Ben Rhodes

I'm not sure why I want to give the Americans control over our economy, because that's what the dollar gives us.

We can sanction whoever we want.

But importantly, I think those other countries, particularly in different ways, the UAE, Saudi, and Qatar, are likely to look at us, we're their security guarantor.

Their whole model is we have these monarchies, we get to stay in power, the Americans provide our security, and we provide our people with a measure of prosperity and stability.

That model's been kind of shattered by this war.

And so you could start to see them hedging against us and drawing closer to China or Russia or just looking for other options so that they're not overly reliant on a country.

The United States had started a war that caused, predictably, drones and missiles to rain down on them.

It does.

I mean, the Dubai model, that's the UAE's like, you know, that's the ultimate Jetson city.

Their model depends upon the idea that this is a safe place to visit.

This is a desirable place to live.

If you're an oligarch, come live here and put your money here.

Come do business here.

Duty free.

It's a duty free shop.

It's a duty free shop.

Yes.

And it's gone from the situation being that the Emirates would literally pay influencers to come and post pictures of themselves on social media enjoying Dubai to nobody there is allowed to post anything or else they get arrested.

Yeah.

And I think what that tells you, though, and this is, I think, another important part.