Anne Applebaum, brilliant writer on foreign affairs, wrote the article that I wish I could have written. It appears online in The Atlantic. This is a gift article. From the moment I heard about the bombing, I realized that Trump had no plan, none, to help the Iranian people.

When the bombing ends, the mullah’s troops have the guns, the people have none.

Khomeini is dead. There are dozens of mullahs hoping to replace him.

Trump could have intervened when Khomeini was slaughtering the protestors like cattle. He said he would. He raised their hopes. But he didn’t. Thousands of Iran’s bravest were killed.

Now he says it’s up to the people to take over their institutions. How?

He says the Revolutionary Guards should surrender their weapons. To whom?

This bombing campaign will leave the status quo in place.

Applebaum wrote:

The American bombardment of Iran has been launched without explanation, without Congress, without even an attempt to build public support. Above all, it has been launched without a coherent strategy for the Iranian people, and without a plan to let them decide how to build a legitimate Iranian state.

This lack of coherence has plagued the Trump administration’s policy for many weeks. On at least eight occasions during Iran’s nationwide uprising in early January, President Trump encouraged Iranians to “take over their institutions” and promised that American help was “on its way.” But just last month, days after the Iranian regime massacred thousands of its own citizens, Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, sent out the opposite message. He described Iran as “a deal that ought to happen” and said that the country could be welcomed into “the league of nations.” Vice President Vance has also said that America’s interests in Iran are limited. “If the Iranian people want to overthrow the regime, that’s up to the Iranian people,” Vance recently told reporters. “What we’re focused on right now is the fact that Iran can’t have a nuclear weapon.”

The absence of a broader strategy fits a pattern. For decades, American presidents from both parties have oscillated between coercion and engagement with Iran, sometimes offering diplomacy, sometimes sanctions. Doves and hawks both sought to manage the tactics of the Islamic Republic—its nuclear ambitions, its ballistic missiles, its network of proxy militias throughout the Middle East—without ever coming up with a meaningful strategy to combat the root problem: the ideology of the regime itself.

The Islamic Republic is a theocracy founded explicitly to oppose the deepest principles of liberal democracy and the rule of law. During its 47-year reign, this theocratic state underwent no meaningful political reform, made no improvement to its human-rights record, and never stopped trying to export its radicalism abroad. To maintain control, the regime has used mass violence, intimidation, and surveillance. In recent years, the regime has also sought, successfully, to use online smear campaigns to divide and denigrate the Iranian opposition. Nevertheless, as the scholar and activist Ladan Boroumand has written, Western liberal democracies have long preferred to engage the Islamic Republic “almost solely through the paradigm of Realpolitik,” to engage in negotiations that never seem to work.

There were plenty of opportunities to try something different. In 2009, at the time of mass protests in Iran, the Obama administration could have put a human-rights campaign at the heart of its Iran policy, promoting the people, ideas, education, and media that might have helped change Iran from within. In 2019, after the cancellation of Barack Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran, the first Trump administration could have done the same. But it did not.

The second Trump administration has gone much further in the opposite direction, actually dismantling tools that could have helped promote civic engagement and build a united opposition in Iran. The administration has taken money away from Iranian-human-rights-monitoring groups and defunded media projects. Under the leadership of the former Arizona political candidate Kari Lake, the U.S. Agency for Global Media has prevented Radio Farda, the Farsi-language channel of the U.S. broadcaster Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, from using American transmission equipment.

Voice of America, the U.S. government’s other Persian-language channel, cut back coverage and lost credibility by producing partisan broadcasts. The channel’s leadership has actually banned any mention of Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, the son of the late shah of Iran, who commands a substantial following both inside and outside the country. As a result, VOA lost ground to the Saudi-funded channel Iran International. Lake also cut funding for another agency, the Open Technology Fund, dedicated to providing virtual private networks and satellite access to Iranians, among others. That decision might also help keep Iranians inside the country isolated from the large dissident movement in the diaspora.

