House Faces Tricky Midterm Agenda | Radio Balance of Power: Early Edition 8/31/2026

On the early edition of Balance of Power, Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz discuss the latest between the US and Iran. On today's show, former US Army Europe Commanding General Ben Hodges, Stonecourt Capital Partner Rick Davis, Harvard Kennedy School Ash Center Visiting Democracy Fellow Jeanne Sheehan Zaino and Republican Congressman Rich McCormick of Georgia. Chapters 00:00:00 Radio Balance of Power: Early Edition 00:03:57 Iran, the Strait of Hormuz & Trump's Response 00:05:09 Is the Iran Conflict Escalating Again? 00:06:48 Venezuela Oil & Trump's Plan to Lower Prices 00:09:34 Gen. Ben Hodges on Iran's Remaining Capabilities 00:11:43 The Challenge of Keeping the Strait of Hormuz Clear 00:12:32 Is the Iran War Entering a New Phase? 00:14:29 U.S. Military Readiness & the Iran War 00:17:10 Russia, Ukraine & Conflicting U.S. Signals 00:21:39 Congress Returns With a Government Funding Deadline 00:23:10 Political Panel on Avoiding a Government Shutdown 00:26:26 Congress, the Midterms & America's $40 Trillion Debt 00:28:10 Russia Sanctions & Trump's Tariff Powers 00:34:42 Bond Yields, Inflation & the Fed 00:35:43 Could a Fed Rate Hike Bring Yields Down? 00:38:17 Deficits, Fiscal Restraint & the Midterms 00:40:02 Rep. Rich McCormick on Government Spending 00:42:45 Data Centers Become a Midterm Political Fight 00:46:22 McCormick on Iran & the Strait of Hormuz -------- More on Bloomberg Television and Markets Like this video? Subscribe and turn on notifications so you don't miss any videos from Bloomberg Markets & Finance: https://tinyurl.com/ysu5b8a9 Visit http://www.bloomberg.com for business news & analysis, up-to-the-minute market data, features, profiles and more. Connect with Bloomberg Television on: X: https://twitter.com/BloombergTV Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BloombergTelevision Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bloombergtv/ Connect with Bloomberg Business on: X: https://twitter.com/business Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bloombergbusiness Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bloombergbusiness/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bloombergbusiness?lang=en Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/bloomberg/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bloomberg-news/ More from Bloomberg: Bloomberg Radio: https://twitter.com/BloombergRadio Bloomberg Surveillance: https://twitter.com/bsurveillance Bloomberg Politics: https://twitter.com/bpolitics Bloomberg Originals: https://twitter.com/bbgoriginals Watch more on YouTube: Bloomberg Technology: https://www.youtube.com/@BloombergTechnology Bloomberg Originals: https://www.youtube.com/@business Bloomberg Quicktake: https://www.youtube.com/@BloombergQuicktake Bloomberg Espanol: https://www.youtube.com/@bloomberg_espanol Bloomberg Podcasts: https://www.youtube.com/@BloombergPodcasts