We’re two days into what the Democrats and their willing accomplices in the mainstream press are trying to turn into a “scandal” — the accidental inclusion of Atlantic Editor Jeffrey Goldberg in a chat about the Trump administration’s operations against the Houthis on the texting app Signal. The more we learn, the more we know that the whole affair is a massive nothingburger with everything on it and a big ol’ side of fake news fries.
Key members of the administration’s intelligence apparatus testified that the Signal messaging thread didn’t divulge any classified information. And for all the commendation of Goldberg for not spilling too many beans, we have a better idea that there weren’t many beans to spill.
It's hard not to speculate on why the left is so desperate to blow this thing out of proportion and make it more than it should be. Obviously, the left wants nothing more than to slap the scarlet letter S for “scandal” on this administration because it has been so effective and popular with the American people. But a White House press release from Tuesday reveals the most plausible reason why the left wants to discredit the administration when it comes to action against the Houthis.
“Democrats and their media allies have seemingly forgotten that President Donald J. Trump and his National Security team successfully killed terrorists who have targeted U.S. troops and disrupted one of the most consequential shipping routes in the world,” the White House states (with emphasis in the original). “This is a coordinated effort to distract from the successful actions taken by President Trump and his administration to make America’s enemies pay and keep Americans safe.”
“The Biden Administration sat back as a band of pirates — with precision-guided, Iran-provided weaponry — exacted a toll system in one of the most important shipping lanes in the world,” the press release continues.
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The word the mainstream media has traditionally used to describe the Houthis as “rebels” conjures up images of scrappy resistance fighters standing up for a worthwhile cause. It’s like leftists can imagine them belting out, “Can You Hear the People Sing?”
But the reality is that the Houthis have pirated the Suez Canal and terrorized cargo and military ships alike. The White House points out that the terrorists attacked Navy ships 174 times and have been so nefarious that three-fourths of American cargo ships are avoiding the Suez and rerouting around the southern coast of Africa.
The White House boldly highlights the difference between the Biden administration’s approach to the Houthis and the Trump administration’s decisive actions:
Biden’s weakness invited these unacceptable attacks — while President Trump put these terrorists on notice:
- BIDEN: Removed the Houthis from the list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations.
- TRUMP: Immediately re-designated the Houthis as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.
- BIDEN: Allowed the Houthis to attack U.S. Navy ships and shut down commercial traffic through the Red Sea — responding in feckless, pinprick “attacks.”
- TRUMP: Launched successful, large-scale strikes against the Houthis, eliminating senior terrorists within the organization and putting the world on notice.
The White House concludes that “nothing can distract from that unrelenting action to keep Americans safe.” But that’s not going to stop the left from trying to manufacture distractions.
Is the Signal “scandal” one of those deliberate distractions? I’m inclined to believe that it is. But the rousing success of the Trump administration — especially as it relates to the Houthis — is extremely tough to deny. That’s what’s getting the left’s goat.
