Trump Faces Military Base Backlash From Global Allies

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2:26Ben Meiselas:Furious world leaders have kicked Donald Trump and the United States off military bases in their countries. We're hearing from Saudi Arabia and Kuwait and Bahrain and Jordan and Iraq and other Arab nations saying the United States military bases in our Arab nations right now is a massive liability. Donald Trump is erratic. Donald Trump doesn't consult us before he and Netanyahu engage in war crimes. Get the hell out of here. and these Arab world leaders, they are leaking to the Washington Post and others to talk about what is going on. So here's the latest from the Washington Post. Let's talk about that.

3:10Ben Meiselas:Then I want to talk about what Donald Trump is doing. I want to talk about how Iran is moving in and swooping in as the United States is being pushed out. Now the United States is basically relegated to a small base on Diego Garcia, which is 2 ,000 miles away from the Middle East at this point because the U.S. has gotten kicked out of mostly every other military base other than Israel. So this is what we're learning from the Washington Post article. This is what we've been reporting on now for weeks and months at the Midas Touch Network. Gulf allies are growing, they've grown frustrated with Trump's handling of the Iran war, viewing U.S.

3:46Ben Meiselas:policy under Donald Trump as erratic and ineffective. Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, while they remain dependent on the U.S. security support based on prior arrangements. They want the U.S. to get the hell out. Now, CENTCOM commander Brad Cooper also just went to visit all of these Middle East countries to basically beg them, can we please keep a presence? We still need to keep our military bases over here. And we're also seeing right now what happens when the U.S. has basically been kicked off these military bases. I mean, it's been both a Arab nation saying, get the hell out, but also the United States military bases don't have the Patriot interceptors, the THAAD interceptors or other radar or defense capabilities to stop the Iranian strikes.

4:37I mean, the Iran strikes at Bahrain's fifth fleet is one of the main reasons why food and other items aren't making their way to the USS Abraham Lincoln and the USS George W. Bush. I mean, similarly, you're talking about Fujairah, the base of the United Arab Emirates, and other bases in Al-Udid by Qatar. I mean, these were bases that used to be used by the United States in order to provide, one, it was important bases, you know, for the United States security umbrella in the region, but these were bases where logistical supply routes and logistical supplies were provided to the supercarriers and to the ships.

5:16and to other American interest in the region more generally. Let's take a look at what they're saying right now in the Washington Post. And let's take a look at what CENTCOM is doing. Frustration with Washington growing in the Persian Gulf region. U.S. allies increasingly concerned that Donald Trump is unable to manage diplomacy necessary to secure peace with Iran. That he's incapable of even doing a deal.

5:43Ben Meiselas:We knew that, that he's incapable of doing a deal. It goes on to say that there are multiple top-level officials and former diplomats. They're speaking to the United States. We're talking about Saudi Arabia. We're talking about UAE. We're talking about Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain. Also, though not mentioned in here, we're talking about Iraq. We're talking about Jordan. We're talking about other Middle East nations as well, viewing the United States as just completely and utterly erratic. and they've begun debating why the hell should the U.S. continue to have any type of presence here in the future.

6:17Ben Meiselas:As we've reported on the Midas Touch Network, this has also created an opening for Beijing. China has already had a presence there, but increasingly these Middle East nations look to China. China's foreign minister is Wang Yi, and of course you have Xi Jinping. And in China, they're saying, well, we can be helpful. Why don't you buy our weapons? Why don't you buy our infrastructure? Why don't we do energy deals together while the U.S. power wanes in the area significantly? This also comes at the same time where we've talked about the Mecca Pact with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan already in an alliance, right?

6:54Ben Meiselas:Sunni alliance. And then you bring in Turkey as well into the Sunni alliance. And you've got in Pakistan, a nuclear power. In Turkey, you've got a very large military. And then, of course, you have Saudi Arabia, energy-rich nation, these three nations. Also, viewing the Mecca Pact as a framework. This is what Erdogan, president of Turkey, said. This is a framework for our new NATO in the region and that this is basically going to replace the U.S. security umbrella. I think we can expect Egypt to join soon, although Saudi Arabia said, let's wait a little bit to bring Egypt in. I wouldn't be shocked if we have Qatar joining soon.

