Joy Reid compares LGBTQ rights in US to Iran, defends terror regime

Former MSNBC host Joy Reid sparked controversy during a CNN panel discussion on the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, where she defended Iran and criticized the United States on issues including foreign policy and LGBT-related topics.

Reid argued that Iran does not possess nuclear weapons and suggested that Israel’s recent strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities are proof of that.

"The bottom line here is the way that we know that Iran did not have nuclear weapons is that if they had nuclear weapons, Israel would not attack them,” Reid claimed. “The reason they’re trying to get nukes, and probably Saudi Arabia is trying to get them, is because an expansionist power in their region keeps threatening them and actually bombs them," Reid said.

Reid also criticized Israel’s nuclear posture, stating, "I don‘t think it’s okay that Israel has nukes either. And so the bottom line is, Israel does not even subject its nuclear weapons to the IAEA. And so my question is, should anyone in the region have nukes?”

CNN contributor Brad Todd had earlier noted that Iran-backed militias had attacked US forces over 170 times in Syria, Jordan, and Iraq, citing then-President Joe Biden’s own justification for US airstrikes on Iranian targets. Reid dismissed Biden as a moral authority, saying he "has allowed Israel in an unrestrained manner to slaughter Palestinians in Gaza."

CNN host Abby Phillip challenged Reid’s focus on nuclear weapons, pointing out, "Joy, this is not just about nukes. It‘s also about Iran being a state sponsor of terrorism and chaos and violence and death around the world. So, I mean, there’s that too.”

Attorney and commentator Arthur Aidala further criticized Reid, highlighting Iran’s treatment of homosexuals and how the regime has killed individuals for being gay. But Reid dismissed this critique, comparing it to policies in the US.

"LGBTQ people can't even serve in the military under the president you prefer," Reid said. When Aidala replied, “We’re not killing them,” Reid continued, "They‘re allowed to live, but they‘re not allowed to serve in the United States military. They‘re being persecuted. They can‘t have their stories told in school. The United States is not exactly a beacon of rights for gay people.”

The exchange echoed a similar controversy from the previous week, when The View co-host Whoopi Goldberg compared the experience of black Americans in 2025 to life in Iran. Her remarks drew immediate pushback from fellow co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin, who criticized the comparison.