Trump defends failure to destroy al-Shayrat base runways as Syrian air force resumes bombing runs

[DonViejo]

Source: RawStory



TOM BOGGIONI
08 APR 2017 AT 15:24 ET

While Trump was on his best Twitter behavior Saturday morning, saying it was a “great honor to have President Xi Jinping and Madame Peng Liyuan of China as our guests,” a more defensive Trump emerged Saturday afternoon regarding his Thursday Syria missile attack.

With reports that the Syrians launched more bombing attacks from the al-Shayrat military airfield less than 24 hours after the 59 Tomahawk missiles were launched into the Middle East country, Trump attempted to explain via Twitter the thinking behind the attack.

“The reason you don’t generally hit runways is that they are easy and inexpensive to quickly fix (fill in and top)!” Trump tweeted, no doubt calling upon his experience as a property developer.

Two days after Trump okayed the attack, questions are being raised over the U.S. notifying Russia military officials of the attack — who in turned warned the Syrians — as well as why no attempt was made to totally incapacitate the airfield or destroy any chemical weapons stocks.

Read more: http://www.rawstory.com/2017/04/trump-defends-failure-to-destroy-al-shayrat-base-runways-as-syrian-air-force-resumes-bombing-runs/

[benld74]

1. I called him liar on twitter and copied

Article showing what strike missed
And
That planes took off from strip next day
And went on strike of there own
FAIL!
SAD

[iluvtennis]

17. Nice...we need to keep taunting him...

...and his statement about why we don't bomb runways is idiotic...no way did they repair runways and start using within 24 hours. His 59 Tomahawk cruise missile "attack" was simply a fireworks show.

[Igel]

28. Publicly available documents would say otherwise.

In 1997 protocol and methods by the US airforce outlined several ways to repair a runway that was cratered. Turnaround time was 4 hours--less if things went well, a bit longer if there were problems.

That was 1997. Now, granted this is Syria, not the US, but Russia also could supply material and the entire process wasn't rocket science.

Moreover, getting it so two planes could take off was probably easier than returning it to full operability. There's no word if the two planes returned.

So general reports by those without an axe to grind is that it's a waste of time to take out runways--they're either thick or easily repairable. Unless, of course, there's a short-term reason--surprise attack in the next two hours and you want the planes grounded but not destroyed.

Otherwise, the smart thing is to destroy what can't be replaced in a few hours. Planes. Munitions. Men. Ground vehicles. Repair equipment and runways. Fuel depots.

All this is irrespective of whether any of these things were destroyed. But the idea that since the runways weren't destroyed or were operational 12-18 hours after the attack it was a failure sets a high bar: Destroying runways so that they're out of commission for months or a year. Sort of an irrealis assumption.

[IronLionZion]

2. It will make your head spin faster than Meals on Wheels

Since it only cost a measly $60 million. A Trumper informed me that many Tomahawk missiles are nearing end of life so it was use them or lose them. Trump is just thinking of ways to find efficiency. Think of it as recycling.

Are you sick of winning yet?

[weissmam]

6. Iwould have laughed in the guys face

if the purpose of the mission was a capability denial , then it was a failure

[ProudLib72]

3. So what exactly was accomplished?

I've yet to figure that one out. Planes took off from the run way next day, so that means neither the planes nor the runway was affected. They dropped bombs on Hom, so that means their armory wasn't affected. They had pilots to fly the planes, so that means their pilots were not killed or wounded.

So WTF Li'l Donnie? Besides wasting $88 million, what did you accomplish?

[NoMoreRepugs]

13. My guess is 5+% rise in approval rating

[joshdawg]

24. Only the arrogantly stupid will approve what drumpf did.

Some say that he looked "presidential" in his action.
Actually, he looked to be a hypocrite even larger than he was before, definitely not "presidential."

[RainCaster]

25. That's our senate you're talking about!

However, they are both stupid and arrogant.

[joshdawg]

26. Yep, that's the republican Senate I'm talking about.

Blindly ignorant and arrogantly stupid. Just like the drumpf supporters.

[zentrum]

18. Fantastic bedazzlement

....of MSM. Gorsuch and Bannon are not being talked about. And.....he's now confirmed that when he has low popularity ratings, just drop a bomb, kill!

[lark]

4. Fake president makes fake war.

Tomahawk Viagra as someone else named it. Whatever you call it it's a fraud cooked up between drumpf and pootie to distract from the illegal and treacherous collusion and to try to boost drumpfs lowest in history poll #s.

