They Can’t Beat Iran: Trump Officials Are DESPERATE – Macgregor

Summary

Jimmy Dore and Col. Douglas Macgregor discuss the United States’ approach to Iran and the broader consequences of its military interventions. Dore introduces remarks by Professor Mohammad Marandi, who argues that many people outside the West view the United States and its allies as aggressors. Marandi points to Yemen’s suffering and resistance to Saudi Arabia, and says Western narratives about “good” and “bad” actors conflict with how people elsewhere interpret events. He also refers to the effects of U.S.-backed wars and Western support for Saddam Hussein’s regime.

Macgregor agrees that the U.S. military presence often damages America’s standing. He says the United States is viewed more favorably in places where it has no troops, while its presence tends to breed resentment. He traces the post-Cold War drive for U.S. dominance to a strategy associated with Paul Wolfowitz: preventing any other power from challenging Washington’s global influence. In Macgregor’s view, the phrase “liberal rules-based international order” serves as a label for that pursuit of hegemony.

He argues that Trump’s reluctance to leave the war with Iran reflects a belief that withdrawal would make the United States look weak. Macgregor compares this to arguments made during the Vietnam War for prolonging the conflict to secure a face-saving exit. He contends that forcing Iran to submit is unrealistic.

Macgregor connects this strategy to U.S. actions in Serbia, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, and Libya, as well as growing tensions over Taiwan. He says successive administrations have largely continued the same policy despite changes in leadership and party. He concludes that efforts to contain the rise of other powers cannot succeed because the world has changed and become more multipolar, with China, Russia, and Iran gaining influence.

Presenters and Contributors

• Jimmy Dore — host
• Col. Douglas Macgregor — guest and commentator
• Professor Mohammad Marandi — quoted contributor