The Daily Signal - Mike Huckabee Predicts a ‘Complete Realignment of the Middle East’ as Protests Gain Momentum in Iran

Episode Date: January 14, 2026

Anti-regime protests have continued to gain momentum in the Middle East in recent days and U.S. ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee is predicting a “complete realignment of the Middle East.”   ���The potential is here for something of Biblical proportion,” Huckabee told The Daily Signal, adding he has used the very same language when speaking with President Donald Trump.   If the Iranian people succeed in removing the regime from power, “that changes everything across the globe,” Huckabee said, adding it will lead to “one of the most unusual times in human history, because there will be a realignment.”  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I honestly can see a peace agreement between Israel and Syria and Israel in Lebanon in the not too distant future. That would have been unthinkable before President Trump came into office this second time. Nobody was seeing that happening. I think you're going to see a complete realignment of the Middle East. The potential is here for something of biblical proportion. That's exactly the words that I'd use to the president. If the Iranian people are able to throw this oppressive government off of them, that changes everything. I'll tell you, it's going to be one of the most unusual times in human history because there will be a realignment.

Well, it is my absolute privilege and honor to be joined today by U.S. Ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee. Ambassador, thank you for taking the time. Virginia, it is a pleasure to be with you. You know, there's a few things going on on this end of the world. And so I couldn't think of a better time for us to have this conversation, but it's an honor to be with you. I agree. I agree. talk about timely. And it might be helpful as we're going to talk about the protests in Iran. Just remember

how we got here. And we think back to last year, Israel launched very specific and targeted strikes on Iran's nuclear capabilities, on the scientists that headed that nuclear program. And then, of course, the U.S. struck Iran's three nuclear, key nuclear sites, essentially dismantling Iran's nuclear program. Now for about the past two weeks, we have seen mass protests against the Iranian regime across Iran, including in Tehran. Ambassador, have you spoken with President Trump about U.S. response, what the president is thinking right now in regards to U.S. engagement? Well, we've certainly had a lot of conversations between here in Israel and the U.S. and Washington about what's going on. we've been able to give sort of our context in color from this end of the world. Being in Israel and with the extraordinarily strained relationship that Israel and Iran has had,

we certainly monitor it very carefully. Of course, Iran tried to say, well, Israel instigated this, or the U.S. did. Well, the fact is open source reporting is now that the Mossad was caught off guard by the whole thing. as were we. Nobody saw this coming because it has truly been an organic uprising of the people of Iran. This is not something that was instigated from outside the borders of Iran. This is because that people have finally gotten fed up and they wish to be unshackled from this very oppressive, radical government that for 47 years has made their lives miserable, destroyed the great and wonderful Persian culture that once existed in Iran. And now it takes about the cost of what was

the price of an automobile to buy a loaf of bread. They don't have water. They've watched their government use the money that could have made them a better country, a great country, in fact. But instead, they've supplied the Houthis, Hezbollah, and Hamas with millions, if not billions of dollars of destructive weapons to murder people. And I think the Iranian people, who are a wonderful people, have decided this is enough. We shouldn't have to deal with this. So it's something to behold, but the tragedy is that there are probably thousands of Iranians who have been killed by their own government, far more than were killed, even as collateral

damage during the 12-day war. So it's something to, I think, for the world to look at and say, you know, The Iranians did not really fully appreciate what they had done to their people. They underestimated the resolve of their people, and it may be the end of this regime, and I think we can all hope that it will be. And Trump's message to those protesters that are facing so much oppression and death is help is on its way. Ambassador, what does the president mean by that? Right now, as the White House said today, all options are on the table.

President Trump is real good about not revealing all the cards in his hand. He did that to the Iranians this past summer. He told him, you're not going to have a nuclear weapon. You're not going to enrich uranium. And we can do it the easy way or the hard way. And they didn't believe it until one Saturday night when Operation Midnight Hammer happened and B-2 bombers came through and totally caught him off guard, in less than an hour, their nuclear sites had pretty much been obliterated by a flawless U.S. Air Force

operation. There's an old saying, I know you spent part of your life in Georgia, Virginia, so you probably have heard it somewhere down in the south as I grew up in Arkansas and heard it, that there is no education in the second kick of a mule. Well, Iran got a good kick of the mule last summer, and apparently it's going to take a second kick of the mule for them to fully get the message. And I'm not sure they're going to understand it then. And even at the second kick, their education will be complete. Yeah. Well, there's so many factors, of course, that we don't know. Things are changing so rapidly on the ground in Iran. But if things continue as they are right now and if the regime does fall and collapse, what would that mean for Israel? I think what it means for Israel is really what it means for the entire. world. It's going to be a safer world in which to live. It's going to be a world in which the

powers that have been so destructive from Hamas Hezbollah and the Houthis will be, at least in the initial phases, neutered because they're not going to have that supply line of money and weaponry that has been their hallmark. It means that across the globe, the tentacles of state-sponsored terrorism will hopefully begin to dissipate and ultimately disappear. It will be a safer world, not just for the people in the Middle East and the Gulf States, but think about this. Hezbollah alone has operations in 12 different Central and South American countries. So they're already in the Western Hemisphere. They're certainly in Europe. They're in the Middle East. They're in the Gulf States. They're in Asia. So if Hezbollah can be choked and starved down to nothing,

