WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) today joined Fox Business to express his position on the Iranian attack against an American Drone.
“I think we have to recognize, if you will, these are death throes of a dying regime,” said Dr. Cassidy in the interview. “It is intensely provocative but think about what the Ayatollahs want. Their country—their support in the country is falling apart. They would like nothing better than to unite the Iranian people behind their old trope that the Great Satan is coming after us. If we keep that pressure upon them and they lose the support of the Iranian people, they will be disposed of, and that’s a great way to win a war.”
A full transcript of the interview is below:
Varney: Senator Bill Cassidy is with us, very opportune appearance Mr. Senator, Republican from Louisiana. So what should we do? Should we do nothing and let them sweat for a bit or go get em’? What do you think?
Cassidy: Yeah I think we have to recognize, if you will, these are death throes of a dying regime. I think the Iranians would like nothing more for us to attack and them then being able to unite their people behind a theocracy which no longer represents the people. If we continue the pressure that we have, both the sanctions, their inability to import technology therefore to maintain their oil and gas fields, they continue to mismanage their economy, the civil unrest will continue and the Iranian people will decapitate their regime. We don’t need to. We just need to set the stage so the Iranian people do.
Varney: But the counterargument is, “we have made a threat that we would retaliate if they do it again. Well they’ve done it again. If we do nothing, they’ll think we got away– they got away with it.”
Cassidy: There’s much that we can do. In terms of further decreasing the amount of goods that they can bring in—either because we restrict their access to financial networks or we just outright blockade them. But we have the ability, without sending our young men and women in harm’s way or without spending a trillion dollars, to put pressure upon them in which the Iranian people arise and are more likely to take out a bunch of corrupt theocrats.
Varney: Do you think your view is prevalent in the Senate?
Cassidy: I don’t think that—I’ve not spoken to colleagues. So I think my view though is the reasoned view. And I think it is understood that when you have, the people in the countryside plus the people in the—the students as well as the urban population are reeling under skyrocketing inflation, shortages of goods, mismanagement of their economy, understanding that the people in charge are looking out for themselves not for the people. I think we’ve set a stage for the Iranian people to cast that off.
Varney: I don’t want to keep going at this but it was extremely provocative. This was a global hawk. It’s the size of a commercial jetliner. It can hover over one area for thirty hours at a stretch. It can surveil two thousand square miles of territory. That’s a very important military asset and the Iranians took it out. I gotta come back at this Mr. Senator, because to take that thing out, at the cost of $180 million each, that is intensely provocative, and technically it’s an act of war.
Cassidy: It is intensely provocative, but think about what the Ayatollahs want. Their country, their support in the country is falling apart. They would like nothing better than to unite the Iranian people behind their old trope that the Great Satan is coming after us. If we keep that pressure upon them and they lose the support of the Iranian people, they will be disposed of, and that’s a great way to win a war.
Varney: Again I’m gonna come at this, Reuters is now reporting that John Bolton, national security advisor, will go to Israel next week. Now, that’s a raw report that we’re just getting but it could be aligned with this “going after Iran.” In other words, maybe there is a delay before we do something until John Bolton is over there. I’m speculating here. What do you think?
Cassidy: I don’t think John Bolton has to go to Israel for us to cooperate with the Israelis in terms of intense pressure upon the Iranian regime. And I stress the regime not the people. The Iranian people are a good people. It is the Iranian regime which has hurt both their people as well as others. We keep the pressure on that regime, that regime will go away. That’s the best response to what we’re doing.
Varney: Mr. Senator, thank you very much for appearing with us today and I did want to talk about medical bills but there’s all kinds of stuff happening today, and I appreciate your forbearance. Thanks for being on the show.
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