The negotiations with the U.S. to end the seige on its homeland, talks which Iran claims are not taking place, now focus on the potential participation of Vice President JD Vance, whom the Iranians view as their Trump Card — the one who will cave, so to speak.
This perception of Vance no doubt springs from his reluctance to commit to the war, but it could also be something deeper, something that I have always sensed about the VEEP. Specifically, I get the impression that Vance’s convictions don’t run very deep. He seems forever the PR man for the Marine Corps, except that now he’s transported his skills to the national political stage.
When I hear Vance speak, I don’t hear much genuine conviction. He’s more like a PR specialist, as opposed to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who oozes with conviction when he speaks.
Iran already knows that Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are Trumpistas through and through and won’t cave for a few false promises. Thus the choice of Vance could give the Iranian negotiators a gateway to another con job, reminiscent of the one they pulled on Barack Obama and crew.
At any rate, the good news is that negotiations may well begin in earnest in a couple of days. Pakistan has already offered to host the talks.
A peace deal, I’m sure President Trump realizes, will go a long way toward bringing oil prices down and pumping up the economy at the same time — to say nothing of helping GOP chances in the Midterms. But I’m sure he won’t agree to something that lacks teeth. In fact, he’s seeking a deal such as he has in Venezuela, where he runs the country in absentee fashion.
Good luck on that, but something anywhere close would be nothing short of a miracle.