The administration’s apparent lack of interest in the Iranian opposition adds a layer of surreality to the video that Trump posted early this morning. He called on the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, the Iranian Armed Forces, and the police to “lay down your weapons.” But to whom should they surrender? He almost taunted the Iranian people to take charge. “Let’s see how you respond,” he said. “America is backing you with overwhelming strength and devastating force.”

But who is “you”? The civil-society and women’s-rights activists who want to build a rule-of-law society, with transparency, accountability, and independent courts? The ethnic minorities—Kurdish, Baluchi, Azerbaijani, and others—who want a decentralized state and more autonomy? The sometimes-fanatical supporters of a new monarchy, who have tried in recent months to push others to the sidelines? Breakaway groups inside the IRGC who might be interested in creating a military dictatorship?

The answer matters. As one opposition insider told me at the time of the previous American attack, the mere act of bombing Iran will not by itself create a stable regime. “If there was ever a fantasy that a leader would fly in under the wings of foreign aviators,” he told me, “that is definitely not going to happen.” Another Iranian activist texted me this morning: “This is one of the best days of my life, Anne; also I am very worried about what comes next.” (Both the opposition insider and the activist requested anonymity for fear of retaliation.)

The point is not that the U.S. should promote democracy for its own sake. The goal, rather, must be to help Iranians achieve normalcy. For the region to be at peace, Tehran must transform itself from the headquarters of an insurgency back into the capital of a country seeking to build peace and prosperity for its own citizens. A stable, law-abiding Iran will help build a stable, law-abiding Middle East. But in order to achieve that, Iran needs not a new dictatorship but self-determination and a pluralist government that respects basic rights. Right now, the Trump administration is not trying to build one.

Whatever westerners think about the bombing of Iran and the death of its leader, people in Teheran were dancing in the streets, according to The New York Times. Please open the link to see video of joyous crowds.

The Times reported:

Large crowds of Iranians poured into the streets of Tehran and other cities across Iran overnight, celebrating the news that Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, had been killed during a day of coordinated U.S. and Israeli attacks.

The ayatollah’s death, after nearly 40 years of authoritarian rule, represented a historic shift for Iran’s theocratic regime. Many Iranians, inside and outside the country, rejoiced, even as the threat of more attacks by U.S. and Israeli forces cast a pall over some celebrations.

Landlines and cellphone service were down across Iran, making it difficult to gauge public sentiment in the nation of more than 90 million people as U.S. and Israeli forces struck targets for a second day. Early reports of the death toll in Iran suggested that more than 100 people had been killed in the first wave of strikes.

But in neighborhoods across Tehran, the capital, pockets of exuberance emerged. In video calls with The New York Times, three residents of Tehran showed the scenes unfolding in their neighborhoods: Large crowds of men and women dancing and cheering, shouting, “Woohoo, hurrah.” Drivers passing by honked their car horns. Fireworks lit up the sky and loud Persian dance music filled the streets. Many residents, from their windows and balconies, joined in a chant of “freedom, freedom.”

Sara, a 53-year-old resident of Tehran, who like others interviewed asked that her last name not be used for fear of retaliation, said in a phone call that when she heard on the news that Ayatollah Khamenei had been killed, she let out a scream and jumped up and down. Her husband started pacing and they hugged, she said.

“Then we bolted outside and shouted from the top of our lungs and laughed and danced with our neighbors,” Sara said. Just a month ago, she, her husband and daughter were among protesters who took to the streets in an uprising against the government. Security forces beat her and her husband with batons and sprayed tear gas in their eyes, she said.

For Iranian supporters of Ayatollah Khamenei who considered him a revered religious figure, watching the celebrations was difficult, they said on social media. But they were noticeably absent from the streets.

Ayatollah Khamenei, who had the final say in all government decisions in Iran, personally ordered security forces to use lethal force against protesters in January, leading to a massacre that rights groups say killed at least 7,000 people, with numbers expected to rise.

