What A Day - The War With Iran Has No Exit Plan

Episode Date: March 10, 2026

The Iran war is a little over a week old and the Trump administration has supplied more than a dozen explanations about why, exactly, it began. Confused? Well, now we’re getting wildly conflicting messages about how that same war will end, with the president telling CBS News Monday that the war is “very complete, pretty much.” Later that same day, he told GOP lawmakers that it’s not. Robin Wright, an expert on U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East who contributes to the The New Yorker, explains where the war goes from here.And in headlines, President Trump promotes the questionably named “Save America Act,” the Department of Justice makes a shady deal with Live Nation, and artificial intelligence company Anthropic sues the Trump administration for labeling it a security-related supply chain risk.Show Notes: Check out Robin’s writing on the war in Iran Call Congress – 202-224-3121 Subscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/y4y2e9jy What A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcast Follow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/crookedmedia/ For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday

It's Tuesday, March 10th. I'm Gene Koston, and this is what a day. The show wondering why President Donald Trump is reportedly giving people shoes. Yes, shoes. According to a new report from the Wall Street Journal, Trump is obsessed with a particular brand of dress shoes. And he is now just giving them to members of staff, agency leaders, lawmakers, basically any man in his orbit. This is after, allegedly guessing their shoe size in front of them. And everyone is too afraid of Trump not to wear them. Donald Trump or some ancient European king.

Who can tell? On today's show, President Trump continues promoting the questionably named Save America Act, which almost certainly would do the opposite. And the Department of Justice makes a deal literally no one asked for, with Live Nation, the parent company of Ticketmaster. Bad news. Your Beyonce tickets will not be getting cheaper anytime soon. But let's start with the war in the Middle East. It's been a little over a week

since the United States and Israel started bombing Iran, and we've heard more than a dozen explanations from the Trump administration about why exactly this war began. But if that wasn't confusing enough, now we're starting to hear new wildly conflicting messaging from President Trump about the end of the war. On Monday morning, Trump told CBS news that the war is, quote,

very complete, pretty much. But later, during a meeting with GOP lawmakers at their annual retreat, Trump made clear that the war was not, in fact, complete, saying, quote, we go forward more determined than ever to achieve ultimate victory that will end this long-running danger once and for all. Then, even later in the day, he told reporters that the war will be over, quote, very soon. So on Monday alone, Trump said that the war is over, that the war is not over, and that the war, which is not over, will be over very soon.

A reporter asked for clarification. Mr. President, you've said the war is, quote, very complete, but your defense secretary says this is just the beginning. So which is it? And how long should Americans be prepared? Well, I think you could say it both. It's Schrodinger's war, and we're the cat in the bucks. But don't worry, because whatever the U.S. is doing in Iran, it's all going great.

Here's Trump at that GOP retreat on Monday. You know, Iran was supposed to be this big, powerful country. We wrapped the hell out of them. And, you know, I don't know when they cry uncle, but they should have cried it two days ago, right? But as we've mentioned on the show, Iran has a new supreme leader, Mushcheba Hamini, the son of the late Ayatollah Ali Hamini, who was killed in airstrikes on February 28th. This is not what the U.S. or Israel wants.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Trump is reportedly on board with assassinating the new supreme leader if he doesn't give in to U.S. demands. So where does the war go from here? To find out, I spoke with Robin Wright, a contributing writer and columnist for the New Yorker who covers U.S. foreign policy in Iran and the Middle East. Robin, welcome to Wadaday.

Thanks so much. I'm really thrilled to be doing this. Mushdaba Habani, the son of Iran's late Supreme leader, has been selected to replace his father. What message do you think that sends to the U.S. and Israel that the clerical council chose him? Well, it's clearly kind of sticking it to the Trump administration as well as Israeli Prime Minister of Benjamin Netanyahu. This is, in effect, creating a new dynasty. Mostaba is only 56 years old. He could be around if he survives for a long time. And he will have ultimate veto power over political, economic, and military policy potentially for decades to come. As you just mentioned, he's got ultimate power in Iran right now. Is there any chance that he might

create a more politically moderate Iran? Or is that just not, that's just not in the cards? Well, one of the most interesting things about Mosheba Khomeini is that he has been rarely photographed, really not spoken in public. He teaches classes at the home seminary, but he's been his father's closest advisor. And the idea that he would dramatically shift from his father's very militant and rigid commitment to the principles of the 1979 revolution is highly unlikely. I think he's going to follow his father's path, you know, on every issue. How much damage have the U.S. and Israel inflicted on Iran's military capabilities? Oh, I think enormous damage has been done by the Operation Epic Fury by the United States and Operation Roaring Lion by the Israelis on Iran's, particularly its ballistic missiles.

