I listened to Trump last night. Didn't really hear him say much.

[MineralMan]

Rather, he made a bunch of statements that had no specificity at all. He won't say what he's going to do. He just says he's going to do something. Essentially, he spoke in generalities and made specious claims that he will get something done.

There really wasn't a plan laid out at all, just some words that sounded like a plan that hasn't been actually figured out.

I believe he was just trying to take people's attention off something, rather than to provide any actual information.

The end of the takeaway: "We're not really going to do anything. We're just going to say some shit."

[dalton99a]

1. "No more eclipse. Watch ME!"

[raven mad]

2. Deflect. At all costs, deflect.

When the indictments come down? Declare war on........ oh, choose - Brazil this time, maybe?

[MineralMan]

3. Trump waffles.

That's what I'm going to have for lunch today.

[shraby]

4. Yup I agree. Something is coming down the pike that he has to get the talking heads diverted from.

My guess is he wanted the diversion so the generals gave him some non-specific actions for him to use. He then went to the podium and used what they gave him. He doesn't know the difference between substance and hot air, so they were safe in letting him blow hot air.

It must be big for him to go this far to make a diversion. I'm waiting for the shoe to drop. That guy with the cannon and boom, had 2 cannons this time.

[MineralMan]

7. I don't know, really. It may just have been an attempt to

say something that sounded presidential. Talk is about maybe 4000 more troops going to Afghanistan, which is really a drop in the bucket when it comes to that misadventure.

He talked about Pakistan, but what's he planning to do there? I'm guessing nothing, really, except maybe to "speak in strong terms" to that nation.

He talked about NATO allies, but Afghanistan and Pakistan aren't really NATO's problems and NATO has no responsibility to support US military misadventures in those places.

The rest of what he said was just one glittering generality after another. He promised to "get tough" on all of this, but I don't think he's capable of that, really.

Trump basically punted and hopes to get the ball back before the other team scores again.

[PJMcK]

5. More of the same from Trump

Nothing he says has any weight. When he was campaigning, you'll remember all of the things he promised:

- On his first day in office, he'd repeal and replace Obamacare
- He had a secret plan for destroying ISIS but wouldn't telegraph what it was
- He was going to bring jobs back from overseas
- He was going to build the Mexican wall and Mexico would pay for it (still the dumbest thing his supporters ever believed)

The list goes on and on. And none of it will ever happen.

Trump is a fraud.

[GeorgeGist]

6. and the markets say, yippee ki-yay

[Botany]

8. Please! Trump told me that the President's desk is in the Oval Office.

BTW There is no way we can win the war in Afghanistan now.

[underpants]

9. Apparently we are going to win the war in Afghanistan by winning the war in Afghanistan

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10029499346

[MineralMan]

10. Yup. Trump is committed to doing that, 1000%.

We're going to win, because Trump said we were going to win. And that's that, dammit!

[underpants]

13. It can't be THAT hard

The Afghanistan area has been invaded many times in recorded history, but no invader has been able to control all of its regions at the same time, and at some point faced rebellion. Some of the invaders in the history of Afghanistan include the Maurya Empire of ancient India, Alexander the Great of Macedon, Umar, an Arab Caliphate, Genghis Khan of Mongolia, Timur of Persia and Central Asia, the Mughal Empire of India, various Persian Empires, the British Empire, the Sikh Empire, the Soviet Union, and most recently a coalition force of NATO troops, the majority from the United States, which entered the country in the first-ever invocation of NATO's Article 5 "an attack on one is an attack on all" following the September 11 attacks in the United States.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invasions_of_Afghanistan

[MineralMan]

15. You'd think we'd learn from history, right?

Not a chance, though. There is no winning there. There is only losing. We will continue to do that as long as we keep trying to win. The Middle East is a giant pit that can hold as much money and effort we, or anyone else, can pour into it.

All Middle East campaigns are bound to lose. That is the default outcome, and that's not going to change. Ever.

[Johonny]

16. That's just what they'd expect us to do!

[underpants]

18. Aha! That's his master plan

They expect us to do it so, in a surprise move, we are going to do it.

They'll never see us coming.

[SHRED]

11. It was word salad

That was it. A big nothing burger. 🍔

[FSogol]

12. Translation: Trump doesn't know what he's doing & tough-talking RW soundbites don't solve problems

Who knew?

[MineralMan]

14. The problem is that many people who watched or listened

thought he sounded great and is going to "get tough." Despite his saying nothing much at all, he used a lot of words that sounded like he was saying something. That's good enough for many people, I guess.

[FSogol]

17. Agreed. Too many simpletons in this country and Republicans, but I repeat myself.

[MineralMan]

19. Sadly, it's not just the Republicans. As a nation, we are woefully ill-equipped

to understand complex international situations. Most Americans have virtually no knowledge of geography, political realities, or history. We simply don't bother to learn that stuff. So, with very few exceptions, people don't know anything about Afghanistan. Nothing.

So, when idiots like Trump stand up and say a lot of words, the only things most people hear are attitudes and emphasis. The more vague a speech is, the more people think it is important, somehow.

If 100 Americans at random were asked to point at Afghanistan on an unlabeled map of the region, in most samples, none would be able to do so. None. If asked what is the basis of the economy of Afghanistan, the result would be the same. Almost everyone would just shrug and admit ignorance.

We are a nation of know-nothings and we appear to be proud of that. What a pity!

[Louis1895]

20. You are SO right!

He needed another teleprompter speech in front of bunch of respectful soldiers and his adoring cabinet to appear "presidential".

The whole idea he is going to focus on terrorists and not nation-building seemed very insincere to me.

What are our objectives in Afghanistan?

How does Trump define winning there?

Unfortunately, I feel he is looking for a dog to wag so he can distract the American public from all of his many, many failings.

[yallerdawg]

21. I think he's unleashing the dogs of war.

He doesn't mind indiscriminate death over there.

This stinks of the old "peace with honor" before we hand the keys over to the Taliban - right back where we started, as if we were never there.

That other lesson from Viet Nam - nothing happened to us when we walked away.

[Orsino]

22. He didn't spend seventeen days preparing.

This was a something thrown together by handlers in his absence to help a confused, frustrated fake president feel like he looked presidential. That's all.

You'd think someone might have otherwise noticed that the Big Plan is basically status quo.