The Iranian theocratic dictatorship is brutal, vicious, and murderous. It funds terrorist groups within the Middle East and around the world. It kills its own citizens for protesting the regime’s fraudulent elections and suppression of individual freedoms. And, if it had the means to do so, it would murder or enslave Jews for being Jews and then turn its attention to imposing its theocratic rule on millions of others. Ending its efforts to obtain nuclear weapons was both just and necessary. Any nation that could stop the Iranian regime from developing nuclear weapons would have a moral obligation to do so.
In a press conference the day after the US airstrikes on several sites in Iran, US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth emphasized that only the United States could have dealt such considerable damage to the Iranian uranium enrichment and nuclear weapons programs. In a limited sense, he is right about that, but only in the aspect of delivering massive 30,000-pound, ground-penetrating bombs precisely on target. The development of these weapons and their use could only be accomplished by a nation with the financial resources, technological knowledge, and the will to develop them. In this and in other situations, the United States remains the indispensable nation, which carries with it a burden of leadership that the United States must not shirk, both for its own good and the good of the world.
About two decades ago, then British Prime Minister Tony Blair addressed a joint session of the US Congress and spoke of the burden of leadership that had been placed on the shoulders of the United States, noting that at different times in history, other nations had borne that burden, some well, others not so well. National self-interest alone always proved insufficient to lead successfully, since leadership demands showing real concern for those being led and a willingness to lead by good example, which very often requires sacrifice. US leadership of the Allies in WWII required both close consultation with allies and a willingness to make sacrifices in order to defeat the Nazi regime that sought to destroy the foundations of Western Civilization and plunge the world, or at least all of Europe, into a new and very real Dark Age.
Most importantly, exercising leadership among nations requires moral authority more than power. Without moral authority, the exercise of power is tyranny. Developing massive bombs only to have more powerful ordnance is not exercising leadership; having the capacity to deliver those bombs precisely on target is not exercising leadership; severely damaging a weapons development program is not exercising leadership. Leadership comes from a willingness to accept the risks of failure, of asking or ordering others to risk their lives in a just cause, and of recognizing that the particular capabilities that one commands must be put at the service of others as well as your own citizens, that is, put at the service of the Common Good. And, it requires doing so while causing as little loss of innocent human life as possible within the circumstances of the necessary exercise of power.
(It is worth noting that President Trump has never shown enthusiasm for killing, especially of low-level personnel or of civilians. In his first term, he eschewed retaliation for the shooting down of a US Global Hawk but authorized the targeted assassination of Quds Force commander General Qassem Suleimani, who was directly responsible for the death of US persons. The recent US airstrike targeted facilities, not civilians.)
In the recent airstrikes on Iran, the power of the United States was wielded justly on behalf of the Common Good. This action rested on real, demonstrable moral authority. This action showed real leadership through the exercise of capabilities that others did not have to end a real and growing threat not only to one’s own citizens but to others. It’s for this reason that, when asked his opinion on the airstrikes, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz responded “There is no reason for us, or for me personally, to criticize what Israel started a week ago, nor is there any reason to criticise what America did last weekend … Yes, it is not without risk, but leaving it as it was wasn’t an option either.”
Will the current administration continue to exercise real leadership based on moral authority that obliges it to use its power to protect Americans and others? Will it seek to inspire the other nations that adhere to Western values—the rule of law, the dignity of all persons, governors chosen by the governed—to reanimate their respect for personal liberty and embrace fully their obligations to defend robustly Western civilization? We must hope that this action was not some one-off but reflects a real commitment to engagement with the world, to the exercise of US power based on the moral authority that comes from serving the Common Good.
