President Trump fired a warning shot across Iran’s bow on Wednesday, making it clear that the regime in Tehran has a choice: make a deal — or face the consequences. The main condition, delivered in classic Trump fashion, is simple and non-negotiable: NO NUCLEAR WEAPONS.
And, just in case anyone in Tehran missed the message, the president also reminded them that he’s more than willing to demonstrate what the “or else” looks like.
Iran should come to the table. The United States has plenty of ways to cripple their capabilities without putting a single boot on the ground — and frankly, that’s exactly how it should be handled. But if negotiations are going to mean anything, America shouldn’t stop at nuclear disarmament alone.
There are two additional conditions that must be on the table.
First: The mullahs must go.
Ayatollah Khamenei, in particular, has lost. His ideology has failed. His regime has failed. It took decades, but the moment has arrived. The era of theocratic rule by turbaned tyrants needs to end. If Vladimir Putin wants to give them asylum, fine. If Xi Jinping wants to take them in — doubtful, but fine. The only real requirement is that they are no longer running Iran.
Second: Real elections.
Not the staged theater the regime currently calls “voting,” but free, internationally monitored elections. Every adult Iranian citizen gets a ballot. And yes, citizen is the right word — because under the mullahs, Iranians aren’t citizens at all. They’re subjects.
If that process leads to Reza Pahlavi returning to Tehran as president of a new Iran, so be it. That decision belongs to the Iranian people, not unelected clerics hiding behind religious slogans.
The time for change in Iran is long overdue. The few images slipping out of the country since the regime cracked down on communications are horrifying. This is a brutal government that has spread violence far beyond its borders, propping up terror groups and exporting chaos to every corner of the Middle East.
A free Iran — a free Persia — should be prosperous, peaceful, and part of the modern world. But only the Iranian people can make that happen through real elections and real self-government.
The United States can, and should, support them.
And President Trump has made it clear: he’s offering Tehran a path forward — and reminding them that refusal comes with consequences. For a regime that has survived by bluff and bluster, that’s a message they can’t afford to ignore.
