The Escalation Cycle | The Casualties.
U.S. casualties, regional retaliation, Lebanon enters the picture and unanswered questions about the objective.
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Three American service members are confirmed dead. Iran has launched retaliatory strikes against Israel and at least seven other countries in the region hosting U.S. forces or U.S. military assets. Overnight, the conflict widened, Israel struck Hezbollah targets across Lebanon including Beirut’s southern suburbs after Hezbollah launched missiles and drones toward Israel in retaliation for Khamenei’s killing, opening a new front beyond the Iran–Gulf theater. The Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway carrying a fifth of the world’s oil, is functionally disrupted and more than 200 vessels are anchored near the strait, tanker owners and oil and gas shippers have paused shipments, Japan’s three largest shipping companies have suspended Hormuz operations, and major container lines are diverting sailings away from the highest-risk corridors, and Brent crude surged roughly 8% on open, with spikes around 10% reported in the immediate reaction window. S&P Global Platts is now reviewing the deliverability and pricing mechanics for Middle East crude, a sign that the disruption is breaking normal market infrastructure, not just delaying ships. The UAE Capital Markets Authority ordered both of its stock exchanges closed March 2–3 as authorities assess regional instability. The State Department has elevated Bahrain, Qatar, and Kuwait to Level 3 travel advisories and authorized departures of non-emergency personnel, official acknowledgment of sustained regional danger. Congress was not asked to authorize this war. Today, Secretary Rubio briefs congressional leadership and full classified briefings for all members are scheduled for Tuesday. A Reuters/Ipsos poll shows only 27% of Americans support the strikes. And as of Sunday evening, the president says combat operations continue “in full force” warning that more American deaths are “likely” while still refusing to define what “victory” means for us.
Three American families woke up today to the worst phone call any military family can receive.
U.S. Central Command confirmed Sunday morning that three U.S. service members have been killed in action and five are seriously wounded as part of Operation Epic Fury. Several others sustained concussions and shrapnel injuries and are in the process of returning to duty. CENTCOM said it would withhold names until 24 hours after next-of-kin notification. (CENTCOM statement via Military.com)
These are the first confirmed American combat deaths of this situation that began without a single vote in Congress.
Hours after CENTCOM announced those deaths, President Trump posted a video to Truth Social acknowledging the fallen and warning that more casualties are coming. He said combat operations would continue “in full force” until “all of our objectives are achieved,” adding: “And sadly, there will likely be more before it ends. That’s the way it is. Likely be more.” (CBS News)
He did not define those objectives.
The Last 72 Hours
On Saturday morning, February 28, the United States and Israel launched what the Pentagon calls Operation Epic Fury and Israel calls Operation Roaring Lion, a joint aerial, naval, and land-based offensive targeting Iranian military infrastructure, leadership compounds, and air defense systems. CENTCOM said strikes began at 1:15 a.m. ET and were designed to “dismantle the Iranian regime’s security apparatus, prioritizing locations that posed an imminent threat.” Targets included IRGC command and control facilities, air defense capabilities, missile and drone launch sites, and military airfields. Strikes were launched from regional bases and from the USS Abraham Lincoln operating in the North Arabian Sea, and for the first time in combat, the U.S. deployed low-cost one-way attack drones. (USNI News)
The mission statement: “Dismantle the Iranian regime’s security apparatus” is not a limited objective. It is not a defensive action. It is the language of regime change, and it is coming from the U.S. military’s own public communications. CENTCOM itself described the operation as involving “the largest regional concentration of American military firepower in a generation.” (CENTCOM statement)
By Sunday afternoon, CENTCOM reported it had launched more than 1,000 strikes on Iranian targets in just two days of operations including ships, missile sites, communications infrastructure, and IRGC command-and-control centers. (Washington Post)
Within hours of the first strikes Saturday, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was confirmed dead, killed in an Israeli airstrike on his Tehran compound, according to Iranian state media and confirmed by multiple Western outlets. (CNBC) The IDF later confirmed that 40 senior Iranian commanders had been killed, including the Chief of Staff of Iran’s Armed Forces. By Sunday morning, Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian announced that a temporary leadership council had begun its work. Iran’s constitution provides for an interim arrangement while the Assembly of Experts selects a successor, a temporary leadership council has begun its work.
