Trump Takes Hard Line on Iran | Radio Balance of Power: Early Edition 8/18/2026

On the early edition of Balance of Power, Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz discuss the latest from the Middle East. On today's show, former National Security Advisor under President Joe Biden Jake Sullivan, Maven Advocacy Co-Founder Partner Jeff Burton, Causeway Strategy Group Principal John McCarthy and Democratic Candidate for Texas Governor Gina Hinojosa. Chapters 00:00:00 Radio Balance of Power: Early Edition 00:01:48 Market Update: AI Stocks Sink, Oil Rises 00:03:41 Iran MOU Expires with No New Talks 00:05:01 White House on Mines in the Strait of Hormuz 00:07:06 Economic Pressure, Sanctions & Iranian Oil 00:08:38 Jake Sullivan on Ending the Iran War 00:10:28 Did the U.S. Underestimate Iran? 00:11:42 Can Iran Be Denuclearized Without Negotiations? 00:16:51 Netanyahu, Biden & the War With Iran 00:17:45 Israel's Elections & the Future of the Middle East 00:18:55 U.S.-South Korea Military Exercises 00:20:55 China, Xi Jinping & America's Alliances 00:22:27 Iran War's Impact on Ukraine 00:26:22 Political Panel on the Iran War 00:30:22 Congress, War Powers & Trump's Oman Threat 00:33:17 Gas Prices & the Midterm Elections 00:38:14 Primary Day: Florida, Alaska & Wyoming 00:39:40 Florida's Biggest Primary Races 00:42:35 Alaska's Dan Sullivan Ballot Confusion 00:43:00 Gina Hinojosa on Democrats' Chances in Texas 00:44:14 Texas Data Centers & Voter Backlash 00:45:53 Hinojosa Calls for a Data Center Moratorium 00:47:38 Immigration, ICE Raids & Border Security -------- 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