Qassem Soleimani

The leading Dems are not arguing that Trump was wrong to drone Qassem Soleimani, nor have they said flatly they would not have approved the mission. Their sound and fury, then, amounts to empty screeching and nothing else. In many ways, Trump’s decision on Soleimani and the timid reaction from the gaggle of Dem candidates highlights the difficulties of unseating a bold, activist president. Nobody ever said Trump’s an idle seat warmer. Whether it’s confronting China and other nations over job-killing trade deals, cutting taxes and regulations or just being vocal on major topics nearly every day, the president doesn’t hide from the nation’s problems. You know where he stands, sometimes to a fault.

U.S. forces have opened fire on Iranian-backed forces in Syria at least three times since May. Three of the incidents took place at al-Tanf, a remote desert outpost near the point where the Syrian, Iraqi and Jordanian borders meet.