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The MeidasTouch Podcast

Rubio Turns Up Pressure on Vance as Internal Tensions Grow

21 Jun 2026

Transcription

Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.

Chapter 1: What internal conflict is Marco Rubio causing for JD Vance?

0.031 - 27.19 Ben Meiselas

Marco Rubio wants J.D. Vance gone. Marco Rubio wants J.D. Vance humiliated. Marco Rubio wants J.D. Vance destroyed. The headlines are not doing it justice right now. I mean, there are headlines like this, Rubio lets Vance take the fall as Iran deal questions mount. Or this headline, Rubio gives Iran deal the silent treatment by the Washington examiner. But let's examine this more closely.

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27.53 - 47.174 Ben Meiselas

The job of the Secretary of State is to literally be involved in these types of high-profile negotiations, and Rubio doesn't want to touch it. It's not simply an abdication. It is a trap being set for J.D. Vance, knowing that Donald Trump can comply with any agreement at all.

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Chapter 2: How is Marco Rubio undermining JD Vance during negotiations?

47.674 - 74.959 Ben Meiselas

So as these negotiations are now taking place on the so-called technical details to implement the Memorandum of Understanding in Switzerland, the entire crew that's there on behalf of the United States is now J.D. Vance, Steve Witkoff, and Jared Kushner, like the three biggest losers. And the Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, that's quite literally what your job would be?

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74.939 - 98.803 Ben Meiselas

refuses to show up to it, refuses to join JD Vance. On behalf of Iran, you have MB Ghalabaf, the most important civilian figure in all of Iran, along with some of Iran's top technical experts and leaders who are just there getting ready to outmaneuver JD Vance, Kushner, and Witkoff.

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98.783 - 123.222 Ben Meiselas

I mean, Kushner and Witkoff said, what, a week and a half ago or two weeks ago, they were going to visit some nuclear facilities in the United States to try to learn how nuclear dilution and enrichment and downgrading works. And they like it was like out of a bad sitcom script or like a bad movie script. Two guys go to a nuclear facility to learn how to negotiate in the first place.

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123.202 - 150.199 Ben Meiselas

And so Marco Rubio, I think, wants to see J.D. Vance get completely outmaneuvered in these technical discussions because I think Rubio sees that J.D. Vance would be a potential opponent in an upcoming 2028 Republican primary. And he wants to see J.D. Vance get humiliated. You have J.D. Vance getting on this small Gulfstream C-37 all by himself.

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Chapter 3: What are the implications of Rubio's silence on the Iran deal?

150.8 - 178.958 Ben Meiselas

I mean, just think about that. I mean, this isn't even the vice president's plane. He gets on a small Gulfstream C-37 to go to Switzerland. I mean, just even the optics of it look horrible. JD Vance realizes what's going on here. As JD Vance was getting on the plane, he kind of blamed Marco Rubio for the fact that there was not a ceasefire that's really been able to be effective in Lebanon.

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179.398 - 198.84 Ben Meiselas

And JD Vance tries to blame Rubio for that, as Rubio tries to set up JD Vance for the memorandum of understanding. They're both kind of going after each other, not necessarily so overtly, but it's pretty obvious if you pay attention to what's going on. I'll give you this example. So J.D.

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198.9 - 217.423 Ben Meiselas

Vance, as he was getting on the plane, he blames basically Marco Rubio and say, well, Rubio is the one who's dealing with Lebanon. So I'm going to go and I'm going to try to negotiate two narrow issues. Listen to what he says. I'm going to try to deal with some of the nuclear issues, and I'm going to try to deal with the Lebanon issue.

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Chapter 4: How is JD Vance attempting to navigate the blame game with Rubio?

217.443 - 238.729 Ben Meiselas

That's what I'm going to focus on. But I'm only going to be there for a day or so, because I know Rubio is going to be the one. You see how they're trying to pass the blame back and forth? Let's take a listen to what JD Vance said. And hat tip over here, this Ryan Rezani account, Try to lift up JD Vance's voice because it was in front of all the turbulence of the plane.

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239.13 - 244.57 Ben Meiselas

Listen to what Vance says here. Listen very carefully. Let's play this clip right here so you can hear for yourself. Play it.

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244.904 - 264.671 J.D. Vance

Looking forward to starting to take some talks with the Iranians, the Pakistanis, and the Qatari. Our understanding is that the Iranians just landed. The Qatari, the Pakistanis, and some of our technical negotiators have been on the ground. But look, we'll have a couple days of talks to try to get this thing set off in the right way. There's a lot to discuss, but we're going to go through it all.

