2/8/2019

IRAN/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “When Iran uses the slogan ‘Death to America,’ the country’s supreme leader said on Friday, it is specifically wishing death on President Trump and two of his senior officials…Ayatollah Khamenei has reflected on the phrase repeatedly as Iran prepares to commemorate the 40th anniversary of its Islamic revolution, and engages in an increasingly bitter standoff with the Trump administration. The United States has withdrawn from a nuclear accord with Iran, reimposed economic sanctions on the country, and stepped up measures designed to pressure and perhaps to change its leadership…Mr. Pompeo has led efforts to increase pressure on Iran, and recently met with an opposition figure, Masih Alinejad. In 2017, before his appointment to the Trump administration, Mr. Bolton spoke to an armed Iranian opposition group and predicted that the Islamic republic would collapse.”

Thomas Erdbrink, “‘Death to America’ Means ‘Death to Trump,’ Iran’s Supreme Leader Says,” The New York Times online, February 8, 2019