Brad Duplessis

Keep hearing commentators/Hegseth saying a version of "this is not Iraq, we are not doing nation-building, it's a decapitation, the people will handle it."

That's what Iraq 2003 was supposed to be! Nation-building, de-Baathification, disbanding of Iraqi army, it all came *after* things went wrong.

Iran fired 1200+ projectiles at 5 countries in the first 48 hours. Most were drones. These saturation attacks aim to overwhelm air defenses and drain interceptors. $20-50K Shaheds vs. $4.19M air defense interceptors put US partners on the wrong side of the cost curve.

Extraordinary moment in Hegseth/Caine presser just now-- Hegseth is asked about boots on the ground in Iran and does not rule it out.

☠️

John Spencer on X: ""The opening operation should put the fear of god in all our enemies...this isn't starting a regime change war, its ending a forever war." my talk with @kilmeade tonight on @FoxNews #IranWar https://t.co/avhkUlxtOM" / X "The opening operation should put the fear of god in all our enemies...this isn't starting a regime change war, its ending a forever war." my talk with @kilmeade tonight on @FoxNews #IranWar https://t.co/avhkUlxtOM

Spencer talking with Kilmeade about the changing character of war. I’d likely think the same if I framed everything in comparison to my year in Sadr City. I mean, a dude who was touting using paintballs to engage tanks must look at the F-35 like a caveman discovering fire. x.com/spencerguard...

I know nothing matters anymore but FFS, the DoW was the army prior to the National Security Act of 1947. The act created DoD by merging the War Department + Navy Department; and created the position of SECDEF, among several other reforms.

Today’s walk.

Breaking: Former SecState promotes Marxism. More at 11.
* A few of us met with the MeK w/out getting $ to promote their cause.

Zelenskyy called for confiscating Russia’s “shadow fleet” tankers and welcomed Belgium’s and France’s decisive actions against Moscow’s floating purse:

"Russia operates like a mafia organization, and the response must match that reality," - he added.

Was just reading a thread on X with 13K likes and climbing of a guy going, "Wow, this is easy. You just blow up a leader then tell the next guy we'll blow him up too if they don't do what we want. Those foreign policy 'experts' were IDIOTS for not just doing this all along"

#InOurName

My comments on CNN about the impact of additional military strikes on Iran’s nuclear program

You should follow Nicole.

The problem with Dem messaging (and hear I mean “a couple of Dems”) that “I don’t object to what Trump did but how he did it” is 1) most Americans object to what he did and 2) it invites the question “so why didn’t Dems do it?”

Iran After the Supreme Leader As Iran confronts the aftermath of mass state violence and braces for the possibility of U.S. strikes, debate over the country’s future has intensified.

After Khamenei, the real fight is over where power actually lives.

Perfect timing for a new FB friend recommendation!

What Eric is not saying here is that this is hard work. Getting it wrong in a profession where the stakes are so high stays with you. I know it does with me. Only someone who shouldn’t have been in a position of trust in the first place wouldn’t reflect on their past role.

Looks like the US/Israel killed the MOIS head of counterintelligence, chief of staff, and the head of its CT programs.

www.washingtonpost.com/world/2026/0...

Got a few miles in. Couldn’t let this spring-like day go to waste.

Many people are saying

Hard to make sense of what’s going on in the CENTCOM AOR w/out the sharp analysis of a guy who sucked so badly that gets paid to tweet from the Pentagon.

Flashing back, as I often do, to a couple of academics shuffling into W. Bush's box at the Super Bowl in January 2003 and giving him a 5 minute seminar on the difference between Sunni and Shia at halftime. (This is a thing that actually happened.)

Ironic that one of the legacies of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan is a presidency that can initiate wars on whim, without even the pretense of building a case to the American people first.

The cult of lethality doesn’t have the answers. More at 11.

For the nerds

Had similar thought.