Presidential tweets are a nightmare

We're now so used to President Trump's tweeting and yet almost every day there's a surprise. Sometimes that works out fine but more often than not it's a disaster. For example, Trump's announcement that a decision on what to do about Syria's chemical weapons attack was going to be made in 24-48 hours was more than 48 hours ago and there is still no decision. This doesn't look good in the eyes of both Trump supporters and Trump non-supporters wherever they are in the world. In fact, rather than making a decision, the White House now seems to be in a rowing-back mood. "The missiles are coming", Trump said in another tweet. But then suddenly officials were talking about "all options are on the table" , one of the easiest cliches to come up with, implying that options other than military action might be on the cards. The lack of a decision has given the rest of the world time to line up for or against and open the door for a longer, more drawn-out decision-making progress, along the classic lines of "Shall we or shan't we?" or "Can we or can't we" or "What could Russia do if we did?" Well, all these questions are valid for a democracy-loving country such as the United States of America, and it does no harm to think through all the consequences and potential consequences of hitting Syria. But Trump tweeted what he tweeted and the world expected instant action, whether it was right or wrong. Cleary there is no one in the White House with the authority or ability to stop Trump from tweeting wild statements which then fall by the wayside. But for the sake of the US military which is waiting in the wings to be told whether to put their lives in harm's way or not, a few less tweets and more serious behind-doors discussions over the next few days the better for all of them.