In this episode, I speak with Trita Parsi, an award-winning author and the founder and former president of the National Iranian American Council (NIAC). Trita and I talk about the founding of NIAC, his and NIAC’s involvement in the the Iran Nuclear Deal, the various pitfalls of the Deal and Trump’s withdrawal, whether the only alternative to diplomacy is war, the current challenges facing Iranian society, his thoughts on the Iranian reform movement, Reza Pahlavi, the geopolitics of the Middle East and potential future scenarios for Iran and the region, and finally why he recently left NIAC as its president and what lies ahead for him.