July 17, 2026 • 11 mins
President Trump is ramping up pressure on Iran as the regime releases American hostage Dina Karari after more than 18 months in detention. Buck breaks down what her release signals, the ongoing U.S. military campaign against Iranian targets, and the growing tensions surrounding the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most important energy chokepoints. From military strikes and oil market implications to the Trump administration's strategy of maximum pressure, Buck examines what these developments could mean for Iran, the Middle East, and global stability.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Trump getting more results in his showdown with the Mullahs
of Iran and military actions underway. We'll discuss all this here.
Let's dive into it. The Mulais and Tehran are trying
to play the goodwill card, it seems right now, by
releasing an American woman that they had held hostage for
(00:24):
over a year and a half. That's this, while, of course,
in the background, the US is engaged in its most
significant military action against the Iranian regime in decades. And
here's the situation right now. The United States is pummeling them,
(00:45):
and we're enforcing this blockade. We've got hell fire missiles,
we've got all kinds of stuff blowing up sites of
Iranian military capability, whatever they may be. So with this
this hostage release and the strikes on their military, they
just disabled the tanker in the Strait, by the way,
(01:07):
So what does this all mean for global energy, the
Trump doctor and action the future of this Iran showdown. Well,
let's get into some of the news that has just
been breaking. An American dual citizen, Dina Kari, has been
released by Iran and is on her way home. She's
fifty three years old. She was visiting family in Shiraz.
(01:28):
By the way, it is the city that the wine
is named for in frendship is Sirah, but Iran a
long time ago was a well known wine producing region.
In December of twenty twenty four, in the regime seized
her passports, slapped her with an exit band, and later
charged her with espionage and collaborating with a hostile state.
Her lawyer, Jared Genser, says she was never physically thrown
(01:52):
in a dungeon, but she was interrogated dozens of times
by Iran's notorious Ministry of Intelligence and Security, so she
endured severe physical and psychological hardship. It's classic Iranian hostage
based diplomacy. That's how they do things. President Trump did
mince words. He said, look, this is a gesture of
goodwill from Iran. He's noting it correctly. But let's be clear.
(02:18):
This isn't just because the Mullas suddenly grew a conscience.
It happened because Donald Trump is back in the Oval office.
The United States is projecting strength, and the Mullahs are
in a tough spot right now. This woman's lawyer, by
the way, directly credited President Trump's extraordinary and relentless efforts
(02:39):
to get her out. So we know there's a huge
difference between this administration and the last one. In a
whole bunch of ways, this is certainly one of them.
And while they're letting one American go, that's a good thing.
They're still the Iranians are still trying to strangle the
world's oil checkpoint of horror moves twenty percent going through there.
(03:03):
So yesterday US forces were enforcing that naval blockade in
the Strait of Hormus and a commercial tanker was disabled
the Belma, which is flagged out of curisow trying to
run toward Iran's main export terminal on karg Island. The
(03:24):
ship ignored multiple warnings. US aircraft put hell fire missiles
into its smoke stack and disabled it. And that's after
two other tankers were turned around the day before. So
this is sentcom US military taking direct action to keep
the straight open on the one hand, but to choke
(03:44):
off the Iranian regime's ability to use the strait and
therefore to fund its terrorism, nuclear ambitions and all that
with oil money. The broader air campaign remains while it
is operational relentless. Over the past week or so we've
seen strikes deeper into Iran than in previous rounds, hitting
(04:05):
military barracks, including the three hundred and eighty eighth Mechanized
Infantry Brigade in the southeast, targets near Tehran and coastal
assets that Iran uses to threaten shipping. Irani and state
media is of course freaking out about this. They've got
murals up in Tehran showing President Trump and a coffin
and Lindsey Graham with devil horns. These are lovely people,
(04:27):
so the pressure is definitely on them, and they're pretty
angry about it. So let's talk about why this does
matter so much right now. Straight of hornor Moves has
been discussed so many times as a critical energy artery.
About twenty percent of global seaborne oil trade passes to
the straight of Horm Moves and a big chunk of
liquefied natural gas LNG. And this is a stretch of
(04:48):
water between Iran and Oman. So when Iran threatens to
close it or actually harasses ships with drones, fast boats
and mines, the entire global economy starts to feel that
pinch higher gas prices here at home, supply chain chaos
This gives the iatolas some degree of leverage, an ability
(05:09):
to punch back, to hit back a bit at what
we are doing in this country with the Trump administrations
doing trying to get them to concede. So for years,
really for decades, Iran has used the threat of closing
hormones as a blackmail tactic, and they've gone after commercial shipping,
they've used proxies, they've mined the waters, and before Trump,
(05:34):
US response was usually stern statements and more sanctions. But
of course the Iranians have become experts at evading those
sanctions and so evading accountability, evaiding punishment for what they've
been doing. Not under Trump, not on this guy's watch.
