LOS ANGELES.–Sen. Lindsey Graham, (R-S.C.), 68, slammed 81-year-old President Joe Biden’s response to the Jan. 28 drone attack of U.S. base Tower 22 in Jordan, killing three U.S. soldiers, injuring 40. Graham said Biden gave Iranian-backed terror group too much time to prepare for any U.S. attack on suspected terror groups in Iraq and Syria. Graham said giving the Ayatollah “week’s notice” didn’t do anything to deter future attacks on U.S. troops. Graham criticizes Biden on recent attacks on Kataib Hezbollah, believed responsible for the Jan. 28 attack of Tower 22, but not of Biden’s ongoing war in Ukraine against the Russian Federation. Graham can’t have it both ways, slamming Biden in Iraq and Syria, while backing Biden’s most reckless foreign policy of proxy war against the Kremlin. Graham knows Biden’s proxy war in Ukraine has all but killed U.S.-Russian relations.
When it comes to responding to Iranian-based terror attacks of U.S. bases overseas, Graham urges Biden to go after the Ayatollah directly, hitting the Ayatollah on Iranian soil. Throwaway missile attacks at suspected terrorist bases or sites doesn’t deal with the source of the ongoing attacks on U.S. targets, over 160 attacks since the Oct. 7 Israeli-Hamas war. But before the Israeli-Hamas war, Iran’s proxy forces attacked foreign flagged tankers in the Red Sea, Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman, through which some 20% of the world’s oil supply travels. “If the goal is to deter Iran, you’re failing miserably. If the goal is to protect American troops, you’re not achieving your goal,” Graham said today of “Fox News Sunday.” Graham pointed out that Biden accomplished his goal to letting Ayatollah know he doesn’t want to start a war with Iran.
Graham’s contention is that the White House response does nothing to deter Iran from further attacks on American interests, but, more importantly, to sponsoring terror around the Middle East. Iran claims in represents all Islamic nations in their fight against Zionism, specifically the state of Israel. Like all good fascist, authoritarian regimes, it singles out an enemy, like the Jews of old Nazi past, to demonize one group for collective hatred. Ayatollah’s fake propaganda message is that Iran backs the “axis of resistance” against the “Zionist entity,” not the U.N.-recognized state of Israel. Past Iranian leaders have mouthed the Ayatollah’s claptrap about Israel, claiming it occupies Arab lands. Well, the Ayatollah’s Shiite religion isn’t recognized by Saudi Arabia, viewing all Shiites as apostates, practicing a fraudulent form of Islam. Yet the Ayatollah placates Sunnis with his anti-Israeli propaganda.
Iran seeks to dominate all Sunni groups in the Middle East by its propaganda campaign against Israel. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khaemei funds various proxy groups, Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, Kataib Hezbollah in Iraq and Syria and Houthis in Yemen, all used for Iran’s domination. But Iran knows that Sunni Arab states have a long history battling Israel, knowing the outcome of complete destruction. Ayatollah only talks a good game, knowing that if he ever attacked Israel, he would meet with the same fate as other Arab states including Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Arab Gulf States, etc., all of which watched their militaries destroyed in the 1967 “Six Day War” and 1973 “Yom Kippur War,” and every other skirmish with Israel over the 75 years when Israel declared its independence. Iran hides behind its anti-Semitic, anti-Zionist rhetoric.
Graham wanted to make a point to the Biden administration that its response to Iranian-backed Shiite terror groups was ineffective. “If you convinced Iran you don’t want a war, they believe you. ‘Oh, I don’t want a war with you,’ they got the message . . . they’re not afraid of us. They were afraid of former President Trump,’ Graham said. Whatever Graham’s position on Ukraine, it’s clear he thinks Biden is failing on Iran, especially telling the Ayatollah he doesn’t want war. Graham points to the highly political nature of Biden’s response for the latest drone attack on a U.S. base. Foreign leaders, whether allies or foes, know that Biden is not fit as commander-in-chief, regardless of the latest throwaway missile and bombing attacks on Iranian-backed militia groups. Graham sees a compromised U.S. national security under Biden’s leadership, leaving the U.S. vulnerable.
National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan pushed back at Graham’s logical statements about the White House ineffective response. “The president made clear before we were attacked at Tower 22 in Jordan, before our brave services members were tragically killed, that if we were attacked, we would respond,” Sullivan said. Sullivan knows that various Iranian-backed terror groups don’t give the orders or provide the cash-an-arms like the Ayatollah. Graham makes the point that the U.S. is not feared by Iran or anyone else, knowing Biden would not go after the Ayatollah directly. Graham has said without going after Iran, the Ayatollah will continue sponsoring terrorism and dominate the Middle East. Hiding behind his anti-Zionist message, Ayatollah gives Iran cover for attacking commercial shipping in the Red Sea, Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman. Sullivan and Secretary of State Anton Blinken are both responsible for Biden’s failed foreign policy.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
