The Art of Pretending You Have a Deal

Dan Drezner: “Trump’s last-minute cease-fire acceptance is an example of the Madman Theory only insofar as the madman gambit has a lousy track record of securing greater concessions — and this cease-fire also failed to gain anything for the United States. Meanwhile, the strategic losses caused by this war will continue to mount.”

“Of course, calling this a ‘deal’ or an ‘arrangement’ is an overly generous description — What actually happened sounds more like a series of coordinated social media posts…”

“I’m serious: what tactical gain did the Trump administration secure by agreeing to the two-week cease-fire beyond the cease-fire itself? Sure, President Trump saved himself from committing war crimes, but that’s not exactly a tactical win.”