Why Trump’s ‘Peace Deal’ is a Sham: Rothkopf

The Daily Beast Podcast

The Daily Beast

News

4.6 • 8.4K Ratings

🗓️ 16 June 2026

⏱️ 41 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

David Rothkopf and Joanna Coles take apart Donald Trump’s bizarre White House UFC spectacle, his heavily hyped “deal” with Iran, and what they argue is a presidency increasingly defined by spectacle and self-preservation. From accusations of turning the South Lawn into a political carnival, to a blistering debate over whether Trump’s Iran agreement is diplomacy or surrender, the pair connect the dots between foreign policy, political theater, and the looming battles that could define the next phase of his presidency. They also dive into JD Vance’s carefully polished media management, the ambitions driving MAGA’s rising stars, and the deeper cultural and moral questions they believe are shaping America’s future. By the end, what begins as a conversation about a birthday celebration becomes a far-reaching examination of power, loyalty, corruption, and the forces transforming Washington from the inside out. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	A whole new kingdom awaits at World of Frozen, where you can sing, let it go, and where a magical boat ride brings you right into Anna and Elsa's adventures.
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1:03.6	And this is the way our president wants to celebrate being 80.
1:05.5	He's got nothing else to celebrate.
1:07.7	He's got no other achievements.
1:14.2	But David, what are you saying? He's just done a deal with Iran, a birthday deal with Iran. A deal to do a deal. First of all, there is no deal. Nothing was signed yesterday.
1:20.0	It's going to be signed on Friday. It's not a deal. It's not even a framework of a deal.
1:25.7	It's a sham. We call that a loss. We call that surrender.
1:30.8	And what Trump is doing is he is surrendering to a weaker ally because a war we shouldn't have
1:38.1	started was blundered through, contained many mistakes, and he just wants to turn the page.
1:44.8	He will talk about anything else because this has been such a catastrophe.
1:52.1	I'm Joanna Coles. This is the Daily Beast podcast, and it's the day after Donald Trump has been celebrating his 80th birthday,
2:00.1	or as I like to think of it, him treading
2:02.5	lightly into his ninth decade, where he will become the oldest president the United States
2:10.2	has ever had. Well, last night he was celebrating with the UFC, that enormous 92-foot claw hanging over the White House lawn.
	...

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