[expander_maker id=”8″ more=”Click here for entire transcript” less=”Read less”]
0:00:00.000,0:00:05.870
Brad Johnson it’s April 22nd and the
0:00:03.179,0:00:09.059
President Trump has just tweeted out a
0:00:05.870,0:00:13.019
much more aggressive policy on and
0:00:09.059,0:00:18.230
probably much a long awaited policy on
0:00:13.019,0:00:22.769
how to deal with harassment of US Navy
0:00:18.230,0:00:25.410
assets in the Gulf by Iranian you know
0:00:22.769,0:00:28.140
I’ve got to quote the article by Iranian
0:00:25.410,0:00:31.740
highly unprofessional and very dangerous
0:00:28.140,0:00:33.149
actions on the seas it’s really if you
0:00:31.740,0:00:36.329
when you watch the video of what these
0:00:33.149,0:00:39.270
guys did it’s clearly not the behavior
0:00:36.329,0:00:41.850
of a professional Navy and Trump has now
0:00:39.270,0:00:46.230
said we’re going to shoot these boats
0:00:41.850,0:00:48.300
down for you know if they continue to
0:00:46.230,0:00:51.750
behave in that way and that seems to be
0:00:48.300,0:00:53.370
a considerable uptick in US policy and
0:00:51.750,0:00:54.989
it’s something that you would expect
0:00:53.370,0:00:57.329
from John but you know the now fired
0:00:54.989,0:00:59.160
John Bolton what do you know about that
0:00:57.329,0:01:00.690
yeah I would be consistent with
0:00:59.160,0:01:04.530
something John Bolton would be happy
0:01:00.690,0:01:06.689
with he was long pushing for a regime
0:01:04.530,0:01:09.060
change in Iran which personally I
0:01:06.689,0:01:10.619
thought was you know a fine idea there
0:01:09.060,0:01:11.909
the creator of a lot of terrorism a lot
0:01:10.619,0:01:13.530
of problems I mean there’s other bad
0:01:11.909,0:01:16.560
actors in the world but certainly
0:01:13.530,0:01:19.710
they’re one of those bad actors so yes
0:01:16.560,0:01:21.509
now President Trump I just gave you
0:01:19.710,0:01:23.130
order out to the military that if
0:01:21.509,0:01:25.890
they’re harassed in that way if there’s
0:01:23.130,0:01:28.320
unsafe things going on unsafe to our
0:01:25.890,0:01:29.250
Navy that then just blow them out of the
0:01:28.320,0:01:34.140
water and be done with it
0:01:29.250,0:01:35.970
and I that is clearly the line in the
0:01:34.140,0:01:37.799
sand that we always used to talk about
0:01:35.970,0:01:40.290
with President Obama of course the
0:01:37.799,0:01:41.610
difference being in in this case the
0:01:40.290,0:01:42.869
ratings would have stepped over it with
0:01:41.610,0:01:44.880
Obama and then the ball would have drawn
0:01:42.869,0:01:46.799
a new land outline in the sand in this
0:01:44.880,0:01:48.899
case I think we all understand that
0:01:46.799,0:01:52.229
Trump means it the Navy understands that
0:01:48.899,0:01:53.549
he means it and the Navy’s going to just
0:01:52.229,0:01:55.470
do that very thing and they don’t like
0:01:53.549,0:01:58.259
this harassment either and it’s it’s the
0:01:55.470,0:02:00.060
whole idea is it’s a propaganda ploy by
0:01:58.259,0:02:02.100
the Iranians they do this all the time
0:02:00.060,0:02:04.259
they do the harassment and they do it
0:02:02.100,0:02:06.450
for domestic consumption essentially to
0:02:04.259,0:02:09.649
show that they’re this powerhouse and
0:02:06.450,0:02:12.049
their navies this you know undefeatable
0:02:09.649,0:02:13.099
it’s it’s it’s the propaganda ploy that
0:02:12.049,0:02:14.629
they’re using it’s something that
0:02:13.099,0:02:16.879
they’ve employed for a very long time
0:02:14.629,0:02:18.760
and we’ve seen them go so far as in the
0:02:16.879,0:02:21.349
previous administration to capture that
0:02:18.760,0:02:22.849
US Navy ship and take these guys
0:02:21.349,0:02:25.640
prisoner and hold them for a while and
0:02:22.849,0:02:27.260
let them go those sorts of ploys they do
0:02:25.640,0:02:29.049
all of the time as I said its domestic
0:02:27.260,0:02:32.209
consumption so that’s what they’re after
0:02:29.049,0:02:34.400
and this is something that I would
0:02:32.209,0:02:36.799
