Top Republican to Iranian People: The Time for Regime Overthrow Is Now

Texas GOP Rep. Michael McCaul spoke out after Israel’s early Friday morning attack on Iran and said that now that many of the Islamic Republic’s leaders are no longer with us, it’s the perfect time for the people to overthrow the despotic and immensely unpopular regime.

"Now that their top leadership has been taken out, if there's ever a time for the people to rise up against this theocracy, I would think the conditions are set," Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, told Fox News Digital on Friday.
McCaul was part of a group of lawmakers in the Middle East late last month. Part of that trip was in Israel, where the congressional delegation met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and others.

Opportunities don’t come along like this very often, the senior lawmaker said.

"I think this is the perfect opportunity – it would have been better if, I don't know what level of coordination took place, but I mean, when an event like this happens – to have this theocracy that's in power, out of power, and liberate the people of Iran," McCaul said. "The majority do not like the Ayatollah. There's a real opportunity for that to just end."

He also took a hard line on social media:

President Trump gave Iran every chance to negotiate in good faith and to dismantle their nuclear program.

Prime Minister Netanyahu was also clear: The alternative to diplomacy would be strikes on Iran — a message he reiterated to me when I met with him this month. Unfortunately,…
— Michael McCaul (@RepMcCaul) June 13, 2025

Prime Minister Netanyahu was also clear: The alternative to diplomacy would be strikes on Iran — a message he reiterated to me when I met with him this month. Unfortunately, the regime chose not to take the path of peace — to prioritize their own interests over their people’s.

New: Israeli Strikes on Iran Much Larger Than Initially Thought, Stunning Details Emerging

Iran is currently launching counterstrikes against the Jewish state as of this writing, following Israel’s devastating aerial assault on their nuclear facilities and top military commanders. McCaul had a stern warning to those leaders still breathing in Iran and told them they’d regret it if they mess with America:

One thing is certain: Iran will not acquire a nuclear weapon, and our world is safer for it. The regime would be wise to come to the table and make an agreement with President Trump while the offer still stands. If they instead choose to harm U.S. troops in the region, they will…
— Michael McCaul (@RepMcCaul) June 13, 2025

If they instead choose to harm U.S. troops in the region, they will regret it.

McCaul also said he was not surprised by Israel’s attack, the signs were there:

While in Israel last month, McCaul said he asked Netanyahu about reports that Iran was preparing a nuclear strike.
"And he said, ‘If you don’t fight, you die,' He said that several times in the context of striking Iran," McCaul said. "He said that, ‘I will strike Iran with or without you.'"
[...]
Indeed, President Donald Trump told Fox News Channel's chief political anchor Bret Baier on Thursday he had prior knowledge that Israel was going to conduct pre-emptive strikes on Iran.
"Iran cannot have a nuclear bomb, and we are hoping to get back to the negotiating table. We will see. There are several people in leadership in Iran that will not be coming back," Trump said.

While seeing the mullahs overthrown and tossed into the dustbin of history would be an extremely satisfying outcome, there's not necessarily a high probability of that happening. They have shown no compunction about cracking down on their own people when they are threatened. At least this time, if the people spoke, they'd have a U.S. president not named Barack Obama who would likely have their backs.

RedState will continue to keep you updated as this conflict unfolds.

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