Recently President Donald Trump conceded that the war with Iran won't end until after the midterm elections, and that he expects gas prices will remain high until that time as well. Trump said the Iranians are deliberately stalling in order to try to affect the election outcome.
As it stands, the U.S. launched a major new wave of strikes on Iran on Sept. 1, hitting Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targets. Iran retaliated with missile and drone attacks against U.S. forces and bases in several Gulf countries, including Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Jordan and the UAE.
Iran, meanwhile, continues to threaten shipping around the Strait of Hormuz.
And the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen are getting into the action. The Houthis have launched a major offensive, and Reuters reports they have captured territory along Yemen's Red Sea coast, including strategically important areas near the Bab al-Mandab Strait.
Retired Navy Commander Kirk Lippold is the former commander of the USS Cole.
"I think that the resiliency of Iran has surprised not only the United States, but the world. Iran very clearly understands what is going on politically in the United States. They are going to try and get Iran to last through the midterms. Once the midterms are over, whether the Republicans keep or lose the House and or the Senate, President Trump is going to go after Iran like he's never done before."
And Lippold says those strikes will once again target IRGC leadership.
"They are going to begin to hit more infrastructure, and they are going to inflict more pain on Iran because that is the only way that government is going to be taken out. They do not understand negotiation. They do not understand reasoning. All the IRGC is interested in is plain raw power and destabilizing the region. Therefore, they must be eliminated, and the United States should exercise whatever tools they need to eliminate that threat. "
The former ship skipper says otherwise Iran could get a nuclear weapon.
"And then God help the world, because if they attempt to use it, I guarantee you, Israel will flatten Iran."