It means peace between Lebanon and Israel. It means a different, completely less vulnerable world in which Hezbollah, as well as the Houthis and Hamas will be able to operate. Everyone can sleep better at night. As you speak with Israeli officials as well as just locals there, what are they saying in regards to what they would like to see for the future of Iran? Who would they like to see lead the next? nation. I think all they want is for Iran to be a nation that has prosperity, that has restoration of what they once were. Forty-seven years ago, and I remember it well, Iran, the ancient Persia, was the most modern, progressive, forward-thinking country in this

part of the world. People don't remember that, but they set the pace in fashion, art, music, medicine. They were really the most, I guess, envy country in most of the far east. And then the Ayatollahs came in. They destroyed the antiquities. They stifled education, especially for women. They put oppressive policies in place. They murdered the people that disagreed with them. Millions of people fled. there was once a very vibrant Jewish community in Iran. People might be shocked to hear that, but there were active synagogues, and it was a very free and open society.

The Ayatoll has destroyed that. I think what Israel would love to see is what the U.S. would love to see, what every free people would like to see, that these people would determine their own future, and that it would be built again on enlightenment, a view of being good neighbors in the world, and living a vibrant, prosperous future. Yeah.

And of course, President Trump has been very clear that that's what he would like to see. He wants to see the Iranian people have that freedom, once again, that they used to have. And the president has put out a number of very clear and very direct statements to that end and really threatening the regime. What has been the response

and what is the sentiment among Israelis related to the way that they are watching? Trump handle this situation? I told the president not very long ago I was on the phone with him, and I said, Mr. President, I don't know if you realize this, but if you were on the ballot in Israel, you would get 95% of the vote. And the other 5% they're all locked up in insane asylum. I said, you have no idea how beloved you are.

Because he has done so many things that has shown a real understanding of the value of our partnership. yes, there is a great value to Israel. Americans don't understand the value to America, and it is immense. He does understand it. He's been the champion of recognizing the right of the Jewish people to live in their ancient indigenous homeland. He moved the embassy to Jerusalem, recognizing Jerusalem as the capital, recognizing Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights. There are so many ways in which President Trump has become the greatest president with no one even close in second place in the relationship. And I want to emphasize because Virginia, as you know, there's a wave of anti-Semitism and anti-Israel sentiment in the U.S.

And frankly, just some outright Jew hatred that is very destructive. I think people who say these things and believe these things, they only know what maybe they hear from some voice. on the, who knows why they're saying it. But people who really do get it, they realize that America is getting tremendous benefit in technology and intelligence, in medical advancements, in agriculture, from the relationship we have with Israel. Absolutely. Well, that support, of course, like you mentioned, that President Trump has expressed so fervently for Israel, he's done that for a very long time. And, you know, one of the most significant ways that we saw that demonstrated was last year in the 20-point peace plan that Trump put forward to end, seeking to end the war between Israel and Hamas and bring peace to Gaza. And that first phase is, you know, well underway. We saw the release of the hostages. Of course, there's the remains of one hostage that is yet to be returned that we're still waiting and praying for to be returned to Israel.

but things have just from, you think back to this time last year and just the dramatic change and the incredible peace that we have seen. And yet we're still waiting on that phase two of the peace plan that would formally end the war and lead to the complete dismantlement of Hamas and Gaza. Ambassador, do you have confidence that we will see that phase two carried out successfully in 2026? You know, I really do. And the reason I do is because President Trump is, leading it. You know, I remember that if you told me four months ago that within a month, all the hostages, but one would be returned, and that all of the Arab nations, every last one of them would show up in a single place in Charmel Shek and all sign a peace agreement, and that Hamas

would even sign it, and that there would be a ceasefire that would hold for over three months. I would have said, that's not very likely. My wife, kept clothes at the foot of the bed from the time we got here. She called them her missile clothes, because when the alarms went off and the sirens blew, we had 90 seconds to get to the shelter. It was sometimes five times a night. We'd be dodging ballistic missiles the size of 18-wheel trucks.

And then all of a sudden, President Trump does something of epic proportion. He brings these countries together. They all signed the agreement. Now, granted, Hamas has made two major things. major violations. One, they haven't given back the last hostage, and two, they haven't surrendered and demilitarized. But barring that, everything else has fallen into place. And so I'm very optimistic, not because I believe Hamas will voluntarily do what they're supposed to do, but I'm optimistic because I've seen President Trump, I mean, you could just say he's pulled so many rabbits out of

the hat, we've got to get a new hat. And we're on track. Things, you know, board of peace announcement, been postponed a couple of times. But the reason is because everyone wants to get it right rather than to get it quick, but it's moving. It's happening. And we're going to see that announced very soon. The technocratic government is going to be established. It's going to be a slow process because there is an immense level of work to do.

