Gen. Clark to Newsmax: US Troops May Secure Strait of Hormuz

[Andy C]

Retired Gen. Wesley Clark said Monday on Newsmax's "Wake Up America" that President Donald Trump could ultimately decide to send U.S. troops into Iran — not for an invasion, but to help secure American shipping and naval forces in the Strait of Hormuz.

Clark, the former NATO supreme allied commander, said the decision will depend entirely on how Trump assesses the developing situation in the strategic Persian Gulf waterway.

"It depends on how the president views this," he said. "Obviously, he's the commander in chief."

Clark noted that U.S. forces are already moving toward the region as Washington prepares options to counter threats against ships traveling through the Persian Gulf.

"We've got the 31st MEU en route that's going to take another 10 to 12 days to get there, maybe a little bit longer after they're there to get ready," he said.

But Clark warned that a single Marine expeditionary unit may not be enough if Iranian forces are heavily fortified along the northern shore of the Strait of Hormuz and on nearby islands.

https://www.newsmax.com/newsmax-tv/wesley-clark-donald-trump-iran/2026/03/16/id/1249650/

 

[Andy C]

A Marine MEU is a powerful force made up of an infantry battalion, and supply and logistics unit, and a composite squadron of both fixed wing and helicopters.

 

[LydiaJoy]

I was wondering, why didn’t Trump plan more in regards to the Strait of Hormuz?

AI Overview:

The Trump administration failed to adequately plan for Iran’s retaliation in the Strait of Hormuz, assuming such a move would hurt Tehran more than the U.S.

They underestimated Iran's ability to swiftly, and with relative effectiveness, use drones, missiles, and mines to disrupt shipping.

Key oversights in securing the waterway included:

• Lack of Immediate Countermeasures: No immediate operational plan existed to combat the closing of the waterway, which occurred shortly after attacks on Iran began.
• Overestimating Internal Damage to Iran: Officials wrongly believed that closing the strait would hurt Iran’s economy more than the U.S. economy, based on previous empty threats from Tehran, reported by CNN.
• Misjudging Enemy Response: The administration failed to account for the reality that the enemy has a "vote" in how the conflict develops.
• Insufficient Mine Countermeasures: The U.S. had recently reduced its immediate, in-region minesweeping capability, which is crucial for handling Iranian sea mines.
• Underestimating Political Hurdles: The administration was caught unprepared by the refusal of NATO allies and other nations to provide naval support for a conflict they considered a "war of choice," reported by The Independent.
• Assuming Active Combatant Role: Previous, successful securing of the Strait (e.g., in the 1980s) occurred when the U.S. was not directly engaged in a war with Iran, a different scenario than the current, active conflict.

These oversights resulted in a high-threat environment, forcing a search for foreign assistance, which was met with rebuffs from allies, reported by The Washington Post.

 

[mattfivefour]

Respectfully, I don't have a lot of faith in the Washington Post. They are strongly anti-Trump. And not normally honest in political matters. As well, AI results are only as good as the AI engine used which, in turn, is a result of the programming fed it.

 

[Andy C]

There is zero chance that Centcom did not believe that Iran as a last ditch effort would try and keep the Straits closed.

 

[Hol]

There is zero chance that Centcom did not believe that Iran as a last ditch effort would try and keep the Straits closed.

Especially since they did a similar maneuver last summer after Midnight Hammer destroyed infrastructure at Fordow.

 

[Andy C]

Centcom priority for the first 3 weeks was taking out their air defense, missiles capability, missiles -production sites, nuke sites, military command and control, military assets…etc.

A now ready for contact is taking out their coastline sites near the straits, which yesterday included several 5000 pound bombs.

Centcom will not moves ships any closer to the straits until the threat to their ships has been severely diminished.

 

[Tall Timbers]

Respectfully, I don't have a lot of faith in the Washington Post. They are strongly anti-Trump. And not normally honest in political matters. As well, AI results are only as good as the AI engine used which, in turn, is a result of the programming fed it.

I don't trust this retired general either.

 

[Andy C]

I don't trust this retired general either.

If you mean Wesley Clark, I agree. I hesitated to post comments from him, but in this case, they seemed solid.

 

[Tall Timbers]

If you mean Wesley Clark, I agree. I hesitated to post comments from him, but in this case, they seemed solid.

I had some direct interaction with him when he was the NATO guy. Exactly the kind of person that should have never ended up in a position of power.

 

[Andy C]

I had some direct interaction with him when he was the NATO guy. Exactly the kind of person that should have never ended up in a position of power.

I worked for a Colonel who flew F18s during the Bosnia timeframe, and he told me nobody liked, or respected Clark.

 

[Tall Timbers]

I worked for a Colonel who flew F18s during the Bosnia timeframe, and he told me nobody liked, or respected Clark.

I felt sorry for the flag officers who were under his chain of command. When I was attached to NATO Southern Command I was there for the Bosnia thing.

One of my extra duties was to run our end of secure global video communications. The technology did not work perfectly, so sometimes there would be glitches. Additionally, because anyone who could schedule time on the system was high up, time blocks didn't bend for anyone, at least not for a 4 star general. I'd be in the room, a lowly Major, with Clark and 10 -15 other generals. Clark would get real pissed when his meeting wasn't over but his time ended and he'd get cut off, or if there was a glitch with the system. He was such a prima donna. Glad I've never had to spend much time around people like that.

 

[Margery]

There is zero chance that Centcom did not believe that Iran as a last ditch effort would try and keep the Straits closed.

That's my thoughts looking at this whole situation.

Question for you Andy,

is it that people sort of expect that everything can be done easily, overnight, like dropping a bunch of bombs, turning it into a glass parking lot etc. I know I've been guilty of cracking jokes like that in the past, but it's not my expectation. But I was wondering if that is how the media are spinning it.

As if it was a failure because it wasn't over, done and dusted in 24 hours.

Personally I'm glad Trump is taking the time to do it right. I do wish the other allies could see the benefits but I think they are so bogged down in their own points of view that they can't see it at all.

Plus I do think there is a lot of realignment happening that will place nations into 10 groups whether that is geo political - like a North American Union, EU, etc situation or whether it's more broken up into economic zones. That is happening, and I think the motives of the allies plays into that. I get why they are like that, but I see that as part of the drift into an EU zone that is separate and apart from the North American zone.

But back to my question- Is it the whole Nintendo game boy Tik Tok generation thing where everyone has such a short attention span that "winning" has to happen immediately or everyone loses focus?