Dear President
@realDonaldTrump and Team,😊
I would like to offer several suggestions regarding the Middle East situation and how to handle Iran.
First, striking Iran’s evil regime that merges political power with religious authority — the root cause of chaos in the Middle East and its network of terrorist proxy forces across the region — is absolutely correct and beyond any dispute.
Second, strategy is critical. If the conflict drags on too long and remains unresolved by August, this war could negatively impact Republican performance in the federal Senate and House elections, as well as state-level races. It will also fuel inflation. The destructive power of inflation is enough to bring down any ruling administration. For any democratically elected administration, inflation is the greatest and most lethal cancer. Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and even Canada have all seen ruling parties ousted due to high inflation. Had Canada not changed leadership, Trudeau would likely have been voted out as well. Therefore, inflation will have a very significant impact on the United States.
While disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz may provide short-term benefits for America — now once again the world’s largest oil producer and exporter — sustained high international oil prices will spill over into other commodities, drive up U.S. domestic prices, and trigger broader inflation.
Third, I fully understand that President Trump wishes to treat Iran as a so-called “negotiating counterpart.” However, Iran and the United States are not in the same league at all. In terms of comprehensive strength and development, Iran lags behind the United States by at least “250 years”. “Negotiation” as a tool to manage oil prices may appear effective in the short term, but it will not work over the long run. There are also many foolish international speculators heavily long on oil. Everyone knows that once the war ends, oil prices will crash, yet these speculators only care about immediate gains and continue to push prices higher.
Fourth, I know President Trump currently does not want to strike Iran directly due to the legal constraints of the 1973 War Powers Resolution, as well as a recent Senate bill attempting to restrict authorization for military action against Iran. Although that bill is still moving forward, I believe it will not become law and that President Trump will veto it if necessary. Nevertheless, politically, it still looks bad.
Fifth, President Trump wants to end the war — I know you are not a warmonger. But at this point, you can no longer afford to step back. After Iran was attacked, it retaliated by striking countries across the Middle East — especially the UAE. This has already escalated into an extremely serious regional crisis. The Middle East countries will not allow the U.S. to simply walk away. They may be willing to bear the military costs, support clearing the Strait of Hormuz, and back the complete elimination of Iran’s fanatical clerical regime. This is understandable — including Israel and Prime Minister Netanyahu, who strongly share this desire.
I may be one of the very few people who truly understand the position you are in. I know it may be very difficult for you to go as far as many Middle Eastern countries hope you will, but I still want to offer a suggestion — and that brings me to my sixth point.
Sixth, the United States can impose a comprehensive blockade on Iran. The Strait of Hormuz is only one part of it — merely a channel for physical imports and exports. A real blockade should also include financial restrictions and broader economic isolation. This is not an act of war and therefore does not fall under the restrictions of the 1973 War Powers Resolution. As you have often said, the U.S. military is the most powerful in the world — the second strongest military is nowhere close to even seeing America’s taillights. You can provide intelligence, information, and space-based support to Israel, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and other regional partners, enabling them to conduct the fighting — including ground operations if they choose. They are willing to do so.
Seventh, I have many friends who strongly support President Trump and believe oil prices will fall sharply once the war ends. Yet they also hope that you will press on — regardless of temporary costs — to completely dismantle Iran’s theocratic regime. Given America’s system of separation of powers — and especially with the Democrats relentlessly attacking you right now — you could leave this matter to Netanyahu and Israel. They may be able to handle it more precisely, more effectively, and bring the war to an end more quickly. Many other countries in the region also deeply hate Iran’s fanatical clerical regime and would likely support such an effort. So why should you have to do everything personally?
Lastly, I want to emphasize this point: No matter what happens to the current Iranian regime — whether through complete regime change or dramatic transformation — Netanyahu will never claim “This was all my achievement.” The Gulf states will not take credit either. History will forever record that the fall of Iran’s clerical regime was accomplished under the leadership of the Trump Administration. In other words, the regime that — since the Carter era — has hated the United States most, blackmailed it, and killed the most Americans, will be eliminated by Trump, not by anyone else. All others are merely your assistants.