President Trump has made a crystal clear it's going to
do whatever is necessary to keep that straight open. There's
(05:54):
no permission asking from the Mullahs. There's not negotiating over
this with the IRGC. The strait is open. That is
a precondition for any other agreement or talks, and Trump
is going to keep escalating this. In fact, the President
was asked point blank whether he would wipe out the
IRGC in a way similar to how he helped take
out ISIS in his first term, and his answer was
(06:17):
we'll see what's happening. For Trump, that means it is
certainly a possibility. He's also been very clear no American
ground troops invading Iran to do the regime change work
for the Iranian people. That's critical. It's not our job.
The President recognizes that, but we will continue to degrade
Iranian military capability from the air and from the sea,
(06:37):
and so they can no longer effectively threaten international shipping
or build nuclear weapons on our watch. Senator Tom Cotton,
chairman of the Intelligence Committee, put it perfectly on Fox
earlier today. He said, the victory condition here is simple.
Put Iran's military in a position where it can't continue
to harass the straight keep the Southern Channel open, protect
the ships, and finish the job of degrading their ability
(06:59):
to threat in the world's oil supply. So this is
the Trump doctrine playing out here. It is peaced through strength,
that is, knowing who the bad guys are, maximum pressure
against them for actual results. And remember Iran only released
this American citizen after the strike's ramped up and the
(07:21):
blockade went back into effect. So it's likely that the
Mullahs are feeling the pressure once again. Their economy is
getting strangled, their military assets are being hit, their propaganda
is becoming nastier and more desperate. So that's important. But
at the same time, there's still the same regime revolutionary
(07:42):
fanatics who chant death to America and they mean it.
They're not moderates in suits. There are no real moderates
running the show in Tehran. One faction maybe plays the
bad cop while the other pretends to be the good
cop and wants to talk, but it's all theater designed
to buy time and to bleed us over time. President
Vance made the point the other day that the Iranians,
(08:04):
these people have never been serious about a real deal.
In the last couple of weeks have proven it. It's
why the blockade is back, that's why the strikes continue. Now.
The good news is we've already shown we can move
through the straight under pressure. We've already shown we can
handle that economically from an energy perspective. This is why
the blockade is over the long term going to work
(08:27):
in our favor. And this is not about for those
who are concerned. Trump has made very clear starting a
wider war. This is about finishing the job of neutralizing
the threat that Iran poses because of a stealth nuclear program,
because of funding terrorist proxy throughout them at least, and yes,
of course its ability to threaten global commerce, so that's important.
(08:55):
And the Mullahs in the meantime can release a hostage
and pain angry Murals and do all the things that
they're doing, knowing that President Trump has given them a
very straightforward choice. Come to the table for a serious
agreement that is enforceable, or watch your military capability get
degraded further and the oil revenue you have get strangled.
(09:18):
Slowly but surely. I might also add into this that
Iran has called on the who Thi's to prepare to
cut off the Red Sea Gateway, and this is an
expansion of the conflict of this were to happen. Iran
(09:39):
has reportedly instructed Yemen's Hoothy terrorists to prepare to close
a critical Red Sea gateway if the United States attacks
Iranian power infrastructure. This from Fox News or actually this
from Reuters. Rather, this threat should be taken seriously. According
to some experts recent escalation US strikes on Iran, Tehran
has already signaled that this could become part of its response,
(10:01):
so Iran is trying to find a way to increase
its leverage. I think it's unlikely to reach It's unlikely
to get what it wants here from the Huthies. But
they're bad actors the Iranian regime. They're bad people, bad
on brace, and Trump is going to continue to hold
them to task. Our sponsor, he is super Shore. Let
(10:21):
me tell you something. When you sign your insurance policies
for some brokers, that's the finish line, handshake, commission done.
Then you might not hear from them again until it's
time for renewal. But your business runs all year, and
so do the gaps and risks. That's why I'm introducing
super Shore. If your company is more than twenty five employees,
you're the CEO, owner, CFO, or HR manager. Buying a
policy online is complex and you have no support from
(10:43):
those people that are selling you that policy. That's where
supershore comes in. License in every state for your business,
insurance and employee benefits, all with year round support for
you and your team. At supershore dot com, you can
access tools like fine print facts, which translates your current
policy into play in English. See what's covered and what's
not plus a business value calculators you can estimate what
(11:04):
your business is worth so you know what actually needs protecting.
