Can you believe this guy is being supported by 90% of Republicans?
by digby
Remember when the right vilified the Dixie Chicks because they opposed the Iraq war?
Here’s the Republican nominee for president talking about the military:
Donald Trump isn’t letting up on his criticism of the offensive to retake the Iraqi city of Mosul from ISIS. In fact, he doubled down on Saturday, questioning the reasons for the US-backed mission and criticizing US leaders involved in its planning.
The Republican presidential nominee knocked US officials as a “group of losers” for not launching a “surprise” attack and said he was convinced the offensive — which is led by the Iraqi military — was launched “for political reasons” to benefit his Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton. He suggested she would get “credit” for its success.
Trump’s repeated criticisms of the ongoing military operation in Mosul come despite forces on the ground making key gains.“Whatever happened to the element of surprise, right?…What a group of losers we have. And now it’s a very tough battle, they’re dug in. It’s a very — much tougher than they thought,” Trump said at a campaign event in Tampa, Florida. “We need different thinking in this country, folks. They should have kept their mouths shut.”
Those remarks came after he questioned the core rationale behind the military offensive, which is central to defeating the terrorist group in Iraq.
“Who benefits by us getting Mosul?” Trump asked the previous night during a rally in Hershey, Pennsylvania. “You know it’s going to benefit Iran. We’re not going to benefit. Because Iran is taking over Iraq.”Although Iran has gained influence in Iraq since US forces largely pulled out of the country in 2011, retaking territory from ISIS is crucial to the US goal of destroying the terrorist group — which Trump has vowed to accomplish as president.
I’ve mentioned this before: the man thinks the only military strategy in the world is a surprise attack. It’s bizarre. And his notion that Iran is taking over Iraq is … simplistic, to put it kindly.
It was only yesterday that if you dared say the military was a bunch of losers you could get punched out by a stranger. It was completely beyond the pale. Now the GOP presidential candidate says it and Republicans cheer.
By the way, lest anyone gets the idea that this signals that the right has become peaceniks, think again. They just want their own guys in charge of kicking foreigners asses. Which they dearly want them to do. People don’t change that much overnight. Don’t kid yourself.
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