It's funny how Trump thinks creating all of these distractions will save him.

[Wvvtayy]

Threatening war with NK, Venezuela, and any other country isn't going to stop the Russia investigation.

Nothing short of Washington DC being nuked is going to stop Robert Mueller and the special council from investigating his collusion with the Russians. Even if the media isn't talking about it, the investigation is still going on and sooner or later everything is going to fall in to place. Don't think just because no one is talking about it that it went away. Come hell or high water justice will be served.

[Adam Jensen]

Nothing short of Washington DC being nuked. . . .

Maybe that's why he's provoking NK. Maybe he's hoping DC gets nuked before he gets shipped to pound town.

[CostinR]

It's funny how fools slept for years on these issues only to realize that yes they are happening and they are serious.

The North Korean crisis was over two decades in the making, and it was triggered when US intelligence determined North Korea had miniaturized a nuclear warhead.

As for Venezuala, that's been coming ever since 2013. Once it implodes as a country that's a mess the US will have to help fix.

[Wvvtayy]

It's funny how fools slept for years on these issues only to realize that yes they are happening and they are serious.

The North Korean crisis was over two decades in the making, and it was triggered when US intelligence determined North Korea had miniaturized a nuclear warhead.

As for Venezuala, that's been coming ever since 2013. Once it implodes as a country that's a mess the US will have to help fix.

OK? That's not what this thread is about. Take your bullshit elsewhere.

[LaserSharkDFB]

OK? That's not what this thread is about. Take your bullshit elsewhere.

To be fair, it kind of is. Trump tries to distract from the Russia investigation a hell of a lot, sure, but NK and Venezuela are real issues that any president would have to deal with. Trump is terrible at dealing with them, of course, but that doesn't mean his clumsy attempts at bullying entire countries are intended as a distraction.

[Wvvtayy]

To be fair, it kind of is. Trump tries to distract from the Russia investigation a hell of a lot, sure, but NK and Venezuela are real issues that any president would have to deal with. Trump is terrible at dealing with them, of course, but that doesn't mean his clumsy attempts at bullying entire countries are intended as a distraction.

NK and Trump are just having a dick waving contest and Venezuela is not our problem.

[Breccia]

The North Korean crisis was over two decades in the making

And then Trump happened, and they had 10 times the number of launches and tests, got a nuke, and start threatening multiple countries.

Within six months.

Say Bush or Obama or both were soft on them all you want, you'll probably have backup, but they were waiting for exactly this: an intentionally inept leader in America who can't do diplomacy, who they can ridicule, emasculate, and who will help them do it by entering into a flame war to bring NK to the center stage.

[CostinR]

And then Trump happened, and they had 10 times the number of launches and tests, got a nuke, and start threatening multiple countries.

Within six months.

Say Bush or Obama or both were soft on them all you want, you'll probably have backup, but they were waiting for exactly this: an intentionally inept leader in America who can't do diplomacy, who they can ridicule, emasculate, and who will help them do it by entering into a flame war to bring NK to the center stage.

Many people saw this escalation coming long before he became president. Admittedly people are surprised at the speed at which North Korea developed it's ICBM program, but this was coming and it was coming on this large of a scale.

This isn't happening because North Korea sees Trump as a dumbass who has no idea what he's doing. It's happening because North Korea has reached a good stage of development.

Obama for instance saw this as such of an urgency that he explicitly warned Trump that THIS was going to be issue he was going to confront.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/polit...=.a8a30f7fd97d

In their first and only meeting, President Obama explicitly warned Donald Trump days after the election about the urgency of North Korea’s nuclear weapons threat. To a degree that even Obama might not have anticipated, the early warning in the Oval Office last November motivated Trump to elevate North Korea to his chief foreign policy concern — after rarely talking about it during the campaign. Trump’s administration has used diplomacy, economic sanctions and displays of military power in a bid to alter Pyongyang’s calculus over its pursuit of nuclear weapons capable of reaching the continental United States.

