America is not weak and we will not forget when our own are butchered overseas — two brave Iowa National Guardsmen and a U.S. interpreter paid the ultimate price in an ISIS ambush that shocked the nation and demanded a response. President Trump made it plain he would not allow these murders to go unanswered, and Americans from every corner expect our commander in chief to defend U.S. lives and honor.
The December 13 ambush in Palmyra that took Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar and Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, along with interpreter Ayad Mansoor Sakat, was a direct attack on American service and sacrifices; leaders brought their remains home in a dignified transfer that reminded the country of the human cost of our fight. Families and communities grieved while the message to terrorists had to be simple: strike Americans and you will face American steel.
In direct response, U.S. forces struck ISIS positions across Syria in a decisive set of strikes designed to degrade the terror network that murdered our troops — a necessary action to restore deterrence and protect troops on the ground. The strikes, part of an ongoing campaign, show what happens when America acts with purpose: terrorists lose safe havens and commanders lose the luxury of impunity.
At the same time, seasoned national-security voices like retired Vice Adm. Robert Harward have urged a broader, tougher strategy — from accelerating strikes on terrorist nodes to empowering protesters in Iran with secure communications and drawing up precise target lists of regime enforcers who crush dissent. Veterans and former commanders see clearly that a timid policy only invites more bloodshed and emboldens authoritarian killers abroad.
Now reports are surfacing that President Trump has been briefed on options regarding Iran as massive protests rock the Islamic Republic, with advisers laying out calibrated strike scenarios if Tehran escalates its violent repression. The Washington establishment and our allies are watching to see whether America will turn moral outrage into meaningful pressure that punishes the thugs who fire on their own people while sending a warning to Iran’s proxies across the region.
Make no mistake: Republicans and patriotic Americans should back decisive, measured action that protects U.S. personnel, supports freedom-loving Iranians, and tears at the foundations of a regime that exports terror. But prudence matters too — any use of force must be surgically precise to avoid giving Tehran propaganda victories and to safeguard American lives. The right course is to amplify pressure, use targeted military options where necessary, and rally our allies — because American strength and American resolve keep the peace for the world.
Congress and the American people must stand behind leaders who defend our sons and daughters and back policies that crush terrorists and support liberty abroad. Those who preach isolation while our flag is desecrated and our troops slain are not protecting America; they are endangering it. Now is the time for courage, unity, and clarity: we demand justice for the fallen, freedom for the oppressed, and a foreign policy rooted in strength, not apology.