In an eight-minute video statement released Saturday, he described the operation’s purpose as effectively regime change telling the Iranian people their government was “theirs for the taking.” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth called it the “most lethal, most complex, and most-precision aerial operation in history.” (NBC News) By Sunday, Trump claimed the U.S. had sunk nine Iranian warships and said operations would continue “unabated.” CBS News reports Trump has suggested the campaign could take “four weeks or less” though that timeline comes with no public explanation of what the endpoint looks like. (CBS News live updates)
Trump has been using words like “annihilate” and “unabated” to describe this military campaign that killed another nation’s head of state, and then warns Americans to expect more of our own dead. We are watching an open-ended war play out, without the input of the people’s representatives.
The Retaliation Is Not Contained
Iran fired retaliatory missiles and drones at Israel and at least seven other countries: Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE targeting U.S. military bases and allied infrastructure across the region. (Al Jazeera, compiled from Reuters and AP reporting)
In Israel, authorities reported nine killed in Beit Shemesh, with dozens injured in strikes across central Israel as the retaliation widened. A separate strike killed at least six, with 23 taken to hospitals. (CBS News, Al Jazeera live tracker) In the UAE, the defense ministry reported three people killed and 58 injured since the start of the strikes. Reuters separately confirmed injuries and damage across Abu Dhabi and Dubai, including at airports. Kuwait reported interceptions and disruptions as Iran’s retaliation widened across Gulf states hosting U.S. forces. An Iranian drone struck the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Bahrain’s capital, Manama. The U.S. Embassy confirmed the strike and reported injuries. Drones struck near Naval Support Activity Bahrain, home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet, CENTCOM described the damage as “minimal” but confirmed the base was hit. Oman, the country that had been mediating between the U.S. and Iran, saw its port in Duqm hit by drones. (U.S. Embassy Manama, Stars and Stripes, Al Jazeera)
The U.S. Embassy in Bahrain has now closed until further notice, canceling all consular appointments for Monday. Non-emergency personnel and their families were authorized to depart. Military dependents in Bahrain were given departure authorization though those flights were later paused as conditions changed. (U.S. Embassy Manama, Stars and Stripes)
Bahrain is not the only country where the State Department is pulling people out. As of this weekend, the State Department has raised its travel advisories for Bahrain, Qatar, and Kuwait to Level 3 “Reconsider Travel” and authorized the departure of non-emergency U.S. government employees and their families from all three countries. Bahrain’s authorization came February 28, Qatar and Kuwait followed on March 1. The advisories cite “an ongoing threat of drone and missile attacks from Iran and significant disruptions to commercial flights.” The State Department also issued a worldwide caution tied to Iran operations. (State.gov travel advisories, U.S. Embassy Qatar)
And then, overnight, the conflict widened further. Hezbollah, Iran’s most significant proxy force, launched missiles and drones toward Israel early Monday (Israel/Lebanon time-zone) morning, its first such attack since 2024 according to Reuters. Hezbollah said it was retaliation for the killing of Khamenei and “in defense of Lebanon and its people.” Israel responded with strikes on Hezbollah targets across Lebanon, including Beirut’s southern suburbs, the Beqaa Valley, and southern Lebanese towns. The IDF said it struck “senior Hezbollah terrorists” in Beirut and issued evacuation warnings to dozens of Lebanese villages. Lebanon’s Prime Minister Nawaf Salam condemned Hezbollah’s rocket fire as “reckless” and said Lebanon “would not allow itself to be dragged into new conflicts.” (Al Jazeera, Axios)
This is important because it tells us the conflict is no longer just an Iran–Gulf–Israel loop. It now has a Lebanon front and with it, the risk of drawing in a country whose government explicitly does not want this war, and whose civilian population is still recovering from the 2024 Israeli offensive that killed more than 4,000 people. The spillover extends even to Cyprus, where a suspected drone struck the UK’s RAF Akrotiri base at midnight Sunday, setting off air-raid sirens, two Iranian ballistic missiles were also fired in the direction of the island, though UK Defence Secretary Healey said they did not appear to be targeted at Cyprus. (Reuters) The UK, meanwhile, has been pulled deeper into the crisis. Healey confirmed that British aircraft operating from bases in Qatar and Cyprus are intercepting drones targeting UK bases and allies, while declining to say whether the U.S. strikes are legal. “It is for the U.S. to set out the legal basis of the action that it took,” Healey told BBC, a striking signal from America’s closest ally. (Reuters)
The Girls Elementary School
On Saturday morning, as classes were changing periods at the Shajareh Tayyebeh girls’ elementary school in Minab, in Iran’s Hormozgan province, a missile struck the building. The victims were between seven and twelve years old.