[Breccia]

Many people saw this escalation coming long before he became president. Admittedly people are surprised at the speed at which North Korea developed it's ICBM program, but this was coming and it was coming on this large of a scale.

This isn't happening because North Korea sees Trump as a dumbass who has no idea what he's doing. It's happening because North Korea has reached a good stage of development.

We will disagree on that. Truth is we'll never know. We do know that NK is trolling Trump with a lot of success, and I don't think they could do that with...literally anyone else, really. So I'm comfortable where I stand.

[Wvvtayy]

We will disagree on that. Truth is we'll never know. We do know that NK is trolling Trump with a lot of success, and I don't think they could do that with...literally anyone else, really. So I'm comfortable where I stand.

Hes in denial. Anyone with half a brain can tell the reason for NKs recent escalation is because they now know they can, and they know they can because Trump is an incompetent fool.

[CostinR]

We will disagree on that. Truth is we'll never know. We do know that NK is trolling Trump with a lot of success, and I don't think they could do that with...literally anyone else, really. So I'm comfortable where I stand.

When you are talking about their threat to strike near Guam that is no trolling. That's an actual threat that may very well likely be carried out and is taken seriously. You talk of trolling when North Korea has actual real plans to strike waters near Guam with ICBMs?!

Hes in denial. Anyone with half a brain can tell the reason for NKs recent escalation is because they now know they can, and they know they can because Trump is an incompetent fool.

Numerous national security experts over the last few days have it made it very clear that the reason we got to this point is because Bill Clinton, George Bush and Barrack Obama didn't take the necessary measures to stop North Korea from developing it's nuclear program.

They blinked and allowed the North to get away with it.

[Blur4stuff]

Apparently his Transgender ban tweet was the same day as the raid on Manifort's home. Trump must have assumed it would immediately hit the news. That explains him suddenly tweeting about the ban out of nowhere without discussing it with the actual military leadership first.

I honestly wouldn't put it past Trump to start dropping bombs as a way to distract.

[Wvvtayy]

When you are talking about their threat to strike near Guam that is no trolling. That's an actual threat that may very well likely be carried out and is taken seriously. You talk of trolling when North Korea has actual real plans to strike waters near Guam with ICBMs?!



Numerous national security experts over the last few days have it made it very clear that the reason we got to this point is because Bill Clinton, George Bush and Barrack Obama didn't take the necessary measures to stop North Korea from developing it's nuclear program.

If you actually think they'll attack a US territory first even after being told by China that if they attack the US unprovoked that they're on their own then you are just as foolish as the orange dumbass himself.

[CostinR]

If you actually think they'll attack a US territory first even after being told by China that if they attack the US unprovoked that they're on their own then you are just as foolish as the orange dumbass himself.

If you believe for a second that China's words will stop Kim Jong-Un from doing something like that especially after they just sanctioned North Korea in a very significant way at the UN then you're ignoring the realities for your fantasy scenario of Trump.

The facts are that Kim Jong-Un will be boxed into a corner to act because otherwise he'll lose a lot of credibility internally, and there's plenty of people in North Korea's elite that would love nothing more then to execute him, especially after he murdered a good chunk of them.

[Breccia]

When you are talking about their threat to strike near Guam that is no trolling. That's an actual threat that may very well likely be carried out and is taken seriously. You talk of trolling when North Korea has actual real plans to strike waters near Guam with ICBMs?!

North Korea has said they have plans to attack Guam, yes. They said that. It is true, they said this.

You're saying North Korea announced a plan, a week ahead of time, to attack Guam with what could easily be their only missile left, and after making that announcement so far ahead of time, will go through with this plan, and then immediately be reduced to smudges of red paste while China doesn't defend them.

Okay.

[Wvvtayy]

North Korea has said they have plans to attack Guam, yes. They said that. It is true, they said this.

You're saying North Korea announced a plan, a week ahead of time, to attack Guam with what could easily be their only missile left, and after making that announcement so far ahead of time, will go through with this plan, and then immediately be reduced to smudges of red paste while China doesn't defend them.

Okay.

