Republicans Know This War Is Going Badly

I am European. Can anyone tell me why the American Republicans seem to be willing to ride with Trump to their death? Why not cut this experiment short?

I get so frustrated when I read stuff like this. Change the date and swap the current issue for a past issue and it’s the same tired story about anecdotal examples of one or two Republicans speaking out (if you can even call it that) and the consistent false implication that somehow *this is the thing* that’s finally going to turn the public after a decade. I get that it sells and I get that it’s what a lot of people want to read over and over, but it just feels unhealthy at this point. The Iran situation is going to get worse, and the only reason it’s going to get worse is because *Trump and Republicans want it to get worse*. Not just Iran. Every issue. It’s not incompetent buffoonery, it’s malevolence that is intentionally aimed at hurting American society and our standing in the world. Once you look at it through this prism, it all makes sense.

That's why Trump is panicking so much right now.

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They can’t admit to anything wrong, it’s part of their narrative to never admit fault and blame the Democrats for everything. 

Trump's messaging has been erratic. He claims this war is drawing to a close, but he is sending more troops to the region and demanding more funds from the government to fuel operation "epic failure." His "winding down" comments are meant to give the illusion of success, but Trump never had a plan for a drawn out conflict and the US hasn't accomplished any of its constantly shifting "objectives." Trump lies to project strength and success where there is weakness, confusion and failure. He lies to protect his already declining ratings (and fragile ego) He lies because he has no coherent strategy. Negotiations aren't "progressing," there are only indications of messages being communicated through intermediaries. And these messages aren't hopeful. Iran hasn't accepted any proposals from the US and has instead issued its own proposal, including demands that the US surrender, compensate Iran and the IRGC for damages through war reparations, formally acknowledge the Islamic Republic's control over the Strait of Hormuz, and assure them that the US will cease all military operations, no longer interfere in the country's affairs and provide immediate sanction relief. Trump lied about having productive conversations with Iranian leaders to manipulate the markets. For instance, just before Trump announced a five day pause on striking Iran's energy infrastructure, investors bought $1.5 billion in S&P 500 futures and sold $192 million in oil futures. This kind of corruption is unprecedented. When Trump pulled his "15 point plan" out of his ass in front of cameras, his cabinet officials began scrambling to put something together to cover for him and commit to the lie so it wouldn't appear as if Trump was just making it up as he goes along. Additionally, while Trump was claiming that the US and Iran were making progress on alleged "peace talks," Iran's Capital was being bombarded and neighboring countries were being struck with Iranian missiles. Top Iranian officials also continue to dismiss Trump's claims of productive talks as "fake news." Meanwhile, his cabinet's messaging about the pretext for this war has been so inconsistent that most Americans don't even understand why we're at war with Iran in the first place. And as it stands, thousands of civilians have been killed SO FAR, US troops are dead, and the death/casualty toll of this conflict will only continue to climb as a ground invasion becomes more and more likely. This is because the US hasn't really accomplished anything is allegedly set out to do in this war. Boots on the ground is basically an inevitability at this point if the US expects to facilitate structural change, take control of Kharg Island, permanently cripple Iran's oil production, and poach whatever uranium Iran has left lying around. A ground invasion is also likely because Trump did not prepare for certain eventualities in the Persian Gulf. He dismissed concerns about Strait of Hormuz closures, even though he was explicitly warned that Iran would employ these countermeasures which have disrupted global trade and have forced neighboring countries and middle east allies to shut in oil production. In the meantime, Iranians have no power to mount resistance, but Trump told them earlier in the conflict to "rise up" so he could wipe his hands clean of the bloody aftermath of a war he started while he desperately searched for an offramp. He called on Iranians to march to their deaths because he had no strategy. The violent regime has not "changed," the people are far from being "liberated." To that point, troops are dying; we're killing noncombatants and children; bombing hospitals and schools, heritage sites, and civilian infrastructure. And now the US government is demanding that the media report on the war positively or else risk losing their licenses. So much for the free press. Trump's "plans" are indiscernible and Iran refuses to "unconditionally surrender." Instead, the regime has named Ayatollah's pigheaded son as his successor, who is just as much a hardliner as his father and who we've managed to radicalize all the more by killing his entire family. He also has deep sway with the IRGC while at least 20% of Iranians still support the Islamic Republic. Again, what have we accomplished exactly? The oppressive, theocratic regime remains intact. The war is expanding and conflict is being reignited between forces like Israel and Hezbollah. This will destabilize the middle east for years to come, cause years of tumult and violence in the region, trigger more terrorist attacks and proxy battles, even civil war. All the while, Iran's nuclear program never posed an imminent threat to our country according to all US intelligence on the matter. Tulsi Gabbard Testified before congress that "the Intelligence Community continues to assess that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon." Even a top US counterterrorism official just resigned, stating, "Iran never posed an imminent threat." Nevertheless, the US/Israel are bombing Iran with no regard for the civilians they're supposed to be "liberating." Estimates show that between 1,300-3,000+ civilians have already died due to this war; including 160 CHILDREN at the hands of the US. Residents of Tehran are terrified as bombings intensify and draw closer to their homes. Iranians doubt whether "regime change" is realistic and whether this war is even worth it. We've also angered our middle east and European allies and squandered whatever good will we might have had left on the world stage Trump has shown no concern for Iran's neighboring countries, especially those sustaining retaliatory strikes while shutting in oil production. Not to mention his petty contempt towards western allies who are hesitant to get dragged into another open-ended war. Trump Ignored lessons about what happens when we try "regime change" in the middle east. He launched us into another foreign war under false pretenses without consulting with Congress or our allies, and a war with little to no support from the American people. A war that was always one of choice, not of necessity. And keep in mind that even if the war ended tomorrow, the economic toll alone would be devastating. Energy costs are rising around the world, and there's no way to just magically bring those costs back down. Massive energy infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed. This will have rippling and long lasting consequences for oil production and global trade. Oil is a global market, so regardless of whether or not the US depends on the Strait of Hormuz for trade, these outcomes still affect us. With oil wells shut in, middle east countries can't just turn the faucet back on. Major setbacks are guaranteed. It will take months, or even years to bring energy production back to where it was pre-war. Prices will rise for most goods. Interest and mortgage rates will very likely rise as well. And with the cost of fertilizer rising rapidly as a result of this war, food costs will also be impacted. Every country around the world is feeling the effect of this war. South Korea just imposed energy usage caps for the first time in 30 years for one example. The IEA has called this "the greatest global energy security threat in recent history."