Go to supershot dot com slash buck one super agency,
one powerful platform, all your policies in one place. Supershore
dot com slash b u ck. Supershore dot Com slash
b Uck paid for by Supershore Insurance Agency LLC, a
license insurance agency that is our deep dive on around
today Shields High
Trump getting more results in his showdown with the Mullahs
of Iran and military actions underway. We'll discuss all this here.
Let's dive into it. The Mulais and Tehran are trying
to play the goodwill card, it seems right now, by
releasing an American woman that they had held hostage for
(00:24):
over a year and a half. That's this, while, of course,
in the background, the US is engaged in its most
significant military action against the Iranian regime in decades. And
here's the situation right now. The United States is pummeling them,
(00:45):
and we're enforcing this blockade. We've got hell fire missiles,
we've got all kinds of stuff blowing up sites of
Iranian military capability, whatever they may be. So with this
this hostage release and the strikes on their military, they
just disabled the tanker in the Strait, by the way,
(01:07):
So what does this all mean for global energy, the
Trump doctor and action the future of this Iran showdown. Well,
let's get into some of the news that has just
been breaking. An American dual citizen, Dina Kari, has been
released by Iran and is on her way home. She's
fifty three years old. She was visiting family in Shiraz.
(01:28):
By the way, it is the city that the wine
is named for in frendship is Sirah, but Iran a
long time ago was a well known wine producing region.
In December of twenty twenty four, in the regime seized
her passports, slapped her with an exit band, and later
charged her with espionage and collaborating with a hostile state.
Her lawyer, Jared Genser, says she was never physically thrown
(01:52):
in a dungeon, but she was interrogated dozens of times
by Iran's notorious Ministry of Intelligence and Security, so she
endured severe physical and psychological hardship. It's classic Iranian hostage
based diplomacy. That's how they do things. President Trump did
mince words. He said, look, this is a gesture of
goodwill from Iran. He's noting it correctly. But let's be clear.
(02:18):
This isn't just because the Mullas suddenly grew a conscience.
It happened because Donald Trump is back in the Oval office.
The United States is projecting strength, and the Mullahs are
in a tough spot right now. This woman's lawyer, by
the way, directly credited President Trump's extraordinary and relentless efforts
(02:39):
to get her out. So we know there's a huge
difference between this administration and the last one. In a
whole bunch of ways, this is certainly one of them.
And while they're letting one American go, that's a good thing.
They're still the Iranians are still trying to strangle the
world's oil checkpoint of horror moves twenty percent going through there.
(03:03):
So yesterday US forces were enforcing that naval blockade in
the Strait of Hormus and a commercial tanker was disabled
the Belma, which is flagged out of curisow trying to
run toward Iran's main export terminal on karg Island. The
(03:24):
ship ignored multiple warnings. US aircraft put hell fire missiles
into its smoke stack and disabled it. And that's after
two other tankers were turned around the day before. So
this is sentcom US military taking direct action to keep
the straight open on the one hand, but to choke
(03:44):
off the Iranian regime's ability to use the strait and
therefore to fund its terrorism, nuclear ambitions and all that
with oil money. The broader air campaign remains while it
is operational relentless. Over the past week or so we've
seen strikes deeper into Iran than in previous rounds, hitting
(04:05):
military barracks, including the three hundred and eighty eighth Mechanized
Infantry Brigade in the southeast, targets near Tehran and coastal
assets that Iran uses to threaten shipping. Irani and state
media is of course freaking out about this. They've got
murals up in Tehran showing President Trump and a coffin
and Lindsey Graham with devil horns. These are lovely people,
(04:27):
so the pressure is definitely on them, and they're pretty
angry about it. So let's talk about why this does
matter so much right now. Straight of hornor Moves has
been discussed so many times as a critical energy artery.
About twenty percent of global seaborne oil trade passes to
the straight of Horm Moves and a big chunk of
liquefied natural gas LNG. And this is a stretch of
(04:48):
water between Iran and Oman. So when Iran threatens to
close it or actually harasses ships with drones, fast boats
and mines, the entire global economy starts to feel that
pinch higher gas prices here at home, supply chain chaos
This gives the iatolas some degree of leverage, an ability
(05:09):
to punch back, to hit back a bit at what
we are doing in this country with the Trump administrations
doing trying to get them to concede. So for years,
really for decades, Iran has used the threat of closing
hormones as a blackmail tactic, and they've gone after commercial shipping,
they've used proxies, they've mined the waters, and before Trump,
(05:34):
US response was usually stern statements and more sanctions. But
of course the Iranians have become experts at evading those
sanctions and so evading accountability, evaiding punishment for what they've
been doing. Not under Trump, not on this guy's watch.
