Trump Keeps Posting CRAZY Stuff About The Iran-Israel War

Summary

Summary of "Trump Keeps Posting CRAZY Stuff About The Iran-Israel War" – Bulwark Takes

Release Date: June 17, 2025
Host: The Bulwark
Participants: Sam Stein (Managing Editor at The Bulwark), Andrew Egger (Author of Morning Shots)

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Introduction

In this episode of Bulwark Takes, Sam Stein engages in a critical discussion with Andrew Egger about former President Donald Trump's recent and erratic use of social media to comment on the ongoing Iran-Israel conflict. The conversation delves into the implications of Trump's public statements, their impact on international relations, and the broader effects on domestic public opinion.

Trump's Erratic Social Media Behavior

Sam Stein opens the discussion by highlighting the unprecedented nature of Trump's actions during a highly volatile situation. He notes that Trump's live-tweeting during potential military actions marks a significant departure from traditional presidential communication.

Sam Stein [02:01]: "It's our first known instance where the commander in chief is sort of live tweeting what was going on in his head with respect to potentially bombing a foreign country and getting the US involved in a Middle East war."

Notable Tweets Analyzed

Several of Trump's tweets are scrutinized for their content and tone:

1. Control of Airspace Over Iran

   Sam Stein [02:30]: "We now have complete and total control of the skies over Iran. Iran had good sky trackers and other defensive equipment and plenty of it. But it doesn't compare to American made, conceived and manufactured stuff."

2. Comments on Iran's Supreme Leader

   Sam Stein [02:54]: "We know exactly where the so-called Supreme Leader is hiding. He is an easy target but is safe there. We are not going to take him out. (Kill!)"

3. Call for Unconditional Surrender

   Sam Stein [03:14]: "Unconditional surrender."

Analysis of Trump's Foreign Policy Approach

Andrew Egger provides insight into Trump's fluctuating foreign policy stance, oscillating between aggressive military rhetoric and a coalition of more pacifist allies within his administration.

Andrew Egger [06:09]: "Trump kind of varies back and forth between those two things because that's not really how he thinks about these things, right? He just likes winning and he likes power."

Contrasting with Other Leaders

Egger contrasts Trump's approach with other global leaders, emphasizing the unpredictability and potential dangers of such erratic behavior.

Andrew Egger [07:30]: "It's exactly the opposite of what's happening in Russia and Ukraine... Trump is loving being on the side of Israel right now."

Impact on Public Opinion and Domestic Discourse

The conversation shifts to how Trump's social media antics influence domestic public opinion and the discourse among his supporters and critics.

Sam Stein [10:33]: "They are so attuned or they seem so attuned and interested and invested in shaping domestic public opinion about this stuff."

Social Media as a Battlefield

Egger discusses the role of platforms like Truth Social in amplifying support bases and managing criticism, sometimes at the expense of addressing critical issues effectively.

Andrew Egger [11:21]: "They are constantly triangulating their message to the people in their base who are mad about this or that or the other thing on Twitter."

The Role of Allies in Amplifying Messages

The hosts examine how Trump's allies, such as Pete Hegseth and JD Vance, use media appearances and social media posts to defend Trump's actions and policies, further entrenching his base.

Sam Stein [12:56]: "You're like, you know, I gotta post this. I gotta go on Waters World... it's just who he is."

Andrew Egger [12:57]: "Posters are gonna post."

Consequences of Erratic Leadership

Both Stein and Egger express concern over the potential real-world consequences of such unpredictable leadership, especially in situations with high stakes like international conflicts where lives are at risk.

Sam Stein [09:39]: "What are you supposed to do? Ah, I bet he's just bluffing. He tweets and the chaos is..."

Andrew Egger [12:36]: "As we inch toward, like, potential global war, it's just so insane how far up. Up their own asses they are on this stuff with the online discourse."

Conclusion

Sam Stein and Andrew Egger conclude that Trump's unconventional and tumultuous communication style during international crises not only exacerbates tensions but also undermines coherent policy-making and public trust. They call for more responsible and strategic communication from leaders to navigate complex global issues effectively.

Sam Stein [13:17]: "It's our public service to the population and we'll be in touch on all these other things."

