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Ben Weingarten Federalist Senior Contributor; Claremont Institute Fellow
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Opinion

Biden’s shadow deal with Iran disastrous for Americans

Ben Weingarten Federalist Senior Contributor; Claremont Institute Fellow
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After a drone attack claimed the lives of three U.S. troops at an American outpost in Jordan, U.S. forces responded with a series of strikes in Iraq and Syria, killing an Iranian-backed militia leader. President Joe Biden has committed to taking “more action,” while some Republicans are pushing for a direct military response against Iran.

Straight Arrow News contributor Ben Weingarten claims the likelihood of such a strike is low. Weingarten contends that a shadow deal between Iran and the Biden administration, even unknown to Congress, explains the president’s reluctance to use force directly against Iran.

The deal, which has arguably been illegally consummated, can be summarized as follows: Bribe and baby the mullahs, and bludgeon Israel for “peace.”

Upon entering office, while tolerating Iran’s aggression, the administration spent months offering ever-sweeter deals to Iran — massive sanctions relief and major concessions on its nuclear program — to reprise the Obama-Biden Iran nuclear deal, also secretly drafted as a non-treaty, which bailed out the regime financially, legitimized, and protected its nuclear program while claiming it was curtailing it. 

Iran responded to Biden’s effort not only rebuffing the offers, but inflicting dozens of attacks on our troops, selling drones to Russia, deepening its strategic partnership with Communist China, and accelerating its nuclear program, installing advanced centrifuges, building a new hardened nuclear facility, and enriching uranium to near weapons-grade. 

The Biden administration responded with more of the same. To “de-escalate,” it would do what it was trying to do via the nuclear negotiations: Pay the regime for protection. 

The Biden administration is executing a shadow “nuclear deal” with Iran — one that whether borne of progressive ideology, politics, or treachery is proving disastrous for the American people and our interests. 

President Biden never bothered to tell us about it. His administration inked it without Congress’ approval.  It may not have even committed the deal to paper.

It explains why the Biden administration won’t strike Iran with anything remotely resembling sufficient force to deter it, and foretells calamities in the Middle East to come, absent its total rejection.

The deal, which has arguably been illegally consummated, can be summarized as follows: Bribe and baby the mullahs, and bludgeon Israel for “peace.”

Upon entering office, while tolerating Iran’s aggression, the administration spent months offering ever-sweeter deals to Iran — massive sanctions relief and major concessions on its nuclear program — to reprise the Obama-Biden Iran nuclear deal, also secretly drafted as a non-treaty, which bailed out the regime financially, legitimized, and protected its nuclear program while claiming it was curtailing it. 

Iran responded to Biden’s effort not only rebuffing the offers, but inflicting dozens of attacks on our troops, selling drones to Russia, deepening its strategic partnership with China, and accelerating its nuclear program, installing advanced centrifuges, building a new hardened nuclear facility, and enriching uranium to near weapons grade. 

The Biden administration responded with more of the same. To “de-escalate,” it would do what it was trying to do via the nuclear negotiations: Pay the regime for protection. 

Reports surfaced early last summer suggesting the Biden administration wanted to surreptitiously flow billions into the mullahs’ coffers in exchange for freezing their nuclear efforts and making their proxies stand down and stop striking U.S. troops.

And that’s what it did. The Biden administration refused to enforce sanctions on illicit oil sales, enriching the mullahs to the tune of billions of dollars.

It provided waivers and paid a ransom as part of a hostage deal collectively unfreezing at least $16 billion more to the regime.

Then October 7th happened — a mini-holocaust carried out by Iran’s proxy Hamas against its arch-nemesis Israel, underwritten with the money the Biden administration helped smuggle into the theocratic regime’s coffers.

The Biden administration never reversed course. The oil revenues to Iran continued flowing. The administration let a UN embargo on Iranian missiles lapse.

In early January it tipped off Iran to a coming attack around a ceremony commemorating assassinated terror mastermind Qassem Soleimani.  That is, the Biden administration passed valuable intel to the world’s leading state sponsor of jihad with the blood of hundreds of Americans on its hands having effectively been at war with us since 1979 – after its proxies’ jihadist activity against Americans had been exploding for months. 

Having strengthened Hezbollah through support of the Hezbollah-dominated Lebanese military and government, and pressured Israel into maritime and other deals advantageous to Hezbollah, the Biden administration insisted that Israel not eviscerate Hezbollah despite its provocations after October 7th. 

Iran’s other proxies again would dramatically intensify their attacks on the U.S. and our regional allies and partners in claimed solidarity with the Palestinians as Israel fought a defensive war against Iran-backed Hamas.

The Houthis would shut down the Red Sea, and the Biden administration would only muster pinprick strikes and a faux terror re-designation. Their strikes continue.

Only after an Iraqi Iranian proxy killed three American soldiers in Jordan, after more than 150 attacks from Iran’s proxies since 10-7 did the Biden administration take any action — telegraphing strikes on many non-critical targets, after giving Iranian proxies more than ample notice to flee. 

And then there’s Israel. In addition to trying to force Israel to end the war, free hundreds or thousands of terrorists in exchange for hostages, and provide aid that will resupply Hamas and see it — again Iran’s proxy — survive, the Biden administration is threatening to recognize what would be a Palestinian terror state.

It also imposed unprecedented and baseless sanctions on Israelis in Judea and Samaria that could extend to NGOs and even minister who support policies the Biden administration disapproves of that would threaten whatever “peace” plan it intends to impose on Israel vis-a-vis the Palestinian Arabs.

This should be understood to be part and parcel of the shadow Iran Deal — forcing Israel to concede to Iran’s proxy and threatening it with a terror state on its borders, protecting Hezbollah, while chilling and freezing those who would resist these policies all undermine Israel’s stability, security, and morale.

Israel poses the most serious threat to Iran’s nuclear ambitions, and the Iranian regime. Biden is working to neutralize that threat.

The pressure he has exerted on Israel that I’ve covered since day one to end this war on Biden’s terms can be understood as part of the shadow Iran deal – to protect the mullocracy.

As the Biden administration did in de-linking it from Hamas’ October 7th attack; and in its messaging that Iran’s proxies armed, funded, trained, and directed by Iran have somehow gone rogue in attacking the U.S. 

It fits with the logic to the asinine idea that if Israel is forced to lose a war that Iran’s proxy inflicted on it, then Iran’s other proxies will stop striking Israel and the U.S.

Congress needs to put the nail in the coffin of this deal. That will only happen if the American people awaken to it.

More from Ben Weingarten

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