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SUNDA STRAIT (April 15, 2017) The aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) transits the Sunda Strait. The Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group is on a scheduled western Pacific deployment as part of the U.S. Pacific Fleet-led initiative to extend the command and control functions of U.S. 3rd Fleet. U.S Navy aircraft carrier strike groups have patrolled the Indo-Asia-Pacific regularly and routinely for more than 70 years. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Sean M. Castellano/Released)
Imagine this: Tensions are high between the U.S. and a nuclear-armed rogue nation. The President lays down some serious smack about that country, threatening to destabilize an entire region of the world and possibly start a nuclear war. He positions a powerful aircraft carrier group in nearby waters to prepare for a strike if necessary…
Well, that’s almost what happened.
Trump and his war plans may be sabotaged from within. This is both a blessing and a frighteningly sobering concept at the same time. Here’s a summary from The Huffington Post:
“Mere days after the announcement about the strike group’s new course, President Donald Trump weighed in on the North Korean threat. “We are sending an armada, very powerful. We have submarines, very powerful, far more powerful than the aircraft carrier,” Trump told Fox on April 12.
“We have the best military people on Earth. And I will say this: He is doing the wrong thing,” Trump added, referring to Kim Jong Un.
But Defense News pointed out on Tuesday that photos released by the U.S. Navy showed the aircraft carrier passing through the Sunda Strait in Indonesia, about 3,500 miles from the Korean Peninsula, last Saturday. It was moving away from North Korea when U.S. officials said it was moving toward the peninsula, the Times confirmed on Tuesday.
The ship has changed direction since then, but is expected to arrive far later than initial reports suggested.
CNN’s Jim Acosta tweeted that an administration official blamed the mix-up on a miscommunication. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.”
Think Progress reports:
“The White House is blaming the Defense Department for the mistake.
“White House officials said on Tuesday they were relying on guidance from the Defense Department,” the Times reports. “Officials there described a glitch-ridden sequence of events, from a premature announcement of the deployment by the military’s Pacific Command to an erroneous explanation by Defense Secretary Jim Mattis — all of which perpetuated the false narrative that an American armada was racing toward the waters off North Korea.”
What we need to consider is that elements within the intelligence agencies and military have already begun to push-back on Trump’s wildly misguided military adventurism. Consider the “Spies Against Trump” cabal:
The Spy Revolt Against Trump Begins
Intelligence Community pushes back against a White House it considers leaky, untruthful and penetrated by the Kremlin
By John R. Schindler • 02/12/17
” Our Intelligence Community is so worried by the unprecedented problems of the Trump administration—not only do senior officials possess troubling ties to the Kremlin, there are nagging questions about basic competence regarding Team Trump—that it is beginning to withhold intelligence from a White House which our spies do not trust.
That the IC has ample grounds for concern is demonstrated by almost daily revelations of major problems inside the White House, a mere three weeks after the inauguration. The president has repeatedly gone out of his way to antagonize our spies, mocking them and demeaning their work, and Trump’s personal national security guru can’t seem to keep his story straight on vital issues.”
This article in zerohedge has former CIA Director Michael Hayden stating that the military might simply refuse to follow Trumps orders (LINK).
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Here is the fascinating conflict: While Trump is a loose cannon who has no clue about statesmanship and historical context, something that could have dire consequences for the entire world – we don’t want to see a ‘Seven Days In May” play out.
Let’s face it; we’ve seen the destructive nature of the intelligence agencies and the military when left to their own devices. The assassinations of the Kennedy’s, King, The Black Panthers, American Indian Movement, and scandals such as Watergate and Iran-Contra are clear examples.
Why was Team Trump so misinformed about his Navy as he threatened North Korea?
There is simply no other explanation for why Trump, his spokesmen and the media were so wrong about the location of the carrier group. You just can’t chalk this up to “miscommunication”.
So here we are, with Trump rattling sabers, hints of a coup on the horizon, and an aircraft carrier group lost at sea.
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Here’s a trailer from the excellent movie “Seven Days In May”
