mattpeterson.bsky.social - Profile | ThreadSky | a Reddit-style client for Bluesky

Cautionary tale: The last time the Iranian military establishment suffered a “decapitation” comparable to the last few days was when the Khomeini regime purged the Shah’s generals. 1/7

submitted 20 hours ago • 1 comment

USAGM today urgently called back to work the staff of the Voice of America's Farsi language service. All had been on paid admin leave for the past three months with the rest of VOA's silenced journalists.

submitted 1 day ago • 147 comments

Israel's strikes are likely to spark an Iranian effort to acquire the Bomb without depriving it of the means to proliferate. Bibi may hope Trump tries to bail him out. Trump should refuse. My take in @carnegieendowment.org @carnegienpp.bsky.social carnegieendowment.org/posts/2025/0...

submitted 1 day ago • 3 comments

“And even if Fordow is destroyed, Iran can still reconstitute its program. While individual Iranian scientists can be killed, knowledge of enrichment is widely dispersed in Iran.” @nuclear-jim.bsky.social carnegieendowment.org/posts/2025/0...

submitted 1 day ago • 4 comments

Video of the attack against Fordow - appears limited for now

submitted 1 day ago • 0 comments

Israel's strategy appears to include creating enough of a mess that the US is entangled and finishes its job for it (notably, by taking out Fordow). This would be a mistake of the highest order.

submitted 1 day ago • 9 comments

Unless Israel changes what it's targeting in days ahead, this is a regime-change strike with just enough targeting of nuclear infrastructure so Netanyahu can depict it as an act of preemptive self-defense. For the operation to succeed, I think the regime has to fall.

submitted 1 day ago • 26 comments

Trump to WSJ: "I think ultimately, it would be great for the market because Iran will not have a nuclear weapon. It will be great for the market—should be the greatest thing ever for the market." Stocks are down, oil price is up.

submitted 1 day ago • 3 comments

Trump was playing 3D chess, Axios says. www.axios.com/2025/06/13/h...

submitted 1 day ago • 0 comments

First satellite imagery of damage at Natanz nuclear facility just in from Airbus.

submitted 1 day ago • 1 comment

"Israeli defense officials indicated they believed Natanz was significantly damaged." www.timesofisrael.com/after-years-...

submitted 1 day ago • 3 comments

At least several months ago, Israel’s top spy agency, the Mossad, began to smuggle missiles into Iran and secretly installed swarms of explosive drones deep inside the country, laying the groundwork for a devastating Israeli surprise attack on Friday morning. www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/0...

submitted 1 day ago • 8 comments

The @iaeaorg.bsky.social DG Rafael Gross says the Iranians "have also reported that at present the Esfahan and Fordow sites have not been impacted." If (big if) that remains the case, this is a decapitation strike and not a serious effort at degrading the nuclear infrastructure.

submitted 1 day ago • 5 comments

It is already clear that this is not a limited attack on core nuclear sites. The target set is broad and includes top military leadership in a way that Iran will see as regime threatening. The IRGC chief is dead. That is likely to drive more expansive Iranian retaliation.

submitted 2 days ago • 59 comments

How did we get here: • Trump abandons nuclear deal, 2018 • Biden fails to negotiate new deal, curb program • Iran breaching IAEA protocols • Israel changed rules after Oct. 7 • Trump return good news for Netanyahu • Talks stagnant • Iran in weakest spot since 1980s

submitted 2 days ago • 0 comments

BREAKING: ISRAEL ATTACKING IRAN • Airstrikes in heart of Iran • Hit > Dozen targets, 3:30 am • Include IRGC locations, NATANZ • Nuclear targets • Israel says only beginning • US: NOT involved • Flights suspended www.al-monitor.com/originals/20...

submitted 2 days ago • 1 comment

Netanyahu states that Israel struck the Natanz Uranium Enrichment Plant, but doesn't mention the Fordow Uranium Enrichment Plant. If they don't destroy Fordow, this entire effort is basically for nothing.

submitted 2 days ago • 12 comments

Knowing what I know, I don't see these strikes meaningfully putting Iran's program back (I suppose you can quibble about what meaningful constitutes for Netanyahu). Iran will strike back and odds of a political choice to leave the NPT/take other steps have gone up.

submitted 2 days ago • 11 comments

We could have had cheap oil.

submitted 2 days ago • 1 comment

🚨 BREAKING: Israel has launched air strikes against Iran and declared state of emergency. Videos of strikes inside capital Tehran … IRGC targets hit. More soon

submitted 2 days ago • 2 comments

"Padilla's office shared a video of the incident with NBC News. The video shows Padilla being taken into a hallway outside and pushed face forward onto the ground as officers with FBI-identifying vests told the senator to put his hands behind his back." www.nbcnews.com/politics/con...

submitted 2 days ago • 3 comments

New CBO analysis of tax bill: “in general, resources would decrease for households toward the bottom of the income distribution, whereas resources would increase for households in the middle and top of the income distribution.”

submitted 2 days ago • 0 comments

Trump makes clear in this post that the tariff rates themselves are the deal. They're not a bargaining chip toward a future deal. He apparently sees the China talks as having cemented his own domestic position, even while tariffs are under legal threat and are imposed through emergency authorities.

submitted 3 days ago • 1 comment

I believe that people inside the administration may want Bessent to be Fed chair. I’ve certainly heard that chatter. But I am not convinced Bessent or Trump want it.

submitted 4 days ago • 1 comment

Futures are down a little bit? I wouldn't think the stock market would react much to the LA crackdown, but we'll see. There's a lot of other stuff going on. China talks in Geneva will be important. Does Trump thinks this makes him look weaker or stronger?

submitted 6 days ago • 1 comment

NEW: Buyer With Ties to Chinese Communist Party Got V.I.P. Treatment at Trump Crypto Dinner The warm welcome for a technology executive whose purchases of the $TRUMP coin won him a White House tour illustrates inconsistencies in Trump's views toward visitors from China nyti.ms/4mUDTtG

submitted 8 days ago • 79 comments

Pool: "POTUS waved to the press but did not respond to shouted questions or stop to speak." Ladies and gentlemen, The Weekend.

submitted 8 days ago • 2 comments

I somehow retain the capacity to be dismayed at the spectacle of Trump hectoring the independent Fed chair to cut interest rates when the thing keeping them from falling is his own actions and his deficit-busting tax bill. www.barrons.com/articles/tru...

submitted 8 days ago • 0 comments

There's a reasonable argument to be made—one that I hear consistently from people in the markets—that Powell might well be cutting now if it weren't for Trump (and Bessent) making such an issue of Fed independence. Powell of course adamantly denies that the politics influence him.

submitted 8 days ago • 1 comment

Trump apparently saw today's jobs numbers and saw it as reason for Powell to cut interest rates. The market, on the other hand, raised the chances of no cut in June to 99.9%, according to CME. Markets still see the possibility for rate cuts later this year, but that's clearly too late for Trump.

submitted 8 days ago • 2 comments

Went to check Trump’s Truth Social feed. Got served an ad from a company selling gold, using an endorsement by Don Jr, who benefits doubly. Once from any compensation for his sponsorship, again for any ad fees to Truth Social, where he is a director.

submitted 8 days ago • 1 comment