Strategist places blame for Iran debacle squarely in the hands of Trump’s enablers

When U.S. President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian digitally signed a memo aimed at ending the war between the two countries and reopening the Strait of Hormuz, outgoing U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana) slammed the deal as a major victory for Iran and loss for the United States. Cassidy declared that the late President Ronald Reagan "is rolling over in his grave" — a sentiment that former GOP strategist Steve Schmidt wholehearted agrees with in a blistering Substack column.

The Never Trump conservative emphasizes, however, that Trump alone is not to blame for the "dangerous" ceasefire deal and argues that history will judge his "loyalists" harshly for going along with the agreement.

"America has produced giants in public service," the 55-year-old Schmidt writes. "George Marshall. Dean Acheson. James Baker. Brent Scowcroft. Men who understood that American power isn't measured simply by bombs, aircraft carriers or divisions of soldiers. It's measured by credibility, alliances, restraint, deterrence and the confidence of friends and adversaries alike. Whether one agreed with every decision they made is beside the point. They understood the weight of history. Donald Trump's national security team has demonstrated something very different."

The ex-GOP strategist, a founder of The Lincoln Project, continues, "Steve Witkoff. Pete Hegseth. Marco Rubio. JD Vance. Jared Kushner, whose influence over Middle East policy has remained profound long after leaving formal office. History will judge them alongside Donald Trump — not because they exercised independent leadership, but because they chose loyalty over candor, politics over strategy and performance over statecraft."

Schmidt argues that although Trump talked tough during the war and demanded "unconditional surrender" from Iran, the ceasefire agreement "bears little resemblance" to that "rhetoric."

Schmidt praises Cassidy's "Reagan is rolling over in his grave" comment as "remarkable words" coming from a Republican.

"The deeper problem extends beyond one agreement," Schmidt explains. "It concerns the quality of leadership that produced it. America once selected national security leaders because they possessed experience forged in war, diplomacy and difficult judgment. This administration rewards something else — TV appearances, personal loyalty, and absolute deference to one man. No serious national security team should function as an echo chamber…. But history has a ruthless habit of remembering the moments when nations confused loyalty for competence and spectacle for strategy."

Schmidt adds, "The men who surround Donald Trump want to be remembered as architects of American strength. History may remember them instead as something far smaller: the little men."

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