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Chapter 5: What role does public perception play in the tensions between Rubio and Vance?

264.691 - 271.941

Sir, the crisis in Lebanon will speed up the entire process. What do you plan to do about that?

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271.921 - 289.122 J.D. Vance

Well, Markville and the entire team have been actively engaging with what's going on in Lebanon despite the headlines. Things are actually getting better there. Things have calmed down a little bit. It's going to be something we're going to have to continuously manage to ensure that, you know, Israel and Lebanon are both states here.

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289.162 - 307.887 J.D. Vance

And that's fundamentally the goal of this, to make the region safe and secure. The big problem is that you have somebody will sue, and then somebody will respond, and you're trying to have a chicken-neck problem where you've just got to stop speaking for long enough to get them to start sticking their feet in holes. That's what we're going to try to deal with.

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307.947 - 315.698

People are looking at it, and things have got to happen. I have a question.

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316.015 - 329.778 J.D. Vance

Well, I think it's number one, just getting things set up in the right way and getting the actual structure of the negotiation in place. So the way that we're going to do this is we're going to have a principal level political leadership at the top. And then obviously, it's going to stay in the ground.

330.098 - 335.948 J.D. Vance

As much as I like to stay and go to see a beautiful place, I can only be there for a day or two.

Chapter 6: How are polling data affecting Rubio and Vance's political strategies?

335.928 - 348.199 J.D. Vance

I think we're hopefully making progress on the nuclear issue, make progress on the Lebanon fire issue. Those are two big things that I think we're going to be focused on. I'm certainly going to have to see if I can discuss that.

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348.331 - 372.256 Ben Meiselas

Now, you saw Marco Rubio's face at the G7, right? Marco Rubio was there as Donald Trump was signing the MOU in Versailles, but Rubio, you know, tried to remain basically emotionless and try to show visually his displeasure. So, like, look at Rubio behind Donald Trump as Trump was talking about this. Let's play this clip.

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372.276 - 388.388

Iran's waiting for them. They're waiting for them. And they never saw them. One o'clock in the morning, they never saw them. They're stealth. And we just ordered 22 more. The newer upgraded version, which I guess is better.

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388.408 - 389.59 Ben Meiselas

I don't know how the hell you get better.

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Chapter 7: What accusations are being exchanged between Rubio and Vance?

389.61 - 413.055 Ben Meiselas

And then Rubio leaked to the press, along with John Ratcliffe, the CIA director, the following. Ratcliffe isn't the only skeptic in Trump's team. Secretary of State Rubio and Hegseth expressed concerns and raised questions about the deal in internal discussions. while VP Vance and U.S. envoys Witkoff and Jared Kushner advocated for it. And of course, you know who they went with.

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413.095 - 436.017 Ben Meiselas

They went with Barack Ravid to share that story. This is the latest polling data, though, right now, and Rubio's paying attention to this as well. That Rubio, his polling is increasing while J.D. Vance right now is decreasing, just as J.D. Vance is more associated with this memorandum of understanding. Here, let's play this clip.

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436.115 - 451.51 Mike Grella

This is the general electorate, but Vance's net favorability rating in Ohio, you know, you go back to the 2024 election, he was at plus five points. Even in Ohio, in J.D. Vance's home state, among the electorate overall, he is underwater among independents.

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Chapter 8: What are the potential consequences of the ongoing tensions for the Republican party?

451.771 - 459.839 Mike Grella

Look at this. He's 27 points underwater. J.D. Vance, not so popular in the Buckeye State. Problems at home.

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459.859 - 461.16

How about his net approval overall?

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461.14 - 478.884 Mike Grella

Yeah, how about his net approval rating overall? You know, there's all this discussion. You know, J.D. Vance writes essentially, you know, the childless cat ladies, right? That was the thing he very much regretted, almost regretted more than anything else. You might say, OK, how is he doing among women, among men? Well, he's underwater. with both of them.

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479.164 - 490.66 Mike Grella

Among men, he's slightly underwater at minus two points. Of course, if you're a Republican, you need to be popular with men if you're going to win a national election. Among women, he is way underwater. He's 26 points underwater.

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490.68 - 506.503 Mike Grella

And the gender gap in the Quinnipiac University poll, when you matched him up against other Republicans in the Trump cabinet, the highest, the largest gender gap, it actually belonged to J.D. Vance. He doesn't need to win women if he's going to win in 2020, but he can't be this unpopular among them. Yes.

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