RUTHFULLY YOURS

Predictably, following the targeted strike on General Qasem Soleimani when he stepped onto Iraq soil, Iran responded with its usual bombastic, existential (and, of course, anti-Israel) threats. What must have surprised the mullahs was that Trump, rather than countering with vague diplomatic language, gave as good as he got. That was Saturday. On Sunday, Trump upped the ante.

As you may recall, on Saturday, the mullahs promised to bomb American targets, destroy shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, and attack Israel:

[Gen. Gholamali] Abuhamzeh, commander of the Revolutionary Guards in the southern province of Kerman, foreshadowed a possible attack on “vital American targets” located in the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation of Soleimani’s death.

“The Strait of Hormuz is a vital point for the West and a large number of American destroyers and warships cross there,” Abuhamzeh said according to a Reuters report, citing Tasnim news agency.

“Vital American targets in the region have been identified by Iran since long time ago … some 35 U.S. targets in the region, as well as Tel Aviv, are within our reach.”

Each of those threats is unlikely. The mullahs know that if they touch the American homeland, none will survive the next few hours. They also know that the American military is feeling unconstrained under Trump and will respond ferociously to any attacks on military targets. Israel, with Trump in the White House, will also go full speed ahead should Iran target it. Lastly, with America now a major oil exporter and Israel a major natural gas producer, the threat to the Strait of Hormuz matters significantly less.

Nevertheless, at least rhetorically, Trump took the threats at face value, threw out the usual cautious diplomatic language, and spoke in words Iran understands:

Then, on Sunday, Trump did something remarkable and, to those of us who found the Democrat’s predictably pro-Iran response to Soleimani’s death disturbing, something wonderful. Not only did he use his Twitter feed to remind Iran that it was in his crosshairs, he also reminded Congress that he is president and that gives him unique powers.

Trump started the morning by telling Iran that it started this fight and that, if it chooses to continue, it can expect major American pushback:

Trump next stated that, while Iran could indeed continue the fight, its ill-equipped military would be going up against the strongest fighting force in the history of the world:

So far so good. But the real beauty of Sunday’s Trumpian Twitter storm was his reminder to Congress – or more accurately, his reminder to the Democrats in Congress – that the Constitution grants the president, as Commander in Chief and head of Foreign Policy, the sole power to respond to sudden attacks.

The long version of this power is that, when the Drafters wrote the Constitution, the topic on August 17, 1787 was whether to give Congress broad authority to use military force by stating in Art. I § 8 that Congress had the power to “make war.” James Madison, however, objected because Congress is a deliberative body that cannot by its nature react quickly. The Drafters agreed with Madison’s take on things and changed the proposed language to give Congress the power to “declare war.” The Constitution, therefore, is specifically written to give the President authority to respond to “sudden attack.”

Trump, being Trump, eschewed a scholarly argument. Instead, he kept it short, sweet, and powerful:

This is a man to be reckoned with.