Challenger Ayad Allawi's razor-thin victory is a triumph for the U.S. and for secularism, writes Raymond Tanter, because only Allawi can form an Iraqi government free of meddling from Iran.
Professor Raymond Tanter is a former member of the National Security Council staff, personal representative of the secretary of defense in the Reagan administration (1981-84), and president of the Iran Policy Committee since 2005. His latest book is President Obama and Iraq: Toward a Responsible Troop Drawdown.
In the weeks after Iraqi troops stormed a camp of Iranian exiles, signaling a shift away from the U.S., Raymond Tanter says Washington is making a big mistake by not taking the dissident group off its terrorist list.
President Obama's no drama Iran mantra won't work, says former Reagan National Security Council member Raymond Tanter. He should skip over Mir Hossein Mousavi and instead back parties that are actually willing to overthrow the supreme leader.