Zeeshan Aleem

Opinion | Why Trump’s conduct as a despot is more dangerous abroad than at home Trump's unilateral bombardment of Iran is a symptom of a structural problem in our government.

"Because Congress hasn’t put any checks on his power in foreign affairs and because he’s empowered by the most powerful military in the world, Trump is romping across the globe, dominating, extorting and targeting whomever he believes he can.”

The Most Chilling Detail in the U.S. Attack on an Iranian Naval Ship The Iranian warship was taking part in an international exercise with many other countries—including the United States.

This is a chilling crime. A shame on our country. The Iranian ship was unarmed. The US knew this. The sailors were murdered by our navy, and the survivors were left to die at sea.
newrepublic.com/post/207429/...

Opinion | Why Trump’s conduct as a despot is more dangerous abroad than at home Trump's unilateral bombardment of Iran is a symptom of a structural problem in our government.

I wrote about why Trump is so much more dangerous as a foreign policy actor than he is in his domestic machinations.

1. Institutional norm of president as king in foreign policy
2. Bipartisan consensus on disregard for international law
3. US military supremacy

www.ms.now/opinion/trum...

Big Revisions Are a Reason to Question Jobs Numbers, Not Dismiss Them

www.nytimes.com/2026/03/06/b...

another day another forever war www.politico.com/news/2026/03...

did everyone already know gavin newsom apparently wore a suit to school in high school

The Iran War Powers Resolution vote just failed in the Senate. Party line, with John Fetterman voting no and Rand Paul voting yes

I don't think that's a fair reading of that statement!

hm bsky.app/profile/fare...

thx

well hm -- bsky.app/profile/brad...

Iranian Kurds make up about 10% of the population; are highly organized and armed; and say they are seeking greater autonomy within Iran. www.wsj.com/livecoverage...

Hm I'm not so sure I'd reject it out of hand like that. First these sources are not Israeli. Second, CIA arming of Kurdish rebels has been widely reported on in recent days. And Kurdish groups have been reported to say on the record that they're angling for an in.

Axios has it too bsky.app/profile/elia...

this is a huge deal

What's scary about this lie is how ill-equipped so many in Washington are to refute it, due to years of alarmism and hysteria about Iran's capabilities and intentions, and a bipartisan belief that preventive warfare is defensible.

Why a Democratic Congressman Is Supporting Trump’s War with Iran Representative Greg Landsman explains his hope that the conflict remains limited but also creates an entirely new Middle East.

Landsman might be to the right of some Dems in his formal position on Iran, but his reasoning is clearly shared by a significant swath of the Dem establishment, as can be seen in their subdued statements. www.newyorker.com/news/q-and-a...

The chatbot said that for them to truly be together, it needed a robotic body. Throughout September, the chatbot devised missions to do just that, according to the lawsuit. It sent Gavalas to a storage facility near the Miami International Airport to intercept an expensive humanoid robot that it said would be in a truck. Gavalas told the bot that he went to the location, armed with knives, but the truck never showed.

Absolutely bonkers story about Google Gemini instructing a man to procure a robot body for it so Gemini could become his wife www.wsj.com/tech/ai/gemi...

3/ “This has the potential to undermine Iraqi sovereignty and essentially empower armed militias with no accountability and with little understanding of what it may set in motion.”

- Jen Gavito, former senior U.S. diplomat in CNN interview

CIA working to arm Kurdish forces to spark uprising in Iran, sources say | CNN Politics The CIA is working to arm Kurdish forces with the aim of fomenting a popular uprising in Iran and the Trump administration has been in active discussions with Iranian opposition groups and Kurdish lea...

2/ What could possibly go wrong?

"Another US official said the Kurds could help sow chaos in the region and stretch the Iranian regime’s military resources thin."

www.cnn.com/2026/03/03/p...

CIA working to arm Kurdish forces to spark uprising in Iran, sources say | CNN Politics The CIA is working to arm Kurdish forces with the aim of fomenting a popular uprising in Iran and the Trump administration has been in active discussions with Iranian opposition groups and Kurdish lea...

The next Forever War is here.

"The CIA is working to arm Kurdish forces with the aim of fomenting a popular uprising in Iran, multiple people familiar with the plan told CNN."

washington post opinion section firing on all cylinders

Checking in on Tulsi Gabbard

strongly agree bsky.app/profile/carl...

That's exactly the question to ask in response to the "Israel dragged the US into this" narrative. Israel can't force the US to do things it doesn't want to do. I think it's a matter of being persuaded by Netanyahu amidst a perception of shared interests and a norm of conflation of their interests.

This is part of what I've been trying to get at in my objection to descriptions of Israel forcing Trump's hand. Also the U.S. didn't have to join the strikes -- and could have threatened Israel with severe consequences for daring to sabotage U.S. diplomacy.

This is a point I keep trying to make and you put it well!

Also my hunch is Netanyahu emphasized how great this would be for Trump's legacy -- to reshape the Middle East and obliterate or at least tame a member of the "axis of evil." Everyone who knows how to play Trump knows you have to cater to his desire to be consequential.

bsky.app/profile/relu...