“Khamenei went to hell,” one man shouted from his rooftop on Saturday, according to a video posted on BBC Persian.

For families whose loved ones were killed or jailed under Ayatollah Khamenei, the news felt cathartic, many said. Dr. Mohsen Assadi Lari, a former senior official in the Iranian Ministry of Health, lost his son and daughter, both in their early 20s, when Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps shot down a Ukrainian Airlines passenger plane in 2020. On Saturday, he posted photographs of his children on his social media page with a message about freedom: “We will endure the winter, spring is near.”

In Abdanan, a Kurdish city in western Iran where the crackdown on protests was intense, young men and women cruised the streets after the announcement of the supreme leader’s death. They hung out of their car windows, showing victory signs and cheering.

“Tonight, Feb. 28, congratulations for our freedom,” said a voice narrating a video of the celebrations, which was verified by The Times. Parts of the video were already blurred.

“Am I dreaming?” screamed a man in another video, also verified by The Times. “Ah! Hello to the new world. Ah!” The footage shows people tearing down a monument bearing a man’s silhouette, possibly Ayatollah Khamenei’s, at a roundabout in Galleh Dar, in Fars Province, as fires burned around them.

People in Shiraz, a major Iranian city, were abandoning their cars for an impromptu dance party, whistling, cheering, clapping and screaming with joy. In many videos, celebrants joined together in a cheer that is typically reserved for weddings, symbolizing pure joy.

A video from Isfahan, another major city, in the south of Iran, shows at least a hundred people celebrating, many with their arms raised and waving white cloths. Cars can be heard honking their horns amid loud, jubilant cheering.

Iranians living abroad joined their families back home through video calls. Many sobbed from relief and happiness. Homayoun, an Iranian living in Paris, popped a bottle of champagne. Shadi, in Los Angeles, did shots with friends. Shirin, in Maryland, danced wildly at home to loud music.

“I am so happy,” Shirin said. “I don’t know what to do with myself. Is this real? Thank God I am alive to see this day.”

It remained unclear what would come next after Ayatollah Khamenei’s nearly four decades in power, whether a new system of government would take over or power would be transferred to successors as he had instructed before his death.

Timothy Snyder spoke briefly on Instagram. In sum, he said the war has no purpose.

It does distract attention from the Epstein Files.

Trump said on Twitter in 2012 that Obama would start a war to divert attention from his sagging poll numbers.

Will this war help Trump’s numbers?

President Trump sends out statenff ed bts on Truth Social, his personal social media site, that are sometimes odd. Someone in the White House should fact-check them before he posts and embarrasses himself.

Over the weekend, he posted this:

Donald J. Trump
@realDonaldTrump
Working with the fantastic Governor of Louisiana, Jeff Landry, we are going to send a great hospital boat to Greenland to take care of the many people who are sick, and not being taken care of there. It’s on the way!!!

President DJT

Trump’s tweet (or whatever it’s called on Truth Social) led to head-scratching on both sides of the Atlantic.

The Washington Post reported the response from Greenland:

Officials on the island, a semiautonomous territory of Denmark, did not ask for such a ship, and Greenland’s prime minister said it will not be welcoming it, as its citizens are guaranteed free health care.

“It’s a no thank you from here,” Greenland’s prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, said in a statement Sunday.

“President Trump’s idea of sending an American hospital ship here to Greenland has been noted. But we have a public healthcare system where treatment is free for citizens. That is a deliberate choice — and a fundamental part of our society. That is not how it works in the USA.”

Trump’s announcement came shortly after news that a member of the crew on an American submarine had a medical emergency and was airlifted by a Danish helicopter to Nuuk.

Trump’s promise to send a hospital ship to Greenland was equally bizarre because both of the Navy’s hospital ships are in dry dock undergoing repairs.

I first learned about this imaginary crisis this morning when I read Jeff Tiedrich’s hilarious post. I considered reposting it here because it was both newsworthy and hilarious, but decided against doing so because it is so scatological.