7:38Ben Meiselas:And this is at the time where, you know, even like United Arab Emirates is like, where's our place in all of this? Because the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain previously entered into the Abraham Accords with Israel during Donald Trump's first term, believing that would provide the security umbrella U.S., Israel, and them. And that's actually proven to be a negative for them and has made them even a bigger target. This past week, we've been covering on the Midas Touch Network, how there were some flights that took place from UAE into Iran, and it looked like it was a plane that would normally bring with it something like either money or resources or some high-level interaction was taking place, we were able to track on the satellite footage and the air traffic footage, these planes going from the UAE to Iran.

8:29Ben Meiselas:I think that that is indeed notable right now. This Washington Post article cites lots of top officials is basically saying, look, even before some of the latest Donald Trump threatening Iran and going back to war, even though we were always in war, and then saying, I did a deal, I did a deal, it's not a deal, I did a deal. They were fed up already with the Trump regime, but now it's just like, we need you to get the hell out of here. So you have that going on. Now you have CENTCOM, their commander, Brad Cooper, Admiral Brad Cooper, who's just been absolutely awful. From a messaging standpoint, the guy has turned CENTCOM into like a deranged MAGA account.

9:14Ben Meiselas:I mean, when you read these social media posts from CENTCOM, it's like, is Donald Trump writing these posts? What the hell? You know, I think as a patriotic American, you got to call it out. Calling out CENTCOM doesn't make us less patriotic. When CENTCOM betrays its core mission and its core values, you're like, what the hell are they even doing? And they look incompetent. And it's like, we control the straight-up removes. Everybody use the Southern Oman route. It's open. It's like, no, it's not. You sound like Trump. You sound like crazy. What are you even talking about, Brad Cooper and CENTCOM.

9:44Ben Meiselas:Then, of course, you know all the logistical issues with the super carriers that Midas Touch Network has consistently been reporting about. But anyway, CENTCOM made this announcement. So you have that article from The Washington Post. But if you've been following the Midas Touch Network, you know, we've been closely tracking the Middle East nations saying to the Trump regime, get out. We're blocking our bases to ever be used by you, at least as it relates to Iran. Get the hell out. And now the United States relegated to this Diego Garcia, smaller base, 2 ,000 miles away. So hard to bring supplies.

10:20Ben Meiselas:So then the CENTCOM commander, he's frantic. The US is frantic because now they're like, come on, please, we need to stay. Let us stay. Don't pick China over us. Pick me, pick me. That's what we've been reduced to at this point. So this is the post from CENTCOM. CENTCOM commander completes 10-day trip to the Middle East. Now, one of the things I noticed on the CENTCOM post, and this is what I mean, that their communication strategy is just so damn awful. And their behavior, frankly, has been really horrific. And so CENTCOM originally released an image, a map depicting Gaza and the West Bank as Israeli territory when it showed a map of the Middle East and it showed the areas that CENTCOM's commander Brad Cooper went.

11:09Ben Meiselas:And then two hours after posting it, they then edited it, but the damage was done and it was too late because it showed what the intentions were all along. And for Middle East nations who are concerned and deeply worried about aiding and abetting the genocide in Palestine, having Brad Cooper post an image of a map that wipes out the West Bank and wipes out Gaza on a social media post, I could tell you did more damage in terms of trying to convince Saudi Arabia and other Middle East countries to work with them than the trip itself actually did. And then they edited it two hours later as though nobody was going to see.

11:53Ben Meiselas:As this one account says, this is the plan which Arab kingdoms back, huh? CENTCOM removes Palestine and gives it all to Israel. And then two hours later, they edit it and they show the West Bank, but then they don't show Gaza as being its own sovereign territory. Here's what Brad Cooper posts. The commander of U.S. Central Command completed a 10-day trip to the Middle East on August 15th that included visits to six countries and to a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier operating in the Arabian Sea. Nice of you to finally go to the aircraft carrier, Brad Cooper. after all the press bringing attention to the fact that our sailors and our Marines aboard these supercarriers are being treated horribly.

