America First
The Ayatollah Khomeini, Supreme Leader of Iran, is dead. He was assassinated on February 28 along with nearly fifty of his military and political leaders in the opening salvos of Operation Epic Fury, a military campaign conducted jointly by the United States and Israel against Iran. There is nearly universal agreement in the United States, Israel, across Europe, and even in the Arab states of the Middle East that his was a reign of terror and a threat to the civilized world. “Death to Israel” and “Death to America” have been his rallying cries for years. His ambition to acquire nuclear weapons was no secret and no one doubted he would use them.
Since taking power in 1989, the Ayatollah presided over an Iran that has been the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism, providing at least $1 billion annually in cash, weapons and training to “proxy” terrorist groups, militant organizations that have a state sponsor and work on behalf of that state’s geopolitical interests. The Hezbollah of Lebanon, Houthis of Yemen, and Hamas of Palestine are among the terrorist groups sponsored by Iran and responsible for embassy and military barracks bombings, kidnappings, rocket attacks, roadside bombs, and many more acts of terrorism against Israel and the western world. Many Americans have been killed or maimed at their hands.
Khomeini ruled the people of Iran with an iron fist, severely restricting their civil liberties, brutally cracking down on dissent, and persecuting women and minorities. His military force, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard, targeted families of protesters and journalists, restricted access to the internet, and maintained government control of the media. The regime engaged in mass executions to keep the people fearful and compliant, executing 900 in 2024.
Last December when the Iranian people took to the streets in protests that began in response to severe economic hardship and evolved into anti-government demonstrations, the Islamic Guard slaughtered thousands of their own people. Estimates exceed 30,000 murdered.
United States Presidents from both sides of the aisle since 1989 – George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Joe Biden - all decried the threat Iran posed to the developed world but had no answer. Obama proved to be the most impotent of all – seeking to appease the Ayatollah. In 2016 Obama delivered $400 million in cash in an unmarked cargo plane in the dead of night to Iran. He said it was the first installment of a $1.7 billion settlement the US agreed to after freezing Iran’s assets and reneging on an arms sale agreement made with Iran’s Shah prior to his overthrow in 1979. Many believe that, despite his denials, Obama’s payment to Iran was ransom for 4 Americans they had detained. Despite international consensus in the developed world that Iran’s leaders intended to develop nuclear weapons, violated human rights and were not to be trusted, Obama sought diplomatic engagement. In 2015 Iran and the members of the United Nations Security Council agreed to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the Iran Nuclear Deal, which was intended to limit Iran’s nuclear capabilities to peaceful purposes.
In 2018, during Trump’s first term, he withdrew from the JCPOA, calling it “the worst deal ever” and the “most dangerous transaction” ever conducted by the United States because it did not address Iran’s ballistic missile program, provide sufficient inspection of their nuclear program, or limit their regional influence through proxy terrorist organizations. Trump returned to a policy of maximum pressure sanctions on Iran.
Termination of the Iran Nuclear Deal accelerated its uranium enrichment program. When US intelligence had substantial evidence that Iran continued to pursue its nuclear ambitions and its uranium enrichment had reached near bomb grade, Trump authorized Midnight Hammer last June, a bombing mission that took out Iran’s deep underground enrichment facilities. Destroying facilities slowed them but did not stop them.
In January, as Iranians rioted in the streets, Trump sent them words of encouragement telling them, “Help is on the way.” On February 28, Americans awoke to the news that Israel and the United States had unleashed Operation Epic Fury on Iran.
And the People Poured Out into the Streets…
Thousands of Iranian Americans from Los Angeles to Washington DC poured into the streets in solidarity and celebration with Iranians in the homeland as soon as word of the Ayatollah’s demise spread. Their jubilance was unrestrained, many thanking Trump for their renewed hope for freedom and marveling that they never thought this day would come in their lifetimes.
Anyone paying attention also saw that large protests opposing the military operation had materialized in cities across America within hours of the strikes on Iran. American protestors waved large Iranian flags and carried identical, professionally produced signs in support of the Iranian regime and against President Trump. Thinking Americans want to know who is organizing and paying for these protests.
The Media and the Democrats Did What They Always Do
Limited by incompetence, dishonesty and hatred of Trump, members of the American media contributed little, if anything, to America’s understanding of the profoundly serious mission launched by its government. They asked absurd questions about the explicit plan, precise details about what Trump will or will not do, and when the mission will end. They suggested the Administration has no plan for what happens next, likened it to the Iraq and Afghanistan disasters, and speculated about what the “MAGA base” wants; though they have never understood anything about why so many Americans support Donald Trump. Some claimed Trump has taken this action for his legacy. Kristen Welker of NBC’s Meet the Press asked for “guarantees” about how this will go (one of the many meaningless questions she asks her guests every week) and Dana Bash of CNN was corrected by a Republican Senator when she said Trump promised there “would be no wars.” He promised no more “forever wars.”
