Reflecting on the 2026 Wyoming Legislative Session with Gov. Mark Gordon

 

A theory very close to the one I've advanced here.

Will Don be saying, et tu, J.D.?

From the always excellent Uncle Mike's blog:

Vance the Bully's Flunky

I still think my theory is more likely, but its interesting that I'm not the only one who is traveling this line of thought.

Uncle Mike, as he makes clear, believes that the plan is to wait until next year at which time the illegitimate occupant of the Oval Office, billionaire insurrectionist Donald Trump, will be impeached and removed from office, there by installing Vance as President.  It's an interesting theory.

The problem with it, I think, is that it requires the cooperation of a fair number of Republican Senators to go along with it.  I don't think they have the guts.  Senators like Wyoming's John Barrasso have proven so spineless that he's being examined by the Washington D.C. zoo for a place in the invertebrate display.  To be fair, they fear their voters, and in some areas, like Wyoming, the MAGA delusion is so deep that a lot of its adherents will carry it to the gave where they'll have to ask questions about why they supported an illegal war launched by an immoral serial polygamist while the environment went to pot. Barrasso will be right there with them, saying "they made me do it so I could keep my job".

Anyhow, I don't think enough Republican Senators will go along, unless the Senate GOP starts to hemorrhage pretty severely this November, in which case their save their job instincts will start to kick in.

My theory, which I've held here for a long time, is a bit more sinister.  

I've thought since before the election that the plan was to let Trump slip into increasingly worse dementia and then remove him just before the November election via the 25th Amendment.  That's nearly win/win for Vance.  It might cause a huge sigh of relief amongst independents who are refugee Republicans and the two or three Republicans who aren't MAGA, saving some of the election.  It also might give cover to candidates like Chuck Gray whose platform is that they love Trump so much, they want to be his adoring handmaiden.   If he's gone, they can go to the cabinet, pull out the bottle of Old Crow, put on the Boomtown Rats single I Never Loved Eva Braun, and start acting like sentient mammals.

If it doesn't save the election, Vance can still be President for two years and start pulling the "I'm not responsible for this particular stupid Don idea" while also blaming the Democrats for everything else.  Shoot, as the war against Iran will still be going on by then, he can declare victory and declare himself a hero, even if we haven't won by then, and we won't have.

Anyway you look at it, getting into office before Trump's term ends is Vance's only hope.  People don't like him.  The stench of Trump will attach too much for him to win on his own merits, and those merits, if you want to call them that, are not MAGA, they're NatCon.

The problem at this point is that while allowing Trump to get wackier and wackier serves their interests, we get deeper into bat shit crazy weird territory every day.  As it is, we're at war now, it would seem, as Bibi thought this was his chance and Bibi, Putin, and rich people, some of whom are in the Epstein files, are the only people Trump listens to.  We are in an area in which there are, now, hardly any limits, thanks to the Supreme Court.  If Bibi tells Donny nuking Tehran is okay, there's no guarantee an addled Trump wouldn't do it, although we can still hope that there's backchannel conversations in the DoD about how far they let this go before they just start saying no.

Presumably, if Donny comes in and says, "hey guys, I'm going to put the ball room here and it will be fun to have a march through a triumphal arch after I nuke Tehran, let's do that today so we can fight North Korean next week and put on a cabaret in Havanna!" the cabinet will still say no, but again, the problem is that the people in this administration, with a hand of exceptions, might actually be too far gone themselves.  Markwayne Mullin?  For goodness sake, he needs to be sent back to 6th grade and be reminded you don't wear your hat indoors, not given a job with the administration.  Steve Miller?  Yikes.  

Well, smoke and mirrors and backrooms.  Marco probably is angling for the Presidency himself and doesn't want to be too tarred with Trump feces.  There are probably others still.

By June or July we'll know if I was right.

A good clue I might be is that since the war with Iran started, Vance is hard to find.

Lex Anteinternet: The 2026 Election, 5th Edition, part two: The Saddle Up Edition

Lex Anteinternet: The 2026 Election, 5th Edition: The Saddle Up Edit...: The last edition of this was already sufficiently confusing that a new one is in order. In this one, when we list the candidates to start wi..

February 27, 2026

For some reason, this thread won't update, so were on to a part two of it.  This same glitch impacts a few other threads on the site as well.

