Energy independence supports our foreign-policy imperatives in the Middle East.
By FRED ZEIDMAN & HAROLD HAMM
November 2, 2018 6:30 AM
Yet again, we have witnessed a heinous display of the anti-Semitism that has plagued the Jewish community throughout history. America cannot sit silently and allow anti-Semitism to prevail, be it domestically or internationally. While the act of terror in Pittsburgh was that of a domestic white supremacist, anti-Semitism remains a global issue. Iran perpetuates the virulent rhetoric that has fueled this global scourge, and its rogue actions pose a threat to the United States and its allies.
Anti-Semitism is not solely a Jewish issue or an Israeli issue. It is also an American issue. America must hold Iran accountable for its bad behavior. Iran must pay for its constant attempts to destabilize the Middle East. Its nuclear ambitions, its proxy wars in Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen, and its financing of terrorism through groups such as Hezbollah and Hamas are a threat to the entire region.
Before the American energy renaissance, any suggestion of upheaval in the Middle East sent oil prices skyrocketing. Sanctions against a leading oil producer such as Iran were guaranteed to add several dollars to the global price of crude.
Times have changed. The Trump administration’s looming imposition of sanctions against Iran has hardly caused a financial ripple in the oil market. Fortunately, this November, America will reinstate oil sanctions on Iran and thereby diminish Tehran’s ability to fund its hegemonic goals and impose its extremist ideology. The sanctions facing Iran are warranted, given its position as the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism. Iran continues to incite violence against the United States, Israel, and other countries while repressing its own citizens.
The United States will no longer be held hostage to rogue states. Because of increases in U.S. oil-production capacity, the decision to enforce and augment the sanctions will not be as disruptive to oil markets as it would have been in the past. America’s status as a geopolitical powerhouse is enhanced as it grows into an energy exporter.