and most recently it's oil facilities, as we've seen, which caused the rise of the barrel of oil to over $100. Iran has built up a huge arsenal of ballistic missiles, which after its controversial nuclear program was its most important asset. And the U.S. goal is to eliminate the missiles, but most particularly the launchers, because you can't fire missiles without launchers. So that's where during the first week we saw so much focus. You mentioned that we're focused on their ballistic missile launchers. I know that they had a underground facility for their munitions stockpile. But clearly, they are still posing a massive risk to countries in the region. You know, we've seen Dubai get hit by example.

So what risk do they pose to the region and what risk do they pose more broadly? So Iran has always been a risk since the 1979 revolution. I mean, I lived in Beirut for many years, and I remember the bombings that went off at two U.S. embassies and, of course, the marine compound of peacekeepers, which was the largest non-nuclear bomb on Earth since World War II. And so Iran has covert operations that could continue after a war. So even after the U.S. decides. as Trump is trying to indicate now that the war is complete or nearly complete, the Iranians could continue to target American interests, not just in the Gulf, but across the Middle East and even beyond. The Wall Street Journal reported last week that the U.S. may not have a deep enough munition stockpile for a prolonged war. And as we were just talking about, Trump basically wants this to be kind of wrapped up fairly soon. When it comes to weaponry, how sustainable is this military campaign? Well, that's, I think, a great question. And the administration keeps saying, oh, yes, we have enough not to worry. But remember, we're also supposed to be providing or selling to NATO the munitions needed for Ukraine to fight the war against Russia. And so I think there are big questions. Plus, we're providing the interceptors for our Gulf allies to prevent Iranian missiles and drones from attacking them. So, you know, you just hope that somebody over the,

over the Pentagon, has calculated what the United States might need. And of course, this war can be fought in ways that are asymmetric that aren't necessarily big bombs against each other. I think my next question is one that I'm sure you've been thinking a lot about, and basically, everyone watching this has been wondering. On Sunday, President Trump said that deciding when and how to end the war will be a, quote, mutual decision with Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. But their goals do not seem entirely aligned to me at all. And we've seen that with the bombing of Iranian oil facilities, which reportedly Trump and the Trump administration have not been happy about that's coming from Israel. Who would you say has more power in this relationship

with regard to this war? Trump or Netanyahu? Well, in different ways, each of them. Netanyahu really drew Trump into this war. This is something he's acknowledged that he had dreamt about for 40 years. He has wanted to eliminate the Islamic Republic. He's wanted to make sure that Israel has the kind of relationship with Iran that it had before the revolution when they were very close allies in many ways against the Arab countries in between them. Now, Trump has the advantage because he's the bigger power. And of course, the U.S. provides all Israel's weaponry, but I think you're right that Trump could declare an end of the war or that it's mostly complete. And then Netanyahu will find some way to say, well, look, you know, there's some

action that Israel will want to go back in in a big way to say, look, the war isn't over. So I think the problem is, and you know this, that there's no end game anyway. Nobody has figured out an exit strategy. What do we want to see at the end of this? And the idea that you can topple a regime that's been in power for, you know, almost a half century that has the largest military in the Middle East, more than one million, if you include reservists, and vast oil resources, that it's going to be very tough to just by killing one supreme leader and a lot of military leaders to say, well, you know, we've done it. It's over. And that's what I worry about a lot. You wrote that Iran still has leverage, in part because of its ability to close the straight of

