The Iranian regime has terrorized the world for 47 long years. Its philosophy is simple: America is the “Great Satan” and Israel the “Little Satan.” Iran seeks to destroy the United States as much as, if not more than, it seeks to wipe Israel off the map.
The kidnapping of 52 American diplomats and citizens in 1979—held hostage for 444 days—was only the beginning. Eighteen of those former hostages later died from the stress, trauma and inhumane conditions they endured.
In 1983, Iran, through its Hezbollah proxy, killed 241 American servicemen in the Beirut Marine barracks suicide bombing—the worst single day for the U.S. Marines since World War II. Before the 2024 election, Iran hired Farhad Shakeri to assassinate U.S. President Donald Trump.
I worked with the current U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth on hardening America’s electrical grid to prevent Iran from launching an electromagnetic pulse attack that could devastate the United States. It was—and remains—a real fear.
Iran is an evil empire: conniving and untrustworthy. I applaud Trump’s attempts to make peace. Unfortunately, one cannot make a deal with the devil. As Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) has said, the Iranian regime is a “cancer.” You cannot negotiate with cancer—you have to attack it. I agree.
The ayatollahs’ time is up. Their murder of more than 30,000 civilians was an act of desperation. Much of their leadership has already been eliminated. Trump ordered the killing of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps chief Qassem Soleimani in January 2020.
Israel killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in September 2024, Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in July 2024, and Hamas military leader Yahya Sinwar in October 2024.
When Trump destroyed Iran’s main nuclear facilities in “Operation Midnight Hammer” last June, it was hoped that the regime would fall. Instead, the ayatollahs resumed work on both their nuclear and ballistic-missile programs.
Trump has now given the regime 10 days to decide its fate. The Iranian people deserve to live without shackles and torture. The regime is barely holding on. The president would do well to end this nightmare.
He may not win a Nobel Prize, but he will save the world. And in the end, that is what counts.