Here's the old one:

The news to post is that David Giralt, combat veteran, is promising to be the biggest Trump stooge in the GOP if elected to the House, which now means that Chuck Gray, whose never really had a job, has to compete with somebody who has, for complete sycophant status.

Gray's released television ads, by the way, featuring himself in rural settings and promising a bunch of things won't happen on his watch, including men in girls sports, and "woke" wind projects, an easy promise to make as that's already been addressed.  He even went out and bought a Western cut wool shirt, which now means he gets to be subjected to Yeoman's questions, including "Chuck, would you like to ride this horse. . . "

In something really disturbing, it's been revealed that executive orders have been prepared for Trump to try to take over the 2026 election.  He will try it.  If he succeeds, that's the end of American democracy.

Cont: 

Gray took time out of his busy job of stamping UCC filings to shovel some s*** about the State of the Union address:

Secretary Gray Releases Statement Applauding President Trump’s State of the Union Address

 CHEYENNE, WY – Wyoming Secretary of State Chuck Gray has released the following statement applauding President Trump’s State of the Union Address: “President Trump’s State of the Union was an absolute masterclass triumph.  President Trump discussed the tremendous accomplishments of his administration in unleashing American innovation and prosperity with an America First agenda.   

He has brought our economy roaring back. As we approach our 250th anniversary, President Trump also discussed the courage and perseverance of the American people with tremendous introductions of American patriots.  

And when the radical Left refused to stand and acknowledge that American citizens should come first, the truth was laid bare for all to see.  The radical Left is out of control and outrageously wrong.  But the silent majority will continue to stand for common sense policy that puts America First!” 

Gray is probably hoping for Don to endorse him.  Nobody really gives a rat's ass what the Wyoming Secretary of State thinks about a State of the Union address. 

March 5, 2026

Voting started Tuesday as primaries were held in North Carolina, Texas and Arkansas.  As these are primaries, state funded party elections (which are generally probably unconstitutional, frankly) I don't know that a person can draw too much from them.  I would note that the Texas GOP appears to be going even more MAGA than it already is, which is pretty extreme, which may end opening things up for Democrats in November.

In Wyoming, Converse Count Commissioner Robert Short became the first candidate to announce a bid for Secretary of State.  He is a long serving Republican.

Regarding voting in primaries:

Draco of Athens and 8/18/26

March 10, 2026

Kevin Richardson has jointed the House race as a Republican.  He's a combat veteran, former employee of the BLM, and works in Denver.  He claims he's for protecting Wyoming's lands for industry, agriculture and tourism.  Other than that, you can't tell much about him.

There's a draft Bo Biteman movement going on, we'd note, although I've forgotten what its that his supports want to draft him to.  Drafting in a political sense is a long held tradition, although its very tough in a state with primaries, and a lot of snarky commentators don't know what that actually means as they associate "draft" with the military and Sportsball.  Looking at his legislative voting record, I wouldn't be in favor of him.

A Democrat has finally entered the race for something, with Worland Resident Bryan McCarty entering the race for Secretary of State.

March 11, 2026

On the best of the third parties, the American Solidarity Party:

A statement on yet another United States’ Attack On Iran:

Feb 28 

Written By American Solidarity Party

On June 22, 2025, I issued a condemnation of “President Trump’s unilateral, unjustified, unconstitutional, and unnecessary military action against Iran” on behalf of the American Solidarity Party.  Our principles, commitment to peace, and opposition to reckless and unjustified military aggression remain the same.  Accordingly, I again condemn President Trump’s unjustified, unconstitutional, and unnecessary attacks on Iran.

 Our platform states:  “Administrations of both parties have pursued a policy of reckless overreach, at great cost to both ourselves and other nations.   We oppose this tired elite consensus and believe the United States should use its influence to promote an international order that respects the dignity of the human person through means other than aggression.”  Additionally:  “Military interventions by the United States have rarely complied with just war principles and have usually been counterproductive.  We call for an end of the exertion of military hegemony over the world.”  Furthermore, “We insist that the United States must end unilateral military intervention in foreign countries.”

As Americans, we do not need regime change abroad; we need it at home.  We must escape the ghastly bloodlust and other demonic impulses of the Democratic and Republican parties.  Men and women of goodwill must unite in solidarity to build an alternative to evil.  