致川普总统及团队:
我想就中东局势以及如何应对伊朗问题提出几点建议。
第一,打击伊朗政教合一的邪恶政权——中东的乱源及其它在中东地区的恐怖分子代理人——这绝对是对的,无可争议的。
第二,但需要讲策略,如果拖延过久,到8月仍未解决,这场战争可能会对共和党在联邦参议院和众议院的选举、甚至州级选举产生负面影响。它会延伸到通货膨胀。通胀的破坏力足以颠覆现任政权。对于民主民选政府而言,通胀是最大的癌症。澳大利亚、新西兰、英国都曾经历过高通胀导致的政党下台,甚至加拿大,如果加拿大没有更换特鲁多,特鲁多也会被选下台。因此,通胀对美国会有非常重大的影响。虽然霍尔木兹海峡受阻,美国成为石油生产和出口最大的国家,但这是短期利好,但国际油价高企会蔓延到其他商品、影响和反噬美国物价,引发通胀。
第三,我非常清楚,特朗普总统只是想把伊朗列为所谓的“谈判对手”,但伊朗和美国根本不在一个对等量级,在实力上至少落后美国“250”年。但是“谈判”这种油价“调控工具”,你说谈得很好,短期有效,但不会长期有效。做多石油的国际炒家蠢货也比较多,都知道战争结束油价会暴跌,但炒家只关注眼前利益,因而推高油价。
第四,特朗普总统目前不想直接打伊朗,是受美国1973年《战争权力决议》(War Powers Resolution)法律的限制。也是受最近参议院一项对伊朗战争授权法案的牵制。虽然该法案仍在推进中,我相信它不会成为法律,川普总统会予以否决,但对外观感仍然不好。
第五,川普总统是想停止战争的,我知道您不是战争狂,但是现在您已经无法后退。您打伊朗,伊朗炸了中东所有邻国——尤其是对阿联酋的轰炸。这是非常严重的,中东国家不会让您简单脱身,他们也许会愿意承担军费,也要您清理霍尔木兹海峡,并支持您彻底消灭伊朗的神棍政权,这可以理解——包括以色列和内塔尼亚胡,也都希望如此。我可能是世界上唯一非常能懂您难处的人,您可能很难做到,但我仍想向您提一个建议,这就涉及到第六条。
第六,您可以对伊朗实施全面封锁,霍尔木兹海峡只是进出口,全面封锁包括金融。这不属于战争行为,因此不受1973年《战争权力决议》的限制。另一个方面,如同您所说的,美军是世界上最强大的军队,世界第二连美军的尾灯都看不到。您可以在信息、情报、外太空等方面支持以色列、阿联酋、沙特、卡塔尔、巴林、科威特等中东国家,提供信息情报支援,让他们去打,包括地面部队都可以让他们上,他们愿意。
最后一条,我有许多朋友特别信任和坚定地支持川普总统,也相信战争结束后油价会下跌,但他们也希望您无论如何哪怕暂时受损,也要把伊朗神棍政权干掉,但我知道美国有三权分立,特别是目前民主党正疯狂撕咬你,所以你可以把这个事交给内塔尼亚胡和以色列去做,他可能做得更精细、精准、更好更快地结束战争,包括其他海外国家都恨伊朗神棍政权入骨。您又何必亲力亲为呢。
最后,我想强调的是,无论当前伊朗政权发生什么——无论是政权更迭,还是发生翻天覆地的转型——内塔尼亚胡绝不会说“这都是我的功劳”。海湾国家也不会居功。历史将永远记录:伊朗神权政府的垮台是在特朗普政府的领导下完成的,从卡特以来,最仇恨美国,勒索和杀害美国人最多的一个政府是被川普消灭的,而不是其他人,其他人只是您的帮手而已。