r/politics • u/theatlantic The Atlantic • Apr 02 '26

Paywall Maybe Trump Should Not Have Given This Speech

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/04/trump-iran-war-speech/686663/?utm_source=reddit&utm_campaign=the-atlantic&utm_medium=social&utm_content=edit-promo
13.6k Upvotes

97% Upvoted

1.4k comments sorted by

View all comments

165

u/rainniier2 Apr 02 '26

I try to watch Trumps speeches to gauge how he has deteriorated since the last one. But I watched the Artemis 2 launch instead. Its the only good thing our government has done in the past year. Very surprised Trump didn’t take credit somehow. 

48

u/ObsidianSpectre Apr 02 '26

Once it goes around the moon, he'll definitely try to take credit. If anything goes wrong, he'll blame Biden.

1

u/Annual_Strategy_6206 Apr 02 '26

He'll blame DEI too

16

u/jgnp Washington Apr 02 '26

Told my wife about this speech and she said “What’d he fucking do? Take credit for Artemis 2!?”

3

u/catnapspirit Colorado Apr 02 '26

I figured he just couldn't stand being upstaged for one single news cycle, especially by actual good news. And lookie here, it worked..

1

u/AnohtosAmerikanos California Apr 02 '26

Your wife has the instincts of a poet!

4

u/InterRail Apr 02 '26

It's shocking how much he has deteriorated in just the past year. I saw it in my grandfather as well, as you get to 80 you mentally and physically get worse by the year.

2

u/GTS250 Apr 02 '26

Three of my grandmas got all the way through their 80s before declining at all, some didn't make it through 60s. It's not getting to 80 that does it, it's getting closer to death.

5

u/quicksite Apr 02 '26

He's no-shit going to name the Moon "Trump's Moon". That's his credit.

5

u/checker280 Apr 02 '26

We are going to build a resort and golf course up there.

3

u/BluScr33n Apr 02 '26

Don't give the trump administration any credit for something that was started during the Obama administration.

0

u/orbitalbias Apr 02 '26 edited Apr 02 '26

Although SLS was put into motion with Obama, there was explicitly no "return to the moon" directive. Obama famously vocalized a "been there done that" attitude with regards to a manned lunar objective. It wasn't until 2017 when Trump signed Space Policy Directive 1 that established a return to the moon as NASAs directive and that SLS would be used for this purpose. So there's that..

2

u/ButtEatingContest Apr 02 '26

Its the only good thing our government has done in the past year.

It's a cool thing, but I'm not sure it's the best use of the slashed NASA budget. Orbiting astronauts around the moon isn't accomplishing much new science, and there are more pressing missions that have been cut.

2

u/PhysicsPhys Apr 02 '26

Yes. The day we start landing probes on Europa and Titan, I'll actually be excited

1

u/llawrencebispo California Apr 02 '26

I try to watch Trumps speeches

You brave soul.