Imagine a press conference during which President Donald Trump makes this surprising announcement: “If the situation in the Gaza Strip isn’t resolved by March 15, the United States will drop a nuclear bomb on Gaza City.”
There would naturally be horror on the left:
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“That would be 2 million dead! He can’t do that!”
“That’s a war crime!”
“So far, there’s only been talk of genocide in Gaza. That would be actual genocide!”
“The United States is the only country in the world to have used atomic weapons. And now we’re going to do it again? Where’s our morality? The shame; the shame!”
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Islamic terrorists, on the other hand, would be motivated:
“We thought Israel was the most evil country in the world. We were wrong. The Great Satan is in fact the Great Satan. The barracks in Lebanon and the Twin Towers on 9/11 were just warm-up acts. It’s time to unlock the gates of Hell.”
The MAGA faithful, of course, would be impressed by Trump’s brilliance:
“Trump’s a real estate developer. He knows that your opening bid should always be a little over the top. Trump’s just starting a negotiation.”
“Trump’s my kind of guy. He thinks outside the box.”
“Nobody’s solved the Gaza problem in 70 years. Trump’s not going to nuke the Palestinians, and this will get people thinking about new possible solutions.”
“It’s just Trump’s way of clearing out the Gaza Strip so we can start building hotels there. Now we know that Gaza will be cleared out by March 14. We won’t have to drop the bomb. And we’ll move in the bulldozers on March 15 to start the new development.”
“If Trump didn’t threaten to nuke Gaza, then no other Arab state would have any incentive to accept displaced Palestinians or to contribute to a reconstruction effort. Now that Trump’s going to nuke the Palestinians, Egypt and Jordan will have to take in more refugees and cough up some dough.”
And of course the right-wing nutjobs on social media would go further still:
“Two million dead? It’s a start.”
“I love Trump. He shows that America’s tough. Now the world respects us. Trump ’28!”
As for me?
Sometimes, a stupid idea is not brilliant. Sometimes, a stupid idea is just a stupid idea.
Mark Herrmann spent 17 years as a partner at a leading international law firm and later oversaw litigation, compliance and employment matters at a large international company. He is the author of The Curmudgeon’s Guide to Practicing Law and Drug and Device Product Liability Litigation Strategy (affiliate links). You can reach him by email at [email protected].