By The New York Post Editorial Board
Critics of the US bombing of Iran slam it as an unnecessary “war of choice” all too likely to bog our nation down in another quagmire like Iraq; Secretary of State Marco Rubio left no doubt Monday that it’s not in any way optional, and that President Donald Trump’s goals are clear, rational and limited.
The strikes, though extensive, are focused on a very well-defined goal: to deny Tehran a “conventional weapons” shield that it can “hide behind” while building nuclear bombs.
Such protection, explained Rubio, would make the cost (in lives and treasure) of using military force to keep it from getting nukes far higher than it is now — likely too high.
Without action now, there’d “come a time where they have so many drones” and missiles that could inflict “so much damage that no one can do anything about the nuclear program.”
Tehran would, in effect, be putting itself in “a place of immunity.”
And it was well on its way there: Rubio cited estimates of Iranian production at more than 100 missiles a month, far outpacing “the six or seven interceptors that can be built” — “not to mention thousands of one-way attack drones.”
To head that off, Operation Epic Fury’s “objective” is “the destruction” of [Iran’s] ballistic-missile launchers,” stockpiles and manufacturing capabilities, “as well as their one-way attack drones and their navy.”
That’s not just reasonable; it’s vital.
Critics claim the threat wasn’t imminent, yet special envoy Steve Witkoff reports that Iran’s negotiators last month boasted of already having enough uranium for 11 A-bombs that Tehran could enrich to weapons grade in 10 days.
“Imagine a year from now . . . the capabilities they would have to inflict damage on us,” warned Rubio. “It’s an unacceptable risk, especially in the hands of a regime” run by radicals driven by an “apocalyptic” theology.
He also spelled out again that regime-change is not the point of the mission, though “we would love to see a new regime”; “this is an opportunity” for Iranians themselves “to rise up and remove these leaders.”
What Epic Fury ensures is that whoever rules Iran won’t “have these ballistic missiles” and “drones to threaten us.”
One more thing: Antisemitic obsessives focused on a brief passage in Rubio’s remarks to claim that Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu dragged America into the war by saying he was about to strike Iran, forcing Trump to join in to minimize Iranian retaliation against US forces.
What nonsense: Trump has repeatedly forced Israel to call off attacks, and could’ve here.
As Rubio clarified Tuesday, Trump had already concluded that Iran was simply “playing” us in negotiations, and decided to attack because “there was no way in the world that this terroristic regime was going to get nuclear weapons, not under Donald Trump’s watch.”
Israel’s input affected the timing — after US intel spotted the chance to take out the ayatollah and most of his top commanders, “a unique opportunity to take joint action against this threat.”
Trump promised time after time not to let Iran go nuclear, just as he vowed no “forever wars”; Epic Fury delivers on both commitments.
We’re preventing Tehran from gaining the ability to strike us, by ensuring it won’t build a “weapons” shield that enables it to make ICBMS and nukes.
The goal is defined, limited and entirely Trumpian.
And striking now was the best option for achieving it; moving on once we’ve done it will be a tremendous success.
Operation Epic Fury is not at all optional — but IS clearly limited https://t.co/PVrTLflNeW pic.twitter.com/9DNBhBWCpa
— NY Post Opinion (@NYPostOpinion) March 3, 2026
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