Confirmed: The Washington Post, the New York Times, Reuters, and Iranian fact-checking organization Factnameh all verified footage of the destroyed school as authentic. The school was located near an IRGC naval base that was targeted in a separate strike. UNESCO condemned the attack as a grave violation of international humanitarian law. (Washington Post; UN News)
Reported but not independently verified: Iranian sources including the local prosecutor in Minab, Iranian state media, and the Iranian Red Crescent report the death toll in the range of 108 to 165 (the number has shifted across updates), with approximately 95 injured, the overwhelming majority schoolgirls. The Washington Post reported there was no independent confirmation of the casualty numbers. The Israeli military said it was not aware of strikes in the area. The U.S. military said it was “looking into” the reports. (Al Jazeera; Washington Post)
The Iranian Red Crescent’s broader count more than 200 killed across all strikes in Iran and 747 wounded is similarly reported by Iranian sources and not independently verified.
Regardless of whether the final verified death toll is lower or higher than what’s being reported, a war sold to the American public as “precision” and “pinpoint” collapses the moment images of dead children in a school dominate the global narrative.
The Constitutional Crisis Hiding Inside the War
Article I of the Constitution gives Congress, not the president, the power to declare war. The Founders designed it this way because they understood that a single individual should not have the unilateral authority to commit the nation’s blood and treasure to armed conflict.
The strikes were launched without congressional authorization. The “Gang of Eight”, the bipartisan group of top congressional leaders and intelligence committee chairs were briefed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio earlier in the week on Iran, and Rubio called reachable members shortly before the strikes began. But members were not given a full accounting of the legal justification, according to multiple sources familiar with the briefing. (CNN, CBS News) Congress never voted to authorize hostilities and members say they still don’t have a defined end-state.
Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee said Sunday that he saw “no intelligence” to suggest Iran was planning a preemptive strike on the United States. “None,” he said on CNN’s State of the Union. (CNBC live updates)
The administration’s public justification for this operation rests on the claim of an “imminent threat.” The ranking member of the Senate Intelligence Committee says the intelligence doesn’t support that claim.
Now, a bipartisan push for accountability is underway. In the Senate, a war powers resolution led by Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) and backed by Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) would require the president to obtain explicit congressional authorization before engaging in further hostilities against Iran. In the House, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) are forcing a parallel vote to halt unauthorized military action. The Senate returned Monday. The administration is briefing committee leadership Monday evening, with full classified briefings for all members set for Tuesday. (TIME, Axios, NPR)
What makes this significant is who is breaking ranks. Rep. Warren Davidson (R-OH), a former Army Ranger on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said flatly: “War requires Congressional authorization.” He requested a classified briefing defining the mission and said that absent new information, he would support the war powers resolution. Rep. Massie called the strikes “acts of war unauthorized by Congress.” Sen. Rand Paul declared that his “oath of office is to the Constitution.” (CNN, NewsNation)
These are the members of the president’s own party saying this campaign may be illegal. And they are saying it on record.
