JINSA President Michael Makovsky to Fox News: President Trump Must Rip the Band-Aid Off

Please note that Dr. Makovsky’s interview begins at the 20:55 mark.

President Donald Trump stated during a press conference on Wednesday, July 30, that “we’re going to hit [Iran] very hard,” yet in the following sentence also expressed his general hope for “an agreement, at some point.” His comments follow Iran’s latest attack on U.S. troops in the region, in which American servicemembers stationed in Jordan came under fire from Iran’s medium-range ballistic missiles.

Therein lies the entire problem that the United States is having, according to JINSA President and CEO Michael Makovsky, PhD. Dr. Makovsky, a former senior Pentagon official, said in a July 30 interview with Fox News Radio that “there’s a tension” between America achieving its objectives, on the one hand, and reaching an agreement with Iran on the other.

Since “the Iranians won’t abide by a deal anyway,” he stated, the best bet for U.S. leaders “is to escalate, rip the Band-Aid off, and take care of this” Iranian regime problem—one that has plagued and threatened America for decades.

In the interview, Dr. Makovsky also touched on the recent meeting in Washington between President Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu; the status of U.S. missile defenses; what factors will determine if Israel rejoins the war; the current strategic situation in the Gaza Strip; and more.