Mike Pompeo on Iran: ‘The Ayatollah, The IRGC, Theocrats Are Still in Charge; They Still Have the Power’

EXCERPT:

POMPEO: “A couple things. First, I think you have to know where the power lies. That foreign minister who made that statement may well soon be the former foreign minister, as a result of that. You talked about the fact they’re chasing people down inside the country. They are still, the Ayatollah, the IRGC, the theocrats are still in charge. They still have the power. They still have the guns on the ground. And they are inflicting harm on their own citizens, reminding them, don’t rise up, don’t do the necessary so that you and your children’s lives can be better. We’re still in charge. And so, we should listen to the people with power and the folks in power have shown no willingness to acknowledge not only the failures to defend their own country and the fact that the Israelis and Americans can fly over their country freely and that the Israelis have so clearly infiltrated their leadership apparatus. But they’re going to try and stay in power, just like these authoritarian regimes always do. And as a negotiator, you just need to understand that what the foreign minister said is interesting, but what the Ayatollah said is important.”