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Iran's Theocracy Is on the Brink
(Wall Street Journal) Mark Dubowitz and Ray Takeyh - After the nuclear agreement lifted debilitating sanctions, Iran received tens of billions of dollars in financial dividends. Instead of channeling that wealth into productive uses, Ayatollah Khamenei and the clerical establishment consumed much of it on foreign adventurism and corruption. Ideological authoritarian states need a vision of the future by which their enforcers can condone their own violence, but the Islamic Republic can no longer appeal to its ideals. The theocracy's vast patronage system will not cure this crisis of legitimacy. The White House should continue issuing condemnations daily, including through Persian-language media outlets, and follow up with sanctions targeting corruption and human-rights abuses. Congress should rediscover its once-bipartisan determination to hold the regime accountable for its crimes and push America's European allies to overcome their mercantile greed and support Iranians striving to be free from theocracy. Mr. Dubowitz is chief executive of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Mr. Takeyh is a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations.