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Trump Dismisses Dispute Over Whether Possible Soleimani Attack Was Imminent

Ken Bredemeier

   WASHINGTON - U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday dismissed as
   irrelevant questions about how imminent a threat Iranian Quds Force
   commander Qassem Soleimani posed to American interests in the Middle
   East when Trump ordered a drone strike that killed him.

   Trump offered no evidence supporting his claim that Soleimani was about
   to blow up four U.S. embassies, after key U.S. officials declined
   Sunday to say they had seen such a specific threat.

   On Twitter, Trump said the mainstream U.S. news media and "their
   Democrat Partners are working hard to determine whether or not the
   future attack by terrorist Soleimani was 'imminent' or not, & was my
   team in agreement. The answer to both is a strong YES., but it doesn't
   really matter because of his horrible past!"

     The Fake News Media and their Democrat Partners are working hard to
     determine whether or not the future attack by terrorist Soleimani
     was "imminent" or not, & was my team in agreement. The answer to
     both is a strong YES., but it doesn't really matter because of his
     horrible past!
     -- Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) [1]January 13, 2020

   He contended that opposition Democrats and the news media "are trying
   to make terrorist Soleimani into a wonderful guy, only because I did
   what should have been done for 20 years. Anything I do, whether it's
   the economy, military, or anything else, will be scorned by the Radical
   Left, Do Nothing Democrats!"

     The Democrats and the Fake News are trying to make terrorist
     Soleimani into a wonderful guy, only because I did what should have
     been done for 20 years. Anything I do, whether it's the economy,
     military, or anything else, will be scorned by the Rafical Left, Do
     Nothing Democrats!
     -- Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) [2]January 13, 2020

   On Sunday, Defense Secretary Mark Esper told CBS News' Face the Nation
   show, "I didn't see the intelligence about Iran posing an imminent
   threat to four U.S. embassies, but I believe President Trump when he
   says there was one."

   The Pentagon chief added, "What I'm saying is I share the president's
   view that probably- my expectation was they were going to go after our
   embassies."

   Esper, in another interview, told CNN's State of the Union show, that
   he believed Soleimani was "days away" from launching an attack on U.S.
   facilities when the drone attack killed him Jan. 3.

   Iran, in response, fired 16 ballistic missiles at bases in Iraq where
   U.S. troops are stationed, although the U.S. says it knew of the
   attacks hours ahead of time, allowing forces to bunker in safety. There
   were no reports of U.S. casualties.

References

   1. https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1216754098382524422?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
   2. https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1216748556561866755?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

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