Cole Interview – Podcast March 8, 2026

Trying To Understand The Iran War. Steve Williamson, Karen McClelland and Gary LaMaster welcome Juan Cole for our final radio broadcast to discuss the Trump regime’s attack on Iran. (After nearly 15 years on KAZM-AM in Sedona, we will be moving to podcast only in the near future.) Cole is the Richard P. Mitchell Distinguished University Professor of History at the University of Michigan, author of numerous books, and author of Informed Comment weblog.

When asked for his thoughts on the Iran War, Cole explains, “Well, there’s a lot of destruction going on, but it’s not clear where it’s going because the Trump administration never has laid out its rationale for the war. We don’t know what the goal is – what they’re trying to achieve. There was some talk about regime change, but that doesn’t seem to be very likely. Bombing people from the air doesn’t usually change their government by itself.” On the other hand, he adds, “The Israelis are clear on what they want.”

As for the future of the war, Cole says, “I think the calculus has to be from the point of view of the American public. Is this what you want to spend more billions of dollars on? We already are deeply in debt. Our debt exceeds now our GDP by several trillion dollars. It’s a danger to our economy, to the status of the dollar as a reserve currency.”