Mark Halperin

OK, Iran put out a 10 point plan before the ceasefire.

That was a joke.

I mean, I think seven of the 10 were absolute non starters and the other three probably were non starters for the US.

And then the president said, we have an Iranian 10 point plan.

That's a good basis to have a ceasefire conversations.

everybody kind of assumed and it was reported that he meant the original 10-point plan.

Now the White House says, no, there's a different 10-point plan, maybe not the second, but the third Iranian 10-point plan.

And that's the plan that the president was encouraged enough by to say, let's talk about it, talking off of that plan.

I don't know what that plan is.

It's a lot of secrecy, ambiguity.

The White House premise is, if you saw that plan,

You wouldn't think it was crazy to assume that there could be a deal.

And the president has spoken favorably about the prospects of the deal.

But how can we know how to evaluate the Iran situation, the Iran willingness to strike a bargain without knowing what it is they're even proposing?

Now, diplomats have to keep things secret, as David Ignatius says, diplomats like things where there's some flux in there.

But for those, whether they're on the right or the left or independent, for those who are concerned that the president's not going to drive a hard enough bargain, got to know what the Iranians are even asking for.

And it's going to be tough.

Bridging Hezbollah in Lebanon, not that tough, but bridging the Iran nuclear program, bridging the Iranian demands to give up its nuclear program in terms of access to

sanctions relief or investment or whatever it is.

It's going to be tough.