Military Leadership and Administration Credibility Concerns

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All right, here's a preview of today's sho w. Aren't we at a moment, Jess, where we are literally living on the extremes? We are 100% living like on the edges of everything. Footnote, apparently we did do this for regime change , which everybody denied in this administration from day one. But I guess now the latest excuse according to this presser yesterday was we've successfully achieved regime change, which again, nobody ever said what was the plan, the purpose, or the goals behind going into this war. Is it just a handful of autocrats wannabe dictators like Trump and Orban and others that get to divvy up the world? Is that it? I mean it's so to me frustrating that we just have these very small men with very big dreams with very powerful weapons that are carving up our world . Welcome to Raging Moderates. I'm Jessica Tarlov and today I'm very lucky to be joined by attorney and host of the Katie Fang Show on the Midas Touch Network, Katie Fang. Thank you for coming back. It's been a while. It's been too long. And I figured if there was anybody with whom I could spend end of days away, there would be Jess Tarloff. So I'm happy to be here. I was thinking about that. What was that movie? A friend for the end of the world. Yes, that is totally like I don't even know. You know, it's like, is it wrong for me to be laughing? Shouldn't be laughing, but this is just absurd. Like you just kind of have to like chuckle your way through it, right? I guess so. Or until 8 p.m. when we see if something actually happens or if it's another round of taco. I've been calling it taco Tuesdays. Taco Tuesdays. Kind of perfect. Okay. All right. I'm gonna set the table because we already got to the conclusion. But in case you hadn't noticed, President Trump is warning that a whole civilization could be wiped out if Tehran doesn't open the Strait of Hormuz by his deadline of 8 p.m. tonight. Set your cal endars, your alarms, whatever you need to do. In a social media post just hours before that cutoff, he said a whole civilization will die tonight while still holding out faint hope that something quote revolutionarily wonderful could prevent Trump's also threatened to decimate Iran's bridges and shut down its power grid, moves that could constitute war crimes. Iran, for its part, is vowing crushing and extensive retaliation of civilian infrastructure is hit, and despite a reported ten-point proposal from Iran to end the conflict, seems like there's no sign of a breakthrough before tonight's deadline. Let's watch this clip from Trump's presser yesterday. The entire country could be taken out in one night, and that night might be tomorrow night. Short clip but to the point. Um what do you think is going to happen this evening ? I don't think the United States is going to annihilate the people of Iran. I mean, doesn't that kind of defeat the whole purpose? It's like you you want the people of Iran to do something revolutionarily wonderful, but then hey, we're just gonna take you all out in the same stroke. I it just I do think it's a Taco Tuesday. I do find it to be alarming though that again we can chuckle through a Taco Tuesday where you have a man who has the control over the nuclear codes saying that he's going to eliminate an entire country in one fell swoop. I I find it to be remarkable more so that there is are are there there are literally no adults ever left in this administration. I mean you you you look at what he posted on Easter Sunday of all days of all days to post and then you look at I listen I and I know that you used to work with him but I don't think Pete Hagseth is ever going to reign in Trump. Pete Hagseth's bloodlust, I think, exceeds Donald Trump. This is uh say what you want about Pete Hagseth show. Oh go So there's no morality, there's no caution, there's no discretion, there's no measure in Hag Seth. So I mean, if there was ever anybody who was, I think like the chef's kiss match for Trump when it comes to having an appointment, like a cabinet appointment, like a secretary of defense, it was definitely Hag Seth. But what what's more crazy, the fact that Trump posted what he posts and says what he says, or the fact that somebody doesn't stop him from doing it and somebody doesn't tell him to take it down or people don't quit over it. I mean, there there has to be an off-ramp to theun Looney Tes moment that seems to be re repeating itself day in and day out. But I I find it also very upsetting because this is not just a United States-Iran thing. We've got Israel involved, we have other countries in the Middle East region that are involved. And so it's, you know, one life lost is one life lost too many. And what upsets me is that we're just gonna watch the day come and go and then people are gonna wake up on Wednesday morning and he will not have bombed around into the Stone Ages and then we're all just gonna kinda move on. I I I'm kind of at my my end on that tolerance level, I think. Yeah, I