XPost: alt.i-think.therefore.i-dont.listen-to.cnn, alt.news-media, alt.journalism
XPost: alt.journalism

A CNN panel discussion got heated when the guests squared off over the
conflict between Israel and Iran û and the United StatesÆ involvement in that conflict ù specifically with regard to which of the parties involved, if any, had the ômoral authorityö to act.

Former independent presidential candidate Cornel West sparred with Republican commentator Scott Jennings and former Bush White House spokesman Pete Seat on the topic, and West claimed that neither the United States ù after President Donald Trump authorized the strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities ù nor
Israel had the ômoral authorityö to take action against Iran.

WATCH:

LetÆs be clear: thereÆs no moral equivalence between the US and
Israel vs. Iran. Anyone arguing otherwise is off their rocker.
pic.twitter.com/ldLbXaDO6r

ù Scott Jennings (@ScottJenningsKY) June 24, 2025

Seat defended TrumpÆs actions, arguing that the Iranian regime did not speak the language of diplomacy in the same way that other nations might.

ôThe Iranians do not speak the language of diplomacy unless force is used,
and that is what President Trump and the United States used this past weekend in a precision, perfection way,ö he explained.

West complained, ôItÆs illegal, unconstitutional.ö

ôIt is not illegal in any way, shape, or form!ö Seat pushed back.

West, whoÆd initially said it was unconstitutional, quickly moved the goalposts: ôOf course, it is a violation of international law. You canÆt violate national sovereignty of a country.ö

ôWhy? We do it all the time,ö Jennings weighed in then.

ôI know because America violates international law all the time,ö West
claimed.

ôWhoÆs gonna stop us?ö Jennings asked. ôWhoÆs gonna stop us?ö

ôYou would think morality ought to play some role,ö West commented.

ôYou think itÆs immoral to stop Iran from getting a nuclear weapon? WhoÆs the moral actor here, Iran or the United States?ö Jennings turned the question
back on West.

ôI think that any condition under which ù in terms of ensuring that we donÆt have nuclear bombs anywhere?ö West asked.

ôNo, in terms of ensuring these butchers donÆt have nuclear bombs that they have fully said that they will use on Israel and the United States,ö Jennings said, clearly referencing Iran. ôThereÆs no equivocation.ö

ôWeÆve got the United States, Israel, what theyÆve done in Gaza gives neither one of them moral authority,ö West claimed. ôThatÆs a genocide, thatÆs ethnic cleansing, Israel has no moral authority, United States has no moral authority.ö

West then turned to Jennings and demanded his ôChristian formulationö on how the United States or Israel were justified in their actions: ôWhere does the cross play a role, my brother? Where is the love? Where is the love for you, for Iranians, and for Palestinians and others?ö

ôWe donÆt live in a theocracy, but they do,ö Jennings shot back. ôAnd their theology is to get a nuclear weapon, destroy Israel, and destroy the Great Satan, which is the United States. Our government is based on one thing: national defense. And whatÆs in the best interest for our national defense is for these fanatics not to have a nuclear weapon where they can wipe us off
the map.ö

--
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