Jack Ternan

Chair, National Committee

A statement recognizing the affiliation of the Conservative Party of Delaware: 

Mar 4  

Written By American Solidarity Party 

At its most recent party congress, the Conservative Party of Delaware resolved to affiliate with the American Solidarity Party.  On January 19, 2026, the National Committee of the American Solidarity Party adopted a “Resolution Concerning the Affiliation of the Conservative Party of Delaware with the American Solidarity Party” setting forth the process and conditions of affiliation.  The Central Committee of the Conservative Party of Delaware adopted a resolution meeting those conditions and executed an affiliation agreement on February 27, 2026.

Accordingly, I am pleased to announce and recognize that the Conservative Party of Delaware has become a state party affiliate of the American Solidarity Party.  I appreciate the hard work of James Sloven and the rest of his state committee in making this affiliation possible. 

Jack Ternan

Chair, National Committee

Something to remember about third parties, because of the monopolistic illegality of the two major parties conspiring to seize control of the primary process, you can be a Republican or Democrat and still be in a Third Party.  This in fact drives Republicans in particular nuts, as in some localities its surprisingly common.

In the present day and age, frankly, anyone who is solidly Republican or solidly Democratic, flat out isn't thinking.  Looking at third parties makes sense, and indeed, may well be necessary to save the republic.

March 13, 2026

Far right divisive rust belt carpetbagger Jeanette Ward is running to try to regain her seat from Julie Jarvis, who replaced the ineffective Ward in the 2024 election.  Her early announcement shows she intends to be the toxic rust belt carpet batter that caused people to boot her out in the first place.

The candidate for House District 57 makes a big deal of her Christianity, while in the legislature showing that not to be the type of Christianity that most Christians would easily recognize.  She took a stand against being your brother's keeper, specifically, for example.

Legislator Bo Biteman is running running for the House.

While not a complete Trump toady like Gray, whose prospects are dimming by the hour, Biteman is on our No Go list as he's in the Freedom Caucus.

If nothing else, this election appears likely to put Gray in the unemployment line and Rasner off for his next hopeless campaign.

WFC member House Speaker Chip Neiman has announced he's running for Sen. Ogden Driskill's senate seat.

An interesting aspect of this is that the Confederate Caucus, after taking a pounding this legislature in spite of being in control, is really ready to abandon ship.  Of course with Neiman, he was probably aware that Biteman was bailing out, so now he's hoping to lead the Senate.

This might end up to result in just some minor deck shuffling, but it could also mean that the WFC has shot its bolt and its numbers will start to decline.  Neiman doesn't deserve to be reelected, let alone move to the Senate.

Last edition:

The 2026 Election, 5th Edition: The Saddle Up Edition.

Labels: 2026 Election, Brent Bien, Chuck Gray, Curt Meier, Daniel Workman, David Giralt, Eric Barlow, Harriet Hageman, Jillian Balow, Jimmy Skovgard, Megan Degenfelder, Politics, Reid Rasner

Today In Wyoming's History: March 12, 2026.

Today In Wyoming's History: March 12: 2026.  Windstorms at a historic level closed highways in southeast Wyoming and closed the campus of CSU.

Thursday, March 11, 1926. Governments and labor.

The Italian Senate banned all non-Fascist labor unions and declared all strikes and lockouts to be unlawful, with compulsory arbitration before special labor magistrates to resolve any disagreements between labor and industry. Premier Benito Mussolini declared that the bill was "the most courageous, most audacious, most radical and most revolutionary reform yet proposed by the Fascist government in its 40 months of office.

Sort of like the Wyoming Freedom Caucus dominated 2026 legislature banning union dues from being automatically deducted from state employee paychecks.

Well, to some people, freedom's just another name for everything you'll lose.

Éamon de Valera resigned as the leader of Sinn Féin after the Ard Fheis general assembly failed to approve, by five votes (218 to 223) his motion for the party to have representation in both the Oireachtas (the bicameral parliament of the Irish Free State) and the Parliament of Northern Ireland.

The Council of the League of Nations voted to approve the award of most of the former Ottoman Empire's Mosul province, to the British Mandate of Iraq and to extend the British mandate an additional 25 years.

Last edition:

Thursday, March 5, 1926. Rerum Ecclesiae.

