Trump supporters who backed his promise to avoid new Middle East wars worry Iran’s attacks on shipping are pushing the U.S. toward escalation — and maybe even boots on the ground.
When the U.S. started firing Tomahawk missiles at Iran late last month, many of Donald Trump’s allies hoped it would be a quick, surgical operation, similar to last year’s strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities or the ouster of Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro in January.
Though uneasy, they were reassured by the belief that Trump’s open-ended objectives gave him the flexibility to declare victory whenever he saw fit.
Now, more than two weeks into the campaign, some of those allies believe the president no longer controls how, or when, the war ends. They fear Iran’s attacks on oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, which have rattled global crude markets and threaten broader economic distress, are boxing Trump into a situation where escalating the conflict — potentially even putting American boots on the ground — becomes the only way to credibly claim victory.
War has traditionally been a boon to the American economy, as the US workforce is heavily integrated into the Military Industrial Complex. The surge in state spending under the Trump administration, combined with the construction boom from AI, is what’s currently keeping us out of recession. And domestic oil exports only benefit when countries like Kuwait and Qatar can’t export fossil fuels.
It’s the Max Bialystock strategy. You win by losing. Another multi-decade long military engagement means multiple trillions of dollars invested in equipment, technology, and private contractors.
Iran, Ukraine, Venezuela, I guess Cuba is next, maybe we get to Nigeria or North Korea down the line… the wars never end and the profits never stop flowing.