The media welcomed Democrats from Congress into their studios with open arms and allowed them to rail unchecked against Trump’s decision. They had mocked him when he told the Iranian protestors “Help is on the way” in January and ridiculed him in February when help was on the way. They called his action illegal without the approval of Congress and rejected his assessment that Iran posed an “imminent” threat to the American people. They complained bitterly that Trump is neutering Congress by blowing past their Constitutional authority. They claimed that Trump has no strategy.
The Democrats and the media immediately zeroed in on how they might leverage sentiment against military action to retake the House and Senate in the midterm elections. Every move they make is a sinister calculation about power and control of government. Their singular focus on opposing everything Trump does, and their obsessive commitment to seeing him fail, are a treasonous betrayal of the American people.
The Mission
On day two after the launch of Epic Fury, Secretary of the Department of War, Pete Hegseth, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Dan Caine, held a press conference to brief the American people on the purpose and status of the mission.
The overarching goals are to protect and defend against Iran projecting power outside of its borders. The specific military objectives are to destroy Iran’s ballistic missile capabilities, destroy its Navy, and ensure that they never have nuclear weapons. Caine described the “ambitions” of the mission as realistic and scoped to our interests and the interests of our allies.
It was clear from this briefing and other comments by Trump and his leadership team, that regime change is now a matter for the Iranian people. Assassinating the Ayatollah and so many of his key leaders created the conditions for the Iranian people to seize the moment. Trump called it their “hour of freedom” and encouraged them to make the most of it.
Mark Kimmett, a retired General and former Assistant Secretary of State, described the mission clearly and accurately in an interview following the press briefing: “No Nukes. No Proxys. No Missiles.” Blinded by their laser focus on opposing Trump, Democrats and the media cannot (refuse to) grasp this. They continue to insist that Operation Epic Fury is a “war of choice” and an aimless mission, despite both Houses having now been thoroughly briefed. Hakeem Jeffries, Democratic Minority Leader in the House, declared with certainty on CNN “This will fail.”
The Wrong Question
The Democrats are holding fast to their position that Iran posed no “imminent threat” to the United States and continue to ask, “Why now?” They are asking the wrong question. The correct question is, “If not now, when?”
Steve Witkoff, Trump’s Special Envoy to the Mideast spoke last Monday about the failed attempts to negotiate with the Iranians that led to the decision to attack them militarily. Three meetings between the American and Iranian teams to determine if the Iranians were serious about a deal made it clear that they would not give up their ambitions to develop nuclear weapons. The meetings opened with the Iranians declaring an inalienable right to enrich uranium and the Americans assuring them they would stop them. The Americans demanded 10 years with no uranium enrichment and promised to provide the fuel Iran would need for peaceful purposes. The Iranians rejected the offer and boasted they already had enough enriched uranium to be brought to weapons grade within weeks and produce 11 nuclear bombs.
There is no disagreement about Iran’s nuclear ambitions and their persistent defiance of demands to give them up. There is no disagreement that they continue to sponsor proxy groups and fund terror around the world. There is no disagreement they cannot be trusted and would annihilate Israel and the United States if they could. They are weaker and more vulnerable following the recent assaults by Israel and the United States. There was no realistic expectation for meaningful negotiation with them and Trump had enough.
America First
The American media and the United States Congress have proven themselves to be wholly inadequate for our precious Democratic Republic and unworthy of the vital roles crafted for them with great care and love by our Founders. Donald Trump hasn’t neutered Congress; they have neutered themselves through their feckless failure to govern in the best interests of the American people.
For decades, weak leaders have eroded the United States by dragging us into “globalism,” trying to make us “citizens of the world,” and subjecting us to the dictates of others about how we should live. Our complacency allowed it. Evil tyrants across the world tightened their grip and gained ground. Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela presided over massive drug trafficking into the United States; Hamas attacked Israel killing 1,100 and taking 250 hostages; the Ayatollah pursued his nuclear ambitions. Our “leaders” and other “leaders” throughout the world are full of bluster but had no answers. Maduro is now sitting in an American prison. The Israeli hostages are free, and the Ayatollah is dead. Trump leads. He does what he believes must be done with little regard for political risks.
I stand firmly with Trump. I trust his motives. I have confidence in his skill. I appreciate his courage. He has surrounded himself with a leadership team steadfastly aligned with him and highly capable of executing his agenda on behalf of the American people. We are experiencing the serious and sobering meaning of peace through strength. It is not a sound bite. The mission is clear; the outcome is yet to be determined. We are not citizens of the world. We are citizens of the United States of America and neighbors of the world. This is America First.