Obfuscating on obliterating enemies of US

Donald Trump has finally met his match.

- Maureen Dowd

The Iranian Supreme Leader lies just as boldly, with just as much bombast, as the American Supreme Leader.

On Thursday, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei put out a video hailing Iran’s victory over Israel and the United States. Mr Trump was shocked, shocked at this blatant lie.

“As a man of great faith, he is not supposed to lie,” the president marveled on Truth Social.

Then Mr Trump went on to his usual authoritarian etiquette lesson, complaining that the proper response by Mr Khamenei to getting hit with 14 30,000-pound (14,000-kg) bombs should have been: “THANK YOU, PRESIDENT TRUMP!”

Mr Trump said that he deserved gratitude because he knew where the ayatollah was hiding and stopped Israeli and US forces from killing him. He said that he made Israel recall a group of planes headed for Tehran that were, perhaps, looking for “the final knockout!”

“I wish the leadership of Iran would realize,” he tut-tutted, “that you often get more with HONEY than you do with VINEGAR. PEACE!!!”

Half an hour later, Mr Honey put out a typically vinegary post abruptly cutting off “ALL” trade talks with Canada.

Before Mr Trump did it, with an assist from the Supreme Court on Friday, it was Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld who worked to erode checks and balances and hoover all the power into the executive branch.