Briefings

Background Briefing: April 5, 2026

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Trump’s War Has Turned the Strait of Hormuz Into an Iranian Tollbooth With China the Winner 

We begin with Trump’s latest ultimatum issued Saturday giving Iran 48 hours to open the Strait of Hormuz on Monday or “All hell will reign (misspelled) down on them. Glory be to GOD!” On Sunday, Trump resorted to presidential obscenity, saying “Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!! Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah. – President Donald J. Trump” Joining us to discuss how Trump has turned the Strait of Hormuz into a tollbooth for Iran with China the winner as it transitions away from oil capturing the solar and EV market while Trump undoes Biden’s alternative energy initiatives and wages war on wind, solar and EVs. Joining us is Rosemary Kelanic, director of the Middle East Program at Defense Priorities who publishes widely on energy security, great power politics, and U.S. grand strategy in the Middle East. She is the author of Black Gold and Blackmail: Oil and Great Power Politics and Crude Strategy: Rethinking the U.S. Military Commitment to Defend Persian Gulf Oil. She has a recent article at The New York Times, “Trump Is Making Jimmy Carter’s Mistake on Iran and Oil” and an article we discuss at The Washington Quarterly, “The Real US Energy Security Problem—And How to Fix It.”

 

“You’re Fired” Pam Bondi and Replaced by an Even Worse Todd Blanche

Then we look into Pam Bondi’s firing and her replacement with the even worse Todd Blanche and speak with Moira Donegan, writer in residence at the Clayman Institute for Gender Research at Stanford University. Her work has appeared in The London Review of Books, Bookforum and The Paris Review. She is the co-host of the podcast In Bed With The Rightand a columnist at the Guardian where her latest article we discuss is “Pam Bondi’s firing won’t have the effect Trump desires.”

 

Trump Gives Up the Game, Saying We Can’t Afford Childcare, Medicare and Medicaid Because “We’re Fighting Wars”

Then finally, we discuss how Trump told the truth for once in private at a White House Easter lunch on Wednesday that was not supposed to be released to the public, trashing social programs like childcare, Medicare and Medicaid as “scams” and saying “we have to take care of one thing: military protection.” Joining us is Alex Lawson, the Executive Director of Social Security Works where his work focuses on protecting and expanding Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid and lowering prescription drug prices. He has an article at Common Dreams we discuss, “The GOP Is Taking Our Healthcare to Fund Bombs and Tax Cuts; We’re Fighting Back.”