Sen. Bernie Sanders went further, accusing Trump and Netanyahu of launching “a premeditated and unconstitutional war” and calling it a gamble with American lives to fulfill Netanyahu’s decades-long ambition of dragging the U.S. into armed conflict with Iran. (Fox News)
Oregon’s own lawmakers are in this fight. Sen. Ron Wyden said Trump and Hegseth are “putting American lives on the line to make themselves feel powerful, while our military families pay the real price.” Rep. Val Hoyle called on Speaker Johnson to reconvene the House immediately. Rep. Maxine Dexter told constituents: “The public wants peace, not more chaos abroad. Your voice is powerful.” (OPB)
The Economic Tripwire
The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow waterway, just 21 miles wide at its narrowest point, sitting between Iran and Oman. Roughly 20 million barrels of oil pass through it every day, accounting for about 20% of global oil demand and a quarter of the world’s seaborne oil trade. It is, by any definition, the most important energy chokepoint on Earth. (Al Jazeera)
The IRGC has been broadcasting warnings to vessels via marine radio that passage through the strait is not allowed. The practical effect has been severe. Reuters shipping data shows more than 200 vessels including oil tankers and liquefied gas carriers anchored in and around the strait. Major tanker owners, oil and gas majors, and trading houses have suspended shipments via Hormuz, while container lines are diverting away from the highest-risk corridors including rerouting through the Cape of Good Hope instead of the Suez Canal and Bab al-Mandeb Strait. Greece’s shipping ministry has advised all vessels to avoid the Persian Gulf entirely. At least two ships have been struck near the waterway, and the IRGC claimed Sunday it struck three oil tankers with missiles. War-risk insurance costs for tankers have reportedly jumped 25 to 50 percent, according to insurance broker Marsh, adding hundreds of thousands of dollars per voyage. (Fortune; CNBC)
Tehran has said it has closed navigation through the strait, and the IRGC has been broadcasting warnings to commercial vessels that passage is not allowed. Iran’s foreign minister, however, told Al Jazeera that Iran has “no intention of closing the Strait of Hormuz at this stage” even as Iran’s own forces broadcast warnings and shipping behavior shows the passage is becoming functionally unusable. Rystad Energy described tanker traffic as having “effectively come to a halt” as shipping companies take precautionary measures. Shipbrokers and tanker industry groups say vessel traffic has not fully stopped, but disruptions are building rapidly, with ships anchoring in safer waters and shipments being paused due to security and insurability constraints. The distinction between a formal closure and a practical one may not matter much to your gas bill.
The disruption is now global in scope. Japan’s three biggest shipping companies Nippon Yusen, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, and Kawasaki Kisen have all halted operations through the strait. A Kawasaki Kisen spokesperson told Reuters: “Unlike with other thoroughfares, there are no options for diverting the shipments. Until the situation stabilizes, we will not attempt to send vessels through the strait.” Japan depends on the Middle East for roughly 90%+ of its crude oil imports nearly all of which transit Hormuz. French carrier CMA CGM has announced emergency conflict surcharges effective Monday for cargo to and from the Gulf and Red Sea. (Reuters via Bloomberg, gCaptain)
S&P Global Platts, the pricing agency that effectively sets the benchmark for Middle East crude, is reviewing the deliverability and pricing structure for the region because market participants told Platts that major shipping companies have halted Hormuz transit.
As the first trading session after the strikes opened Sunday evening, oil surged. Brent climbed roughly 8% in early futures trading, while over-the-counter spikes around 10% were reported in the immediate reaction window, according to Reuters. Analysts warned that prices could reach $100 or more if the Hormuz disruption persists. (CNBC, Reuters via Fortune) AAA had the national gas average at $2.98 last week, and analysts said the U.S. average could climb above $3 for the first time in months as the shock filters through. A former White House energy advisor told CNBC that a prolonged Hormuz closure would be a “guaranteed global recession.” (CNBC)
The UAE Capital Markets Authority ordered both the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange and the Dubai Financial Market closed for Monday and Tuesday, saying it would “continue to monitor developments in the region and assess the situation on an ongoing basis.” Outside of national mourning periods, this is essentially unprecedented for the UAE. Saudi Arabia’s main index dropped more than 4% on Sunday. Egyptian markets fell more than 5%. (Fortune, The National)
Rerouting ships around Africa adds 10 to 14 extra days per delivery. Which means delays to everything that moves by sea, not just oil but manufactured goods, components, food. If this persists, your grocery bill will feel it before the month is out.
Only 27% of Americans Approve (Reuter Poll)
The Reuters/Ipsos poll that concluded Sunday gives us a glimpse of public opinion on this war. Only 27% of Americans approve of the strikes. 43% disapprove. 29% are unsure. The poll gathered responses from 1,282 U.S. adults online beginning Saturday after strikes were underway. 56% of Americans, including 23% of Republicans and 60% of independents say Trump is too willing to use military force. (Reuters/Ipsos via U.S. News)
42% of Republicans said they would be less likely to support Trumps actions if it leads to U.S. troops being killed or injured. Three service members are already dead and the president just told the country to expect more.