12:37But the Midas Touch Network has also been reporting it's not unique to the supercarriers, Abraham Lincoln and George H.W. Bush. Before that, of course, it was the Gerald Ford supercarrier, but also the other battleships in the area, the other ships in the area also having horrible conditions. And the bases had horrible conditions before the U.S. had to basically abandon them because one, the conditions were horrible, but two, our service members were living in these containerized living spaces that look like basically the back of a truck. It's like a truck container.

13:11Ben Meiselas:And those would get hit by ballistic missiles and Shahi drones. And our service members suffered traumatic brain injuries to which the Trump regime referred to it as minor injuries. A minor traumatic brain injury is not something that occurs. A traumatic brain injury is traumatic. Yes, it is. Admiral Brad Cooper met with senior civilian and military leaders in Bahrain, Iran, Israel, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, and spent time with deployed U.S. service members. Also, when Brad Cooper posted the images of his visit, it seems that he was at the USS Abraham Lincoln yesterday, August 15th, for the first time.

13:52Ben Meiselas:After all these stories broke, that's when he decided to go to the Abraham Lincoln. While ashore, Cooper recognized exceptional performers, re-enlisted troops, and presided over the leadership transition for the combined joint task force. While at sea, Cooper met with sailors and Marines aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln for the second time this year. He previously visited the aircraft carrier in February with U.S. Special Envoy for Peace Missions, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. Why the hell is Witkoff? That should have been red flag number one. Whitcoff and Kushner, these two idiots. They have not been appointed by anybody to hold these positions.

14:32Ben Meiselas:These are positions that require Senate confirmation. They're both self-interested. They both have business dealings in the Middle East, and both of them shouldn't be nowhere near. They're not diplomats. They don't know what the hell they're doing. And this is one of the main things that these Middle East nations see. They see these two people who are focused on enriching themselves, who are screwing over everybody in a quest to, it seems like, make money for themselves. And they've become increasingly viewed by these Middle East countries as one of the main reasons why they can't trust the United States of America.

15:11Ben Meiselas:You think it's about time you freaking realize that? Then it says, during Cooper's latest trip, he addressed the entire Lincoln team and thanked them for their tremendous dedication and courage. Of course they have dedication and courage. The issue is that you have an erratic commander in chief. An erratic would be the nicest thing that you can say about him because it's far worse than that. I mean, you've got someone posting memes about being a pirate and taking over Iranian ships. And then he'll say, one day there's a deal. And the next day we're going to blow the hell out of them. We're going to destroy their civilization.

15:43and then the next day, oh, we're doing so amazing over here. Then the next day he says, oh, our troops should be out there forever. Remember he said on Friday, I want to see our troops on the Abraham Lincoln be out there much longer. They haven't been out there long enough. My beautiful blockade. Dude, what are you talking about? The family members of our service members are absolutely living at Donald Trump. They see what an erratic human being he is.

16:09Ben Meiselas:His stuff may still play to a small, extreme MAGA base at weird rallies that are increasingly in these really small areas, but the people see what the hell is going on right now. And they're like, this person and the Whitcoffs and the Kushners, we don't trust them with our family members who are serving our country. We know our soldiers and our service members are courageous, but we don't have a courageous commander-in-chief. We have a five-time draft dodger who cares more about enriching himself, and he's demonstrated what a coward he is, hiding in a cafeteria container truck with his human printer, Natalie Harp, and sneaking out in Turkey.

16:52And so you have all of this going on.

16:54Ben Meiselas:You have Israel continuing to strike Lebanon, 11 killed in the latest Israeli strikes in Lebanon, which again is a major barrier to ever reaching peace in the region. Israel's National Security Minister Ben Gavir yesterday saying, In Salah, as quickly as possible, as quickly as possible, we will enter all of Gaza, settle all of Gaza and encourage emigration. I think targeted elimination should be carried out in Gaza every night. Take out 30, take out 40. Not only those who endanger you at this particular moment, there are people there who shouldn't be alive. They shouldn't live. I'm already being generous, calling them even people.

17:38There are people who say, I'm crazy. This guy is crazy. Yes, you have to be insane in the Middle East. We are in the Middle East. That's Israel's national security minister saying that. We also know if it's Phil Gordon says, so Jared Kushner said to be visiting Israel this upcoming week to discuss Gaza, but developments on the West Bank may be even more urgent. Ahead of fall elections, the Israeli government is rapidly advancing new settlements with the goal of encircling Palestinian cities, withholding customs revenues to bankrupt the Palestinian Authority, turning a blind eye to settler violence.

