Ron DeSantis slams Israeli efforts at regime change during Iran war

DeSantis laments how US-Israeli war against Iran was conducted, warning that elimination of Tehran’s leadership and attempted regime change backfired.

By World Israel News Staff

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis sharply criticized the US-Israeli military campaign against Iran on Saturday, arguing that the effort to overthrow the Islamic Republic’s leadership had failed and warning that Washington could become trapped in a prolonged conflict without a clear strategy for ending it.

Speaking at the University of Notre Dame’s Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government, DeSantis questioned the objectives of the war launched in February, contrasting the ongoing campaign with the limited American strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities in June 2025, which he supported.

“I think what happened this year was an attempt to cause the regime to collapse,” DeSantis said, pointing to Israel’s elimination of Iran’s supreme leader and other senior Iranian officials, along with subsequent American military strikes.

The Florida governor argued that the Israeli leadership had apparently expected the removal of Iran’s senior leadership to trigger the collapse of the Islamic Republic, allowing a new government to emerge.

“I think what happened this year was an attempt to cause the regime to collapse. Israel went and they took out the Ayatollah. They took out clerics.”

“This time, I think the goal – certainly from Israel – was that you’d have a regime change in Iran. Now, that’s not something that we’re going to be able to impose.”

Instead, he said, the Iranian regime survived the attacks, leaving Washington and Jerusalem without a viable strategy for bringing the conflict to a successful conclusion.

DeSantis maintained that regime change could not be accomplished by airpower alone and would require a far larger American military commitment than the public would tolerate.

“That would require massive amounts of boots on the ground, massive amounts of treasure,” he said, adding that Americans had little appetite for such an undertaking.

He also questioned the prospects for a negotiated settlement, arguing that the elimination of Iran’s supreme leader and other senior figures had potentially strengthened the surviving leadership and reduced its willingness to make concessions.

In particular, DeSantis suggested that Iranian officials who survived the strikes could now feel more secure in their positions than before the war, while having even less reason to trust the United States.

He warned that the conflict could continue indefinitely without a political settlement, becoming a persistent source of instability and frustration for Washington.

The Republican governor also faulted the Trump administration for failing to present a consistent explanation of the war’s objectives.

He cited differing statements from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President JD Vance, arguing that the administration had never established a clearly defined standard for success.

“What are you trying to accomplish? What’s the concrete objective?” DeSantis asked.

The White House has disputed that characterization of the war’s objectives. In a March statement, the administration said its goals included destroying Iran’s ballistic missile capabilities, neutralizing its navy, weakening its terrorist proxies and preventing Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons.

The administration maintained that those objectives had remained consistent since the beginning of the military campaign.

DeSantis’ latest criticism follows earlier remarks in which he blamed the conflict for damaging Republican electoral prospects and increasing economic pressures on American households.

In an interview with Stephen A. Smith ahead of last week’s midterm elections, DeSantis described the Iran war as a “big, big drag” on Republicans, citing higher gasoline prices and growing disillusionment among voters who had supported President Donald Trump’s promise to avoid new Middle Eastern wars.

“If you can’t admit that to voters, then you’re gaslighting them,” DeSantis warned.

His comments came after Democrats captured control of Congress in the November 3 midterm elections, delivering a major setback to the Republican Party and raising new questions about the political sustainability of the administration’s Iran policy.

The Florida governor has also predicted that the incoming Democratic congressional majorities will seek a vote to end the war.

The remarks come amid renewed speculation about DeSantis’ own political future. The Washington Post reported Friday that the governor was preparing another presidential campaign in 2028, citing three people familiar with his plans.

DeSantis vehemently denied the report, insisting he had not contacted political consultants about running for office.

“The Washington Post is fabricating this out of whole cloth,” he wrote on X.