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MaddowBlog-At the start of a ceasefire with Iran, Trump has failed by his own standards
“Total and complete victory, 100%,” the American president said. “No question about it.” There are plenty of questions about it.
As the tenuous ceasefire in Iran begins, the war hasn’t just failed by objective terms, it’s also failed by Trump’s own terms.
— Steve Benen (@stevebenen.com) 2026-04-08T12:58:41.898Z
Remember his “worst case scenario†and the specific objectives he outlined on Day One of the war? They’re worth revisiting now.
www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...
https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/at-the-start-of-a-ceasefire-with-iran-trump-has-failed-by-his-own-standards
To begin with, did this war actually achieve anything?
On Feb. 28, when Trump announced the start of the U.S. offensive in a prerecorded video filmed at his glorified country club in Florida, the president didn’t explain why he’d decided to launch the war, but he did present the public with five objectives:
The White House’s stated objectives in Iran then evolved as the war continued — a problem that was itself emblematic of the administration’s incompetence and misguided policymaking — but roughly 39 days after Trump’s remarks, if the U.S. mission were in fact a “total and complete victory,” we’d expect to see check marks alongside each of those five goals.
But that’s simply not the case. Iran’s navy has certainly been decimated, but the other four objectives have plainly not been met.
What’s more, just a few days into the conflict, the president said his “worst case scenario” was that Iran, five years down the road, would remain in the hands of radical clerics and Iran’s Revolutionary Guard. Six weeks later, Trump is prepared to accept a near future in which Tehran is still controlled by radical clerics and Iran’s Revolutionary Guard.....
The United States, meanwhile, has suffered horrible losses, including fallen U.S. service members, a badly tarnished global reputation and tens of billions of tax dollars, on top of the economic and energy sector consequences. Lingering overhead, meanwhile, are ongoing questions about the mental stability of the Republican who thought this was a good idea in the first place.
To see this as anything but a colossal strategic failure would be a mistake. By any fair measure, the U.S. is worse off now than before it began its war of choice.....
In the meantime, White House officials will respond to the developments with a victory lap, playing the public for fools. The only people who’ll believe them are those who choose not to acknowledge what’s actually happened.
On Feb. 28, when Trump announced the start of the U.S. offensive in a prerecorded video filmed at his glorified country club in Florida, the president didn’t explain why he’d decided to launch the war, but he did present the public with five objectives:
1. Destroy Iran’s missiles and missile industry.
2. Annihilate the Iranian navy.
3. Sever the ties between Tehran and its proxies in the Middle East.
4. Prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon.
5. Create the conditions necessary for regime change.
The White House’s stated objectives in Iran then evolved as the war continued — a problem that was itself emblematic of the administration’s incompetence and misguided policymaking — but roughly 39 days after Trump’s remarks, if the U.S. mission were in fact a “total and complete victory,” we’d expect to see check marks alongside each of those five goals.
But that’s simply not the case. Iran’s navy has certainly been decimated, but the other four objectives have plainly not been met.
What’s more, just a few days into the conflict, the president said his “worst case scenario” was that Iran, five years down the road, would remain in the hands of radical clerics and Iran’s Revolutionary Guard. Six weeks later, Trump is prepared to accept a near future in which Tehran is still controlled by radical clerics and Iran’s Revolutionary Guard.....
The United States, meanwhile, has suffered horrible losses, including fallen U.S. service members, a badly tarnished global reputation and tens of billions of tax dollars, on top of the economic and energy sector consequences. Lingering overhead, meanwhile, are ongoing questions about the mental stability of the Republican who thought this was a good idea in the first place.
To see this as anything but a colossal strategic failure would be a mistake. By any fair measure, the U.S. is worse off now than before it began its war of choice.....
In the meantime, White House officials will respond to the developments with a victory lap, playing the public for fools. The only people who’ll believe them are those who choose not to acknowledge what’s actually happened.