America Cannot Keep Rewarding Iran and Expect Peace
For years, Washington’s Iran policy has followed a dangerous pattern: offer Tehran financial relief, hope for moderation, then act surprised when the regime expands its power through terror networks and military aggression.
The Obama-era nuclear deal was sold as a path to stability. In reality, critics warned that sanctions relief gave Iran breathing room at the exact moment America should have been tightening pressure. Tehran did not become a responsible actor. It continued backing Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis, and other militant forces that threaten Israel, American troops, and global security.
The Biden administration repeated the same mistake by allowing access to frozen Iranian assets and pursuing diplomacy with a regime that has repeatedly shown contempt for American strength. Supporters called it careful engagement. But to many Americans, it looked like another signal of weakness to the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism.
Iran’s money does not exist in a vacuum. When Tehran gains financial room, its proxies gain rockets, drones, tunnels, weapons, and political confidence. Every dollar that strengthens the regime indirectly strengthens the forces working against America, Israel, and regional peace.
President Trump took a different approach. He withdrew from the flawed nuclear agreement, restored heavy sanctions, targeted Iranian oil revenue, and authorized the strike that killed Qasem Soleimani, the military figure responsible for years of bloodshed across the Middle East. Under that policy, America made clear that aggression would carry consequences.
The contrast matters. Deterrence works when enemies believe America is serious. Appeasement fails when hostile regimes learn they can escalate, negotiate, and still receive relief.
The Middle East does not need more wishful thinking from Washington. It needs a policy grounded in reality: Iran’s leaders respond to pressure, not trust. They exploit hesitation, not goodwill. And they use financial relief to strengthen the very networks that destabilize the region.
American soldiers, Israeli civilians, and innocent families across the Middle East have paid the price for policies that underestimated Tehran’s ambitions. The United States cannot protect peace by empowering those who finance chaos.
America First means refusing to fund our enemies, standing firmly with our allies, and restoring the deterrence that keeps war from spreading. History will not judge leaders by their speeches about peace, but by whether their choices made America safer or placed the free world in greater danger.