Consider the title:

batshit fuckwit vows to fix imaginary Greenland health crisis

perfectly normal stuff

JEFF TIEDRICH

folks, it is a bad thing when the president of the United States is so utterly detached from reality that when he announces a great humanitarian relief effort, no one has any fucking clue what he’s gibbering about?

And that’s just the beginning!

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled today, by a vote of 6-3, to overturn Trump’s unilateral tariffs on other nations. Three Republican-appointed justices–Chief Justice John Roberts, Justice Neil Gorsuch, and Justice Amy Coney Barrett–voted with the Court’s three liberal justices.

Trump responded with fury. He believed that his appointees owed him their loyalty and their votes. He accused them of a lack of patriotism and even insinuated that they were advancing the interests of a foreign power.

He wrote on his social media site Truth Social that the decision was wrong, and he insulted those Republican justices who voted against his tariffs. He must have been especially angry at Justice Gorsuch and Justice Barret, whom he appointed.

Trump made clear that he intended to circumvent the Court’s decision by relying on other laws. As Trump often says, “Trump was right about everthing.”

He wrote:

The Supreme Court’s Ruling on TARIFFS is deeply disappointing! I am ashamed of certain Members of the Court for not having the Courage to do what is right for our Country. I would like to thank and congratulate Justices Thomas, Alito, and Kavanaugh for your Strength, Wisdom, and Love of our Country, which is right now very proud of you. When you read the dissenting opinions, there is no way that anyone can argue against them. Foreign Countries that have been ripping us off for years are ecstatic, and dancing in the streets — But they won’t be dancing for long! The Democrats on the Court are thrilled, but they will automatically vote “NO” against ANYTHING that makes America Strong and Healthy Again. They, also, are a Disgrace to our Nation. Others think they’re being “politically correct,” which has happened before, far too often, with certain Members of this Court when, in fact, they’re just FOOLS and “LAPDOGS” for the RINOS and Radical Left Democrats and, not that this should have anything to do with it, very unpatriotic, and disloyal to the Constitution. It is my opinion that the Court has been swayed by Foreign Interests, and a Political Movement that is far smaller than people would think — But obnoxious, ignorant, and loud!

This was an important case to me, more as a symbol of Economic and National Security, than anything else. The Good News is that there are methods, practices, Statutes, and other Authorities, as recognized by the entire Court and Congress, that are even stronger than the IEEPA TARIFFS, available to me as President of the United States of America and, in actuality, I was very modest in my “ask” of other Countries and Businesses because I wanted to do nothing that could sway the decision that has been rendered by the Court.

I have very effectively utilized TARIFFS over the past year to, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN. Our Stock Market has just recently broken the 50,000 mark on the DOW and, simultaneously, 7,000 on the S&P, two numbers that everybody thought, upon our Landslide Election Victory, could not be attained until the very end of my Administration — Four years! TARIFFS have, likewise, been used to end five of the eight Wars that I settled, have given us Great National Security and, together with our Strong Border, reduced Fentanyl coming into our Country by 30%, when I use them as a penalty against Countries illegally sending this poison to us. All of those TARIFFS remain, but other alternatives will now be used to replace the ones that the Court incorrectly rejected.

To show you how ridiculous the opinion is, the Court said that I’m not allowed to charge even $1 DOLLAR to any Country under IEEPA, I assume to protect other Countries, not the United States which they should be interested in protecting — But I am allowed to cut off any and all Trade or Business with that same Country, even imposing a Foreign Country destroying embargo, and do anything else I want to do to them — How nonsensical is that? They are saying that I have the absolute right to license, but not the right to charge a license fee. What license has ever been issued without the right to charge a fee? But now the Court has given me the unquestioned right to ban all sorts of things from coming into our Country, a much more powerful Right than many people thought we had.