Hormuz, where roughly a fifth of the world's oil supply passes through. On Monday, G7 officials held an emergency meeting to discuss the worst impact on oil prices. Is there anything else that G7 countries can do that would diminish Iran's upper hand when it comes to oil? Well, the problem is the Strait of Hormuz at its narrowest point is only 21 miles wide. And Iran, because of the geography, has always had the ultimate say on who is allowed in and out of the street. And so at the moment, the Trump administration has talked about providing escorts for some of the tankers coming out of the Gulf. But that would be incredibly costly. I mean, we're already spending 900. million dollars a day on this war. And this would add billions to the price tag. And for how long? You know, all Iran would have to do, as it did in the 1980s, is plant a few mines in the Gulf. And then it becomes kind of a military operation for the United States. So the options are limited in the moment to ensure that all ships crossing the strait can get through.

What will you be watching for next with this war? I guess the most important thing is to see whether anyone in the Iranian military begins to defect. It was in 1979 the last draw for the monarchy when the Iranian military, the Shah's army, many of them anyway, decided that they didn't want to shoot at Iranian citizens. Now, we've seen, unfortunately, in December and January, during these inspiring protests by hundreds of thousands across the country, that the Iranian military was indeed willing to shoot its own citizens. And I suspect they will do it again. The question becomes, at some point, does the cost benefit of continuing to fight become too high? And I don't think we've gotten there yet.

Robin, thank you so much for taking the time to join me. I'm so delighted to talk with you. That was my conversation with Robin Wright, contributing writer and columnist for The New Yorker. More news is on the way, but first, thank you for sticking with me and my squeaky voice yesterday. As you can tell, we're on the mend, but I really appreciated all of your support

and RFK Jr. comparison jokes. And if you'd like to go one step further and support the show, I'd be even more grateful. Please make sure to subscribe, leave a five-star review on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, watch us on YouTube, and share with your friends. More news after some ads. This episode of What Today is brought to you by Wildgrain. Wild grain is the first bake from frozen subscription box for sourdough breads, artisanal pastries, and fresh pastas.

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Earn rewards and get something back, wherever you live. Join the loyalty program for renters at joinbilt.com slash wad. That's j-o-in-b-l-t.com slash wad. Make sure to use our URL so they know we sent you. Here's what else we're following today. The Save Act was... It was all right. Nobody knew what the hell it was, including me.

I kept saying, what's this? Save America Act. Don't ever say Save Act again. It's a loser. The Save Act. Nobody has any idea what are we trying to save. It's the Save America Act. President Trump spoke to House Republicans at his Florida Golf Resort on Monday about a slew of things,

including the Save Act. I mean the Save America Act. Whatever the name, it would. restrict voting by requiring birth certificates or passports during voter registration. The House passed it already, but luckily, it has less traction in the Senate. Trump said he wants the House to add provisions that would curb mail-in voting and restrict transgender rights. He said getting the act passed is a matter of, quote, national survival.

I'm making my biggest plea tonight. It'll make you, and I'm not doing it for this reason, at all. It'll guarantee the midterms. It'll guarantee the midterms. If you don't get it, big trouble, my opinion. But that isn't why he's saying this. No, no, of course not. In a true social post Sunday, Trump said he would not sign any other bill

until the Save America Act is passed. Evidence is mounting that the U.S. military was responsible for a strike that hit a girls' school in southern Iran, killing over 170 people, including many children. The New York Times, NBC News, and other outlets, have reviewed footage of the bombing and confirmed that a Tomahawk missile was used in the attack. Among the countries involved in the war, only the U.S. has access to that missile. President Trump had been saying Iran was responsible.

And Secretary of War slash little boy Pete Higsef has said little about it, even when he was given several opportunities by a CBS journalist, Major Garrett, on 60 Minutes Sunday. If you could tell the American public, it definitively was not us. You would tell us, wouldn't you? I would say that it's being investigated, which is the only answer I'm prepared to give. Sounds like it's being investigated, and I'd guess it will be for the next two years or so. A group of Democratic senators released a statement over the weekend calling for the bombing to be, quote, fully and impartially reviewed, which I think means someone other than Pete Higgsath should oversee the investigation. The Artificial Intelligence Company Anthropic sued the Trump administration Monday for labeling it a security-related supply chain risk.

