The murder of American service members by Iranian proxies required a response that reaffirmed the most basic duty of a sovereign government: protect your own or surrender your liberty.
When 19-year-old Pte. Isabella Gonzales and 25-year-old Lt. Tyler James Feehan were killed in a cowardly attack in Jordan, and another soldier died in northern Iraq, the regime in Tehran crossed a line that past administrations treated as a footnote. President Trump instead authorized strikes that hit Iran 'very hard' for nine consecutive nights, with U.S. Central Command systematically dismantling military sites and communications networks.
This is what accountable government looks like. The president issued a stern warning that every time Iran kills an American, they will pay many times over. That principle replaces the failed diplomatic charades of the past, in which belligerents learned they could shed U.S. blood without consequence. Law and order among nations begins with the certainty that aggression against our troops will be met with overwhelming force.
The stakes extend beyond retaliation. The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps continues to threaten global shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, and its proxies have escalated. The Houthi militia, backed by Tehran, announced a so-called maritime embargo against Saudi Arabia, targeting the Bab al-Mandab Strait to disrupt international commerce.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio rightly noted the world must decide whether to allow a rogue state to hold global waterways hostage. By degrading Iran's capabilities, the United States defends not only its soldiers but the free flow of trade that underpins individual liberty and free markets.
A limited government's legitimate function is to secure the nation's borders and citizens, not to negotiate perpetually with those who openly target us. The strikes were precise, aimed at military infrastructure, not a call for open-ended occupation. This restraint paired with resolve is the model of a government that answers to its people rather than to transnational pressure.
The era of American passivity is over. When the commander-in-chief demonstrates the necessary resolve to protect our people and interests, he reinforces the sovereign dignity of the United States. The cost of weakness is paid in the blood of the young men and women in uniform; the cost of strength is borne by those who dare to threaten them. Trump's decision is the correct, constitutional exercise of presidential power to safeguard the republic.
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