Labels: 1920s, 1926, American Legion, Art, Calvin Coolidge, Catholic, Christianity, Estonia, Newspapers, Post Office, religion, The Press, USSR

Wars and Rumors of War, 2026. Part 4. Sumer and Elam.

 

You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.

Matthew, Chapter 24.

You have to make sure you know why you are going to war and then use decisive force to end it as soon as possible.

Colin Powell, 

March 3, 2026

United States and Israel v. Iran

The war continues on, obviously, with the Administration struggling to explain what its about, why now, and why it can omit Congress from its constitutional duty.

It's expanded into a regional war, so far all aircraft and missiles.  Included in the exchanges are those between Hezbollah and Israel in Lebanon.

It's become perfunctory to note that the Iranian government is horrible, which it is.  It murders and rapes its own citizens in the name of an extreme variant of Shi'a Islam.  But, there are a lot of horrible governments in the world.  North Korea and Russia's are two such examples, Afghanistan's is another, and Trump of  course cut a deal with them allowing them to return to power.

The Iranians were going to have a nuclear weapon, it has been claimed, soon, with soon being a bit of a moving target.  A nuclear armed Iran would be frightening and that's the best argument for this offensive war, which would make it a preemptive defensive war. Even that argument, however, seems very poorly developed.

Marco Rubio gave the justification that, if another nation (Israel) attacked Iran, they'd attack us back, and that was an imminent threat.  He claimed Iran was going to be attacked.

That basically would amount to handing the power to declare war for the United States over to Israel.

It just seems that, in reality, an aged demented Trump looking for some sort of legacy was talked into it by the Neoconservatives and Apocalyptic Evangelist in his circle of influencers, with perhaps, probably, Israel itself playing a role in that.  Of all those goals, the Neocon one would be the least disturbing, which is not to say that it would not be disturbing.  

One disturbing thing about that is that NPR, in its Politics podcast, ventured the opinion, not put this way, that Trump is basically drunk on power and will keep toppling governments as long as he's successful in doing so. If that's the case, we can predict that Cuba will be next as its a pet project of Marco Rubio.

The US has lost some aircraft to friendly fire, which in the age of cell phone video, makes for interesting video.

Kuwaiti speaks to shot down U.S. pilot.

 

There's footage of this F-15 being shot down over Kuwait, which was a friendly fire incident.

I actually didn't know the F-15 was still in use by the US, but this very late model has only been in service since 2021.

An interesting thing on this video, other than its a female pilot (she was lucky, as she nearly went down in the sea) is that the video shows the airplane to be an F-15, which means the Air Force, and not just the Navy, is flying some of these missions.

The U.S. death toll is up to five.

Afghanistan v. Pakistan

Hardly noticed in all the general war exploding in the Middle East, Afghanistan and Pakistan are fighting.

Cont:

United States and Israel v. Iran

Reports have revealed that at more than 30 military installations, U.S. commanders told troops the war on Iran is a Christian war in support of its being launched.  One NCO reported that their commander told them today that the U.S. war is to bring about Armageddon and the return of Jesus Christ.

I know that this was going to occur, and at least one Evangelical pastor in the U.S. has said essentially the same thing.  This, I'd note, how Mike Huckabee sees the world.

So now we're at least partially in an American Evangelical Christian holy war against Shia Islam.  It'll be a shock to Evangelicals, but they're a tiny percentage of the globe's Christians, and the percentage of them that hold such Millennialist views is even smaller.  This is going to hurt us all, however. 

It's also being reported that J.D. Vance encouraged Trump to go "all in", for lack of a better word.  I'm not sure of his thinking, but he might be approaching this with a Clausewitzian view of how to wage the war, although that will require ground troops in the end.  From a military prospective, that argument has merit to it. What it lacks here is legality.

March 4, 2026

United States and Israel v. Iran

A Republican official attempted to justify the war on Iran with the figure that 700 Americans had been killed by Iran in the past 47 years.

Over 800 Iranians have now been killed by the US and Israel in the past five days.

The Republican-Evangelical Armageddon Death Pact to Kill the Earth and Bring Back Jesus

Cont:

The US sank an Iranian frigate off of Sri Lanka yesterday.  The attacking ship was a submarine.

Sinking enemy ships in wartime is legitimate. . . but this isn't a declared war.

United States in Ecuador

And we're now fighting somebody, just designated "terrorists", in Ecuador.