18:15And now the defense minister says he wants to turn over responsibility for law enforcement over Israeli settlers to the civilian police who have no capacity to protect the population and are overseen by an extremist settler himself. the jewish supremacist national security minister ben gavir now would be a good time for trump to prove his claim that biddy will do whatever i want by getting him to reverse course phil gordon says because if he doesn't the west bank could explode as israel proceeds with the de facto annexation

18:48Ben Meiselas:trump said he would not allow just further showing the middle east nations that donald trump lies about everything and can't be trusted with a damn thing. Also, the Wall Street Journal reporting this weekend, we already knew, the White House has become increasingly pessimistic in recent weeks about achieving a final nuclear settlement with Tehran. And so Trump just wants an indefinite blockade while we don't have bases in the Middle East anymore, really, while our service members have evacuated all these bases in the Middle East, while we don't have the interceptors in order to stop Iranian strikes.

19:26And so all the logistical routes are basically severed other than in Diego Garcia, which is 2000 miles away. So our service members suffer aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, the USS George H.W. Bush. Now we're bringing in the USS George Washington from the Pacific, except now we're not going to have any super carriers at all in the Pacific. And now the people on the George Washington are going to experience what's going on in the Persian Gulf. Because if you don't have the ability, if you don't have the supply chain, if your logistics are completely destroyed, some of the most basic stuff, you know, we've received lots of messages from the family of female soldiers aboard different ships, the supercarriers and other ships and in bases.

20:16The United States is not supplying the female service members with feminine hygiene products. They're not getting essential feminine hygiene products that they need right now. And just the basic stuff, not getting fruits and vegetables and not getting their mail, not getting the most basic stuff. Meanwhile, you have one of Iran's senior members of parliament saying, the US president ought to worry about his own security rather than his endless bluffing regarding the Strait of Hormuz before he ends up hiding in a food truck and just become an absolute laughingstock to the world. Iran's General Mohammed Naqdi said the following, not, he goes, when it comes to the Trump administration, not only do these people not work for the benefit of humanity, they don't even work for the benefit of the United States of America.

21:12They work for their own interests. As soon as the stock market closes, they start hostilities. The stock market opens. They send positive messages to raise stock prices. All the while, they are buying and selling the stocks themselves, what he just told PBS right there. Meanwhile, you have Donald Trump continuing to attack allies. He posted this bizarre photo of himself and Xi Jinping smiling together. And it's an article where the White House accuses 40 countries, including Canada, Japan, Mexico, and the EU of helping China evade U.S. tariffs by rerouting and relabeling Chinese goods. The practice could involve around$60 billion in trade and cost the United States tens of billions of dollars.

21:58But Donald Trump seems to be praising Xi Jinping for it while attacking our allies for it. And then you have Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson saying the following as well. This passage from Dochevsky's The Brothers Karamazov aptly describes the situation which the U.S. system of governance and foreign policy regarding Iran and the region finds itself in due to its extreme reliance on lies. The man who lies to himself and listens to his own lie comes to such a pass that he cannot distinguish the truth within him or around him and so loses is all respect for himself and for others. That's how Iran's speaking while Donald Trump's posting

22:42Ben Meiselas:bizarre, deranged memes of himself and George Washington and AI memes of himself as a pirate taking over Iranian cargo ships. And the Middle East nation's like, enough, get the hell out of here. Get the hell out of here. And that's why our super carriers aren't getting supplies that they need. And it's why we've been relegated to Diego Garcia at this point. That's what the United States has become. It's happening before our eyes. Hit subscribe. Let's get to 7 million subscribers. Did you get your copy of WTF America? Please pre-order WTF America now. Let me know what you think. Well, it comes in October, but the pre-orders are important.

23:22So that's the book I wrote with my brothers called WTF America. So if you can pre-order now, it'd be great. Thanks for watching. We appreciate you. Breaking news right now. My brothers and I wrote a book. It's called WTF America. And well, doesn't that just say it all? It comes out officially this October, but you can pre-order your copy today. Just scan the QR code or click the link in the description below.