Hamas fit 20 years messing this place up. So I don't have any illusions that 20 days. or even 20 months is going to restore it all. But it will happen. It's a long game, certainly. You mentioned the Board of Peace and we're expecting potentially an announcement in the coming week from the president related to who is on that board. This is, of course, a body of international leaders that are really going to help in that transition and establishment of a stable Gaza. Who would you like to see on the Board of Peace Ambassador? You know, I don't have any preferences. I'm just an ambassador, so I don't get to make those choices. I serve here at the pleasure of the president. And so what I would say is, whoever the president puts on that board, they're just exactly who should be on there. How is that for a good, safe answer to give to you?

was very tactful, Ambassador. Totally. Well, in terms of that transition of power in Gaza, it's been fascinating to watch Hamas make diplomatic statements. Most recently, they have said that, you know, they will essentially leave Gaza as soon as there is some sort of Palestinian, group Palestinian leaders in leadership ruling. when Hamas makes those kinds of statements, how should the American people interpret them? I wouldn't let Hamas govern what's going to happen over here because President Trump has made it very clear. They have no role in the future of Gaza. They're not going to be part of the governing process.

Frankly, I would be better able to predict to you who's going to win next year's Super Bowl and give you the exact score than they're, Hamas would have any idea how this is going to play out. These are savages. These are not civilized people. They're not serious in the way of world players. They've done hideous, unspeakable things to civilian people. And so I take everything they say with a grain of salt. I dismiss it out of hand as just their noise. And I would say, don't pay much attention to Hamas. Pay attention to President Trump, he's a winner, they're losers, and the whole world will continue to see that. Is there a consensus in Israel about who they would like to see, the Israeli people would like to see in leadership in Gaza? Not really. You know, Virginia, I think the attitude here is that

they're not going to try to pick the leader that they have some aspirations about making sure that whoever it is and whatever kind of government it is, that it recognizes Israel's right. not just to exist, but to exist in safety and security. That's all they want. They don't want to be in Gaza. They don't want to run it. They don't want to oversee it. But they are going to protect themselves from another October the 7th.

They're going to do it from the border. They're not going to do it from within. I think the Israelis would just like to be able to have an extended period of time when mothers of his Israeli children put their babies to bed at night, tucked them in, and they're not thinking that they're going to have to wake them up at two in the morning, scoop them up and rush them to a shelter to keep them from being killed by Hamas or the Houthis or the Hezbollah or from some terrorists coming over from Judean Samaria, breaking through the line and throwing a bomb at their home.

Yeah, absolutely. In terms of a moment ago, you mentioned the disarmament of Hamas. Has that begun in any significant capacity? I'd say no. That's one of the great violations of the ceasefire agreement. Hamas, even though they've agreed to it, they signed it, they said they were going to do it, they haven't done it yet. There's still a lot of questions as to how it will be done and who will do it. It will be done that I'm confident of, not because Hamas is going to finally come to their senses, but because President Trump has made it very clear. This is going to happen. One of the things, look, I love this guy for a lot of reasons, but the biggest one, when he makes a promise, he keeps it. It drives people on the left utterly nuts because he'll say something and they'll say,

there's no way he's going to do that. He can't fix the border. He'll never be able to deal with Maduro and Venezuela. There's no way, and they'll come up with whatever he can't do. And then by golly, he turns around and does it. So if he tells Hamas, they're going to disarm, they ought to go ahead and start packing up the guns because they're not going to have them forever. They just aren't.

Ambassador, before we let you go, want to just get your thoughts. the Trump administration now, of course, second go-around. It's been one year since Trump returned to the White House. Already so much activity like we've been talking about in the Middle East. Trump has expressed so much support for Israel beyond the issues that we have talked about today so far. What should the American people be watching, keeping an eye on as we continue to see the president pursue a strong relationship? between the U.S. and Israel? Well, I think people in America would be shocked to realize that we have moved the peace process

in the Middle East to a direction that I honestly can see a peace agreement between Israel and Syria and Israel in Lebanon in the not too distant future. That would have been unthinkable before President Trump came into office this second time. Nobody was seeing that happening. I think you're going to see a complete realignment of the Middle East. the potential is here for something of biblical proportion. That's exactly the words that I'd use to the president. And if the Iranian people are able to throw this oppressive government off of them,

that changes everything across the globe. And I'll tell you, it's going to be one of the most unusual times in human history because there will be a realignment. You know, it wasn't that long ago that Israel and Iran had a great relationship. That was 47 years ago until the Ayatollahs came. Ten years ago, Israel and Turkey had a magnificent relationship, a close partnership. Wouldn't we all like to see that again? Well, I think anything is possible, and it takes leadership, it takes a resolve,

and President Trump has exhibited something that I've never seen, even in our greatest American presidents, He has a resilience that is unshakable, and he's got a resolve to do what he says. So I say pop to popcorn, get in a good chair, sit back, and hang in for the ride. It's not going to be boring. That is for sure. Ambassador Huckabee, thank you so much for your time today. Greatly appreciate it. Virginia, it has been a pleasure.

Hope we get to do it again. I hope so, too. Thank you, sir. Thank you.