Trump may not have ‘made the case’ for US military action on Iran
The Washington Examiner’s chief political correspondent Byron York questions whether President Donald Trump or the media has clearly explained why the United States would need to take military action against Iran. The piece notes that Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei described Iran’s nuclear program as an undeniable right during Geneva talks, following protests that were reported to have killed thousands. York argues that trump did not prepare Americans for earlier military actions, and while the U.S.is capable of ample action against Iran,it remains unclear what form that action would take or whether it is truly necessary. He says the president must articulate a clear standard or justification for any military action, noting that Trump has claimed Iran’s nuclear program has suffered “pretty grievous damage” but that a case for large-scale military action has not yet been made. Israeli Prime Minister benjamin Netanyahu is cited as insisting that any U.S. deal with iran must dismantle Iran’s nuclear program entirely, expressing skepticism that a thorough agreement can be reached due to Iranian behavior.
Trump may not have ‘made the case’ for US to take military action on Iran: Byron York
Washington Examiner chief political correspondent Byron York said on Tuesday he is unsure if President Donald Trump or the media has shown the public why the United States would need to take action against Iran.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said on Tuesday that the country’s nuclear industry is “our undeniable right,” as negotiations over Tehran’s nuclear program took place in Geneva. The negotiations came about a month after an estimated tens of thousands of Iranian protesters were killed in the country.
York said Trump hadn’t prepared Americans for the military action of removing former Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro earlier this year, but this action was “quick” and “very, very sharply focused.”
For Iran, however, it is still unclear what action the U.S. would take, though York acknowledged the U.S. is capable of doing “a lot.”
“I would disagree with [host Hugh Hewitt’s statement that the media has prepared the public for U.S. military action in Iran] in a sense that the media can kind of prepare the way for this,” York said on the Hugh Hewitt Show. “I think there’s nobody who can prepare the way for this except the president of the United States, who said, ‘We’re going to do this, this, and this, or they have to get rid of their nuclear program, they have to stop killing people, and they have to stop supporting regional terrorist organizations. And if they don’t do it, we’re going to hit them.’”
“I think if those are the United States’s standards, that has to be articulated by the president,” York said.
York added that Trump has said the U.S. has done “pretty grievous damage” to Iran’s nuclear program, and he agrees with the president’s assessment. However, York said he doesn’t know if “big U.S. military action” against Iran is needed.
“So I’m just wondering why it’s absolutely necessary, and the president has not made the case, depending on how this military action is, if it comes,” York said.
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York concluded that, depending on the size of this military action, there has to be “a presidential justification” for taking it, and “we just haven’t had it” yet from Trump.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stressed on Sunday that any deal between the U.S. and Iran must include the dismantling of Iran’s nuclear program entirely, not just a promise to halt uranium enrichment. He also said he is “very skeptical” that a comprehensive deal can be struck because the Iranians “lie and cheat.”
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