March 4, 2026, cont.

United States and Israel v. Iran

A Turkish missile was shot down over NATO ally Turkey and the Iranians launched a drone strike on an RAF base on Cyprus.

Without it apparently being obvious, both sides of this war are now lead or heavily influenced by competing apocalyptic visions.  The US, by the theologically thin and ignorant New Apostolic Reformation Puritans and the Iranians by the Shia theocrats.  Both want the wider war that they envision.

March 5, 2026

United States and Israel v. Iran

The Senate did vote on a war powers resolution that would have limited King Donny's ability to wage war.  It failed.

This is being somewhat hailed as a King Donny victory, but it isn't.  Actually, no matter how you regard the war, the fact that the vote occurred is a good thing as it somewhat, albeit very imperfectly, legitimizes the war.  There has been some sort of vote, in other words, although less than that which is required.

The vote was largely on party lines.

Name ▼	State		Party	Vote
Angela Alsobrooks	Maryland		D	yes
Tammy Baldwin	Wisconsin		D	yes
Jim Banks	Indiana		R	no
John Barrasso	Wyoming		R	no
Michael Bennet	Colorado		D	yes
Marsha Blackburn	Tennessee		R	no
Richard Blumenthal	Connecticut		D	yes
Lisa Blunt Rochester	Delaware		D	yes
Cory Booker	New Jersey		D	yes
John Boozman	Arkansas		R	no
Katie Britt	Alabama		R	no
Ted Budd	North Carolina		R	no
Maria Cantwell	Washington		D	yes
Shelley Capito	West Virginia		R	no
Bill Cassidy	Louisiana		R	no
Susan Collins	Maine		R	no
Christopher Coons	Delaware		D	yes
John Cornyn	Texas		R	no
Catherine Cortez Masto	Nevada		D	yes
Tom Cotton	Arkansas		R	no
Kevin Cramer	North Dakota		R	no
Michael Crapo	Idaho		R	no
Ted Cruz	Texas		R	no
John Curtis	Utah		R	no
Steve Daines	Montana		R	no
Tammy Duckworth	Illinois		D	yes
Richard Durbin	Illinois		D	yes
Joni Ernst	Iowa		R	no
John Fetterman	Pennsylvania		D	no
Deb Fischer	Nebraska		R	no
Ruben Gallego	Arizona		D	yes
Kirsten Gillibrand	New York		D	yes
Lindsey Graham	South Carolina		R	no
Charles Grassley	Iowa		R	no
Bill Hagerty	Tennessee		R	no
Margaret Hassan	New Hampshire		D	yes
Joshua Hawley	Missouri		R	no
Martin Heinrich	New Mexico		D	yes
John Hickenlooper	Colorado		D	yes
Mazie Hirono	Hawaii		D	yes
John Hoeven	North Dakota		R	no
Jon Husted	Ohio		R	no
Cindy Hyde-Smith	Mississippi		R	no
Ron Johnson	Wisconsin		R	no
Jim Justice	West Virginia		R	no
Timothy Kaine	Virginia		D	yes
Mark Kelly	Arizona		D	yes
John Kennedy	Louisiana		R	no
Andy Kim	New Jersey		D	yes
Angus King	Maine		I	yes
Amy Klobuchar	Minnesota		D	yes
James Lankford	Oklahoma		R	no
Mike Lee	Utah		R	no
Ben Luján	New Mexico		D	yes
Cynthia Lummis	Wyoming		R	no
Edward Markey	Massachusetts		D	yes
Roger Marshall	Kansas		R	no
Mitch McConnell	Kentucky		R	no
Dave McCormick	Pennsylvania		R	no
Jeff Merkley	Oregon		D	yes
Ashley Moody	Florida		R	no
Jerry Moran	Kansas		R	no
Bernie Moreno	Ohio		R	no
Markwayne Mullin	Oklahoma		R	no
Lisa Murkowski	Alaska		R	no
Christopher Murphy	Connecticut		D	yes
Patty Murray	Washington		D	yes
Jon Ossoff	Georgia		D	yes
Alejandro Padilla	California		D	yes
Rand Paul	Kentucky		R	yes
Gary Peters	Michigan		D	yes
John Reed	Rhode Island		D	yes
Pete Ricketts	Nebraska		R	no
James Risch	Idaho		R	no
Jacky Rosen	Nevada		D	yes
Mike Rounds	South Dakota		R	no
Bernard Sanders	Vermont		I	yes
Brian Schatz	Hawaii		D	yes
Adam Schiff	California		D	yes
Eric Schmitt	Missouri		R	no
Charles Schumer	New York		D	yes
Rick Scott	Florida		R	no
Tim Scott	South Carolina		R	no
Jeanne Shaheen	New Hampshire		D	yes
Tim Sheehy	Montana		R	no
Elissa Slotkin	Michigan		D	yes
Tina Smith	Minnesota		D	yes
Dan Sullivan	Alaska		R	no
John Thune	South Dakota		R	no
Thom Tillis	North Carolina		R	no
Tommy Tuberville	Alabama		R	no
Chris Van Hollen	Maryland		D	yes
Mark Warner	Virginia		D	yes
Raphael Warnock	Georgia		D	yes
Elizabeth Warren	Massachusetts		D	yes
Peter Welch	Vermont		D	yes
Sheldon Whitehouse	Rhode Island		D	yes
Roger Wicker	Mississippi		R	no
Ron Wyden	Oregon		D	yes
Todd Young	Indiana		R	no