expect them to push a little bit anyway
0:02:34.400,0:02:38.540
they’re going to try to get right up to
0:02:36.799,0:02:40.670
the point where they get shot and then
0:02:38.540,0:02:42.200
back down at that point I wouldn’t be
0:02:40.670,0:02:44.000
surprised if they lost a couple ships
0:02:42.200,0:02:45.920
along the way but this is something
0:02:44.000,0:02:48.470
that’s going to enfold the Iranians have
0:02:45.920,0:02:51.470
got a lot of problems so they need to
0:02:48.470,0:02:53.840
show something to their public to keep
0:02:51.470,0:02:58.250
things tamp down and under control this
0:02:53.840,0:03:00.920
is a regime that is ruling with a very
0:02:58.250,0:03:03.500
cruel dictatorship and an iron fist over
0:03:00.920,0:03:05.989
the people against their will and so
0:03:03.500,0:03:09.200
they’ve got to be very careful of this
0:03:05.989,0:03:12.560
will boiling up and overthrowing the
0:03:09.200,0:03:14.510
regime themselves so this is this is
0:03:12.560,0:03:16.400
very important to them that’s the item
0:03:14.510,0:03:18.260
to take home out of this is how
0:03:16.400,0:03:20.989
important this propaganda ploy sort of
0:03:18.260,0:03:23.090
stuff is from their perspective and why
0:03:20.989,0:03:25.790
they’re doing it so a shoot-’em-up of
0:03:23.090,0:03:27.260
any kind with the US Navy even if they
0:03:25.790,0:03:29.510
just lose a couple of those these little
0:03:27.260,0:03:31.370
boats with two or three people on that’s
0:03:29.510,0:03:34.639
good from their perspective because that
0:03:31.370,0:03:37.099
takes the domestic problems off the
0:03:34.639,0:03:38.479
front page for a while and they can talk
0:03:37.099,0:03:40.699
about the great sake in the United
0:03:38.479,0:03:42.489
States Steve the United States evil
0:03:40.699,0:03:45.109
Trump evil this that or the other and
0:03:42.489,0:03:48.169
they’ll get some good publicity out of
0:03:45.109,0:03:51.470
that for allies that want to work with
0:03:48.169,0:03:53.359
and help Iran which it does have other
0:03:51.470,0:03:55.489
regimes in the area in particular that
0:03:53.359,0:03:57.229
are willing to do that so it is kind of
0:03:55.489,0:03:59.329
a two-pronged in that sense that they
0:03:57.229,0:04:01.010
can then ask for aid or help or support
0:03:59.329,0:04:02.180
or whatever it is they want out of these
0:04:01.010,0:04:04.069
neighboring countries that it’ll
0:04:02.180,0:04:04.579
cooperate with them so that’s what’s
0:04:04.069,0:04:05.989
going on
0:04:04.579,0:04:08.540
that’s what’s playing out and I would as
0:04:05.989,0:04:11.150
I said I would expect this to continue
0:04:08.540,0:04:12.739
to be played by the Iranians they want
0:04:11.150,0:04:14.780
that sweet spot on where they can get
0:04:12.739,0:04:16.489
great propaganda out of it without
0:04:14.780,0:04:17.919
giving the United States to actually
0:04:16.489,0:04:20.239
totally focus on our animal
0:04:17.919,0:04:22.130
take out the regime or something so
0:04:20.239,0:04:24.350
they’ll stay short of that but they will
0:04:22.130,0:04:26.539
they will pay pick this up too and
0:04:24.350,0:04:29.380
perhaps pass that line on on these
0:04:26.539,0:04:32.330
approaches to the Navy u.s. Navy ships
0:04:29.380,0:04:34.580
well as I recall when they did kidnap
0:04:32.330,0:04:36.979
those American sailors and brought them
0:04:34.580,0:04:41.830
to Iran they also forced them to make
0:04:36.979,0:04:43.550
for us your classic World War two style
0:04:41.830,0:04:45.139
statements about how they were being
0:04:43.550,0:04:48.380
treated and then as I recall they sent
0:04:45.139,0:04:50.060
them home with gift baskets so so yeah
0:04:48.380,0:04:52.070
that would that would suggest that it
0:04:50.060,0:04:53.510
was a propaganda effort Brad Johnson
0:04:52.070,0:04:55.280
thank you very much for that that’s also
0:04:53.510,0:04:58.810
something to be watching in the near
0:04:55.280,0:04:58.810
future absolutely thank you
0:05:02.330,0:05:14.629
[Music]
[/expander_maker]