Know Your Enemy Trump's War Against Iran (w/ Matt Duss)
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Mar 6, 2026 
Matt Duss, executive vice president at the Center for International Policy and former foreign policy adviser to Bernie Sanders, provides expertise on U.S. strategy toward Iran. He walks through recent U.S. and Israeli strikes, Iran’s missile responses, and why the attacks happened now. The conversation also covers historical U.S.–Iran tensions, neoconservative Iran alarmism, and political dynamics pushing toward war.
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Israel's Main Concern Was Iran's Missile Rebuild
- Israel's urgency came from fear Iran was rapidly rebuilding ballistic missiles and related infrastructure, not an imminent nuclear weapon.
- Duss explains the June strikes revealed missile devastation in Israeli cities and that missiles are Iran's deterrent and retaliatory tool.
How The Islamic Republic Built Regional Leverage
- Iran's 1979 revolution produced a clerical-led state under Velayat-e Faqih with a Supreme Leader holding final authority.
- Duss traces Iran's regional strategy: unable to confront the U.S. directly, it built proxies like Hezbollah to create strategic depth.
The Washington Industry That Amplified The Iran Threat
- A Washington industry has long amplified Iran as an existential threat, led by figures like Michael Ledeen and think tanks.
- Duss argues this exaggeration turns a regional, capable-but-limited Iran into an apocalyptic enemy in U.S. discourse.
