Can you imagine something so outrageous as the Iranian government plotting to assassinate Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the United States -- and to bomb the Saudi Embassy in Washington, D.C.?
Could anything more vividly display Iran's malevolence and its intent to destabilize not only the Middle East but the United States as well?
To our nation's great relief, the plot was foiled. U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder filed court documents in Washington charging that men linked to the Quds Force of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps were involved.
Bizarrely, according to the Justice Department, the Iran-based conspirators plotted to hire men connected with a Mexican drug cartel to carry out the killing.
Imagine the consequences if such a plot had been carried out! Saudi and Iranian relations might have deteriorated to the point of war. And with the killing and bombing taking place on U.S. soil, our nation might easily have been dragged into the conflict. It obviously wouldn't have boosted U.S.-Mexican relations either if Mexican drug lords had played a role in this deadly international intrigue.
There are now calls for vigorous condemnation of Iran, as well as sanctions.
Those calls may be appropriate, but they are no substitute for the United States clearly recognizing that Iran is not going to be a partner in seeking peace in the explosive Middle East -- or anywhere else.