Iran deal, intelligence standoff, and a new poll test Trump on three fronts
This preview, based only on the published show notes, points to an episode centered on foreign policy, intelligence politics, and public opinion. It looks at Trump’s initial deal with Iran, his delayed DNI nomination fight, and new polling showing weak marks on the economy and approval.
This is a preview based on the episode’s show notes, not a recap of the audio itself. If you want a quick scan of the day’s biggest Trump-related storylines, this episode appears built around three pressure points: diplomacy abroad, leverage battles in Washington, and warning signs in the polls. The first segment focuses on an initial agreement signed by President Trump and Iran’s president to end the war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. The notes suggest the conversation may also explore the complications around Israel being left out of the negotiations, along with Trump’s public criticism of Israel’s continued attacks in Lebanon. The second segment shifts to intelligence and Senate politics. According to the notes, Trump is withholding his pick for Director of National Intelligence until his demands are met, leaving temporary pick Bill Pulte in charge for now. The show notes also indicate a fight over a key surveillance or intelligence tool, with Trump threatening to block it as part of the standoff. The final section turns to public opinion, highlighting a new NPR/PBS News/Marist poll. The notes say Americans remain unhappy with both the economy and Trump, and that his approval rating has fallen to its lowest level, including among some groups that previously supported him. Overall, this looks like a concise listen for anyone trying to understand how foreign policy moves, internal power struggles, and voter sentiment are intersecting in the current political moment.
About this episode
President Trump and Iran’s president have signed an initial agreement to end the war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, but Israel was left out of the negotiations and Trump is openly criticizing its continued attacks in Lebanon.<br>President Trump is once again putting Senate Republicans in a tough spot, he's holding back his pick for Director of National Intelligence until his demands are met, leaving his temporary pick Bill Pulte to lead the nation’s intelligence agencies, with Trump threatening to block a key spy tool until he gets his way.<br>And a new NPR/PBS News/ Marist poll finds Americans still aren’t happy with the economy or with President Trump, his approval numbers at the lowest they’ve been, even dropping among groups that helped put him in office.<br/><br/><em>Want more analysis of the most important news of the day, plus a little fun? </em><a href="https://www.npr.org/newsletter/news"target="_blank" >Subscribe</a><em> to the Up First newsletter.</em><br/><br/>Today’s episode of Up First was edited by Tina Kraja, Jason Breslow, Megan Pratz, Mohamad ElBardicy, and HJ Mai.<br/><br/>It was produced by Ziad Buchh and Ava Pukatch.<br/><br/>Our director is Christopher Thomas.<br/><br/>We get engineering support from Neisha Heinis. Our technical director is Carleigh Strange.<br/><br/>And our deputy Executive Producer is Kelley Dickens.<br/><br/>(0:00) Introduction<br>(01:57) Trump Signs Initial Deal With Iran<br>(05:42) Trump Withholds DNI Nominee<br>(09:31) Trump Approval Poll<br><br/><br/>See <a href="https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com</a> for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.<br/><br/><a href="https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy">NPR Privacy Policy</a>