Dissecting the Iran Memo

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Diplomacy's at a standstill, so President Obama is pushing for UN sanctions to prevent Iran from learning how to build an atomic bomb. What if that doesn't work? In a secret three-page memo leaked to the New York Times, Defense Secretary Robert Gates himself says there is no plan, no effective long-range policy. Would sanctions impacting the whole population turn Iranians against their Islamic leaders? Are there other ways to accomplish regime change? If the US can't take military action, what about Israel? Is there any realistic alternative to living with an Iran that has mastered nuclear technology?

Credits

Guests:

  • David Sanger - Pulitzer Prize-winning White House and national security correspondent for the New York Times, author of “New Cold Wars: China’s Rise, Russia’s Invasion, and America’s Struggle to Defend The West” - @SangerNYT
  • Tony Karon - Time magazine - @TonyKaron
  • Michael Rubin - American Enterprise Institute - @mrubin1971
  • Trita Parsi - Executive Vice President of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft - @tparsi

Host:

Warren Olney