Trump Says the War Is Ending. A Navy Commander Says It’s About to Escalate

Former Navy pilot Ken Harbaugh — who flew recon missions as a mission commander over the Strait of Hormuz — joins Tara to break down Trump's address to the nation and what it actually means on the ground. Ken calls the speech alarming, says the Pentagon has no plan, and explains why Iran doesn't need a navy or air force to win this war. Ken's final answer: we're closer to something much bigger. 0:53 – Trump's address: contradictions on "nearing completion" vs. "major escalation" 1:52 – Total lack of a plan — and no one around Trump will say so 4:04 – Mission accomplished vibes — and why Iraq's military collapsed in minutes but the war lasted years 6:22 – Mining the strait: fishing boats vs. the U.S. Navy 8:36 – Iran will come out of this with a better deal than Obama's JCPoA 10:47 – Russia is providing targeting intel to Iran 12:14 – Why the U.S. is losing the drone war — and Ukraine offered to help 14:02 – China is laughing — and learning every lesson we're missing 15:24 – Ad break: Noble Mobile 17:16 – "Bomb them back to the Stone Age" — why it doesn't work 18:30 – Ground troops: the 82nd Airborne and the Kharg Island problem 21:53 – What does victory even look like now? 25:46 – Was it Israel? Total lack of coordination either way 27:01 – Do the Iranians even want to negotiate? 30:33 – 100,000 hardened IRGC fighters with weapons we can't counter 30:57 – Outro: subscribe and support independent journalism Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices