Do you want to be an American idiot?
Got flown on seven hundred w DOW. So much going on, mass shooting in Cincinnati on early Sunday morning.
We also have the war in Iran right now.
The very latest three F fifteen shot down by Kuwaiti friendly fire. All kroumbers rescued there. Unfortunately, three service members are killed, five wounded in attacks on US basis. Pete Hegseth Sec Defense was just talking earlier this morning.
You heard their news.
US and Israeli forces launch massive strikes in Iran Saturday morning. It's Operation Epic Fury, and here we go again. One of the guys coming out in support of this, surprisingly as a Democrat, is Representative Greg Lansman on the show. Congressman, welcome, how are you.
I'm good.
I'm doing fine. Too much news and too much bad news at that. I mean, you know, I was young enough to remember seventy nine. Uh didn't know the you know, because I was a kid, but I remember hearing about that, going wow, we got hostages in the embassy. And here we are now in twenty twenty six and Iran Supreme Leader Ayatola coming was killed and a bunch of other
top officials as well. And so we have regime change underway and Iran, which generally were bad at you said you believe for decades the region would have peace without regime. This regime toppling the past administrations, including once you supported chose not to act militarily, and you're supporting this. So what change and why is now the right moment?
Greg Landsman, I've always thought that you had to stand up to Iran. Iran has caused enormous mayhem, chaos, violence, death. You know, Kamania is responsible for more death than been lauden by you know ten acts right, and at some point you have to stand up to this regime and say enough enough the mayhem and the bloodshed can't continue, and we want peace, we want in Middle East. And
you're seeing the golf other golf states jumping in. They want in Middle East without war, without this violence, without this chaos, without this mayhem mayhem, which has proved impossible with this regime.
Well, they're the largest sponsor of state terrorism and so if you cut that hat off, that's the idea here. They're in chaos right now. But you called this, I think you said this is the best outcome for national security. But the FBI is now elevated terrorism alert for US and Iranian proxies are targeting American bases across the Middle East. So how's that a good outcome for security.
Because it will hopefully lead to peace in the region. And ultimately, when this dies down, you know, you won't see this ongoing threat. You know, at some point again you had to deal with this, and you know, for too long, you know, there has been an attempt to just sort of contain the regime, which has not worked. And we've seen what they've done in Lebanon with Hesbela just up you know, completely upended that country and its
ability to govern itself. You've seen what they've done in Gaza with moss and and and the awful war it started, uh and you know, uh Yemen. I mean, the number of lags lost, you know because of the huties and
what Iran's done there is staggering. And then they killed you know, thousands, tens of thousands of their own people during you know, the protests a couple of weeks ago, right, And so my hope and what I support, to be very clear, is very targeted strikes on Iranian military assets, So get rid of their you know, their their their missiles, the rockets, any attempt at achieving a nuke uh and
uh and you know the high command. Uh. However, if this is going to be a protracted war, you know, regime change in the sense that you send boots on the ground is not a good idea. And my hope is that the administration is not doing that, it's not preparing to do that that. Ultimately, this is on the Iranian people to sort out. And there's an inside game obviously with the Supreme leader gone, to sort out who's going to run the country. That could lead to somebody
who will work with the world. The Iatola refused to work with the world. Now they're diminished or depleted or destroyed military capabilities does mean that the chaos blend, that mayhem should end. That's what I support a protracted military operation. The President would need to come to the United States Congress, make his case and get the support, get the funding. I wish he's not done yet.
Yeah.
Congressman Greg Landsman from Washington this morning on seven hundred WLW with the latest on what's happening with Iran. He is backing it bright with a lot of Democrats on this, your colleagues on the left as well as MAGA Republicans too, are against this thing. And you know we mentioned is
this the right moment? I would say, you know, student uprising and the level of people number killed and incarcerated because of that uprising, as well as the fact that you know, let's face it, there's few and few people alive today that remember what life was like in Iran pre nineteen seventy nine. And I think there's an opportunity here that's waning. As opposed to just looking at something in the history book, you have people said, no, it
was much better. We're democratized, women were going to university and we're free, and that's what the glory days were like. And we've seen generations that were just raised on oppression. And so I think in that context with the student uprising, I really think that that was the catalyst for this to happen.
Agree, Yeah, I mean, you know the fact that they went and it wasn't just a crackdown. They murdered, Yes, you know, tens of thousands of people in the courts of a cup days. And you know, if the world just sits back and says we're not going to do anything. We're gonna We're gonna let them continue to not just oppressed, but murder their own people and fun terrorism all over the region. That's the problem. I mean, what does that say about us? Yes, this is a very hard decision.
This is uh, you know, a very difficult moment, and and people are are nervous, scared, frustrated. I get that. I do think though, that you you have to uh take these moments and and do what you think is best. And in this case, I think the military and I trust the generals, I trust our allies are saying this is a moment to end the the the chaos of this regime, and uh, you know, I I hope that is what ultimately happens. I would like to understand to
be clear what the full plan is. We get a briefing classify briefing by partisan briefing on Tuesday, and that will be very important and uh and I think the administration the present needs to say this is what will happen. Now it has not been as clear as it needs to be that in fact, what we're doing is destroying their ability to destroy right there. We're going after the bombs and the missiles, and and and they are military infrastructure. Uh.
And here's how we believe this will end. That is that is something that the American people need to hear. The United States Congress needs to hear and and and Congress does have a a big role. We declare war, we have to fund it. And so if this is anything more than targeted military strikes, they have to come to the United sound Greig.
Glennes, Do you think that Trump and the administration had the constitutional authority to do just that without getting a war declaration?
Yeah. So the loss as that, you know, the administration, the president can can engage for up to sixty days without you know, before getting a vote on Congress. If it goes beyond that, he needs a vote. And I agree with that. You know, they can't. They can't operate outside the constitution. We are a constitutional democracy and and you know, going after this repressive, you know, destructive, violent
regime is I think the right move. Working within the constitutional democracy and going to Congress is also the right call. I would do that if it were me, I would be in front of Congress making the case, making the case united the American people and getting the support I need. I would be doing both. He needs to do both.
Should we have done that one in Venezuela.
I don't think most people care about that now in hindsight too or is that different?
You know, Venezuela is uh I thought a award choice. I don't think this is a ward choice, I think or military action of choice, right, you know, I know he wanted to get a dureau he got Maduro. It is an incredible thing what the military did, There's no question. But nobody thought Venezuela was posing a threat to the United States of America militarily. There was obviously drugs and other things that needed to be dealt with, and and you know, I am all about you know, getting the
Sentinel and all this stuff out of this country. Iran has obviously presented a grave threat to the region and to the world for decades. There's no question about that. And no one's arguing that this is not this is not something that you know, that we could continue to avoid. But I thought the the you know, going after Venezuela the way he did it was not the right mor you know, do you think what.
I'll giving them too much credit here, Greg Lansman, do you think it was pre contextual in that it's like, well, if we get at Venezuela, get maduor out of part of that, that helps. But also, we have a supply of oil now and we're bringing the oil over, and now we go in week top we tuple Iran, and
it just so happens. This is months after we've got a steady supply of oil coming in the United States for Venezuela, because we know the straight of Horror Moves is going to be closed off and gas prices are going to go out.
Now.
I don't know if they offset each other or what the you know, I'm not smart enough to be able to figure that out. But if you believe in pre contextual things and plans and plots and conspiracies, those two things sure fit together.
I do believe that the Venezuela was but oil, which I don't like and most Americans don't like don't go to work for oil. I do not believe that one was done to set up the other. I think Iran has been a big question for every president as to whether or not you can and negotiating and and and does diplomacy work or do you have to finally, uh, you know, fight back, and I believe Iran responds to strength. You know that they they they they they don't want
what's happening right now. Uh, they want to continue to sort of I think occuscate and and and build out their capacity to continue to terrorize the region and ultimately go after the United States. That's there to uh yeah, you so they they they're they're not you know, uh, they may be shady about how they build their stuff, but they're not uh you know, shady about what they're intented.
They're intended to kill us. So look, I I think this is uh, you know, the right move in the sense that you know, we're finally standing up to this brutal regime and the goal has to not about anything other than peace. I mean, I really do believe that like this is this is a moment in history where the Middle East could fundamentally be transformed. And you look at Saudi Arabia and Bahrain and the UAE and others, and they're saying, look, we're trying to participate in the world.
We're trying to bring the world here. We can't have you know, war and chaos and violence and terrorism. And we're saying, yeah, we agree we want to be part of a renewed, transformed Middle East.
In that regard, and there's no transition plan here, there's no nation building framework.
You know, we'd be headed. We took the head off the beast, but.
Our diplomatic relations with Iran have not been existing since what nineteen eighty? All right, so we do this for a few weeks the bomb stopped falling. We're really bad at nation building. We're really bad at regime change. Greg, how does that change this summer? And does it?
Well, that's yeah, and that would into my position. I mean that that was never anything I've supported. I mean, I you know, the for me is, you know, continue to undermine its ability to cause violence and mayhem and and and and war. Right, So go after, you know, to completely destroy their ability to uh, you know, to mess with others in the region. I mean, cut off their lines to these terrace networks, uh, destroyed the ballistic missiles,
their their their capabilities around a nuke, et cetera. And you know, now that the aetolia is gone, there is a there is a mechanism within the you know, Iranian regime to elect a new supreme leader. It's it's three it's three people, as I understand it, who now convened the council, and they will decide. Now what happens there, uh, you know, could lead to some change where we now have have somebody in charge that we can work with.
