The Iran war started under Biden, not Trump. Joe said ‘don’t,’ and Tehran did
By Burak Oktenli
Published July 22, 2026 9:00am ET
As the costs of the Iran campaign mount and Congress fights over a bill to cover them, a familiar question is circulating in Washington: Did this war have to happen? It is the right question aimed at the wrong date.
The honest ledger on this conflict does not open on Feb. 28, 2026, when the first Tomahawks flew. It opens on the night of April 13, 2024, when Iran fired more than 300 drones and missiles at a U.S. ally after an American warning, and paid no price for it.
Recall the sequence, because deterrence theory turns on exactly this kind of memory. Days before the attack, asked for his message to Iran, former President Joe Biden answered, “Don’t.” Iran did. By the Israeli military’s count, roughly 170 drones, more than 30 cruise missiles, and over 120 ballistic missiles came that night, the first direct Iranian attack on Israel in history. The interception was a triumph: American, Israeli, and allied systems knocked down about 99% of the barrage. As a demonstration of capability, it was flawless. As a demonstration of will, what followed undercut it.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/op-eds/4656537/iran-war-started-under-biden-not-trump/#google_vignette
