As Iranians take to the streets amid persistent inflation and a regime crackdown, President Donald Trump told protesters that “help is on its way”—but he has already given the poor people oppressed by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei critical aid by enabling the conditions for their revolt.

Protesters took to the streets amid extremely high inflation on Dec. 28, and by this past Saturday, the rallies had grown to 574 locations in 185 cities across all 31 provinces, according to CNN. The regime has responded with its customary ruthlessness, shutting down the internet and killing an estimated 12,000 protesters.

The regime has successfully quelled protests in previous years, from the 2009 Green Movement (sparked by a disputed presidential election) to the 2019-2020 protests (also triggered by economic conditions) to the 2022-2023 protests after Mahsa Amini died in morality police custody after she refused to wear a hijab.

What’s different this time? The economic conditions are even worse, and the regime has lost its moral and military credibility.

Iran’s currency—the rial—lost nearly all its value. Last week, one U.S. dollar

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