Now the Republican Party owns this war.  

The Administration is already in violation of the War Powers Act as it didn't give proper notice for the war.  It would appear that under the act it's ability to wage war legally will expire in about 90 days.  Trump appears to be just dumb enough to believe that everything will certainly be okay in that period of time, which is far from guaranteed.

European wags are calling the war, which some idiot named Operation Epic Fury, Operation Epstein Fury.

cont:

The United States and a Gulf state are now seeking to purchase drone interceptors from Ukraine.

Rather ironic, really.

Trump has called on the Kurds in Iran to revolt.

That's a really problematic call to arms. The U.S. has a history of doing this with the Kurds and then not fully supporting them when the rise up.  Right now, there's a rump Kurdish state in Syria, and a Kurdish population in Iraq, that would like to form a bonafide state.  If the Kurds achieved a measure of autonomy in Iran, it'd be hard not to grant them full statehood.

That's fine, in my view, but it won't be fine in Turkey's view, which creates all sorts of problems.

cont:

The House also rejected a War Powers resolution to halt the war against Iran.  The vote was 212 to 219.

While this will go back in sixty days or so, this effectively amounts to Congressional authorization, although again, imperfectly.

Two Republicans voted to halt the war.  Four Democrats voted in favor of it.

March 6, 2026

United States and Israel v. Iran

It's increasingly clear that the U.S. is responsible for the strike on a school that killed over 100 young girls.  Apparently the structure was once used by the Iranian military, but has not been for some time.

Meanwhile:

The pastors told Trump that the love of money was the root of all evil and that he needs to repent for his deeply immoral life. . . oh wait, that didn't happen.

God will not be mocked

Galatians 6:7.

Sen. John Barrasso, who is mostly seen now days standing behind John Thune with a serious look on his face, dutifully spouted the "we've been at war for 47 years" line in the last couple of days, as if anyone cares what his opinion is on anything.  Everyone knows that if Trump came out later this week and said that we're killing school girls as we hate pistachios, Barrasso would repeat that.

Time asked King Donny about whether Americans should be worried about attacks in the U.S..  His reply:

I guess…We plan for it. But yeah, you know, we expect some things. Like I said, some people will die. When you go to war, some people will die.

Frankly, if Americans die, unless their names is Trump, Trump doesn't appear to care.  But why would anyone think he would care?

On this, Iran had decades to insert sleeper cells into the U.S., and they don't have to be staffed by Iranian nationals.   That doesn't mean, however that they did. Some nations that we assumed had done that in the past, like Imperial Japan and Nazi Germany, didn't.

It's always been assumed, and probably correctly, that the Soviet Union did.

Iran?  If they didn't, I can't imagine why they did not, but they may not have.

What is sure right now is that they haven't struck.  That doesn't mean they won't.  Using sleeper agents is usually reserved for what basically amounts to total war, and its risky.  Right now, all Iran really has to do is hang on until August or so, by which time if it hasn't surrendered, disgusted Americans will use the war against the GOP for being Trump toadies.  That appears likely to happen anyhow.  Use of agents might serve to simply make Americans mad, which could change that.