The company says the government's designation last week is part of a, quote, unlawful campaign of retaliation. The feud started a few months ago, when the Department of Defense insisted it should be able to use Anthropics' AI tech for, quote, all lawful purposes. But Anthropic wanted to put limitations on uses like mass surveillance of Americans or weapons that would fire without human input. I wonder why.

When Anthropic wouldn't agree to its terms, the Pentagon labeled it a supply chain risk, a designation that could stop it from being used by military contractors and not just the government itself. Anthropic CEO, Dario Amadeh, talked to CBS about the fallout in February. When we're designated a supply chain risk, they say, like, you know, you have to be off all of our systems. And I've talked to people on the ground, uniformed military officers who say this is essential. Not having this will set us back six months, 12 months, maybe longer.

Of course, the Pentagon has recently made deals with both XAI and OpenAI, the companies behind GROC and chat GPT, to provide their technology for, for classified systems. It's starting to feel a bit like real housewives, but for nerds and potentially deadly. And a loss for people who have paid way too much in concert tickets over the last few years, Live Nation, which owns Ticketmaster,

reached a settlement with the Department of Justice on Monday. The deal abruptly ends a trial that could have changed the concert business forever. Back in 2024, the DOJ and 40 states sued Live Nation, which controls about 90% of the ticketing market. At the time, they accused the company, of operating an illegal monopoly and wanted Live Nation to divest Ticketmaster. But now, just a week into the trial, the DOJ announced that Live Nation wouldn't have to be

broken up after all. Instead, the company will pay a fine and change some ticketing practices. It's almost like someone different is running things. However, a bipartisan group of states that were part of the lawsuit has refused to sign on to the settlement agreement and said they will continue to pursue Live Nation in court. Hey, side note, guess who is on Live Nation's board? current Kennedy Center president and former acting director of national intelligence, Rick Grinnell. Weird. And that's the news. Before we go, we're less than nine months away from the midterms, and we have a lot of work that you can do right now.

November will decide control of Congress and if Trump maintains his Republican trifecta. And our friends at Votes of America are here to help. They'll give you tips on how and when and where to donate to make sure your money goes the furthest. How do you confidently talk to the people in your life about midterms and key issues and opportunities to take action with your community. Go to Votesaveamerica.com and sign up to be a part of the work this year. Then send the signup link to five fronts. Paid for by Votesive America. Learn more at Votesaveamerica.com. This ad has not been authorized by any candidate or candidates committee. That's all for today. If you like the show, make sure you subscribe,

leave a review. Don't get in between Massachusetts Democratic Governor Mora Healey and Her Duncan and tell your friends to listen. And if you're into reading, and not just about how What Today newsletter writer Matt Berg spoke to Governor Healy about health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. going after Duncan, and she said, my message to him is, like, before you go picking on our Duncan,

why don't you focus on the measles outbreak? You know, why don't you focus on, by the way, the measles outbreak, something that you have created, RFK, by taking away vaccines and creating all this skepticism about vaccines. Like me, Whataday is also a nightly newsletter. Check it out and subscribe at crooked.com. slash subscribe. I'm Jane Koston, and she's not wrong, except about Duncan.

That's not coffee. That's a milkshake. What Today is a production of Crooked Media. It's recorded and mixed by Desmond Taylor. Our associate producer is Emily Four. Our producer is Caitlin Plummer. Our video editor is Joseph Dutra. Our video producer is Johanna Case.

We had a production help today from Greg Walters, Matt Berg, Sean Ali, and Ethan Oberman. Our senior producer is Erica Morrison and our senior vice president of News and Politics is Adrian Hill. Our theme music is by Kyle Murdoch and Jordan Cantor. We'd help today from the Associated Press. Our production staff is proudly unionized for the Writers Guild of America East. I'm Craig Melvin. Cheers. Cheers. Cheers. I've always been a glass half-full kind of guy. And now I'm talking to some people who look at the world that way too. Some really fascinating folks who share their defining moments, their triumphs, their challenges. Their stories are funny and quite candid. So I hope you'll join me each week, and who knows?

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