Mark Levin Feb 15: Iran, Iran, and Iran

by Peloni & David Fieldstone

Mark Levin’s February 15 Sunday Show:

Mark opens his Sunday, February 15 show: speaking about the current Iranian Regime being one of the most consequential foreign policy challenges facing the United States today, while also noting how this challenge is met will shape the future for generations to come. (The conflicts of interest of the US Commander-in-Chief President Donald Trump with the enemy Qataris, were never mentioned by him or his 2 guests following his opening.)

Framing the discussion: President Trump’s negotiating style as described in Trump’s book The Art of the Deal, Mark suggests that diplomacy can be used strategically, rather than as a genuine effort at compromise. Mark suggests that Trump might be using diplomacy as either leverage or a tactical maneuver, and if this is true, the ongoing negotiations could be effective (in his mind). If, however, the negotiations taking place are pursued by the US in a traditional “good-faith” effort to reach accommodation with the Mullahs, they are doomed to fail miserably due to the current Iranian Regime’s ideology, which is steeped in its 7th century brutal new religion.

Mark reminds: The Islamic Republic is not a conventional nation-state guided by pragmatic national interests, but is in fact a revolutionary regime which was ALWAYS rooted in religious extremism, anti-Americanism, antisemitism, with the expressed goal of exporting this Mullah led ideology around the world. The Iranian Regime’s constitution and founding principles openly express its hostility towards the United States and Israel as being central to its currently firm identity. As a consequence of this, it is impossible to moderate its legacy position – without undermining its own legitimacy with its followers. With this in mind, any negotiations by the Iranian Mullahs merely represent strategic leverage towards delay, deception, survival of their regime, and the promotion of their legacy/ideology – no different than what it was in the 7th century – remaining evergreen as of today.

Mark further emphasizes: The concept of taqiyah—religiously sanctioned dissimulation—represents a framework through which Iranian Leaders justify making temporary concessions to buy time and preserve power. (Good faith is only a ruse to achieve your goals.)

Mark warns: Delays only benefit Tehran, allowing it to build ballistic missiles and potentially nuclear weapons – while waiting out USA administrations. Noting Iran’s current military weaknesses are at an all time high, he challenges that we stand on the precipice of a strategic opportunity to end the threats emanating from Iran. Leaving the problem unresolved would only serve to burden future generations with a far more dangerous adversary, which could only be neutralized from what will ultimately prove to be a far less strategic advantageous position than exists today. Mark further characterizes his opposition to using diplomacy by recalling the significant parallels which exist between the situation with Iran and that of North Korea. He recounts decades of negotiations, agreements, and United Nations Security Council resolutions, all of which ultimately failed to prevent Pyongyang from developing nuclear weapons. Repeated agreements were violated and concessions only came to strengthened the regime of North Korea as it evolved into its current situation as a nuclear state. Indeed, Iran’s leadership today shares a similar strategic outlook in which the ends justify the means, and agreements are provisional tactics, rather than binding commitments.

Mark concludes this opening segment: by acknowledging that the current Iranian Regime will never voluntarily abandon its nuclear ambitions or its revolutionary goals of conquering the West. He expresses hope that Trump understands the nature of the threat, and is using diplomacy as preparation for stronger actions, suggesting that failing to decisively confront the regime now, would represent both immoral and strategic failures.

In his second segment: Mark interviews Josh Hammer about U.S. politics, Iran, and ideological trends. Hammer criticizes the Democratic Party for supporting or tolerating regimes like Iran’s – and sees a long-standing pattern of the left’s rising embrace of authoritarian or totalitarian ideologies. From the French Revolution to modern times, he notes that progressive movements often have a fixation on the use and benefit of political violence. He also argues that Democrats are ideologically aligned with the enemies of Western civilization, effectively cheering on regimes which commit atrocities. He additionally highlights historical precedents, like Bernie Sanders displaying the Soviet hammer and sickle flag, and cultural trends accelerated by Barack Obama.

Hammer goes on to compare U.S. leftist movements with its European counterparts, noting that Europe and Canada are often further and deeper on the left side of the political aisle due to the decline of religious influence in their relative societies, while the Americans have historically benefited from its Judeo-Christian traditions. He also highlights the rising alliance between the Marxists and Islamists – historically exemplified in the 1979 Iranian Revolution – as a recurring pattern wherein radical ideologies collaborate against Western values. He warns that movements like “wokeism” and intersectionality are structurally unstable, ergo they will ultimately collapse, just as past such ideological fusions have failed.

In his final segment – Mark talks with retired four-star Army General Jack Keane about America’s Iran policy. Keane argues that Iran cannot be trusted to adhere to any agreement while CONFIRMING that past deals, including the Obama-era nuclear deal, failed to prevent Iran from advancing its nuclear and missile programs. He also emphasizes that President Trump took a different approach by withdrawing from the flawed deal, confronting the regime militarily, and targeting nuclear sites, while maintaining a close alliance with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu. Both Mark and Gen. Keane stress that any future agreement with Iran will fail, due to their history of lying and cheating, therefore the only reliable path to neutralizing Iran’s threat is a combined U.S.-Israeli military operation to decisively weaken or dismantle the regime, so as to allow the Iranian people to take over the government in coordination with support of the US-Israeli forces. They go on to highlight that this is a historic opportunity for reshaping the Middle East and achieving peace, but only thru military action and not negotiations.