Don't bother, he's just a dense Trumper who gets all of his information from Dear Leaders favorite news network Fox News.

[CostinR]

North Korea has said they have plans to attack Guam, yes. They said that. It is true, they said this.

You're saying North Korea announced a plan, a week ahead of time, to attack Guam with what could easily be their only missile left, and after making that announcement so far ahead of time, will go through with this plan, and then immediately be reduced to smudges of red paste while China doesn't defend them.

Okay.

In announcing the plan they drew their own red line and when you fire ballistic missiles that could have nukes on them you generally tell the world, especially when you are planning to fire them over Japan, a hostile nation, and towards Guam a US territory.

I might add their plan isn't to strike Guam, it's strike in the waters near Guam, not that it makes much difference: The US will retaliate either way and they will try and intercept the missiles.

Don't bother, he's just a dense Trumper who gets all of his information from Dear Leaders favorite news network Fox News.

Nice insults. How about the Washington Post. The facts are the North Korea is serious about it's plan, whether or not Kim Jong-Un accepts them or not is on him and him alone and very few can say for certain what he'll do.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world...=.45ed3fd8d5a1

If North Korea goes ahead with its threat to fire ballistic missiles toward the U.S. territory of Guam, the order will come from Kim Jong Un himself.

The officials in charge of North Korea’s missile program could complete their preparations by next week and would then wait for the 33-year-old leader to decide what to do next.

Will Kim give the order to fire, potentially inviting retaliation from an American president who has his military “locked and loaded”?

This is not a question of technical capability. North Korea has already demonstrated that it has made great advances in its missile program and can theoretically now hit the U.S. mainland.

No, this is a question of strategy.

“The North Koreans have been very clear that they need his authorization. This is a moment for Kim Jong Un,” said Michael Madden, who runs the North Korea Leadership Watch website and closely studies Kim. “He may take it as an opportunity to prove himself, or as an opportunity to let cooler heads prevail.”

The Kim regime has a history of making bellicose threats that it cannot or does not make good on. This may well be one of those cases.

Or it might not. For starters, North Korea likes to mark important dates, and there are two approaching.

On Tuesday, North Korea will celebrate Liberation Day, commemorating the end of colonial rule by Japan — over which any Guam-bound missile would fly. Then on Aug. 21, South Korea and the United States will start annual military exercises that always antagonize North Korea.

The problem with trying to figure out what Kim might do in a situation like this is severely complicated by the fact that the outside world knows almost nothing about him.

[Breccia]

I honestly wouldn't put it past Trump to start dropping bombs as a way to distract.

This isn't a Syrian airstrip we're talking about. This is North Korea, whose primary job appears to be a 100% state of readiness to explode if provoked, taking out South Korea and parts of Japan when they do. There is a nearly zero percent chance a bomb dropped in North Korea won't kill thousands, tens of thousands, maybe more people who don't live in North Korea.

Oh, and China, who I don't buy for a minute will accept a unilateral first strike against North Korea and not respond. Make all the arguments you want, I don't see that happening. If NK launches first, we have a shot.

[Wvvtayy]

This isn't a Syrian airstrip we're talking about. This is North Korea, whose primary job appears to be a 100% state of readiness to explode if provoked, taking out South Korea and parts of Japan when they do. There is a nearly zero percent chance a bomb dropped in North Korea won't kill thousands, tens of thousands, maybe more people who don't live in North Korea.

Oh, and China, who I don't buy for a minute will accept a unilateral first strike against North Korea and not respond. Make all the arguments you want, I don't see that happening. If NK launches first, we have a shot.

China has explicitly stated that they will have NKs back if we strike first.

[Halicia]

Nothing short of Washington DC being nuked is going to stop Robert Mueller and the special council from investigating his collusion with the Russians.

I'd be careful about posting that anywhere it could reach Trump's eyes. Don't give him ideas.

But seriously... HOW IS ANY OF THIS NEW ?

Brinkmanship has been an effective political tool for dictators for ages. Saddam would still be doing the same exact thing if it weren't for 9/11 fears and blame.