[pangaia]

7. Small missiles with small warheads. Just like dumpster

[IronLionZion]

8. Wag the dog

gotta do something about those crashing poll numbers and constant scandals

[dalton99a]

9. +1

[mahatmakanejeeves]

5. He knows so much more than the generals. NT

[turbinetree]

10. Hey Tomahawk cruise missile sexual predator

you are just one fucked up individual, you spent 95 million dollars ( 59) just on cruise missile, this doesn't count the costs of the ships and crew in the Mediterranean, then you come up with a idiot "tweet" while doing what shining up your golf clubs or waxing your golf cart for 3 million of tax payer dollars, then you decided along with your "fucked team" :

So when you had your fucking "situation room party" set up on your fucking property (to make it look like you knew what you were doing as it was being used as another prop in some apprentice room) and bilking the american taxpayers for being at your fucking business, and having your fucking cronies from the Bank of Cyprus sitting there with his doofus face glues to the video game, and then having your corporate lackey from Exxon-Mobil looking on thinking about his "oil deal with fucking megalomaniac in Russia, and then having your other fucking Goldman Sachs blood octopuses looking on, and then you have the audacity to then come with a fucking tweet that says :


“The reason you don’t generally hit runways is that they are easy and inexpensive to quickly fix (fill in and top)

Do you fucking realize there ass****, that the first time a cruise missile was used was during the Falklands War and the British had to use a different tactic, so just for a reminder here is what a fucking cruise missile can do when used.

FU dumpster and the horse you road in on

You are "not" my president and neither is your supreme court stolen bench lackey Gorsuch, just for added measure

[KeepItReal]

11. A mission with no objective.

They didn't want to crater and destroy the runways (you'd use BLU-107 Durandals for that, not Tomahawks).

They didn't want to take out Syrian aircrew (by giving advance notice to Russia so everyone could evacuate the base).

They didn't want to destroy chemical weapons for fear of releasing contents (Did he know where they were on that base? Would stored chemical weapons hit in an attack hurt people in and around the base? Is that worse than the untouched weapons being able to be used later for future attacks on civilians?)

Planes are now flying from that very same base, attacking anti-Assad forces and civilians.

What did that 59 Tomahawk strike mission accomplish?

[tanyev]

16. Oh, there was an objective.

The media now has this picture of a Trump situation room



instead of this picture of a Trump situation room.

[japple]

19. In the top photo, everyone is looking at the monitor except Jared. He's looking

at Trump. In fact, he is glaring at Trump. Is Jared our new president? I think he is!!!!!! Yay, Jarvanka, our new President! Hope SNL has a few surprises tonight!

[kacekwl]

12. He did exactly what

Putin told him to do. Big show no damage.

[That Guy 888]

14. The reason you dont generally hit runways is that they are easy and inexpensive to quickly fix"

The US military has special munitions to decommission runways. They usually involve an armored shell and rocket engine to burrow deep into the runway before exploding. With 59 tomahawk missiles, the base should have been unusable.

A fake attack from a fake pResident. Sad.

[nocalflea]

15. Hey folks , give credit where credit is due.

They also took out a mess hall .

According to the russians , for what it's worth :

http://eng.mil.ru/en/news_page/country/more.htm?id=12117678%40egNews


At least they hit something ...?

[rickford66]

20. They coulda knocked out the runway 59 days in a row.

[randr]

21. the lsos basically said it was a waste of American tax dollars

[Thor_MN]

22. I thought he wasn't going to let anyone know what his secret plan was...

Instead, he lets the Russians know exactly what and when - should be grounds for treason.

[SleeplessinSoCal]

23. my brainwashed 1/2 sister is sharing a CNN interview of grateful Syrian.

And saying how CNN expected a complaint rather than a "thank you" to 45.

Also watched Charlie Rose who found Syrian doctors to cheer this and even Ian Bremmer to reluctantly praise this decision in condition of too many factors to go into. Surely we're being played. It seems clear this was meant to look like one thing and yet be another for our benefit and not that of Syrians.

The bubbles are as far apart as ever. But possibly may burst with next action or non action.

[bluestarone]

27. REALLY?????????????????????

anybody actually see the pictures where 20 aircraft were destroyed?????????????? or is this FAKE NEWS too?