Listeners are encouraged to follow The Bulwark's Truth Social account for ongoing updates and analyses.

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This summary aims to provide an in-depth overview of the key discussions and insights from the episode, ensuring that those who haven't listened can grasp the critical points and the nuanced conversation between Sam Stein and Andrew Egger.

Transcript

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[Richard Karn]

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[Sam Stein]

Sam Stein, managing editor at the Bulwark. I'm joined by Andrew Egger, author of Morning Shots. And we're here to talk about war and Truth Social and whether the two actually can be and should be combined. I want to just level set with the viewers here. It's 2:45pm on Tuesday. We have a highly dynamic situation. We don't turn these videos around instantaneously. So by the time that this goes up, possibly have a number of different other bleeds from President Trump. It's possible we have a situation in Iran that is different than the current situation which is already pretty dire. But this afternoon something very unique happened in that we had our first that I know of instance in which the commander in chief was sort of live tweeting what was going on in his head with respect to potentially bombing a foreign country and getting the US involved in a Middle east war. So just to recap, and then we'll get your announce your perspectives on this. Quote, we now have complete and total control of the skies over Iran. Iran had good sky trackers and other defensive equipment and plenty of it. But it doesn't compare to American made, conceived and manufactured stuff, quote, unquote. Nobody does it better than the good old usa. Then around that time he said, we know exactly where the so called Supreme Leader is hiding. He is an easy target but is safe there. We are not going to take him out. In parentheses, kill, exclamation point. Jesus. All right. At least not for now. But we don't want missiles shot at civilians or American soldiers. Our patience is wearing thin. Thank you for your attention to this matter. That appears to be his new catchphrase. And then finally he bleeds in all caps. Unconditional surrender. I don't know. I don't know. I don't know what to say. What are we doing here?

[Andrew Egger]

Yeah, let me add just one more onto this, which is a couple hours earlier, he shared a text from Mike Huckabee.

[Sam Stein]

Oh God, yes.

[Andrew Egger]

Ambassador to. Is Huckabee the ambassador to Israel? Is that the. Is that what he's. Okay. Yeah, that's what I thought. Yeah. Just an amazing text. Just read a little bit of it. Mr. President, God spared you in Butler, Pennsylvania to be the most consequential president in a century, maybe ever. The decision's on your shoulders. I would not want to be made by anyone else. You have many voices speaking to you, sir. But there is only one voice that matters. His voice. I am your appointed servant in this land and am available for you But I do not try to get in your presence often because I trust your instincts. No president in my lifetime has been in a position like yours. Not since Truman in 1945. Little gesture at the atomic bomb there. I don't reach out to persuade you, only to encourage you. I believe you will hear from heaven. And that voice is far more important than mine or anyone's else. You sent me to Israel to be your eyes, ears and voice and to make sure our flag flies above our embassy. My job is to be the last one to leave. I will not abandon this post. Our flag will not come down.

[Richard Karn]

You.

[Andrew Egger]

You did not seek this moment. This moment sought you. It is my honor to serve you. Mike Huckabee. Trump tweets, tweets this whole text out screenshot of it on Truth Social, Trump says, from Mike Huckabee, a pastor, politician, ambassador, and great person. So that's the. He's like, thanks for sending that along, Mike.

[Sam Stein]

Yeah, it's like a reality show. It's like you're watching someone's like, you know, we don't need to see what's on his phone, but he's going to show us what's on his phone. And it's just like, everything is just. It's geared towards trying to gin up suspense. Although there's plenty of suspense that already exists.

[Andrew Egger]

In one sense, the spectacle is just the thing itself. Right? I mean, like, it's insane that the President is doing this. Obviously. Like, we stipulate that, right? Just total lunatic land that we're in here. At the same time, it is actually kind of helpful that he's doing it in some ways because, like, it is. I mean, he ultimately does, I don't know, about control a lot of decisions, right? No, I just mean in terms of, like, assessing where he's coming from on this stuff. Because I feel like a lot of the time, time people talk about Trump's foreign policy on the kind of hawks versus doves sort of thing, right? Where it's like, is he a peace through strength guy? He likes to talk about that. Is he like a sort of neocon light, speak softly and carry a big stick and do deterrence, that kind of thing? And then he's also got this whole.

