Medium - One year later: A snapshot of Iran's aggression

Op-Ed

By Rep. David Perdue

One year ago today, President Obama signed his nuclear deal with Iran.

President Obama's deal was based on a naïve view of Iran and its intentions. Iran has made it clear it wants America to fall and they are determined to wipe Israel off the face of the earth. Neither Obama's rhetoric nor the deal itself have changed that. The president's deal has also demonstrably failed to deter Iran's decades-long quest for nuclear weapons.

Here's a snapshot of Iran's consistent bad behavior over the last year:

365 days.

President Obama signed the Iran deal one year ago today.

4 days.

Four days later, Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei reaffirmed "Death to America" as a slogan of the entire Iranian nation.

89 days.

Eighty-nine days after the deal was signed, Iran violated multiple UN Security Council resolutions and successfully test fired its first precision-guided, long-range ballistic missile. Iranian Defense Minister Hossein Dehghan said, "We don't ask anyone's permission to enhance our defense power or missile capability and will firmly pursue our defense plans, particularly in the field of missiles."

7 ballistic missile tests.

The total number of ballistic missile test firings Iran has reportedly conducted since Obama signed the deal. The missiles launched in the third firing had the message, "Israel must be wiped off the face of the earth," emblazoned on them in Hebrew.

98 days.

Nine days after its first ballistic missile test, Iran began delivering weapons to the Assad regime in Syria via Russian cargo planes twice a day for 10 days.

10 Navy sailors.

Iran and captured and illegally detained 10 U.S. Navy sailors at gunpoint and broadcasted their surrender on Iranian television on January 12, 2016.

$1.7 billion.

Iran's 2017 budget instructed Iran's Central Bank to transfer $1.7 billion paid by the U.S. for a legal settlement into the Islamic Revolutionary Guard's military budget, effectively ensuring U.S. taxpayer dollars will fund Iran's military activity.

Over 100 attempts.

The number of times Iran attempted to procure illicit materials related to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction in 2015. Those reports also indicated those activities may have continued into this year.

Iran is a rogue regime and a primary driver of the global security crisis we face today. This deal has only emboldened their aggression, and we must stop giving them the benefit of the doubt right now.

America must recognize these harsh realities and swiftly punish Iran's illicit behavior.

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