Mike Waltz Throws Down the Gauntlet on Iran's Nuclear Program, Threatens 'Consequences'

National Security Advisor Mike Waltz appeared on CBS’ “Face the Nation” Sunday and had some tough talk for Iran: it’s time to quit your nuclear program, mullahs.

Host Margaret Brennan, who as our Mike Miller reported was thoroughly humiliated last Sunday by Secretary of State Marco Rubio for her uneducated questions, was once again behind the table. She tries to hide her sneer when talking to Republicans but isn’t always effective at it:

MARGARET BRENNAN: So the president said he's going to hold Iran responsible as well. Envoy Steve Witkoff said in an interview that Iran had responded to this U.S. outreach via multiple channels. In regard to a letter sent by the president, Witkoff described it as an offer to Iran to "create a verification program so [that] nobody worries about weaponization of [your] nuclear material." Can you clarify? Is the U.S. seeking the dismantlement of Iran's nuclear program, or verification, like what President Obama put in place back in 2015 and President Trump pulled out of? [You mean, the disastrous deal that gave billions to the regime and did little to stop their nuclear program? That one, Margaret?]
MIKE WALTZ: Full dismantlement. Iran has to give up its program in a way that the entire world can see. And this is- look--
MARGARET BRENNAN: Have they said they're interested?
MIKE WALTZ: --as President- as President Trump has said, this is coming to a head. All options are on the table, and it is time for Iran to walk away completely from its desire to have a nuclear- nuclear weapon. That- and they will not, and cannot be allowed to have a nuclear weapons program.

Watch (the Iran segment starts at about the 1:46 mark):

"It's time for Iran to walk away completely from its desire to have a nuclear weapon," says White House National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, telling @margbrennan the Trump administration is seeking the "full dismantlement" of Iran's nuclear program.

"Iran has to give up its… pic.twitter.com/WVofx4gnuN
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) March 23, 2025

"Iran has to give up its program in a way that the entire world can see," Waltz says.

OUCH! Rubio Obliterates CBS Host Margaret Brennan on Free Speech: 'You Should Watch the News'

Of course, Brennan chose that moment to interrupt, and there was plenty of crosstalk, but finally Waltz was able to speak:

We've seen the death and destruction that they're doing through its proxies, between Hezbollah, the Assad regime, the Houthis, and what have you. If they had nuclear weapons, the entire Middle East would explode in an arms race. That is completely unacceptable to our national security. I won't get into what the back and forth has been, but Iran is in the worst place it has been, from its own national security, since 1979, thanks to Hezbollah, Hamas, the Assad regime, and its own air defenses being taken out by the Israelis.

Brennan, however, wasn’t interested in tough talk; she kept asking if there were diplomatic efforts ongoing. As if talking to the mullahs like reasonable adults was going to lead anywhere. Waltz:

MIKE WALTZ: Well, of course... [Don't you think he really wanted so say, "Duh!"]

I mean, the President has all options on the table. But we want to be clear, this isn't some kind of, you know, kind of tit for tat that we had under the Obama administration, or Biden. This is the full program.

Give it up, or there will be consequences.

The Iran problem obviously won’t be solved quickly or easily, but peace through strength is the only option when dealing with the Islamic Republic. We’ve seen what happens when we free up billions of dollars for them to finance terrorists like the Houthis, and it’s not good. Waltz is right: strength is the option here.

The Biden and Obama regimes appeased the mullahs of Iran and were dangerously ineffective in their dealings with the Islamic Republic. Help us keep reporting on how Team Trump is taking a very different approach—and is not handing them billions of dollars.

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