[Sam Stein]

I couldn't disagree more with you. I couldn't disagree more. I find this very unsettling, this stuff. Like, like Tehran.

[Andrew Egger]

Well, let me finish spooling out my thoughts, Sam. It is unsettling. Of course it's unsettling. But just let me make this point. Like, there's that thing. And then there's his whole coalition of doves, right, of like, no more foreign wars types, like all those guys in his coalition. And I think that Trump kind of varies back and forth between those two things because that's not really how he thinks about these things, right? He just likes winning and he likes power. And so what we have going on here is it's exactly the opposite of like what's happening in Russia and Ukraine, right, where Trump resents having to kind of like go into that war on behalf of the smaller, weaker group there. Trump is loving being on the side of Israel right now. Cuz Israel's winning in Iran, Israel has air dominance. Israel's like, you know, hitting Tehran and like, you know, doing all the stuff that Israel wants to do. And Trump is like, yeah, you know, usa, usa. They're using our planes, they're using our bombs. This is great. We're having a great time. I mean, I think that's just like kind of at the core of how he views all this stuff. And it is kind of useful, I guess, to get it laid out there, right, that even though it is obviously horrifying and unsettling and just sort of deeply unreal, like, I mean, it's just so weird to get these sort of like, like, you know, a. Dear Diary, Israel hit Iran again today. And it was, it was a great time for.

[Sam Stein]

That is weird for sure, but I disagree with you. I don't think it illuminates how he thinks about these things. I think it so is confusing confusion about how he thinks about these things. So for instance, what does he mean by we now have complete and total control of the skies over Iran? Who's we?

[Andrew Egger]

The good guys in his view, right? Like, who's we?

[Sam Stein]

Are we involved? Is the US Involved?

[Andrew Egger]

Why they think the US Is involved? I mean, that's, that, that's what's so bizarre about this, right? He cannot stick to, he can't stick to like, like a normal.

[Sam Stein]

In what capacity are we involved? Are we patrolling Iran's airspace or is Israel with our, with our, our provided equipment?

[Andrew Egger]

I mean, that's the thing about the stuff, right? But I think, I think you can say, like, we have complete control of the skies over Iran. And the we there is Israel using American equipment, right? American made, conceived and manufactured stuff.

[Sam Stein]

He's just firing away these missiles. We know the other one that really got me was people of Tehran should evacuate immediately. Which he said last night, that's a city of 10 million people, just with a bleak. He's he's like absolute chaos in the, in the capital. I mean, why would you do that? Now, look, it's, it's, it's interesting to the degree that what it does illuminate is just sort of his incessant need for attention and to be the center of attention. Right, like that I get. And I mean, I don't get it, but it's just who he is. But we're also sort of unfamiliar with this type of approach. It's just totally different than anything we've ever dealt with before. You know, used to be that Joe Biden was ridiculed because he didn't say much. In these moments, I think Trump is over twerking in the opposite direction. He's saying way too much and it's just like, go, go, you know, take, put the phone down and like, you know, come up with some strategic plan here or more concrete decisions. So I think he's over.

[Andrew Egger]

Did you see that clip of him talking to reporters? I think on Air Force One, you know, shortly after he sent out that, you know, everyone in Tehran should evacuate immediately. Tweet. And they were like, well, what do you, what do you mean by that? Like, are you saying that like, we're going to hit Tehran? He's like, no, I wasn't saying that. I was just kind saying, you wanna be safe. Out of an abundance of caution, if you're in Tehran, you should evacuate immediately. Just completely, completely insane.

[Sam Stein]

It's a bigger population than New York, I believe, just being like, hey, get out of New York City tonight. What are you supposed to do? It's just chaos, total chaos. Never seen anything like that.

