Erick-Woods Erickson
When the Iranian revolution happened in 1979, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard stormed into the US Embassy and took a bunch of Americans hostage. Some Americans were killed, some escaped, and others were released through a series of protracted negotiations. The release happened on the day that President Ronald Reagan was inaugurated and spawned countless conspiracy theories on the left. A Democratic-led congressional investigation commenced and was approved by none other than Senator Joseph Robinette Biden.
The investigation centered on a conspiratorial claim that Ronald Reagan had his running mate and former CIA Director fly on an SR71 Blackbird to secretly negotiate the release to coincide with inauguration day and return to the campaign trail before anyone noticed he was gone. Despite an abundance of evidence suggesting the theory had no factual basis, Democrats pressed the investigation until it was ultimately disproven.
It is no surprise to me that Joe Biden is pressing this week for the release of the Israeli hostages. Antony Blinken is in Israel with President Herzog and issued his strongest statements yet about the urgency of the hostage release. President Biden understands that if the hostages are released this week, not only will it help Kamala Harris in the polls but it will preserve his legacy in the final five months of his administration.
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