The House and Senate Republicans are just as guilty as the Trump administration for any future calamities, as the GOP controlled House and Senate have refused to stop this war. Blood is also on their hands.

And are doing nothing about it but retiring…

Republicans also know that the leader of their ~~party~~ cult rapes children. Yet…here we all are 🤷🏼‍♂️

link past paywall https://removepaywalls.com/https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/27/opinion/republicans-iran-war.html#google_vignette

Should we have bets to see how long it takes the maga crowd to change from "no boots on the ground" to "we need more boots on the ground"? My bet is 2 days after it happens, maybe 1 if the talking heads fall in line

Republicans know a lot of things. The issue isn't the knowing, it's the willingness to support it anyway. Republicans have no interest in governance now. It's just about breaking and grabbing as much as they can in the chaos. Oh, and hurting people.

TFG has really improved on this front.  It used to take months, or even a couple years to know how badly a war was going.  In less than four weeks of voluntarily, casually deciding to drop bombs, we all can see this was a monumentally poor decision.  We don’t need his ballroom, his name on the Kennedy Center, or any other structure to remember him. We used to define the size of colossal failure by his COVID response. Now it’s by his failure in Iran. And a reporter should ask him about that. 

To Republicans, the "badly" just refers to the war decreasing the popularity of their party and their leader. They have no regard for the wellbeing of the country.

Troops dying so trump can save face? Just bring them home..

And will do nothing to stop it

Oh it’s a war now? I thought it was a special military operation

What happens when you're ideologically opposed to smart people.

I know we all criticize the NYT and media but the fact that this barrage of headlines is coming out means the billionaires are upset about the war too. Which may actually cause us to see change

Badly? It’s a total disaster.

The U.S. has already lost this war. Someday the bombing will stop, but the same regime in Iran will be in place, and the world can no longer freely ship goods through the Strait of Hormuz. Now, there are a few winners in this war, mainly defense contractors and insider traders, but the rest of us lose.

They. Don't. Care. They may act like they care. They may say that they care. They don't care. They will happily vote for the next Republican candidate whoever it is. This has all happened before.

And that is why they will leave it for the next democrat administration to fix, and when the democrat administration inevitably can’t fix the mess quickly the republicans will blame the democrats and then win big in the next election cycle rinse and repeat

Every war goes badly. There's loss of life and destruction on all sides.

They’ve been trying to spin it for weeks, but the polls don’t lie. The internal panic is real.

They know the war is going badly because the stock market is down 8% for the month. The 1% typically has $10 million or more in wealth in the market. A 1%er household just lost $800k in the market with this war. 1%ers and up write the big donor checks to the republican party, and this is the big fundraising time for the fall elections. These 1%ers don't want to give money to Republicans when they're getting killed in the market due to Republican incompetence.

Its wild watching them try to spin this. The messaging has totally shifted from total victory to just hoping we forget about it.

Where has Vance been

Suggested translation: Republicans are Slow at Recognizing What Wveryone Else Knows.

Republicans don't know the Capital of Iran.

Most of what Republicans do goes badly. That doesn't stop them from declaring success and their adoring base Believing it...

But these cowards must support prez pedo in public…

The question isn't "do they know?" The question is, "do they actually give a damn?"

That makes someone. I feel like I don't know anything about how the war is going because no one is reporting it. Where do I find consistent and accurate updates?

[The War Is Going Better Than You Think](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/24/opinion/iran-war-history.html) Bret Stephens March 24, 2026 NYTimes

Meanwhile the Democrats are "enjoying" the lowest approval rating they have ever had, despite the fake news.