Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) blamed President Joe Biden this week for the Iranian-backed terrorist attack in the Middle East over the weekend that resulted in the deaths of three U.S. soldiers. More than 30 soldiers were injured in the attack‚ U.S. officials said on Sunday‚ adding that they were positive that the attack was “carried out by radical Iran-backed militant groups operating in Syria and Iraq.” Cruz responded to the attack during the most recent episode of his “Verdict” podcast with co-host Ben Ferguson‚ saying that Biden’s “national security failures‚ his weakness‚ his appeasement” produced the attack. “We’ve talked a lot in this podcast about the 13 servicemen and women murdered in Afghanistan‚ again‚ because of Joe Biden’s weakness. And understand‚ there have been over 170 attacks by Iranian proxies on US troops‚” Cruz said. “Iran is waging war on the administration‚ on America‚ on our servicemen and women. And Joe Biden is so utterly weak‚ he doesn’t do a damn thing about it.” “Not only is he too weak to respond with force‚ but even worse than that‚ Biden funded this‚” Cruz continued. “Understand Joe Biden is responsible for flowing roughly $100 billion to the Iranian regime to the Ayatollah‚ to the mullahs. That is funding these attacks. The October 7th attack on Israel‚ murdered over 1‚200 Israelis was among the worst terror attacks in the history of the United States with the Americans who were murdered. Joe Biden‚ in a very real sense‚ funded that as well.” Cruz noted that the Trump administration brought Iran to its knees with crippling sanctions by cutting off their oil exports to only a couple hundred thousand barrels a day or less. “And Joe Biden came in he flowed $10 billion to Iran‚ he floats $6 billion to Iran‚” he said. “And he stopped enforcing the oil sanctions that ended up flowing $80 billion to Iran. Today‚ Iran is selling 2 million barrels a day of oil. These rockets‚ these drone attacks that just killed three servicemen and women‚ Joe Biden‚ in a very real sense funded them. Because when you send $100 billion to a theocratic lunatic who screams ‘Death to America and Death to Israel’‚ you know what happens? They actually follow through on that.” Cruz said that Biden is so weak that more Americans are likely to be killed because Biden “will allow Americans to be killed and will not respond.” WATCH:

President Joe Biden and his administration are being accused of telegraphing their alleged forthcoming punches against Iran and its terrorist proxy groups in the Middle East after three U.S. soldiers were killed in a terror attack over the weekend. Sky News reported Monday afternoon that Biden was preparing to authorize U.S. Military action against those responsible for the attack “as early as tonight‚” thus potentially tipping them off. Shortly after the suicide drone attack was carried out on Sunday‚ the Iranian-backed terrorists responsible for the attack evacuated their posts and spread out their most valuable equipment in anticipation of U.S. airstrikes. Biden officials leaked to Politico on Monday night the targets that Biden is considering: Among the options on the table for the Pentagon: striking Iranian personnel in Syria or Iraq or Iranian naval assets in the Persian Gulf‚ according to the officials. The Iranian government‚ for its part‚ has suggested that a strike on Iran itself would be a red line. The officials suggested that‚ once the president gave the go-ahead‚ the retaliation would likely begin in the next couple of days and come in waves against a range of targets. Rebeccah Heinrichs‚ senior fellow at Hudson Institute and the director of its Keystone Defense Initiative‚ slammed the administration for once again tipping off the enemy to its plans. “It is a bizarre habit of this White House to overshare what it is going to do to the enemy‚” she said. “It does not appear that it is meant to complicate the enemy’s calculations or make him fear us; instead it seems meant to clarify for the enemy and assure him. It would be far better to say nothing at all.” Why is the WH previewing the attack? https://t.co/Moa6uXjkFG — Josh Kraushaar (@JoshKraushaar) January 30‚ 2024 For God’s sake: strike hard at Iran to deter further Tehran-backed attacks — and a war. And stop the leaks and messaging about how terrified you are of escalation! @JakeSullivan46 https://t.co/Ht35psjGFN — Andrea Stricker (@StrickerNonpro) January 30‚ 2024 When Biden finally launched bare minimum retaliatory strikes against Iranian-backed Houthi terrorists in Yemen for disrupting global trade in the Red Sea earlier this month he was accused of warning them in advance of his plans. “A surprise attack obviously gives us better odds of killing more Houthis‚ destroying their weapons‚ and keeping our service members safe. Telegraphing the attack decreases those odds‚” Heinrichs told The Daily Wire at the time. “It is a maddening hallmark of this administration’s approach in responding to aggression. It seems to think by allaying the fears of our enemies‚ communicating that we won’t hurt them ‘too badly‚’ they won’t hit us back ‘too much.’” “We should be making our enemies fear us‚” she added. “We have the overwhelming advantage. We have got to start acting like it or it will keep getting worse.”

A former IRS contractor who leaked the tax returns of several wealthy and powerful individuals‚ including former President Donald Trump‚ was sentenced to five years in prison this week. The U.S. Department of Justice announced criminal charges last September against 38-year-old Charles Edward Littlejohn‚ who was a contractor with the IRS from 2018 to 2020. Littlejohn pled guilty in October 2023 to unauthorized disclosure of tax returns and return information. As a government contractor‚ Littlejohn “stole” Trump’s tax return information‚ the DOJ said on Monday‚ adding that he took steps to conceal his activities so he wouldn’t get caught. He also stole the tax return information of thousands of America’s wealthiest individuals‚ including figures like Jeff Bezos. Judge Ana Reyes‚ a Biden nominee‚ imposed the maximum sentence on Littlejohn in federal court and compared him to those who participated in the January 6‚ 2021‚ riot at the U.S. Capitol. “When you target the sitting president of the United States‚ you’re targeting the office and when you’re targeting the office of the president of the United States‚ you’re targeting democracy — you’re targeting our constitutional system of government‚” she said‚ adding: “It cannot be open season on our elected officials — it just can’t.” Acting Inspector General Heather Hill of the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) said that the sentence should “serve as a warning to anyone who is considering emulating Mr. Littlejohn’s actions.” “TIGTA relentlessly investigates individuals who illicitly access and disclose taxpayer information‚ regardless of their personal motivation‚” she added. “TIGTA appreciates the commitment of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in ensuring those who abuse their positions of public trust are held accountable for their actions.”

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