The quasi-civil war within the Cooperation Council of the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC), pitting Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates against tiny but wealthy Qatar, has alarmed just about everyone in the “West”, with the single exception of President Donald Trump. The Donald has been tweeting enthusiatically that the collision between the supposed Sunni state allies is proof that his recent, fervent embrace of the Saudis as totally our best buds in the Middle Eastern war on terror is bearing immediate and delectable fruit.
As a lot of people, including the American Conservative’s Dan Larison, are pointing out, the Middle East is a lot more complicated than El Caudillo thinks:
“The underlying problem with Trump’s handling of the crisis is that he has mistaken the Saudi-led bloc opposed to Qatar for reliable partners in combating jihadism, and so he accepts that their punitive measures against Qatar are proof of their willingness to follow through on supposed commitments made in Riyadh last month. Because he has embraced these client states so fully, he doesn’t appreciate that he is being used to provide their vendetta with a U.S. stamp of approval. He seems to think that the Saudis and their allies are pursuing a U.S.-guided agenda when they are pursuing their own goals without regard to our interests. This is why he keeps thanking King Salman and the Saudi government, but his gratitude–like his support–is seriously misplaced.”
Yeah, I’m sure that’s all true. But, remember, what the Donald really craves is excitement. Gloves off, man, gloves off! Who cares what it really means! At least they’re going at it! This is more fun than a 10-ton bomb!
Afterwords
We should not forget that Trump’s hero of heroes is Gen. George Patton, the obsessive-compulsive anti-Semite’s obsessive-compulsive anti-Semite. So keep your seat-belt buckled.
