Is the War in Iran Totally Pointless?

This week, editors Peter Suderman, Katherine Mangu-Ward, Nick Gillespie, and Matt Welch discuss the collapse of ceasefire talks with Iran and President Donald Trump’s decision to order a U.S. military blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. They examine Trump’s insistence that the conflict is a win for America, what the United States has actually gained, and the mounting costs of escalation. The panel also discusses why voices such as former national security adviser John Bolton still push for escalation and why their foreign policy arguments continue to fail.

Next, the editors turn to Europe after Viktor Orbán’s defeat in Hungary and what it says about the limits of nationalist populism, economic performance, and Vice President J.D. Vance’s endorsement of the longtime Hungarian leader. They also discuss Kamala Harris hinting at another presidential run and Eric Swalwell’s exit from California’s governor race amid sexual assault allegations. The editors then examine Anthropic’s decision not to release its powerful new Claude Mythos Preview model because of its hacking capabilities. Finally, a listener asks whether Bruce Springsteen’s “Born in the U.S.A.” can still be embraced as a patriotic song.

0:00—Has the U.S. won anything from the war with Iran?

14:49—Orbán loses reelection

27:41—Democrats have a candidate quality issue

33:45—Listener question on patriotic content

39:05—Anthropic’s Claude Mythos

50:04—Weekly cultural recommendations

Mentioned in the podcast:

“Trump Responds to Iranian Blockade of Strait of Hormuz By Blockading It,” by Matthew Petti

“Viktor Orbán and His American Apologists All Deserve To Lose,” by Matt Welch

“Viktor Orban’s Hungary Exemplifies the Perils of Nationalism,” by Ilya Somin

“American Presidents Shouldn’t Endorse Foreign Political Candidates,” by Matt Welch

“How Did Poland Get So Far Ahead of Hungary?” by Eric Boehm

“National Conservatives Can’t Find a Good Excuse for Viktor Orbán’s Inflation Disaster,” by Ryan Bourne

“No Self-Respecting American Should Aspire to Hungarian-Style Nationalism,” by Matt Welch

“Hungarian Nationalism Is a Dead End,” by Matt Welch

“See Ya, Swalwell,” by Christian Britschgi

“Democrats and Republicans Both Want To Regulate AI. They Just Can’t Agree on How,” by Jack Nicastro

“Sam Altman’s (Not So) New Deal for Superintelligent AI,” by Jack Nicastro

“The Joys of Data Centers,” by Christian Britschgi

“Artemis II Launches a New Era of Lunar Exploration,” by Natalie Dowzicky

“The Overly Examined Life of Henry David Thoreau,” by Peter Bagge

“‘My Thoughts Are Murder to the State,’” by Lester Hunt

“Jacob Mchangama: How Hate Speech Laws Punish Minorities,” by Nick Gillespie

“Jeff Kosseff: Why Anonymous Speech Is Good—and Constitutional,” by Nick Gillespie

• Producer: Paul Alexander
• Video Editor: Ian Keyser