The first American flag-draped coffin to reach home will hit the ground with more force than any Iranian missile.
For President Donald Trump, the loss of US military personnel has redefined the domestic political battlefield.
Trump has long established himself as a president who understands the cost of war in human terms.
He ridiculed the concept of “forever wars” and pledged to stop American bloodshed in remote deserts.
Trump says military action will continue in Iran
But when he found himself back in the White House, the campaign rhetoric faced harsh reality.
Despite the confirmation of US casualties on Sunday, the war with Iran remained somewhat abstract.
An attack on a US base in Kuwait claimed the lives of three personnel and seriously injured five others.
The deaths in Washington, along with their warning of potentially even more polarised politics, caused a stir.
Supporters rallied around Trump and argued that backing down now would be an insult to the fallen.
Meanwhile, critics pointed to the number of casualties as evidence of presidential negligence.
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The political center— often quiet but decisive – asked the important question: What are we dying for?
Escalation risks turning him into a Middle East warmongering president that his own base rejects.
This year’s midterm elections will test his U-turn, even if justified on strategic grounds.
History shows that presidents do not lose support simply because Americans die on the battlefield.
People lose their support when the commander-in-chief’s explanations of the deaths seem meaningless, endless, or inadequate.
In his latest address to the nation, he prepared Americans for a longer war and more casualties.
The speed with which it appears to be spreading across the Middle East will be another concern.
As the war continues, the loss of lives increases, its spread widens, and diplomacy becomes increasingly challenging.
Ultimately, American lives lost in the war with Iran will confront Trump with a leadership paradox.
Power is never more absolute than in war, but neither is it ever more fragile.
Missiles may shape conflict abroad, but it is mourning and memory that determine its political value.
