September 28th, 2026: Trump Rejects Iran’s Deal & Explosives Arrests Near U.S. Air Base

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The President's Daily Brief 20 min 1 speaker 4 chapters transcribed just now
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What is the opening overview and host’s introduction for today’s brief?

Mike Baker 0:00
Yeah. Enterprise.
Mike Baker 0:12
It's Monday, the twenty-eighth of September. Welcome to the President's Daily Brief. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. And yes, still on the road. And well, yes, I'm still recovering from the weekend's painful old miss loss to Florida. But to be fair, to give them credit, Florida played a very fine game. As they say, Hottie Dotty. All right, let's get briefed. First up, President Trump shuts down Iran's latest peace proposal, rejecting a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, as U.S. officials say that renewed American strikes could follow the midterm elections. Later in the show, British police arrest several men on suspected terrorism charges near RAF Fairford. That's the airbase used by the U.S.
Mike Baker 0:59
to strike targets in Iran. Plus, President Trump president. Presses Zelensky and Putin to make a deal as Russia and Ukraine intensify their long range strikes, hitting cities and infrastructure and oil facilities far from the front. And in today's Back of the Brief, we revisit a tragic event that has mostly disappeared from the headlines. An update on the deadly floods in Nepal, where thousands remain missing a month after the disaster. But first, today's PDB spotlight. President Trump has reportedly rejected Iran's latest proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormous and begin winding down the war, apparently betting that Washington has more leverage right now, and that there's little reason to give that leverage away.
Mike Baker 1:45
The proposal was fairly straightforward. Iran offered a seven day pause in the fighting, seven days, along with reopening the Strait of Hormuz and beginning broader negotiations that could possibly sometime, include its nuclear program. In return, the regime wanted the U.S. to lift its naval blockade, ease sanctions on Iranian oil, and unfreeze some Iranian assets. Trump's answer was no. Speaking to reporters Saturday, the president said he had rejected the deal and argued that Iran was coming forward because its economy was being squeezed. His position, at least publicly, is that Teffran needs an agreement more urgently than Washington does. As we've been reporting here on the PDB, the US blockade has sharply restricted Iran's ability to move oil and generate revenue.
Mike Baker 2:32
Sanctions are adding to the pressure. Inflation is running at extraordinary levels. The Iranian currency has fallen sharply, fuel prices have climbed, and the country's broader economy has been deteriorating. So from the administration's perspective, the pressure campaign appears to be doing exactly what it was designed to do.
Mike Baker 2:56
That helps explain why Trump may see no reason to lift the blockade simply because Iran has offered to reopen the strait. And there's another factor here. Washington has spent months trying to reduce the leverage that Iran gained by choking traffic through the strait.

Why did President Trump reject Iran’s latest proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz?

Mike Baker 3:12
The US and its partners have managed to keep some shipping moving despite Iranian threats, which means the pressure for Washington to strike a deal may not be. be what it was earlier in the conflict. The Wall Street Journal reports that President Trump has privately told AIDS he believes that renewed U.S. bombing of Iran is likely after the November midterm elections. Now that doesn't mean that a decision has been made. The same reporting says that Trump remains reluctant to launch another major combat operation, in part because Washington wants to conserve munitions for other possible contingencies. And at the same time, talks are reportedly still continuing through mediators. So what we're saying is not necessarily Trump abandoning diplomacy.
Mike Baker 3:58
It looks more like an effort to keep all three options open at once, keep negotiating in some fashion, maintain the economic squeeze, and preserve the threat of another military campaign if Iran refuses Washington's terms. The other question, and one we've raised here before on the PDB, is who exactly has the authority in Tevran to make those terms for a deal? Iranian President Masud Pazeshkin says his government is ready to negotiate. But uh is he in charge?

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