Author: Julie Ershadi

Secretary of State Mike R. Pompeo discussed the current administration’s Iran strategy during a speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California Sunday evening. His remarks reiterated White House talking points disparaging the Islamic Republic and defended President Donald J. Trump’s decision to withdraw from the multinational Iran nuclear deal.

Since Trump’s unilateral withdrawal from the JCPOA on May 8, his administration has declared a new strategy toward the Near Eastern country, including reinstated sanctions and a concerted messaging front directed toward the public, the media, and Iranian expats in particular.

This speech was part of that push to "erode support for Iran’s leaders," according to Reuters. Leading up to the Sunday evening remarks, Pompeo’s Twitter feed and the State Department’s ShareAmerica propaganda website have shared various graphics and articles denouncing the Islamic Republic and touting the liberties enjoyed by Iranians living in the United States.

Continue reading “Pompeo Seeks Iranian-American Support for Sanctions”

Someone just shoot me.

In between doing lines of ground kopi luwak and practicing visualization techniques that are supposed to keep me from slashing the tires of my enemies, I spent my afternoon today brushing up on some current legislation. One focal point was S. 532, a bill introduced by Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY). The bill would block the U.S. government from funding known terrorist groups abroad such as Al Qaeda, Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, ISIS, as well as any foreign governments known to have been funneling support to such groups. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) has introduced similar legislation in the House of Representatives. (Sometimes Members of both chambers get their shit together enough to introduce corresponding legislation simultaneously in order to speed up the deliberative process a little.)

Good on them and all that. It’s real nice, isn’t it? A little bipartisan, bicameral effort to stop The Bad Guys never hurt nobody, ain’t that the truth? Get a little friendly debate going, hash things out together, come to some kind of mutual understanding, maybe get a vote in that represents the Will of the People, whatever that is. Not a bad way to whittle away the days of one’s Congressional term, so full of marble hallways and private meeting rooms as they are.

Continue reading “Stop Arming Terrorists? Duh”