In my previous column, appearing on Newsmax, this writer made the case that Trump's actions against the nation of Iran, are very much in real and appreciable part, about preserving the American family, the American Dream, and the nation's economy overall for families and working individuals in the United States.
Of no less significance, it's now more than ever mandatory we remember that since 2006, the Iranian regime has funded and directed a beyond staggering wave of terror globally.
Conservative estimates show Iran has backed an estimated 1,000 major terror attacks when counting significant incidents.
When you include the thousands of rocket barrages, drone strikes, and proxy assaults carried out in ongoing conflicts, that number climbs into the several thousands.
This isn't speculation. It's documented fact.
Iran's fingerprints are on the deaths of at least 608 American service members in Iraq between 2003 and 2011. Iranian-supplied weapons – including deadly explosively formed penetrators – tore through U.S. armored vehicles.
From 2019 through 2026, Iranian-backed militias launched more than 180 rocket, missile, and drone attacks on U.S. troops in Iraq, Syria, and Jordan.
In Afghanistan, Iranian arms fueled Taliban attacks that killed and wounded American troops.
Translation?
Iran bankrolls terror on an industrial scale:
—It sends up to $100 million a year to Hamas and Palestinian Islamic jihad.
—It funnels more than $700 million annually to Hezbollah. Since 2006, Hezbollah alone has fired over 4,000 rockets during the Lebanon War.
Hamas and its allies have launched more than 20,000 rockets from Gaza.
On Oct. 7, 2023, Iranian-backed terrorists slaughtered over 1,400 Israelis in a single day after firing thousands of rockets.
The Houthis, armed and trained by Iran, have attacked global shipping lanes and targeted Saudi Arabia with missile and drone strikes.
Iranian agents have plotted assassinations and bombings in Europe, Asia, and Latin America.
U.S. officials have disrupted multiple Iranian-backed plots against Americans in recent years.
Some of these actions rise to the level of crimes against humanity.
And yet when President Donald Trump takes decisive action to dismantle Iran’s nuclear capabilities and strike at the regime’s leadership, Democrats rush to condemn him.
U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., calls it "Trump's War" and claims there is "no strategy."
U.S. House Minority Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., says the president "misled the country."
Former 2016 Democratic vice-presidential candidate Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., labels it 'horrible judgement" and warns against a "third idiotic Middle East war."
Their primary complaint?
Congressional authorization.
Let that sink in.
—After hundreds of American troops were killed.
—After thousands of rocket attacks.
—After Iran openly chants "Death to America." The outrage from Democratic leadership is not directed at Tehran – it is directed at the American president for fighting back.
Yes . . . Congress has a constitutional role.
But . . . presidents also have a sworn duty to protect American lives and national security.
When a regime has funded or inspired hundreds – if not thousands – of terror attacks over two decades, waiting for endless debate while nuclear centrifuges spin is not strength.
It's surrender!
Not every Democrat is blind to the threat. Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., has voiced support for confronting Iran.
But the dominant voice in the party remains one of hesitation, hand-wringing, and political positioning.
Iran's regime doesn't debate.
It doesn't negotiate in good faith. It kills.
For two decades, Tehran has waged a shadow war against the United States and her allies.
President Trump's strikes send a clear message: the era of appeasement is over.
The real shock is not that America finally responded.
The shock is that so many in Washington still seem more comfortable criticizing the man defending this country than confronting the regime that has spent years trying to destroy it.
From 2007-2010, Mark Vargas served as a civilian in the Office of the U.S. Secretary of Defense, traveling to Baghdad, Iraq, 14 times. Follow Mark on Twitter: @markavargas. Read more Mark Vargas Insider articles — Click Here Now.
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