On the economic front, 45% of all respondents, including 34% of Republicans and 44% of independents, said they would be less likely to support him if gas or oil prices increase. Oil prices are already surging.
The Reuters/Ipsos poll concluded before CENTCOM announced the three American deaths. Support may drop further as that news reaches the public.
These strikes began three days before the first major 2026 midterm primaries on Tuesday, March 3, including Texas and North Carolina. Reuters/Ipsos polls have consistently shown that voters’ top concern heading into the midterms is the economy, not foreign affairs. The administration is now simultaneously pulling the two issues most likely to erode its own support: American casualties and rising costs.
“Talks” for De-Escalation
Trump says Iran’s potential new leadership has indicated it wants to talk, though he hasn’t said who, when, or under what terms. Iran’s foreign minister told Omani mediators that Tehran is open to de-escalation efforts. On the other hand, a senior White House official told NewsNation that “for now, Operation Epic Fury continues unabated.” (NewsNation)
You can’t bomb a nation’s leadership into oblivion, sink its warships, kill its supreme leader, and then characterize the survivors’ willingness to pick up the phone as a “diplomatic breakthrough.” What you’ve done is created a situation where there may be no stable counterpart left to negotiate with and where the successor regime, whatever it looks like, has every political incentive to define itself through resistance.
The CIA tracked Iranian leader’s movements for months before this operation, according to the Associated Press. Nuclear talks between the U.S. and Iran were actively underway in Geneva just before the strikes began, the two sides had met for six hours on Thursday, leaving without resolution. (Stars and Stripes) That means the administration chose war while diplomacy was still being discussed because they preferred a different kind of outcome.
What History Is Yelling At Us
We have been here before. In 2003, the Bush administration launched the invasion of Iraq on the premise that military force could reshape the political reality of a Middle Eastern country, that regime change could be achieved through air power and a short ground campaign, and that what followed would somehow take care of itself.
There was no credible post-war plan then, either.
And when Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Saturday that “the administration has not provided Congress and the American people with critical details about the scope and immediacy of the threat,” he was using language that could have been lifted from 2003.
Sen. Andy Kim went further, calling it “the same dangerous and foolish decision President Bush did a generation ago” executed against the Constitution, against the will of the American people, and without congressional approval. (PBS, NewsNation)
Retired General Frank McKenzie, a former commander of U.S. Central Command, told CBS’s Face the Nation on Sunday that Americans should be prepared for “several more days of exchanges of long-range rockets” and acknowledged that “we’re probably going to take more casualties.” (CBS News)
What to Watch This Week
Pay close attention to six things in the coming days.
The Lebanon front. Hezbollah’s entry into the war transforms this from a bilateral U.S.–Iran conflict into a multi-front regional war. Watch whether Hezbollah continues rocket fire, whether Israel escalates ground operations in southern Lebanon, and whether Lebanese civilians are forced to flee again. If this front holds, the humanitarian and political costs compound rapidly.
The congressional votes. The Senate is back in session. Today (Monday), Secretary of State Rubio, Defense Secretary Hegseth, CIA Director Ratcliffe, and Joint Chiefs Chairman Dan Caine are expected to brief the chairs and ranking members of the House and Senate Armed Services and Foreign Affairs committees Monday evening. On Tuesday, March 3, the same officials will brief the full membership of both chambers, the Senate around 3:30 p.m. ET, with a House briefing to follow. Whether the war powers resolutions pass or fail, the roll call is accountability. Every member of Congress who votes against requiring authorization is saying, on the record, that they trust this president to wage open-ended war without democratic oversight. (NewsNation/The Hill; CNN)
The casualty count. Three Americans are confirmed dead as of Sunday morning. The president says to expect more. CENTCOM said “major combat operations continue.” The Reuters/Ipsos poll already shows that Republican support softens with casualties.
Hormuz and the price of oil. Oil markets opened Sunday evening with crude surging 7-9%. Japanese shippers have halted operations. S&P Global Platts is reviewing whether Middle East crude can even be delivered under current conditions. If the strait disruption persists through the week, every American will feel it at the pump, at the grocery store, and in every supply chain that depends on maritime shipping. When you hear “Strait of Hormuz,” think- your household budget.