Our Country is the “HOTTEST” anywhere in the World, but now, I am going in a different direction, which is even stronger than our original choice. As Justice Kavanaugh wrote in his Dissent:

“Although I firmly disagree with the Court’s holding today, the decision might not substantially constrain a President’s ability to order tariffs going forward. That is because numerous other federal statutes authorize the President to impose tariffs and might justify most (if not all) of the tariffs issued in this case…Those statutes include, for example, the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 (Section 232); the Trade Act of 1974 (Sections 122, 201, and 301); and the Tariff Act of 1930 (Section 338).”

Thank you Justice Kavanaugh!

In actuality, while I am sure they did not mean to do so, the Supreme Court’s decision today made a President’s ability to both regulate Trade, and impose TARIFFS, more powerful and crystal clear, rather than less. There will no longer be any doubt, and the Income coming in, and the protection of our Companies and Country, will actually increase because of this decision. Based on longstanding Law and Hundreds of Victories to the contrary, the Supreme Court did not overrule TARIFFS, they merely overruled a particular use of IEEPA TARIFFS. The ability to block, embargo, restrict, license, or impose any other condition on a Foreign Country’s ability to conduct Trade with the United States under IEEPA, has been fully confirmed by this decision. In order to protect our Country, a President can actually charge more TARIFFS than I was charging in the past under the various other TARIFF authorities, which have also been confirmed, and fully allowed.

Therefore, effective immediately, all National Security TARIFFS, Section 232 and existing Section 301 TARIFFS, remain in place, and in full force and effect. Today I will sign an Order to impose a 10% GLOBAL TARIFF, under Section 122, over and above our normal TARIFFS already being charged, and we are also initiating several Section 301 and other Investigations to protect our Country from unfair Trading practices. Thank you for your attention to this matter. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!

PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP

Jared Polis, governor of Colorado, decided to join Trump’s voucher plan, which subsidizes private school choice with public money. Please note that Colorado voters recently rejected an amendment to the State Constitution to fund school choice.

Governor Polis’s sunny description of his decision is a triumph of hope over experience. After nearly three decades of experience with charters and vouchers, it is clear that they are not necessarily better than public schools, that they foster discrimination, that they have not spurred innovation, that many rely on uncertified teachers, etc.

Jenny Brunson of Colorado Public Radio has the story.

Colorado will participate in a first-of-its-kind federal tax credit voucher program that could help fund private education.

Gov. Jared Polis made the announcement at a gathering of private and religious school choice advocates Thursday, as he simultaneously lobbies the federal government for stricter oversight to prevent the program from devolving into “fraud, waste, and abuse.”

The program, established under the federal “One Big Beautiful Bill,” offers a 100 percent federal tax credit — up to $1,700 annually — for donations made to Scholarship Granting Organizations, or SGOs. Families could then take advantage of the scholarships.

While religious and other school-choice advocates applauded the announcement, a coalition of public-school advocates in Colorado have voiced strong opposition to participating in the program. And Polis’ written comments to the IRS reveal a deep-seated concern that the federal government’s draft rules may strip states of their ability to regulate the program.

The Treasury Department is currently writing rules for the program, which will start in 2027.

At Thursday’s event, Polis framed participating in the program as a pragmatic win for students that will provide additional resources for tuition, tutoring to address learning loss, special needs services, or education technology, among other uses.

“Really, it’s only our own creativity that can hold us back,” he said. “Anything we can envision, this is a very powerful funding mechanism…”

Critics warn program could ‘dismantle’ public education

On Wednesday, a coalition of public education advocates held a separate national press conference to urge governors to reject what they termed a “Trump school voucher tax scheme” that would divert public dollars to private schools and undermine public education nationwide.

Dawn Fritz, representing the Colorado PTA, said voucher-style tax credit programs often don’t protect students’ rights.

“Voucher systems usually lack accountability,” said Fritz. “They deprive students of the rights and protections they would receive in public schools, and they fail in providing adequate services for students most in need, including students with disabilities, low-income students, and students who are English language learners.”

Colorado voters have rejected previous private school choice proposals three times.

