Trump Basks in al-Baghdadi’s Bloody Assassination, but the Festivities Will End Shortly

Donald Trump pronounced the death of ISIS leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi on Sunday with all the finesse of Sasha Baron Cohen in Borat and Dictator combined. The blood and gore descriptions of al-Baghdadi’s last whimpers, his death “like a dog” and the exact state of his remaining body parts were taken from the lexicons of bloody tyrants in primitive countries rather than previous Presidents of the United States.

Trump is bound to be criticized for his blood-thirsty style, as well as the fact that he hurried to announce al-Baghdadi’s demise before the Pentagon had signed off on final and incontrovertible DNA proof that the ISIS leader had indeed been killed. On the extremely unlikely chance that al-Baghdadi will emerge somewhere safe and sound, which has happened before, Trump would instantly transform, not into a lame duck but into a dead duck.

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– Haaretz Weekly Ep. 45

Haaretz Weekly Ep. 45Haaretz

Trump also sparked unease in Washington with his effusive praise for what many would describe as “The Coalition of Deplorables”, including Russia, Turkey, Syria and Iraq. He didn’t even blush when citing the assistance rendered by Kurdish forces, despite the American knife still stuck in their backs. And many Democrats were quick to point out that the U.S. commando operation proved the enduring need to maintain the U.S. military presence in north Syria, which Trump has just curtailed.

All of this, however, won’t bother Trump very much. On the assumption that al-Baghdadi won’t pull a Lucifer on him, Trump enjoyed one the best days of his presidency, if not militarily then certainly politically. Trump could finally boast of an achievement that exists in reality and not in his fevered imagination. And given a rare reason to celebrate, Trump went all out with his unique vulgar-bombastic-brutal-bizarre personal style.

Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi delivers a sermon at a mosque in Iraq, on July 5, 2014.אי־פי

Israelis will be at least partially reassured by the killing of al-Baghdadi. The U.S. President’s prestige has plunged in the wake of the U.S. failure to retaliate for the Iranian downing of a U.S. intelligence drone and for Trump’s abrupt decision to withdraw U.S. forces from northern Syria. The killing of al-Baghdadi will convince at least some of Trump’s new critics that he is not a paper tiger after all.