Iran get ‘nothing’ if they don’t live up to ‘performance-based’ deal

[00:00:00]Let's go to a man who may know, knowing Donald Trump, Sean Spicer. He was Donald Trump's first White House spokesman. I talked to him a short while ago.

[00:00:09]Sean Spicer, always great to talk to you. Look, Sean, there is a reported split in Donald Trump's team on this peace deal, if that's what you call it, with Iran.

[00:00:19]Axios now reporting Vice President J.D.

[00:00:21]Vance is all for it. But the head of the CIA and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, a guy I really respect, they doubt Iran could be trusted to give up its enriched uranium. And the fact that this is leaked suggests that someone wants the world to know they are not happy. Their hands are clean. How big is this?

[00:00:42]>> Well, look, the beautiful part about this, Andrew, and I will say without naming names, I cuz I asked I was asked to keep this tight. I talked to two two very, very senior administration officials today that are involved in this. And and at the highest levels of the US government, they're making it very clear that it's a trust, but verify situation. They are not Look, no one is giving Iran anything. They will have to It's a performance-based deal, meaning that if they don't do what they have agreed to do, they get nothing. They will be incentivized to do the right thing and to continue to do the right thing. But if they don't follow through, they get nothing. And that's what every single person from Donald Trump on down has made very clear. So, I I I I think lots of people, uh myself included, are skeptical of Iran. But in my conversations today, everybody has said, "Number one, the calculus has changed. Their economy has cratered, and they understand that they need to do something to change that equation. And while this may not be uh something that we've all thought would happen, there's a reality that set in in in Iran in terms of what they need to do to take care of their own economy, their own people.

[00:01:55]Um and and but there's also a reality here in the United States about what we expect of them. If they do not perform, they get nothing.

[00:02:05]>> Uh, Shawn, I'm glad to hear that, but uh, without wanting to push you on who you've been talking to, as you say, you've been told to keep it tight.

[00:02:12]Uh, is this the view from both sides of this argument in the White House, the J.D. Vance side and the Marco Rubio side, or is it just the, you know, the the pro-peace deal guys?

[00:02:25]>> Well, I I will tell you I there there is I it's it's an interesting question you're asking because I think that what the president has asked is everybody to give uh, their analysis. And I don't think everyone's 100% on the same page, but the number one, the reports that I have seen that you're reading in Axios are not verified yet. There is nothing from Rubio's camp or anybody else that says that they're not on board on this.

[00:02:48]That's number one. Number two is I'm not so sure it's that off, meaning there is skepticism, and that's why everybody that I've talked to is in agreement that until we see Iran live up to the deal, they get nothing. So, I I think the the reality is um, that I'm not really sure that there's that much of a disagreement to begin with. Some people believe that they'll live up to it more than others, but at the end of the day, what everybody seems to agree upon is that unless they actually do live up to the deal, they will get nothing.

[00:03:21]>> One big problem for me in this scenario, like I'm hearing what you're saying, you know, they'll they'll wipe, you know, the 60 days to negotiate, no money unless they perform, although, you know, we still haven't seen the terms of the deal, but that's what we're told. One big problem in this scenario is that after 60 days, that means a deadline in August for these talks, which is just 3 months before the midterm elections, which would cost Trump control of the house, control of the Senate, which means in effect that Iran's going to have him over a barrel, barrel of oil forgive the pun, won't it?

[00:03:58]>> Yes, but and let me let me tell you this. I actually think you and I are probably more simpatico than you thought. I believe we're going to get to that end of the 60 days and then I wouldn't be surprised to see another 60 days. But here's where Donald Trump then regains his footing. Yes, he has to get through the midterm elections. Once he does that in November then Katie bar the door. If the Iranians have just obfuscated and attempted to buy time and whatever, my my gut is that the day after those midterm elections Donald Trump will bomb the crap out of them. So Iran may have a little bit of time to play with between now and the midterms understanding the domestic situation we have here in the United States. But remember Donald Trump will be president for two and a quarter years after that election in November. So I would be very very careful if I were Iran thinking that you're buying yourself anything more than a couple months at best.

[00:04:50]That's That's the That's why I believe that short-term maybe they don't agree to everything, but at the end of the day the second that that midterm election is done, he has nothing to lose but to bomb the crap out of them. So I if I were them, I'd actually want to get a deal before it was too late.

[00:05:08]>> Now Sean, I'm one of these guys there was some sort of survey about how often men think about the Roman the Roman Empire. I put up my hand. I think about it a lot. I thought about it particularly on Sunday. You know, Donald Trump for his birthday held a cage fights staged on the White House lawns exactly like Roman emperors put on gladiator fights to please their public.

[00:05:32]Now you actually know Donald Trump. Does he genuinely like cage fights himself?

[00:05:37]Do you do you know? Or is he privately uh you know, a guy like me likes his opera, he likes his his good books. Does he just do this to show us a man of the blue collar worker.

[00:05:49]>> Well, first of all, I think he's a little of all of the above. If you listen to his playlist when he's out there on the Mar-a-Lago patio, there's a little bit of opera that gets thrown in there. But, um but I actually if you go back and look at Donald Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah, there's a opera there's that's mixed in there. But, I will tell you go back and look at him in the '80s. He helped, you know, he's big into fighting in Atlantic City in the boxing that is.

[00:06:10]And then when when Dana White was launching the UFC, Donald Trump was one of the first investors. This is something that has been a long-time passion of his. He's been going to fights, he's been investing in fights.

[00:06:19]You look at some of his old-time friends uh from from back in the day. The fighters are part of who he's been involved with. You even look at the Celebrity Apprentice, the folks that populated that. He's This is something that I think is a genuine interest of his going back decades.

[00:06:35]>> Well, I got to confess I was the boxing reporter for the Age newspaper for quite a while and I still watch boxing boxing clips, but there you go. Maybe we're all renaissance men men of the all parts, Sean. You certainly are a navy volunteer and all this kind of stuff. Sean Spicer, thank you so much indeed for your time.

[00:06:54]>> You bet. Well, maybe maybe we'll figure some other people to throw in that cage, by the way. I I think that Scott Bessent and Bill O'Reilly >> [laughter] >> we could do it would be great. I mean, start putting members of the cabinet in the cage while it's still there.

[00:07:05]>> I How about the Ayatollah versus Donald Trump? That could be a real match. I think that'd explode on the ratings, but anyway, [laughter] thank you so much.

[00:07:15]>> You bet.