think that there are bridges that we are crossing um that because of the deluge deluge, I should say, of information all the time. Delusional deluge, yeah. The delusional deluge that we're not really taking stock of the fact that you're talking about a country with over 90 million people on it. Yes. Right. This is no small threat. And I'm not sure how seriously Iran takes it. I mean, their social media would indicate that they know that this is a meme game more than a bombs game. And we should note that at the same time that this was going on, there was another US military attack on Carga Island, which appears to be more of a double tap than something new. It was just us. Israel was not affiliated with this particular move, but that signals a very different approach than we're gonna bomb you into the stone age, right? That's more targeted and about the oil. And I keep going back to, I guess two things. One about the adults in the room. I think that General Kane seems like an adult in the room, even though he always gets pushed to the side and ignored But yesterday Kane disappointingly was kissing his ass. Like that was You always have to kiss the ass. No no no. I I I I think that there has to be why? Because then you're gonna lose your job. And I think that people who serve in these capacities and have the chance to rein it in when it actually counts, if it looks like public flattery, but they have some sort of moderating force in there versus another version of a Heg Seth coming up, like Dan Driscoll as well, the one that Heg Seth is so concerned is going to get his job if he does get pushed out as the Secretary of Defense. I can handle some ass kissing in a press conference if I know that the situation room isn't just Donald Trump, Stephen Miller, and Pete Hagseth. That's how it's but that also presupposes just that Trump will listen to Kane and that Hegzeth will listen to Kane. What I heard yesterday from Kane was our dear cult leader, commander-in-chief is so amazing. And and what I what what disturbed me was Kane saying, this man, as in Trump, delivers on his promises. And I understand he was talking in the context of rescuing our downed service members , which I want to make clear, the level of heroism that is involved from people in our armed services right now is stunningly amazing. Um, and I don't ever want to sound like I don't support our armed serv ices, but I when Kane says something like this man keeps his promises, I then you couple it with what we're seeing, I get very worried about Kane giving any accolades to Trump. He could just get up and he could deliver the information that he should be delivering to the American people that we're not really getting from this administration. And instead he the the flattery is very North Korean. It's very gross. I I I hard pass. I don't think that's a part of your job requirement. Sure, but like it is part of your job requirement to survive this administration. And does he need to? Like, does he have to I don't know. Do we need a situation room that is in Mar-a-Lago and it's Donald Trump, Stephen Miller, Pete Hegsas. It's next to the buffet brunch. Yeah, I know. A hundred percent. There's a black curtain up for some privacy. There are Apple Watches. Apple Watch Wiles is there with a with an Apple Watch, right? And there's not a legit general in sight. So I'm going to take the ass kissing general versus that alternative. But I understand your standards are perhaps higher than mine, and maybe I'm a little conservative media coded and now I'm looking at this. No, but maybe I'm not being realistic. And I understand, but I do think aren't we at a moment, Jess, where we are literally living on the extremes? Like I feel like we live on the edge of the cell. Like we are 100% living like on the edges of everything. And if we are living in that extreme land, and then I feel like the extreme would be if Kane doesn't agree, then Kane shouldn't be. there And I don't mean like I wanted them to have green khaki uniforms versus blue. I'm talking like this is wrong, everything I'm seeing is wrong, or it's too gray. We're too in the gray on this one. I'm not comfortable. I feel like it's the imprimitor of credibility that makes me worried by somebody like Dan Cain. Before we go, another reminder that not only is Raging Moderates five days a week, we're also available on Substack. Subscribers get ad-free episodes, which I know you all love , live streams, place to connect with me, the Prof. Team in general, which includes Scott . Plus, you'll get access to the new Raging Moderates newsletter, The Monday Rage. Our first one was out yesterday. Did you like it? Find us at Raging Moderates dot profgmedia.com. And we've got our Webby Award for Best News and Politics Podcasts. I'm gonna ask you again if you haven't voted, please do vote.webby Awards dot com. If you've already voted, consider doing it again or like getting your mom or your dad or boyfriend girlfriend whoever just people should be voting for us that's all for this episode thank you so much for joining