Summary

President Donald Trump is "beyond desperate" to find a path to victory over Iran, according to a new breakdown from The i Paper. As a workable solution feels increasingly out of reach, the piece argued that the dependable Wall Street "TACO" mantra has been swapped out for "NACHO." Luke McGee is a veteran reporter specializing in European politics, security and diplomacy. On Tuesday, he published a piece for The i Paper discussing the breakdown of Trump's negotiations with Iran to bring an end to the war he started and reopen the vital Strait of Hormuz. Citing a report from CNN, McGee explained that shortly after Trump declared the ceasefire between Iran and the U.S. was on “massive life support” and “unbelievably weak," sources indicated that he was "now more seriously considering a resumption of major combat operations." "Trump may be losing patience, but it goes without saying that this would be an incredibly risky move by the U.S. President, who has already seen his best laid plans go awry: 10 weeks on, the Iranian regime is still in place and has near-total control of the Strait of Hormuz," McGee wrote. He added: "For now, it seems Trump has only two options in front of him if he’s sincere about breaking the deadlock: backing down while making dubious claims of victory, or military escalation. If Trump chooses to escalate, we already know what the most likely targets will be: bridges and power plants. He’s already repeatedly threatened such attacks – going so far as saying he’d destroy every single 'Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran.'" The escalation option, he argued, would see Trump "targeting civilian infrastructure on an unimaginable scale and possibly committing war crimes" by making good on his promise to go after bridges and power plants. This plan is risky, he added, as it "should be clear to Trump and his inner circle by now... that the Iranian regime can absorb far more firepower and damage than he initially believed," meaning that a renewed bombing campaign is less likely to achieve their goals. The other option remains a remote possibility as Tehran maintains a strategically comfortable position over the U.S. "From Tehran’s perspective, Trump has effectively thrown his best punch and it is still standing," McGee explained. "The longer this conflict goes on, the harder it becomes diplomatically for Trump. His traditional allies are already backing away from the US and want no part of the fallout." Iran is also likely to dispute any claim by Trump that he defeated the Iranian regime, making it difficult to foresee such a plan working out. "There is a third option, which is the continuation of the status quo," McGree added. W"e all know the acronym Taco: Trump Always Chickens Out. In the past few weeks, Wall Street traders have replaced this with Nacho: Not A Chance Hormuz Opens." He concluded: "Trump’s failures in Iran have left the world in a considerably more dangerous and unstable place. He has proven that nations he deems weaker than America can still hold the US President over a barrel and leave the leader of the free world with no good options. For a man so obsessed with winning peace prizes and being remembered as a global saviour, it is beyond desperate that he doesn’t understand the damage he is causing."