Why No President Before Trump Authorized War With Iran

For nearly a half-century, U.S. leaders, and perhaps Americans themselves, have viewed Iran as the “ultimate rogue.” Tehran’s unchanging anti-American ideology combined with a religiously dogmatic leadership have set it apart in the American imagination from other difficult enemies. Just two weeks before U.S. President Donald Trump launched the current war against Iran, Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed a long-standing view of the regime’s leaders, arguing: “These people make policy decisions on the basis of pure theology. That’s how they make their decisions. So it’s hard to do a deal with Iran.” The rhetoric was such a staple of…