The Bush administration has declared the IRG (125,000 men strong) as a terrorist organization, basically. Details here. The guys at Powerline wonder, logically enough, why the administration didn't take this step sooner. Also, note those from outside the administration who are criticizing this action. Quote: "The administration's move could hurt diplomatic efforts, some analysts said. "It would greatly complicate our efforts to solve the nuclear issue," said Joseph Cirincione, a nuclear proliferation expert at the Center for American Progress. "It would tie an end to Iran's nuclear program to an end to its support of allies in Hezbollah and Hamas. The only way you could get a nuclear deal is as part of a grand bargain, which at this point is completely out of reach." Such sanctions can work only alongside diplomatic efforts, Cirincione added. "Sanctions can serve as a prod, but they have very rarely forced a country to capitulate or collapse," he said. "All of us want to back Iran into a corner, but we want to give them a way out, too. [The designation] will convince many in Iran's elite that there's no point in talking with us and that the only thing that will satisfy us is regime change."
But if we go by this kind of thinking, we'd be frightened to ever take ANY firm step against a rogue nation. After all, firmness could imperil "negotiations." But in fact, it doesn't (see for example the history of Reagan administration firmness with the Soviet Union).
