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Posted on 03/29/2026 9:06:47 PM PDT by lasereye
The Pentagon is sending ground forces to Iran. Trump administration officials gave a story to the Washington Post that is being repeated everywhere:
The Pentagon is preparing for weeks of boots on the ground operations in Iran, a major escalation in President Trump’s goal to dismantle the remaining faction of the murderous Iranian regime, according to a report.Thousands of US Marines would be sent to the Middle East to conduct raids that include Special Operations forces and conventional infantry troops, the Washington Post reported, citing sources.
Officials have been discussing plans for sending troops into Iran for weeks.
***
Roughly 10,000 American troops were being considered for deployment to the Middle East last week, to boost the already significant military presence in the Gulf region, giving Trump additional military options.
The potential reinforcement would add to the nearly 5,000 Marines and sailors and roughly 2,000 members of the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division already deployed.
When the bombardment of Iran began, most observers thought that there was a bright line–no troops on the ground. I don’t know whether Secretary Hegseth and the generals were surprised by the vast quantity of munitions that Iran commanded, or the resilience of the regime even after several generations of leaders had been eliminated, but I was. I have to think that the current threatened escalation is a response to tougher than expected resistance from the mullahs’ regime.
Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt says that the Pentagon is presenting President Trump with options, and he has not decided whether to commit ground troops. I believe that is true. But deployment has a logic of its own, and if Trump is just bluffing and ultimately decides not to invade–either to seize Kargh Island or to take some other objectives–it will be, and will appear to be, a climbdown.
I don’t doubt that the modest number of troops we are assembling can achieve certain objectives, but if Iran’s military fights, and we have every reason to expect that it will, any gains will be limited and there will be losses. Bringing our involvement in Iran to a conclusion at that point will be, at best, a messy and unsatisfactory operation.
The problem is compounded by the fact that the Democrats and their press minions are rooting for the mullahs. They fervently hope that our efforts in Iran will end in catastrophe, and anything short of a grand victory will be portrayed in the press as a disaster. If ground troops are committed on even a limited basis, I think the midterm elections are over. The House is already lost, and the Senate could follow.
My own feelings are mixed. The real takeaway from what we have seen so far is that we waited far too long to confront the Iranian regime. They have fanatically and assiduously been assembling military force far beyond what most of us understood. If we had waited another five or ten years, it likely would have been too late to take on the single biggest threat to our security. The mullahs would have been too strong.
Then, too, we have the question of regime change. President Trump and his representatives have always been careful to articulate our goals in terms of degrading Iran’s military capabilities, not overthrowing the theocracy, although that is of course a desired end. I, for one, actually care about the 90 million Iranians who are forced to live under one of the most diabolical tyrannies of the modern era. I would be willing to expend considerable force and take substantial losses to consign the mullahs to history’s garbage dump. But that is a minority view, and the forces that are now being sent to the Gulf are, I think, far short of what it would take to achieve that goal.
On balance, I think the best thing the administration can do is continue to bomb Iran’s military infrastructure, as well as other targets, for a few weeks more. (I do not understand, for one thing, why the regime’s “state media” continue to broadcast.) After some further degradation, say in two or three weeks, the administration can declare victory and end the campaign. That is not a wholly satisfactory conclusion, especially for the Iranian people. But it will be a number of years before the mullahs will be able to rebuild their military power, and then maybe we will have to do it again. In the meantime, you never know what might happen.
On that basis, our devastation of the regime’s military infrastructure will have been both successful and long overdue. The administration will be able to turn its attention to domestic matters; the price of gas will come back down and the stock market will rebound. The conservative movement will live to fight again another day.
As I have said before with regard to Iran, I fervently hope that I am wrong. But I think that committing ground troops, even in the modest numbers implied by the current mobilization, would be a serious mistake.
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It sure seems likes they were surprised. The IRGC seems like they haven't skipped a beat since the top command layer was decapitated.
I assume that neither we nor the Israelis know who the new leaders are - or if they do know they don't know where they are. If true that's pretty remarkable, since the new IRGC leaders need to be in constant communication with the whole command structure. Is there some secret bunker with a secure communication system that a group of commanders were able to get to? Are we unable to determine the location of the bunker even as they regularly receive information and issue orders? And the bunker, if it exists, would be unknown to the Mossad, which supposedly knew everything going on in Iran. This is kind of weird.
I agree with Hinderaker's opinion:
On balance, I think the best thing the administration can do is continue to bomb Iran’s military infrastructure, as well as other targets, for a few weeks more. (I do not understand, for one thing, why the regime’s “state media” continue to broadcast.) After some further degradation, say in two or three weeks, the administration can declare victory and end the campaign.
Once we end the military operation, we should continue to kill IRGC commanders whenever possible by covert methods.
Patton wanted to finish the job.
Hitler made a mistake at Dunkirk letting them get away.
We’re in. All the way.
It won’t be a disaster. The problem in Afghanistan and Iraq wasn’t that the US was beaten by enemy troops, but that GI’s couldn’t mow down everyone who seemed remotely suspicious. Trump is Mr. Force Protection. Any force inserted into Iran will have all the weaponry and air support it needs. When Trump said he could win in Afghanistan by killing Afghanistan, he wasn’t kidding. Any ground incursion will be to grab 1000 lbs of Iranian uranium. Clear and very justifiable goal, hard, time-consuming and expensive for the regime to replace.
Totally false analogy on Dunkirk. We don’t have the IRGC in the same position as the British army was in then.
Where you getting that from?
“There is no substitute for victory.”
Gen. Douglas MacArthur
Turn every major Iranian city into a version of 1945 Berlin...especially the “Mahdi Hole”. Take out their electric, water, and fuel delivery systems.
That's not going to happen
Afghanistan point 2
[Where you getting that from?]
Never bet against God.
Not a good idea to send ground troops. The iranian will just target any standing troops with the suicide bombers.
Trump is keeping them guessing!
I would love to invade Kharg but our tropps would become an instant magnet for IRGC drones and missiles. So disable the on shore crude oil pumps to Kharg, start with 20% damage, then ratchet up/ Give these Twelver parasites a nervous breakdown as their oil profits get cut off more, day by day.
We need to pulverize key Iran sites 3 more weeks. Then invade Kharge, we takeover 30% of oil profits to pay for this war.
Total victory can be a strong deterrent. This victory should have a life-cycle where regional peace and deterrence are maintained for the duration. Rebirthing a nation like Iran is going to take some time and we can’t just dump it into their laps.
The ‘disaster’ was averted by no longer kicking the can.
I’d proudly send my own son to help finish the job under right leadership, and I do believe that we have the right civilian & military leadership even under a ds regime.
Iran has said they have 600kg of enriched uranium uranium, that’s where.
MacArthur substituted for victory (unconditional surrender of the Japanese) when he let the emperor escape being tried as a war criminal.
You are right. My issue is taking advantage of opportunities. Striking while the iron is hot.
Up til, even to this day, no one can figure out what President Trump is up to. Ground troops inside of Iran isn’t going to happen. Securing the islands off its coast most likely. This has been wargamed for decades. He’s not committed to lose.
I meant where is he getting that they are sending the troops over there to seize it? He replied that he’s speculating. I kind of doubt it.
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