A news leak recently allowed the New York Times to reveal that President Trump “vetoed” an Israeli strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities. The Times claimed this information was leaked from Israel, but senior Israeli officials denied this and said the leak likely came from officials in the Trump Administration seeking to prevent military action against Iran.

Apparently, some members of President Trump’s inner circle want to push him into a bad deal with Iran, resembling the disastrous 2015 agreement that would have allowed the ayatollahs an unobstructed path to nuclear weapons. The only deal better than attacking Iran now—and the only one acceptable to Israel—would have to be hard-edged and foolproof. It would have to ban Iranian nuclear weapons and ICBMs outright, plus allow benchmark inspections now and rigorous follow-up monitoring. But there’s no way that Iran will ever agree to such an arrangement, as it would undermine their core agenda to become the Middle East’s hegemon and destroy the Jewish state.

Good news: Iran is now weaker than ever. Israel, with America’s help, has laid waste to its proxies and crippled its defense systems, while U.S.-imposed sanctions have brought its economy to the brink of collapse. It’s hard to imagine a better time than the present for the U.S., Israel and its allies to destroy Iran’s nuclear capabilities.  What a gift to humanity if the world’s leading sponsor of terrorism were to be definitively blocked from obtaining nuclear weapons.

Lovers of Israel—and of the United States—can only hope the Trump Administration keeps the strength of its convictions—its backbone—in the current negotiations with Iran. If, as expected, the talks fail, we encourage Mr. Trump to resort to Plan B, unleashing a harsh punishment on the Islamic Republic.

There is profound disagreement within Trump’s inner circle about how to confront Iran. Seth Mandel, senior editor of Commentary, and Jonathan Tobin, editor-in-chief of the Jewish News Syndicate (JNS) both suggest that one faction, which includes Vice President J.D. Vance, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, special envoy Steven Witkoff, anti-Israel talk-show host Tucker Carlson, and Trump’s chief-of-staff Susie Wiles, favor negotiating with Iran.

Mandel asserts that these Trump influencers don’t see Iranian nuclear proliferation as an overriding threat, and are comfortable with Iranian hegemony over America’s allies and the region’s shipping lanes. In addition, Tobin suggests that Vance and Gabbard don’t want Trump to demand Iran’s surrender of its nuclear program for fear this demand will harm the chance for a deal.

The other faction, which includes national security advisor Mike Waltz, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, U.S. Central Command head Gen. Michael Kurilla, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio favor a tough stance on Iran, including possible military action. Notably, Democratic Senator John Fetterman also opposes the Iran talks and favors military action.

Mandel and Tobin suggest that those favoring negotiations may have the upper hand as both Hegseth and Walz discredited themselves with the SignalGate scandal in which Hegseth uploaded U.S. battle plans to an unsecure chat that Walz accidentally added a journalist to. Meanwhile, Kurilla’s tour of duty ends this year. Furthermore, President Trump seems to prefer to avoid military conflict with Iran, as, traditionally, have most Americans.

All indicators are, however, that Trump’s negotiations with the ayatollahs will, at best, lead to a deal that compromises American interests and threatens its allies, including Israel—a deal too closely resembling the ruinous 2015 agreement.

At best, a negotiated deal with Iran raises red flags. It’s hard to imagine such a deal that would not lead to lifting sanctions on the Islamic Republic, giving it additional revenue to spend on its military capabilities and terrorist proxy groups, just as the 2015 deal did. Protracted negotiations may also preclude a strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities, especially if they extend long enough for Iran to restore its air defenses and take other measures to prevent attacks on its nuclear facilities. Indeed, negotiations themselves are part of Iran’s strategy to reach no agreement—rather, to buy time endlessly. That is, to negotiate patiently with Iran is to forfeit meeting your goals.

Iran will never acquiesce to a deal that meets the needs of Israel and its allies. Iranian Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khameini, has already said that curbing Iran’s ballistic missile program is a “deal breaker,” nor will Iran stop aiding terrorist groups. Furthermore, while the Iranians are willing to discuss enrichment in relation to their nuclear program, they insist on continuing it for “civilian purposes.” Finally, there’s zero indication, Iran will give up its quest to destroy Israel.

There is no better time than the present to attack Iran and end its nuclear ambitions. Firstly, Iran’s main deterrence—its proxy groups—are now in shambles. Israel has destroyed most of the military capabilities of both Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Meanwhile, U.S. forces are destroying the Houthis in Yemen. Iran has also lost Syria as an ally after rebels successfully overthrew dictator Bashar Al-Assad.

Secondly, Iran’s internal defenses are crippled. Israeli strikes last year destroyed its ability to manufacture ballistic missiles and took out their air defenses. In fact, following the Israeli attacks, President Joe Biden’s Middle East advisor Amos Hochstein said that “Iran is essentially naked” and vulnerable to potential future aerial attacks.

Thirdly, Iran’s economy is collapsing. Trump’s “maximum pressure” sanctions have cost Iran billions in oil revenue. Iran is now in its fourth consecutive year of drought, with severe water shortages in many cities. Inflation is sky-high as Iran’s currency sinks dips to all-time lows each month. Finally, Iran is reeling from an energy crisis, with frequent blackouts.

Iran is now at its weakest point since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Khamenei’s regime is fighting for its life. In fact, Iran’s leaders fear a strike on their nuclear facilities now may not just end their nuclear ambitions, but also end their regime itself. This is a golden opportunity that shouldn’t be ignored.

Please make the point when speaking with family, friends, colleagues—or in letters to the editor—that President Trump’s smartest course is steadfastly keeping his commitment to American voters: Ensure that Iran never obtains nuclear weapons. If he cannot do this with negotiations, then he should pursue military action and crush the ayatollahs’ nuclear ambitions once and for all.

If you agree we need to spread this truth, please use your email browser to forward this Hotline issue to fellow lovers of Israel—and encourage them to join us by subscribing to the Hotline at no charge.

Best regards,
Jason Shvili, Contributing Editor
Facts and Logic About the Middle East (FLAME)

P.S.      I’m sure you’d agree: If your enemy says they want to kill you and take your land, you’d be smart to believe them. If you try to make peace, but they refuse all your offers and continue to make murderous threats, it’s time to eliminate this enemy. Israel has faced exactly this danger with the Palestinians—yet continued to hope for peace . . . until Hamas’s October 7 massacre and kidnappings. Finally, Israel and many lovers of Israel are facing reality. They’ve concluded their futile dreams of peace must end. They must finally defeat their Palestinian enemies—starting with Hamas and other jihadi terrorists. I hope you’ll agree that we supporters of the Israel-U.S. relationship need to speak out. FLAME’s new hasbarah—explanatory message—“End of the Palestinian Lie”—describes how Israel and the West have for 77 years bought the myth that the Palestinians want peace. It details the many offers of land for peace Israel, the U.N. and the U.S. have made to give Palestinians their own state—all refused. Finally, it explains why Israel must adopt a bold new strategy—disarming, disabling and defeating Hamas and all other terror groups that attack Israeli civilians. Please review this convincing, fact-based editorial, which FLAME intends to publish to millions—in leading social media, as well as in the Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, New York Post, Chicago Tribune, Tampa Bay Times, Denver Post and Los Angeles Times. This piece will also be sent to all members of Congress, the President and Vice President. If you agree that this kind of public relations effort on Israel’s behalf is critical, I urge you to support us with a donation.

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