Based on the FBI’s preliminary assessment, Iranian-linked hackers may be responsible for a coordinated cyberattack targeting the water-supply systems of at least seven states. No evidence suggests that the attack poisoned the water or made it unsafe to drink. But any attack on critical infrastructure is cause for concern. The very fact that these alarming hacks could be traced to Iran would seem to support President Trump’s claims about the danger the country poses to the United States. His response to the cyberattack, however, has been peculiar: Instead of crowing, “I told you so,” he has immediately sought to point the finger elsewhere.
“They blame it on Iran,” Trump said, apparently referring to the FBI’s assessment. “I don’t think so. I think I blame it on Minnesota because they’re grossly incompetent.” Is he suggesting that Minnesota also attacked the other states?
In keeping with his “America First” doctrine, Trump promised his supporters that the United States would get out of unnecessary wars and not start new ones. Instead, Trump has reportedly launched 20 military operations in his second term, including targeted attacks, covert operations, and an all-out war with Iran. The conflict has alienated allies, raised global fuel costs, and depleted American munitions, and it has plainly left Trump eager for an exit at almost any cost.
[Jonathan Chait: The incoherence of the Iran hawks]
Trump has insisted that the U.S. has won the war (it has not) and that the Iranians want a deal (they do not appear to). He has claimed that Iran is isolated, scared, and barely functioning. But if Iran is indeed behind this cyberattack, it means that the regime is far from crippled. Indeed, Iran looks to be making strategic calculations about how to maximally unsettle Trump without delivering much damage to or garnering global sympathy for the United States.
When even Saudi Arabia, a longtime U.S. partner in the Persian Gulf and a regional rival of Iran, is expressing discontent with Trump’s policies, Iran would have little to gain from engineering serious destruction on American soil. Because the Strait of Hormuz is largely under Iranian control and the American midterm elections are looming, Iran has time on its side.
Yet instead of confronting the reality of this assault, Trump has decided, absurdly, to accuse Minnesota of somehow masterminding everything. “America First” has become “Blame America First.” Iranian strategists may have intended to needle and mock the Trump administration. But perhaps even they were surprised that Trump would respond to an attack on American infrastructure by blaming his fellow Americans.
The post Trump’s ‘Blame America First’ Doctrine appeared first on The Atlantic.