You are right that putting troops on the ground and and and doing nation building is a mistake that I would never support. Continuing to go after these military assets until they're gone, uh, and then pulling back and seeing if we have a chance at peace, to me, is the right the right move.
Okay, But some of the insiders say, well, what the regime is going to look like is far worse than we have with the COMNI because in that environment we have totalitarianism. Uh, it's all the generals, it's all the military, the autocrats. They take over power and you wind up with a worse leadership role in Iran than you did before because it's all going to be about getting back to the United States and Israel and all the nations that that led the war in Iran.
That's the danger there.
We've seen it before, we'll see it again, probably Afghanistan, the latest version of that.
Yeah, I don't know, we'll see it here, you know, the fact is that, uh, you know, they will have very little hopefully at the end of this uh limited operation. Uh. And it's hard to imagine anyone being worse than in the ietolah than a theocracy. This is a This is a guy that believes that he is uh believed that he was sent by God to destroy those who were were not like him. And so it doesn't get much more dangerous than that.
M Greg Landsman, your face and voters in the district. Polling is pretty broad. And we're also very skeptical on military intervention at this thing. There's a political consequence there for you, and and also point out that oil prices presumably, well they're going to go up here. We don't know how high, but they are going up starting today probably if not sooner it did, And and people already you
know stretched. Then is there fear that politically speaking, they turn around to blame Trump, but they also blame you, going, well, you supported the war and now I've got to pay for four dollars a gallon plus?
Is there an implication there?
There may be. I mean I think that you know, you you've got to always do what you think is right. As corny as that may sound. I do believe like, if you believe that something is right, you got to say it and you got to act on it, period, regardless of the consequences and politically, and so you know, I think in the end, because this is not the first time I've I've sort of bucked the party or I've done, you know, something that wasn't necessarily at first,
it's something people agreed with. People do appreciate not everyone, but but a lot of people do appreciate the fact that they can trust that that I'm leading with conviction, that I'm I'm I'm doing what I believe is right, that I'm not playing politics, and in this day and age, that's a rarity. I think people do like the fact that you know, hey, this is an independent guy who does does what he thinks he thinks is right and
takes tough positions. He takes you know, he makes the tough calls like that's leadership, and uh, you know, I think ultimately that's where folks will be. But you know, I can't, I can't work through that calculation in something like this. It's either you know, is it something I would have done? I would have done targeted strength, I would have intervened and said enough is enough. Now He's
going to lose me. To be clear, that's fun. He's gonna lose me if he keeps if he keeps at this and and and continues to talk about regime change and continues to do so without Congress, he will lose me. And and quite frankly, you know, I don't trust Trump.
I don't. I don't trust him. However, I trust the generals, uh and and I trust our military, and I trust our allies, and so you know, my hope is that this is limited, that they go in you know, over the course of several days, hopefully not weeks days, and they they destroy the regime's ability to continue to destroy lives. Yeah, that's what That's what I want.
That's the hope there. What real quick, what role does Congress have in a new regime there? Or what what should the framework be for you guys in the legislature, Well.
The United States Congress have to be involved in this. You know, I was glad that the administration resumed this, you know, the process of informing congressional leaders Democrats and Republicans. They did not do that with the Venezuela. Their argument was it was it was so you know, top secret, and they thought that somebody would lead and blah blah blah blah. This is not the same thing. They have to stay fully engaged with us. I'm glad that there
is a full Congressional classified briefing on Tuesday. Uh. And I do think Congress has to send a message to the president. Look, you have got to work with us. You have got to come here and and participate in this constitutional democracy, which says we make this call too. So you know, there is this war Powers resolution. You know, on one hand, it sends the message, hey, you got
to work with us. On the other hand, it says, you know, it says, look, you got to you know, yes, you got to pull out the assect out of the region. I think that's a mistake. But I do think sending that message you have to get a yes from us is very important. All Right.
He is a Congressman, Greg landsman from here in Cincinnati, waiting to get word from the White House at some point and their role in regime change and this will continue and hopefully, you know, this is maybe one.
We get right.
I'm a little leary, I'm a little nervous about regime chant without a plan, and we don't have a plan right now. You got three I think a body of three individual to decide who the new Supreme Leader is. Hopefully that won't matter. Greg all the best, thanks again, be well, Thanks running late as always. Here we'll get a news update and we'll switch it up. Julie H's here. It's mental health Monday. Next on the show, talk about
the death of Romance. The death is Romance Dead. We'll discuss coming up on seven hundred Deputy with the