Trump just abandoned the Iran deal. Does he have any idea what to do next?

[DonViejo]

By Paul Waldman May 8 at 2:48 PM

-snip-

This decision is deeply uninformed, utterly illogical, inimical to the interests of the United States, taken for the pettiest of personal reasons and done with absolutely no plan for what to do next. In other words, it’s pure Trump.

Upon announcing his decision today to reimpose sanctions and essentially abandon the agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Trump said, “If I allow this deal to stand, there would soon be a nuclear arms race in the Middle East,” as though by pulling out of the JCPOA we’re forever keeping Iran from getting nuclear weapons — if anything, the exact opposite of what’s happening.

Because of the JCPOA, there is now a comprehensive inspection system in place, administered by the International Atomic Energy Agency, monitoring Iran’s activities. The IAEA has repeatedly stated that Iran is complying with the requirements of the agreement. While the departure of the United States from the deal might not immediately cause the whole thing to collapse, that is plainly what Trump wants. He isn’t doing this in the hope that the JCPOA will continue on without us.

Indeed, Trump made his real hope plain when he said that “we cannot prevent a nuclear bomb under the decaying and rotten structure of the agreement.”

Should the deal collapse, the inspectors will leave and Iran would be free to pursue nuclear weapons, precisely the outcome Trump claims he wants to avoid. Now, it’s possible that Iran would choose not to do so. But with the inspections in place they can’t; with no inspections, they could.

-snip-

more
https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/wp/2018/05/08/trump-just-abandoned-the-iran-deal-does-he-have-any-idea-what-to-do-next/

[PJMcK]

1. Oh, oh, oh! I know the answer to that one!

He has a 10:30 am tee time.

[Retrograde]

2. When in doubt - investigate Hillary!

or blame Obama. Same thing, almost.

[Blue_Tires]

3. As batshit crazy as they are, why would North Korea

ever enter in any nuclear agreement with us in a million years now? Trump has shown that the validity of our international accords are completely at the whim of which side of the bed he gets up in the morning...

[Beartracks]

4. Trump: Uninformed, illogical, petty, no plan. And...

... his actions are inimical to the United States.

Hey, Republicans: "inimical" means "harmful." Ending the Iran deal removes the inspectors from Iran, and that's like taking security cameras out of a prison yard and leaving the gate open. The reason there was an "Iran deal" in the first place is that sanctions by themselves were insufficient.

============

[IluvPitties]

5. Take us to war. He thinks this is a John Wayne film.

[haele]

6. He'll do nothing until Putin's stooges want him to do something.

This was all a move to help Russia balance its budget short term by jacking up the price of oil.
Well, maybe a bit of raw Jesus meat to the Evilangelicals who are jonesing for their Armageddon - so they won't have to live with the results of their greed and hypocrisy.

Haele

[mythology]

7. Tweet about how great he is

Granted it's not a useful plan, but it's his plan.

[gratuitous]

8. Strut around like the rooster who thinks the sun comes up because he crowed?

With a heaping helping of self-congratulation and demand for public adulation.

[Wellstone ruled]

9. Big kiss to Sheldon Adelson

and the Right Wing Zealots of Israel. Putin is smiling all the way to the world bank. His Puppet came through.