ban-chiles-v-salazar/
Chiles v. Salazar: One Cheer for SCOTUS
Source: Garrison Center
by Thomas L Knapp
“As it happens, I’m extremely skeptical of ‘conversion therapy.’ So far as I can tell, sexual orientation isn’t something that can be consciously/intentionally altered using talk or any other kind of ‘therapy.’ Nor, for that matter, is it a ‘medical condition’ at all. It doesn’t need to be ‘treated.’ It’s just a characteristic (and perhaps an evolving, rather than static/permanent characteristic) that people discover in themselves. But that doesn’t mean people shouldn’t be able to think or say otherwise, or to attempt to ‘convert’ consenting others through speech. Note the qualifier: ‘Consenting.'” (03/31/26)
Trump issues unconstitutional election-rigging order to Social Security, US Snail bureaucracies
Source: USA Today
“President Donald Trump moved to exert federal control over voter rolls and mail-in ballots with an executive order that cracks down on a form of voting he frequently criticizes, even as he used it to cast his own ballot this year. … Trump’s order requires the Department of Homeland Security to coordinate with the Social Security Administration to create lists of voting-age U.S. citizens who are residents of each state and transmit them to state voting officials at least 60 days before an election. The U.S. Postal Service would then oversee mail-in ballots, with the order directing the agency to develop rules establishing ‘uniform standards’ for the ballots and preventing it from transmitting ballots of individuals who are not approved. … States have the authority under the Constitution over ‘the times, places, and manner’ of federal elections.
Ten Years Ago Today, Trump Promised To Eliminate the National Debt. Instead, It Has Doubled.
Source: Reason
by Eric Boehm
“Ten years ago today, Donald Trump said he would pay off the national debt in the span of just eight years. That did not happen. Instead, the gross national debt has doubled since that day — from about $19 trillion to over $39 trillion. Much of that additional borrowing has taken place during Trump’s five-plus years in the White House. The gap between Trump’s outlandish promise and the brutal fiscal reality of the past decade is not just a political gotcha. It’s also an apt illustration of how far and how fast the debt has spiraled. And it’s a painful reminder of a missed opportunity that Americans will be facing for a long, long time. The bill for these 10 years of fiscal profligacy will be coming due long after Trump has finally departed from the political scene.” (03/31/26)