President Trump has made a crystal clear it's going to
do whatever is necessary to keep that straight open. There's
(05:54):
no permission asking from the Mullahs. There's not negotiating over
this with the IRGC. The strait is open. That is
a precondition for any other agreement or talks, and Trump
is going to keep escalating this. In fact, the President
was asked point blank whether he would wipe out the
IRGC in a way similar to how he helped take
out ISIS in his first term, and his answer was
(06:17):
we'll see what's happening. For Trump, that means it is
certainly a possibility. He's also been very clear no American
ground troops invading Iran to do the regime change work
for the Iranian people. That's critical. It's not our job.
The President recognizes that, but we will continue to degrade
Iranian military capability from the air and from the sea,
(06:37):
and so they can no longer effectively threaten international shipping
or build nuclear weapons on our watch. Senator Tom Cotton,
chairman of the Intelligence Committee, put it perfectly on Fox
earlier today. He said, the victory condition here is simple.
Put Iran's military in a position where it can't continue
to harass the straight keep the Southern Channel open, protect
the ships, and finish the job of degrading their ability
(06:59):
to threat in the world's oil supply. So this is
the Trump doctrine playing out here. It is peaced through strength,
that is, knowing who the bad guys are, maximum pressure
against them for actual results. And remember Iran only released
this American citizen after the strike's ramped up and the
(07:21):
blockade went back into effect. So it's likely that the
Mullahs are feeling the pressure once again. Their economy is
getting strangled, their military assets are being hit, their propaganda
is becoming nastier and more desperate. So that's important. But
at the same time, there's still the same regime revolutionary
(07:42):
fanatics who chant death to America and they mean it.
They're not moderates in suits. There are no real moderates
running the show in Tehran. One faction maybe plays the
bad cop while the other pretends to be the good
cop and wants to talk, but it's all theater designed
to buy time and to bleed us over time. President
Vance made the point the other day that the Iranians,
(08:04):
these people have never been serious about a real deal.
In the last couple of weeks have proven it. It's
why the blockade is back, that's why the strikes continue. Now.
The good news is we've already shown we can move
through the straight under pressure. We've already shown we can
handle that economically from an energy perspective. This is why
the blockade is over the long term going to work
(08:27):
in our favor. And this is not about for those
who are concerned. Trump has made very clear starting a
wider war. This is about finishing the job of neutralizing
the threat that Iran poses because of a stealth nuclear program,
because of funding terrorist proxy throughout them at least, and yes,
of course its ability to threaten global commerce, so that's important.
(08:55):
And the Mullahs in the meantime can release a hostage
and pain angry Murals and do all the things that
they're doing, knowing that President Trump has given them a
very straightforward choice. Come to the table for a serious
agreement that is enforceable, or watch your military capability get
degraded further and the oil revenue you have get strangled.
(09:18):
Slowly but surely. I might also add into this that
Iran has called on the who Thi's to prepare to
cut off the Red Sea Gateway, and this is an
expansion of the conflict of this were to happen. Iran
(09:39):
has reportedly instructed Yemen's Hoothy terrorists to prepare to close
a critical Red Sea gateway if the United States attacks
Iranian power infrastructure. This from Fox News or actually this
from Reuters. Rather, this threat should be taken seriously. According
to some experts recent escalation US strikes on Iran, Tehran
has already signaled that this could become part of its response,
(10:01):
so Iran is trying to find a way to increase
its leverage. I think it's unlikely to reach It's unlikely
to get what it wants here from the Huthies. But
they're bad actors the Iranian regime. They're bad people, bad
on brace, and Trump is going to continue to hold
them to task. Our sponsor, he is super Shore. Let
(10:21):
me tell you something. When you sign your insurance policies
for some brokers, that's the finish line, handshake, commission done.
Then you might not hear from them again until it's
time for renewal. But your business runs all year, and
so do the gaps and risks. That's why I'm introducing
super Shore. If your company is more than twenty five employees,
you're the CEO, owner, CFO, or HR manager. Buying a
policy online is complex and you have no support from
(10:43):
those people that are selling you that policy. That's where
supershore comes in. License in every state for your business,
insurance and employee benefits, all with year round support for
you and your team. At supershore dot com, you can
access tools like fine print facts, which translates your current
policy into play in English. See what's covered and what's
not plus a business value calculators you can estimate what
(11:04):
your business is worth so you know what actually needs protecting.
Go to supershot dot com slash buck one super agency,
one powerful platform, all your policies in one place. Supershore
dot com slash b u ck. Supershore dot Com slash
b Uck paid for by Supershore Insurance Agency LLC, a
license insurance agency that is our deep dive on around
today Shields High
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Clay Travis
Buck Sexton
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