Don’t you just love Twitter where the American public can get real-time statements from the President that are quite entertaining and sometimes shocking? Take this Tweet, for example:
All is well! Missiles launched from Iran at two military bases located in Iraq. Assessment of casualties & damages taking place now. So far, so good! We have the most powerful and well equipped military anywhere in the world, by far! I will be making a statement tomorrow morning.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 8, 2020
All is well, American public! So far, so good! Except that it wasn’t and isn’t. According to a recent report in The Wall Street Journal, 11 service members were affected by the Iranian strike on the base.
“While no U.S. service members were killed in the Jan. 8 Iranian attack on Al Asad Air Base, several were treated for concussion symptoms from the blast and are still being assessed,” according to Capt. Bill Urban, a spokesman for U.S. Central Command in Tampa, Fla. “As a standard procedure, all personnel in the vicinity of a blast are screened for traumatic brain injury, and if deemed appropriate, are transported to a higher level of care.”
https://www.wsj.com/articles/american-troops-were-injured-in-jan-8-iran-missile-attack-11579240704
The affected service members were taken to facilities outside of Iraq to determine the severity of their injuries.
The initial response from the President delivered to the American public indicated that everything was OK. While there were no casualties, as the President boasted, the possibility of brain injuries was not even hinted at. It does not appear that the President’s statements were intentionally misleading, however, caution should be exercised when using definitive statements that might not be 100% accurate.
It should be noted that the flow of information regarding injuries related to the Al Asad Air Base attack would not be immediate and the tweet did state that an assessment was taking place. The service men and women who were treated had varying levels of injuries and many were seen days later as a precautionary measure to mitigate the risk of brain injury due to concussion. Although the President enjoys a victory lap like everyone else, and was quick to reassure the public that everything was fine, his use of more neutral language would have been advisable.
So what’s going on with Iran? The American public is not itching to get into another war since we are still trudging along with other conflicts in the Middle East. But, a foreign government attacked a US military base and Reuters reported that an Iranian MP issued a bounty for the murder of the President. Surely, a response beyond sanctions is warranted.