as a better way to stick it to the Islamic Republic than bombing its nuclear sites.
Rep. Dana Rohrabacher wrote Secretary of State Hillary Clinton with his thoughts last month.
It wasn’t clear how seriously he took his own idea. A longtime surfer from Orange County, California, and a former speech-writer for President Ronald Reagan, Rohrabacher has been viewed by many as something of a loose cannon in the GOP.
Rohrabacher’s letter to Clinton said that the idea of uniting Iranian Azerbaijan and the independent Republic of Azerbaijan “has reportedly caught on with several members of Parliament” in Baku. Actually, it has been actively promoted for two decades by many Azerbaijanis on both sides of the Aras River.
Only at the end of his letter does Rohrabacher get to his point.
“Iran has played on ethnic and religious groups to advance its influence in Lebanon and Iraq,” he said. “The United States should look for opportunities to do the same in key areas.”
Then, in his final sentence, he proposes: “Aiding the legitimate aspirations of the Azeri people [in Iran] for independence poses a greater danger to the Iranian tyrants than the threat of bombing its underground nuclear research bunkers.”
That is all his says. He does not speak of Kurd, Arab or Baluchi movements that are very active in seeking the dismemberment of Iran. If the goal, as the letter states, is to create “danger” for the regime in Tehran, it would appear logical to support all ethnic independence movements. But Rohrabacher only mentions Azeris.
It isn’t known if Clinton has responded yet to Rohrabacher’s letter.