Does Trump know what he is trying to do in Iran?
Americano
The Spectator
4.0 • 762 Ratings
🗓️ 28 February 2026
⏱️ 24 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Donald Trump has urged Iranians to ‘take over’ their government after the United States and Israel struck targets across the country. A multitude of Iranian military and government targets were hit by missiles in what is turning out to be a joint operation far more comprehensive than the 12-day air campaign last June. Freddy Gray and Jacob Heilbrunn join to discuss why now, how this attack is fraught with risk for Trump's presidency, and how Trump's administration was hijacked by the neoconservatives.
Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more.
For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts.
Contact us: podcast@spectator.co.uk
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Subscribe to The Spectator and get 12 weeks of Britain's most incisive politics coverage, |
| 0:04.8 | unrivaled books and arts reviews, and so much more, all for just £12. |
| 0:09.7 | Not only that, but we'll also send you a £20 Amazon gift card absolutely free. |
| 0:14.9 | As a subscriber, you'll also be able to listen to all our other podcasts, ad-free. |
| 0:20.6 | Go to www.w.com.com.com.com |
| 0:24.8 | U.K. forward slash voucher to claim this offer now. Terms apply. |
| 0:35.7 | Hello and welcome back to the Americana Show. My name is Freddie Gray. I am the deputy editor of the |
| 0:41.3 | spectator and the US editor. And I'm pleased to tell you that this is the 10th year of the |
| 0:47.7 | Americano podcast. And I think it's fair to say it's been a fairly fascinating time in American politics, life and culture. |
| 0:57.4 | And that's what we talk about every episode on this podcast. So please keep listening and provide |
| 1:03.8 | as much feedback as you like. A special emergency episode of the Americano at the weekend, because in the early hours of this morning, |
| 1:14.8 | America and Israel began a dramatic series of strikes against Iran. Donald Trump did a little speech. |
| 1:25.4 | He stood at a lectern wearing a white cap and said that this was to protect |
| 1:31.2 | the American people, but he also made it quite clear that it was a regime change war, |
| 1:38.0 | or that regime change is part of the plan, at least so it seems. |
| 1:44.0 | It's menacing activities directly in danger. |
| 1:47.0 | The United States, our troops, our bases overseas, and our allies throughout the world. |
| 1:53.0 | For 47 years, the Iranian regime has chanted death to America and waged an unending campaign of bloodshed and mass murder targeting the United |
| 2:04.7 | States our troops and the innocent people in many, many countries. Among the regime's very first |
| 2:11.5 | acts was to back a violent takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, holding dozens of American hostages for 444 days. |
| 2:22.7 | I'm delighted to be joined by Jacob Harbrun, who came on our last emergency weekend podcast. |
| 2:27.8 | Thank you, Jacob. It's very early in the morning for you for getting up. What do you make of the latest? |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from The Spectator, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of The Spectator and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.