President Trump is threatening to bomb Iranian civilian infrastructure next week unless Tehran capitulates, dragging the U.S. deeper into a Middle East conflict that serves foreign interests while ordinary Americans foot the bill.
The escalation—from degrading military capabilities to threatening power plants and bridges—comes as Trump quietly traded a proposed 20% shipping toll in the Strait of Hormuz for vague "massive investments" from Middle Eastern leaders. The swap raises the question of whether American military might is being leased out to the highest foreign bidder rather than deployed for actual U.S. security.
"Next week it gets really bad for them because next week comes the power plants," Trump told Fox News on Tuesday. "Next week comes the bridges. We're going to knock out all their power plants. We're going to knock out all their bridges unless they get to the table and negotiate."
The Guardian noted that destroying civilian infrastructure such as power and water facilities would be illegal under international humanitarian law and would likely constitute a war crime. But the establishment press largely glossed over the legal nightmare, focusing instead on the theater of Trump's rhetoric—reminiscent of his earlier threat to bomb Iran on "Power Plant Day" and warning that "a whole civilization will die."
Meanwhile, the money trail tells the real story. Trump flip-flopped on his demand for a 20% fee for "security" in the Strait of Hormuz, claiming he scrapped the toll "based on highly productive conversations with Middle East leadership" and touting "massive" investments instead. The U.S. will continue the naval blockade, but the revenue stream has shifted from American coffers to shadowy promises from Gulf states.
Who benefits? Andreas Böhm, a lecturer in international affairs at the University of St Gallen, told CNBC that Trump is "stuck in a mess of his own (and Israel's) making and can't find a face-saving way out of it." Böhm noted the administration "started the war without a goal," risking a forever war that Trump pledged to end.
On Capitol Hill, the bipartisan failure is on full display. The Guardian reported that Senate Democrats blocked the advancement of the must-pass National Defense Authorization Act as long as the fighting continues, but top House Democrats simultaneously vowed to oppose any cuts to U.S. military aid to Israel. Both parties ensure the foreign aid spigot stays open, even as the U.S. slides into another drawn-out conflict.
Trump likened Iran to a "great boxer" who needs to be "beat up" some more before submitting, asserting the only way to negotiate is "through strength." Yet without a defined U.S. interest or an exit strategy, that strength is just muscle for hire. If bombing civilian infrastructure and protecting Gulf shipping lanes were truly about American security, there would be a clear objective. Instead, we get threats of war crimes and Gulf state payouts, leaving the American people to wonder whose war they are really fighting.
