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The Defense of U.S. Interests Requires the Defeat of the Islamic Republic
(JNS) Jonathan S. Tobin - The Islamists in Iran don't want a favorable settlement. They will never give up their quest for regional hegemony or their mission of spreading their brand of fanatical Islam across the globe. While President Trump may be deeply frustrated with the failure of the military campaign to bring the regime to its knees as quickly as he would like, he is equally determined not to give up and let a terrorist regime have its way. The Islamic Republic has been at war with the U.S. since the Islamist regime seized power in 1979. It is responsible for killing hundreds of Americans and launching wars that caused the deaths of exponentially more people around the region, including the one that followed the Hamas-led Palestinian Arab assault in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Its nuclear ambitions are a direct threat to the U.S. as well as other countries in the Middle East. Contrary to the arguments of those who claim that Washington can simply walk away from this problem, this is a conflict where the defense of U.S. interests requires the defeat of America's antagonist. Far from an illegal or immoral foreign adventure, it is a just war that needs to be fought to a successful conclusion. Kicking the can down the road for a successor to deal with would be irresponsible and dangerous. The fighting will have to keep going until there is a government in Tehran that will accept American terms and be forced to abide by them. Trump may have already concluded that his worries about the midterms won't be fixed by letting the Iranians win. Having lost a war to terrorists will be worse for his party in November than to still be fighting one that is far from popular. Standing his ground on Iran will be a better position for him than waving the white flag. And in doing so, he will actually be rising to his responsibility of defending his nation and the West.