THE BIDEN-HARRIS ADMINISTRATION HAS BEEN A BOON FOR IRAN - In their brazenness the Iranian regime attempted to kill Trump on American soil.
By: Joseph Puder
Friday, August 30, 2024
There is no question whom the Ayatollahs of the Islamic Republic of Iran would like to see as the next president of the United States (US). The Biden/Harris administration has been a boon for Iran. Economically, Iran has been able to produce two million barrels of oil a day during the Biden presidency, up from 500,000 at the end of the Trump administration in late 2020. The surge in Iranian oil exports has brought Iran between $32 billion to $35 billion in revenue as a result of curtailed sanctions enforcement by the Biden/Harris administration. Hence, customers and middlemen have concluded that the risk from US retaliation is low and the discount on Iran’s oil is too good to pass up.
Biden/Harris’ lenient policies built on those of former President Barack Hussein Obama who delivered $1.7 billion in cash to the Ayatollahs. Obama is also alleged to have provided Iran with $150 billion, although the exact sum is uncertain. What is rather certain is that the current administration paid Iran $6 billion as ransom for the return of five American-Iranian hostages.
The revenue Iran accrued has enabled the world’s foremost state sponsor of terrorism to lavish, once again, funds to its proxies, including Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthis in Yemen and Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) in Gaza. Clearly, Hamas’ choice to launch its massacres of October 7, 2023, had plenty to do with Tehran’s generous backing.
During the Biden/Harris administration, Iran advanced its nuclear capacity to become a threshold nuclear state. There is little doubt that Iran is working on creating long-range missiles with the capacity to reach the US. The administration’s relaxation of anti-Iran sanctions allowed the Iranians to acquire essential parts for their missiles program. And, with China and Russia opening their warehouses to the Iranian mullahs, it should be apparent that the Islamic Republic has made significant progress with its nuclear and missiles projects. The Iranians, moreover, are seeking to find a way to adopt a nuclear payload to their missiles.
Early in the Biden/Harris administration desperate efforts were made to resume the nuclear negotiations with the Islamic Republic of Iran. The US delegates to the Vienna nuclear talks were sidelined and made to stay in a separate hotel. It was a clear insult to America. The Administration, however, didn’t care, it was anxious to revive the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) also known as the Iran nuclear deal – no matter the conditions.
The first target of a financially rejuvenated Iran is, of course, Israel. Dealing with the nuclearization of Iran should be a joint American-Israeli effort. Yet, despite President Joe Biden’s pledge on July 14, 2022, that the US “Is prepared to use all elements of its national power to stop Iran from getting a nuclear weapon,” Iran has surged ahead. Tehran has ignored Biden’s pledge and seems to be undeterred by the Biden/Harris administration. Earlier, in June 2021, Biden assured outgoing Israeli President Reuven Rivlin that his commitment to Israel is “iron-clad,” and vowed that Iran would never build a nuclear bomb during his administration.
Both Presidents Obama and Biden warned Israel against an attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities. And, both administrations refused to present a clear “military option” against Iran. Viewing the Biden/Harris administration as weak, Iran has become more reckless. On April 13, 2024, it fired more than three hundred missiles and drones against Israel. It has also plotted to assassinate former US President Donald Trump and has vowed a major revenge attack against Israel.
The Biden/Harris administration has been reluctant to respond forcefully against Iran for its actions and those of its proxies who have attacked US forces. Since Biden took office in January 2021 US forces have been attacked in the Middle East 151 times (as of November 2023) according to the Voice of America. The most recent attack occurred on August 5, 2024. The US response has been 17 rounds of airstrikes mostly against unmanned facilities.
A USA Today headline (August 6, 2024) stated “Iran-linked plotter who may have targeted Donald Trump, arrested in New York.” The same article noted that “A Pakistani national with ties to Iran was charged with murder-for-hire as part of plot to assassinate a US politician (Donald Trump) in response to the Trump administration’s 2020 killing of Iranian (Quds Force of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps) General Qasem Soleimani.”
National Public Radio (NPR) reported on July 12, 2024, that, “The United States Justice Department says it has foiled at least four assassination plots sponsored by foreign governments (Iran) on U.S. soil. One of the targets of those assassination attempts is Masih Alinejad, an Iranian-American journalist and human rights activist who Iran tried to kill in New York. Knowing she is at such risk has turned Alinejad's life upside down. NPR deliberately failed to name Iran as the culprit, despite many, including the intended victims, who identified the Iranian regime.
Iran's attempt to assassinate a former president and current presidential candidate Donald Trump, rises to a new level of brazenness. It demonstrates how American weakness under Biden/Harris has emboldened Tehran to pursue reckless actions. American adversaries such as China, Russia and North Korea are watching how this administration is responding to Iran’s provocations on American soil. It is therefore essential for the US to send a forceful message to Iran - not only with words but with actions.
Fearing that strong action on the part of the administration will hurt the Harris election campaign, the administration is preferring to avoid a conflict with Iran. It is reminiscent of Britain’s PM Neville Chamberlain in 1938, who appeased Hitler to avoid war with Nazi Germany and got instead both war and dishonor. The administration’s inaction sends a clear message to the Ayatollahs of Iran.