Objectives: What does “victory” mean? Is it the death of Khamenei? That’s already happened. Is it destroying Iran’s navy? Trump says he’s doing that. Is it a nuclear deal? That requires a negotiating partner. Is it regime change? That is a project measured in years and decades, not days, and it is a project the American people have not been asked to support. Trump says it could take “four weeks or less.” A former CENTCOM commander says to expect several more days of rocket exchanges at minimum. Nobody in the administration has publicly defined the end-state.
International legal pressure. The UK, America’s closest ally, has declined to say whether the strikes are legal, with Defence Secretary Healey saying it’s for the U.S. to make that case. British forces are intercepting drones but explicitly distancing themselves from the legal justification. If the U.S. cannot get an endorsement of legality from London, the international legitimacy of this operation is shaky from the start.
What You Can Do Right Now
Call your Senators. The Senate is in session. Ask them directly: “will you vote for the war powers resolution?” If they support the strikes, ask them what the end-state is and whether they will authorize an open-ended campaign on the record.
Capitol Switchboard: (202) 224-3121 (senate.gov)
Call your House member. Ask whether they will demand Speaker Johnson bring the House back before Wednesday for an emergency war powers vote. Find your representative: house.gov.
Do not spread unverified casualty numbers. Trump has incentives to minimize them. “confirmed by ‘source’” versus “reported by ‘source’, not independently verified.”
Prepare for the midterms. The first major primaries, including Texas and North Carolina, are Tuesday, March 3. Check your voter registration. Talk to your neighbors. Every down-ballot race is now a referendum not only on domestic policy but on whether a president can wage war without the consent of the governed.
What’s the single most alarming development in the last 72 hours and why?
Sources referenced in this post
Trump video: more casualties “likely,” operations continue | CBS News
CBS live updates: “four weeks or less,” McKenzie warning, House briefing | CBS News
Oil surge, embassy closures, broader context | NBC News live updates
Warner: “no intelligence” of preemptive threat | CNBC live updates
Hormuz disruption: tankers anchored, Maersk suspension | Fortune
Bahrain embassy closure, military departures | U.S. Embassy Manama
Hezbollah fires rockets at Israel, Israel strikes Beirut | Al Jazeera
UK declines to endorse legality of strikes, intercepting drones | Reuters via Investing.com
State Department Level 3 advisory: Qatar | U.S. Embassy Qatar
Japanese shipping companies halt Hormuz operations | Reuters via Bloomberg
Shipping disruption first 36 hours: CMA CGM surcharge, insurance cancellation | gCaptain
White House to brief congressional leadership Monday, all members Tuesday | NewsNation/The Hill
In America, we have No Kings.
We are showing up together again on March 28.
When our families are under attack and costs are pushing people to the brink, silence is not an option. We will defend ourselves and our communities against this administration’s unjust and cruel acts of violence. America does not belong to strongmen, greedy billionaires, or those who rule through fear. It belongs to us, the people.
Now IS the time to dial 202-224-3121 (your Members of Congress number) whether your MOCS are GOP or Democrats and say “No illegal wars! Stop Trump Now! No more war!” Perhaps the Pedophile thinks war is a distraction although this may well be a Kushner shoved deal with Israel approved by Trump— it reeks of dirty dollars—it is still a distraction from the Epstein Files where Trump lives and moves 38,000+ times showing no innocence. This war must come to a halt—it has no known purpose or end other than outright murder. Does he want it to affect the midterms? Absolutely. He may well view it as the way to halt the election and as his continued “get out of jail card” as well as a resolve for complete power overall.
Don’t twiddle your thumbs over this one—CALL NOW—
To all the dimwitted news people who couldn't move fast enough in 2015 to tie themselves in knots currying favor with Donald Trump, a certain Joe Scarborough comes to mind, thank you for helping unleash this maniac on the world. Not only is he willing to destroy America, he'll be just as happy to see the world explode. Ask the oligarchs now if they are secure with propping up an imbecile. Musk, you moron, and the rest of you misbegotten misfits, tied yourselves to an insane man with the intelligence of a rock. Reap what you sow. Personally, I hope your riches go up in flames, every last one of you. It's the least you deserve.