“We have defeated them at the ballot box,” she said. “We have defeated them at the state legislature. We need our governor to stand with us to defeat vouchers once again.”

Oversight concerns

After conversations with U.S. Treasury staff about the rules, others share the governor’s concerns that the current draft rules would leave states powerless to protect students or taxpayers.

“It seems very likely that the regulations will preclude individual states from engaging in any kind of regulation or oversight — either over the Scholarship Giving Organizations or the organizations receiving the voucher funding,” said Lisa Weil, executive director of Great Education Colorado. “Unfortunately, this is tax policy, not education policy.”

Governors may be limited to passing on a list of SGOs that meet basic requirements, according to the IRS’s initial interpretation of the law.

“The opportunities for discrimination and fraud are rife,” Weil said.

At Wednesday’s national press conference, Damaris Allen, with Families for Strong Public Schools and a parent of Florida public school students, spoke of millions of dollars in unaccountable spending in Florida’s program, vouchers being used at “unaccredited private schools,” and students with disabilities waiving federal protections.

An auditor’s report found that the program paid for 30,000 students that the state can’t accurately track, and showed widespread instances where students were simultaneously enrolled in public schools while their families received private scholarship funds. 

“Our homeschool students have used taxpayer-funded vouchers to purchase lavish vacations, do crazy things like use taxpayer dollars to have an RV, drive across this country, and take trips, buy paddle boards, Disney tickets, TVs, and even patio furniture.”

At least 30 states have decided to opt into the program.

Well, that was fast!

The internet lit up over the past 48 hours about Jeffrey Epstein’s Zorro Ranch.

News broke that the FBI had scoured Epstein’s properties in Palm Beach, New York, and Little St. James Island, but had not given any attention to Epstein’s sprawling ranch in New Mexico.

Yesterday, the New Mexico legislature announced an investigation of the ranch.

Reuters reported:

SANTA FE, Feb 16 (Reuters) – New Mexico lawmakers on Monday passed legislation to launch what they said was the first full investigation into what happened at Zorro Ranch, where the late U.S. sex offender Jeffrey Epstein is accused of trafficking and sexually assaulting girls and women.

A bipartisan committee will seek testimony from survivors of alleged sexual abuse at the ranch, located about 30 miles south of Santa Fe, the state capital. Legislators are also urging local residents to testify…

The so-called truth commission, comprising four lawmakers, seeks to identify ranch guests and state officials who may have known what was going on at the 7,600-acre property, or taken part in alleged sexual abuse in its hacienda-style mansion and guest houses.

The Democratic-led investigation adds to political pressure to uncover Epstein’s crimes that has become a major challenge for President Donald Trump, weeks after the Justice Department released millions of Epstein-related files that shed new light on activities at the ranch.

The files reveal ties between Epstein and two former Democratic governors and an attorney general of New Mexico.

The legislation, which passed New Mexico’s House of Representatives by a unanimous vote, could pose risks to any additional politicians linked to Epstein in the Democratic-run state, as well as scientists, investors and other high-profile individuals who visited the ranch.

The $2.5 million investigation, which has subpoena power, aims to close gaps in New Mexico law that may have allowed Epstein to operate in the state. The committee starts work on Tuesday, and will deliver interim findings in July and a final report by year-end.

The article goes on from here to discuss Epstein’s ranch.

Pam Bondi, Trump’s Attorney General, testified before the House Judiciary Committee yesterday, and she was rude and insulting when responding to Democrats’ questions. She refused to answer questions, instead praising Trump and citing the booming stock market.

They, in turn, gave her a hard time for destroying the integrity of the Department of Justice and turning it into Trump’s instrument of revenge.

Here are amazing excerpts:

Jimmy Kimmel shows some of Pam Bondi’s fieriest moments.

Watch Bondi’s non-response to Raskin.

Congressman Jamie Raskin lectured Bondi on her dereliction of duty.

Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett, realizing that Bondi would not answer any questions, used her time to grill Bondi.