For years, U.S. policy toward Iran has been built on a dangerous illusion: that the regime can be contained, negotiated with, or slowly moderated over time. It hasn’t and it won’t. Every delay, every concession, and every half-measure has only strengthened Tehran’s hand, bringing it closer to nuclear capability and deeper control over a network of regional proxies.

Washington is not managing the threat. It is watching it grow. Iran today sits at the center of instability across the Middle East. It arms and directs militias from Iraq to Lebanon, threatens global shipping lanes, and continues to expand its nuclear program. Roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil supply passes through the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint Tehran has repeatedly shown it is willing to disrupt. Yet despite the scale of the threat, U.S. strategy remains stuck in a cycle of temporary fixes and strategic hesitation. That approach has reached its limit.