[Andrew Egger]

We've seen stuff like this a lot in other domains under Trump 2.0. Right? This is the whole point of the whole taco thing, the Trump always chickens out thing. It's like Trump's gonna say some insane shit. And you are probably in your best interest to ignore half of it. Cause half of it's not gonna come to fruition. And that is hard enough when it's just like the stock market that he's talking about and tariffs and all that stuff. And even then it's like, okay, I guess we're gonna try to just like keep a stiff upper lip and assume it's all he's gonna be saying something new tomorrow. It is much more difficult, I'm sure if you are sitting in Tehran to see this sort of thing and be like, what are you supposed to say? Ah, I bet he's just bluffing. He tweets and the cha. And it's. Yeah, it's.

[Sam Stein]

And the other impact of it is that they are so attuned or they seem so attuned and interested and invested in shaping domestic public opinion about this stuff, which I'm assuming is why Trump's doing all this to begin with. But secondarily, you saw last night, Pete Hegseth going on Waters World, all things like, as this was all playing out. And then this morning, you had the JD Vance post on Twitter. How would you even describe it? It's just sort of like a, sort of a defense of Donald Trump as a human being and then laying the predicate for potentially some military action, but also saying, you know, it would be within the, you know, construct of an American first foreign policy. It was just a very sort of interesting. I thought the fact that he felt the need to issue the post was itself interesting. They care so deeply about the public opinion, especially of their people online.

[Andrew Egger]

Yeah, yeah. And that's. That last bit is. Is, I think the most insane part of all. Not the. Maybe not the most insane, but such an insane sort of secondary part of all of this is that if you are not. If you out there in TV land watching this, are not actively kind of following along with the posting habits of particularly JD Vance, but also Donald Trump and a lot of these other people in the administration, it is, like, impossible to overstate how much they are constantly triangulating their message to the people in their base who are mad about this or that or the other thing on Twitter. So, like, JD Vance is out there slapping down individual, like, pieces of criticism on Twitter. Like, he had a post, quote, tweeting Dave Riaboy this morning, who was, like, doing some critique of, like, something secondarily related to this Iran stuff and, like, accusing him of, like, supporting Ron DeSantis in the 2024 primary.

[Richard Karn]

Yeah, that was.

[Andrew Egger]

So that's what these guys are thinking about right now is like, how do I get this domestic critic off of my back by reminding all the other Trump supporters that this guy who's criticizing me right now was a Ron DeSantis guy last year, as we inch toward, like, potential, like, global war. I mean, it's just. It's so insane how far up. Up their own asses they are on this stuff with the online discourse.

[Sam Stein]

Yeah, I think that's the issue I have with it, is that there's so much going on and the stakes are not, like, minor. They're existential, and, like, people will die. And you're like, you know, I gotta Post this. I gotta go on Waters World. You know, it's like at some point, you know, you should probably just focus on your job. I say that as I post a million times a day.

[Andrew Egger]

So posters are gonna post, man.

[Sam Stein]

Posters are gonna post. Yeah. Speaking of, people should read the Mike Lee piece that Joe Perdicron just put up for press pass. It's really good. Some amazing stats in there. All right, Andrew. Thanks, man. I appreciate this. We'll be following the True Social account, so anyone who's watching this doesn't have to. It's our public service to the population and we'll be in touch on all these other things. And we'll talk to you later.

[Richard Karn]

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[Pocket Hose Representative]

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[Andrew Egger]

Hi.

[Richard Karn]

I'm Richard Karn and you may have seen me on TV talking about the world's number one expandable garden hose. Well, the brand new pocket hose Copperhead with pocket pivot is here and it's a total game changer. Old fashioned hoses get kinks and creases at the spigot, but the Copperhead's pocket pivot swivels 360 degrees for full water flow and freedom to water with ease all around your home. When you're all done, this rust proof anti burst hose shrinks back down to pocket size for effortless handling and tidy storage, plus your super light and ultra durable Pocket Hose Copperhead is backed with a 10 year warranty. What could be better than that? I'll tell you what an exciting exclusive offer just for you for a limited time. You can get a free Pocket Pivot and their 10 pattern sprayer with the purchase of any size Copperhead hose. Just text water to 64,000. That's water to 64,000 for your two free gifts with purchase W A T E R to 64,000.

[Pocket Hose Representative]

By texting 64,000, you agree to receive recurring automated marketing messages from Pocket Hose. Message and data rates may apply. No purchase required. Terms apply. Available@pocket hose.com terms.