Strikes against economic targets, however, are another matter.  There's not an oil refinery in the US that a terrorist can't damage somehow and that would not only be potentially hugely disrupting, but it would require the domestic deployment of troops and drive up the price of oil like crazy.  It might also not so much anger, as opposed to scare, Americans.

What average Americans have to worry about is rogue individuals.  In a country in which its so easy to acquire arms, we're very open to attacks like that which happened recently in Austin, or in Australia.  The Trump regime would react to that by cutting into the 2nd Amendment.

Will that occur? Well it already has.  But even at that, it didn't happen during the Vietnam War, which might be the most comparable to what we're enduring right now.

Which doesn't mean that we shouldn't be worried.

But don't worry too much.  Donny, who lamented how many young men were being killed in the Russo Ukrainian War at one time, isn't concerned.  If you die, well, that's just one of those things.

The Washington Post reports that Russia is providing Iran targeting information.  

Cont:

King Donny has demanded an "unconditional surrender" by Iran, thereby completely removing any incentive the Islamic Republic has to enter into any sort of arrangement with the US whatsoever.

Generally, demand for unconditional surrenders are monumentally stupid and rarely work.  Such a demand in part caused the Third Reich and Imperial Japan to fight beyond the  point at which political forces in both countries would have ended those wars, and they (if we consider them to be two different wars) beyond the point at which they otherwise would have. Even at that, Japan's surrender actually turned out to have conditions imposed by Japan.

An unconditional surrender here would completely turn Iran's fate, and that of its Islamic regime, over to the United States.  Why wouldn't they just fight on?  This likely serves to strengthen the unpopular government.

It also puts the US military in a situation in which a ground invasion of Iran is practically mandatory.  Staging that will be difficult as the US is unlikely to gain the cooperation of Iraq or Turkey in that, and of course thanks to Donny's brilliant first term diplomacy, Afghanistan as a staging area it not an option.  Therefore it would appear a large scale maritime landing would be required.

Cont:

Well, the admiration is already trying to walk that back:

When he as commander in chief determines that Iran no longer poses a threat to the US and the goals of Operation Epic Fury have been fully realized, then Iran will essentially be in a place of unconditional.

Leavitt.

March 8, 2026

United States and Israel v. Iran

No end in sight.

Kurdish sources have apparently indicated that the US asked for them to take action against Iran, but they don't trust Trump so they declined.

United States v. Cuba

The administration is giving every indication that it intends to take unauthorized military action against Cuba next.

March 9, 2026

United States and Israel v. Iran

Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of the killed Supreme Leader, is the new Supreme Leader. So the attacks did not effect regime change whatsoever, so far.

The United States lifted a sanction on Indian oil allowing that country to receive it, in light of rising prices, thereby giving Russian an economic benefit in the war.

March 10, 2026

United States and Israel v. Iran

At least commentator holds Iran's new Supreme Leader is more extreme than his father.

Cont:

I had a very good call with President Putin. We talked about Ukraine which is the never ending fight…It was a positive call on that subject 

We obviously talked about the Middle East. He wants to be helpful…We had a very good talk, and he wants to be very constructive.

Trump.

At this point, even if you are the MAGAist MAGA of the MAGA, to not believe that the relationship between Donald Trump and Putin isn't weird, it's a willful decision.  The Russians are giving Iran intelligence against us and our reaction is to lift sanctions on their oil.

And Putin wants to be helpful.  Yeah, right.

Cont: 

Nobody seems to notice, but acts of terrorism against the U.S. have spread into New York and Canada.

March 11, 2026

United States and Israel v. Iran

Headline from the Casper Star Tribune:

US, IRAN DIG IN 

Which in Iran's case at least, was obviously going to occur.  Our President didn't realize that, as he's an idiot.

If He Only Had a Brain — Scarecrow Trump Says Tanker Operators Lack Guts

Sen. Roger Marshall on high gas prices: "Freedom is not free. Americans are gonna have to make some sacrifices."

Quite a statement in support of a war Americans didn't want launched by an oligarch who doesn't even drive.

Related threads:

In the event of conscription (and Trumpite insiders say the demented octogenarian is considering it) conscript ICE first, and then deploy them.

Last edition:

CliffsNotes of the Zeitgeist, 121st Edition and Wars and Rumors of War, 2026. Part 3. The War against Iran Edition and other Military Topics.