Randy Manner

We are getting very close to making a deal.

Very good talks over the last 24 hours, and it's very possible that we'll make a deal.

I think that the past few weeks have shown that ceasefires are typically not holding, unfortunately.

And Hezbollah absolutely gets a vote as well as Iran.

That's exactly correct.

Unfortunately, any two-way agreement when it doesn't include the powerful third party is basically not worth the paper it's written on, correct?

Okay, so what happens from here then?

I think this is something where we would be hopeful that there would be continued de-escalation.

The problem is the Israelis still are using, as they always have, they are defending themselves and also, quite frankly, attacking other neighbors to be able to secure their frontiers.

And that, of course, means the United States is powerless in trying to provide any incentive to Israel, unfortunately.

I think it's very possible.

The attack by the Iranians recently on the Kuwaiti airport.

I've been in that airport.

The attacks in Bahrain.

I've been there at the US naval base.

These are all very serious offences.

And the United States has responded in kind.

This is an extremely fragile situation, which, of course, does nothing to be able to lower gas and oil prices around the world.

I tell you what, it is an embarrassment as a person who has devoted 36 years of my life in service to the United States and to the peace in the world to have the Secretary of Defense go out to the Pacific and basically pause the $14 billion sale of weapons to Taiwan, to be able to pause the delivery of Tomahawk missiles to Japan, and essentially has told New Zealand, Australia, and other nations to, hey, you're on your own.

What...