Is the Iran War Good for America?
On February 28, 2026, the United States and Israel launched a preemptive strike against Iran. [Wikipedia] We are still at war, and there is no clear end in sight. That makes it hard to know whether the war will ultimately help or hurt America. But we can look at the strongest arguments on both sides.
Arguments That It Helped Us
- It demonstrates American resolve and military strength.
- It removed Ayatollah Khamenei and other top leaders from power by killing them. [Trump] [Just Security]
- It may lead to a more democratic Iran. Some Iranians celebrated the news. [IranIntl]
- It may help create a more peaceful Middle East by weakening Iran’s ability to fund groups such as Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Houthis. [Wikipedia]
Arguments That It Hurt Us
- The war has resulted in the deaths of 13 Americans and 3,531 Iranians as of April 3, 2026. [The Independent] [Wikipedia]
- Other Iranian leaders replaced the ones who were killed, and they now have even more reason to hate the United States. [Lawfare]
- Trump was told in January 2026 that an attack on Iran would not guarantee the collapse of the regime. [MSN]
- The war has cost taxpayers a great deal of money that could have been spent on schools, health care, or other domestic needs.
- It cost more than $16 billion in the first 12 days. [CSIS]
- Pete Hegseth estimated a cost of $37.5 billion on July 21, 2026. [Reuters/Youtube]
- It costs the United States millions of dollars to shoot down an Iranian drone that costs only thousands of dollars to build. [Politico] [The Conversation]
- U.S. military stockpiles are being depleted, and it may take years to replenish them. That leaves the country more vulnerable in a future conflict with Russia or China. [MSN]
- The United States has not captured Iran’s uranium stockpiles, so Iran may be able to restart its nuclear program after the war. [PBS NewsHour]
- The oil blockade has caused the price of oil to skyrocket, damaging the U.S. economy and raising costs for consumers around the world. [JEC]
- Relations with NATO allies have been strained because they were not consulted before the war began. [CFR]
- Attacking Iran without an imminent threat may be seen as a violation of the UN Charter, which the United States has signed. That raises constitutional and legal questions about the president’s war powers. [Justia]
- The global stock market has lost significant value since the war started. [Wikipedia]
- The United States has been forced to use its strategic oil reserves, which may damage the caverns used for storage. [CNBC]
Loss of American Strength
One of the things that kept Iran in check was the threat of a U.S. attack. But now the United States has attacked Iran and Iran survived. The conflict has shown that fighting costs the United States far more than it costs Iran, because the U.S. uses very expensive missiles to shoot down relatively cheap drones. Iran also showed that it can threaten the global economy by blocking the Strait of Hormuz. As a result, the old deterrent may no longer work as effectively. Iran is now in a stronger position, and the United States is in a weaker one than it was before the war.
The Nuclear Issue
One of the strongest arguments for war was that it could prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons. Iran is clearly hostile to the United States and Israel, and the thought of Iran obtaining nuclear weapons is deeply alarming. The ideal outcome would be a deal that forces Iran to dismantle or significantly limit its nuclear program and allows international inspectors to verify compliance.
But the United States used to have a treaty with Iran that prevented Iran from developing nuclear weapons. The agreement was negotiated by the Obama administration and was in place for several years. [White House Archives]
When Trump became president, he withdrew from the agreement and reimposed sanctions on Iran. [BBC] Iran then resumed parts of its nuclear program.
At the time, Obama warned that withdrawing from the agreement could lead to war. [Newsweek]
So all the lives lost, the money spent, and the loss of military strength may simply return the United States to the same place it was before the original agreement — or worse.