Imagine Iran freed. Or, more cautiously, imagine ending Iran\u2019s evil, aggressive, anti-American, anti-Western, antisemitic, theocratic dictatorship: women walk outside freely, dissidents criticize as necessary, and members of the LGBTQ+ community no longer face hanging. China and Russia lose an oil-rich ally. And, once again, Islamic Jihadism proves itself a failed ideology harming the haters more than the hated.<\/p>\n
More selfishly, the Islamic Republic of Iran would no longer threaten \u201cBig Satan,\u201d America, and America\u2019s trusted ally, Israel \u2013 merely \u201cLittle Satan.\u201d No mullahs going nuclear. No ballistic missile program. No bankrolling terrorists globally \u2013 who murdered 241 Marines in Lebanon; over a thousand American soldiers in Iraq; hundreds of innocents, Jews and non-Jews, in Argentina, Israel, and elsewhere. True, there\u2019s no guarantee that if the Mullahocracy falls, a democratic Iran arises. Civil war, Putin-like dictators, or extended chaos could follow. We\u2019ve learned: liberty isn\u2019t inevitable. But most scenarios beat today\u2019s status quo.<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t believe me \u2013 trust the Iranian people, cheering on America and Israel. They know what \u201csocial justice\u201d for them looks like. They can distinguish the \u201coppressed\u201d \u2013 their people \u2013 from their \u201coppressors\u201d \u2013 the mullahs and IRGC. Aren\u2019t you ashamed that many leading Democrats condemned this long-justified war, while some so-called Progressives even defend Iran? Aren\u2019t you ashamed to see Saudi Arabia and Qatar now demonstrating more moral clarity and courage than you do?<\/p>\n
Beware: Too many of you are on the wrong side of history.<\/p>\n
When Kamala Harris opposes \u201ca regime-change war in Iran,\u201d branding it \u201cTrump\u2019s war of choice,\u201d you should shout hallelujah \u2013 that she isn\u2019t running foreign policy, even if you detest Donald Trump. As \u201cpedrosastyles\u201d posted on X: \u201cIf you\u2019re not Persian and have no Persian ancestry, SHUT THE FU*K UP. We don\u2019t need your \u2018human rights\u2019 talk\u2019 \u2013 where were you when 40,000 people were slaughtered? Persians are celebrating with tears of joy that the United States has stepped in and that the Islamic regime is finally coming to an end.\u201d<\/p>\n
Around 40,000 protesters were murdered in Iran<\/strong><\/p>\n Indeed, where were you in January when the estimated 40,000 Iranian protesters murdered by their fellow Iranians in two days approximated the number of Gazan civilians Hamas claimed were killed unintentionally in Israel\u2019s two-year war of self-defense? And who respects Zohran Mamdani\u2019s condemnation of this US-Israeli attack as \u201ca catastrophic escalation in an illegal war of aggression?\u201d The Mullahs justified their tyranny for 47 years by fighting America, murdering many Americans along the way. What self-respecting American ignores such wickedness, such direct threats?<\/p>\n No wonder another Iranian, Sana Ebrahimi, mocked Mamdani the \u201cIslamist\u201d: \u201cWhen our people were getting slaughtered and hunted like animals by the Islamic Republic terrorists, you stayed silent\u2026 Now that the regime, the murderers of our people, are under attack, you came out of the woodwork to defend them.\u201d Compounding your insensitivity to Iranian suffering, your hypocrisy is comical. Congressional leaders and experts pressuring Trump to seek congressional authorization forget Bill Clinton\u2019s 78-day air campaign in Kosovo \u2013 defying the House of Representatives\u2019 refusal to vote \u201cyes.\u201d Similarly, Barack Obama bombed Libya without Congress, while Joe Biden attacked Houthis and Iranian-backed militias in Iraq and Syria.<\/p>\n Donald Trump called this long-overdue campaign \u201cmajor combat operations.\u201d Clinton, Obama, Biden \u2013 all lawyers \u2013 similarly preferred weasel wording like \u201ckinetic military action,\u201d or \u201coverseas contingency operations.\u201d Clinton said his non-war would guarantee peace, avoiding an \u201ceven crueler and costlier war.\u201d<\/p>\n I supported those actions, too. In our insta-age, presidents often cannot sacrifice the element of surprise or be distracted by congressional debates when ticking time bombs threaten Americans or their allies. Speaking of allies, note the British pussyfooting. Prime Minister Keir Starmer initially endorsed \u201cde-escalation\u201d and a \u201creturn to a diplomatic process.\u201d After Iran bombed the Gulf States, Starmer kept broadcasting spinelessness. \u201cWe are not joining these strikes,\u201d he bleated, \u201cbut we will continue with our defensive actions in the region.\u201d<\/p>\n By contrast, Israeli pilots dropped 2,000 bombs in 48 hours, pulverizing Iranian missile launchers, ICBM sites, and command-and-control positions. Israel again emerged as the ROI and DIY ally, providing clear Returns on Investment, while functioning boldly as a Do-It-Yourself, defend yourself nation. Let’s address your greatest obstacle. You so detest Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu that you cannot applaud anything they do, even if it betters the world. But thoughtful patriots adjust to changing realities. During the Cold War, Americans believed: \u201cpolitics stops at the water\u2019s edge.\u201d James Madison taught that \u201cIf men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary.\u201d<\/p>\n Thanking Trump and Netanyahu doesn\u2019t insulate them from other, legitimate critiques. Such nuance recognizes politics as balancing acts, involving difficult choices. In the Bible, Moses\u2019 failure to trust God in securing water for the people, and King David\u2019s adultery and manslaughter didn\u2019t minimize their other accomplishments. Analyzing David\u2019s sins, the Talmud (Tractate Yoma 22b), teaches a profound Jewish \u2013 and liberal-democratic \u2013 lesson. Leaders should bear a publicly-recognized kuppah shel sheratzim, basket of creepy-crawlies. This \u201creptilian bundle\u201d should keep bosses humble, while reminding citizens that nobody\u2019s perfect. Injecting theological absolutes of all-right versus all-wrong drains the two fuels healthy democracies need: doubt and trust.<\/p>\n Trump and Netanyahu may ignore their own flaws, but supporters shouldn\u2019t worship them \u2013 nor should rivals demonize them. By thanking your president for his courageous, justified, most-necessary, game-changing Iranian attack, patriotic Democrats might earn broader credibility \u2013 and that in turn might inspire true cooperation. Together, you could tackle other pressing problems that, like fighting Iranian jihadists, transcend Left versus Right, and are about right versus wrong.<\/p>\n