Arc Digital

Saudi Arabia is in serious trouble. Their global influence primarily comes from their oil money—and a greater ability than anyone to increase or decrease daily oil production at will, thereby leading OPEC and shaping energy prices—but the regional Middle East war ignited by the U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran this spring put that in jeopardy. Today, Saudi tankers are blocked in the Persian Gulf and under threat in the Red Sea, and their biggest oil pipeline had to shut down after a drone attack.

“Donald Trump has once again stepped up his threats to entirely wipe out Iran, but it somehow isn’t forcing Iran to make the deal he wants. The emptiness of the threats is embarrassing enough. But now, CBS News has published a series of extraordinary photographs of American bases and equipment abroad badly damaged by Iranian attacks. These pictures were leaked by anonymous U.S. service-members who did this because the truth about Trump’s war is being suppressed.

The United States and Iran escalated again, exchanging missile fire and hitting ships, while related fighting in Yemen and Saudi Arabia expanded. More than six months after Trump started the war, and nearly three months after he signed an agreement that would supposedly end it and normalize shipping, the U.S. and Iran are still fighting over the Strait of Hormuz. The damage keeps growing, and the Trump White House is both unable to fix it and unwilling to admit it.

An iron rule of politics is that economic problems are bad for incumbents.

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Iran and Oman are reportedly finalizing a deal to control the Strait of Hormuz, charging ships fees for passage, and potentially blocking ships from “hostile countries.” Trump resumed bombing in early Julyto prevent Iran from doing just that, and President Donald Trump has flitted between claiming the United States will control Hormuz and charge tolls, pretending the strait is already open and threatening to “hit very hard” if Iran doesn’t fully open it soon.

The White House Correspondents Dinner celebrating an avowed enemy of the press, the Iran war and Trump’s pattern of threats then surrender, the Saudi nuclear deal—awful strategy, and sure looks corrupt—the possibility of a post-Trump reconstruction and more — I joined Charlie Sykes for a wide-ranging current events conversation on To the Contrary. Listen for free here:

The U.S. and Iran are shooting again, the second (and larger) flare up since they signed a Memorandum of Understanding in June. The main point of contention is the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway for international trade that Iran blocked in response to the initial U.S.-Israel attack in February.

Over the weekend, less than two weeks after Iran and the United States signed a memorandum of understanding to end hostilities, the countries exchanged multiple attacks. Iran fired at a ship crossing the Strait of Hormuz, the U.S. shot at Iranian missile and drone sites, then both sides launched more strikes while claiming retaliation for the other violating the ceasefire. A meeting between the two countries was called off, though the White House now says there will be new meetings in Qatar.

Only a few days after the United States and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding, Iran announced that the Strait of Hormuz was closed again. But it wasn’t American forces that drew the sharp response from Tehran. Instead, the Iranians said Israeli operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon meant America violated the deal.