Rubio Says Iran Regime at Its Weakest Point in Decades

Iran’s ruling clerics are facing a crisis unlike any they have confronted in generations, according to Secretary of State 👤Marco Rubio, who warned lawmakers that the Islamic Republic is buckling under economic collapse and mounting public anger.

According to the New York Post, while testifying Wednesday before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Rubio said Iran’s leaders are losing their grip as ordinary citizens increasingly turn against the regime for prioritizing weapons programs and foreign militant groups over basic needs at home.

“The core problem they face,” Rubio told senators, “unlike the protests you saw in the past on some other topics, don’t have a way to address the core complaints of the protesters, which is that their economy is in collapse.”

Rubio said the roots of that collapse are self-inflicted.

“The reason why their economy is in collapse is because they spend all their money and all their resources building weapons and sponsoring terrorist groups around the world, instead of reinvesting it back into their society — and as a result of taking on massive global sanctions, which has isolated their economy and their country,” he said.

President Donald Trump has sought to capitalize on what officials see as Tehran’s vulnerability. 

On Jan. 13, Trump announced sweeping penalties, including 25% tariffs on any country that continues doing business with Iran, after the regime killed thousands of protesters despite warnings from Washington.

“The new sanctions imposed on the Iranian regime are further proof that President Trump has a wide array of options at his disposal to address the situation in Iran,” a White House official said.