A very good conversation with John Bolton

[Mik]

Of course they try to focus on the Trump headline, but there's so much more highly sensible thinking and historical detail here.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/john-bolton-if-trump-were-still-president-the-russians-would-be-in-kyiv/vi-AA15ogxN?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=8ebee51a7a66465eabed181161768b92&category=foryou

[Horace]

Interesting conversation. "If Trump were president, Russia would have already taken Ukraine, there is no doubt in my mind about that", is an interesting claim. Too bad he made it reasoning-free. Just a claim.

[Doctor Phibes]

I never liked that guy. He seems to just love bombing the shit out of people. I'm sure this is very naive of me, but he does seem to have bombed the shit out of a lot of people nevertheless. I must admit I thought his very public falling out with Trump was pretty funny.

[jon-nyc]

@Horace

My guess is his reasoning would be less about Trump’s resolve and more about his ability to rally and hold together the Europeans.

[LuFins Dad]

@jon-nyc said in A very good conversation with John Bolton:

@Horace

My guess is his reasoning would be less about Trump’s resolve and more about his ability to rally and hold together the Europeans.

So Biden is the driving force in Europe’s support of Ukraine…

[George K]

It was funny how the CNN guy said that Biden would get credit for finally destroying the Soviet Union.

Bolton: "For the record the man who destroyed the Soviet Union was Ronald Reagan."

Democrat operative CNN Guy: "I knew you'd say that."

[LuFins Dad]

@George-K said in A very good conversation with John Bolton:

It was funny how the CNN guy said that Biden would get credit for finally destroying the Soviet Union.

Bolton: "For the record the man who destroyed the Soviet Union was Ronald Reagan."

Democrat operative CNN Guy: "I knew you'd say that."

And if this thing does spell Purim’s downfall, why would Biden be credited instead of Zelenskyy?

[Horace]

@jon-nyc said in A very good conversation with John Bolton:

@Horace

My guess is his reasoning would be less about Trump’s resolve and more about his ability to rally and hold together the Europeans.

It’s one of those doubt-free claims which, if a magic wand allowed us to really see what was behind door 2, doubt would suddenly emerge before we revealed the answer. It’s easy to make confident claims when the real source of confidence is that one can never be proven wrong.

[Mik]

@jon-nyc said in A very good conversation with John Bolton:

@Horace

My guess is his reasoning would be less about Trump’s resolve and more about his ability to rally and hold together the Europeans.

I think you are right about that.

[Mik]

@Horace said in A very good conversation with John Bolton:

@jon-nyc said in A very good conversation with John Bolton:

@Horace

My guess is his reasoning would be less about Trump’s resolve and more about his ability to rally and hold together the Europeans.

It’s one of those doubt-free claims which, if a magic wand allowed us to really see what was behind door 2, doubt would suddenly emerge before we revealed the answer. It’s easy to make confident claims when the real source of confidence is that one can never be proven wrong.

Very true, but the blather about Trump was by no means the interesting part of the interview. It was just the clickbait headline. Bolton's views on Russia, Ukraine and Iran mirror my own.

[Horace]

@Mik said in A very good conversation with John Bolton:

@jon-nyc said in A very good conversation with John Bolton:

@Horace

My guess is his reasoning would be less about Trump’s resolve and more about his ability to rally and hold together the Europeans.

I think you are right about that.

Whatever his reasoning is, he would be uncomfortable being clear about it. He's more comfortable with a hand wavy, "doubt-free" claim. A level of confidence which would seem absurd if it was accompanied by his justifications, none of which would sniff of doubt-free inevitabilities.

Understood that this was only a small part of the interview, but I found the psychology and posturing of it interesting. Just a simple example of TDS from a serious person with serious credentials.

[Renauda]

@Doctor-Phibes said in A very good conversation with John Bolton:

I never liked that guy. He seems to just love bombing the shit out of people. I'm sure this is very naive of me, but he does seem to have bombed the shit out of a lot of people nevertheless. I must admit I thought his very public falling out with Trump was pretty funny.

In general I too have never been a fan of Bolton. Like Mik though, I think he is right on target with regard to Iran, Russia and Russia’s war with Ukraine as well as how important those issues are for US national security interests.

Whatever one thinks of Bolton, he has forgotten more about national security and foreign policy than Trump could ever hope to learn. That and the fact that his short tenure in the Trump Administration demonstrated he was no sycophant.