Iran Negotiations Drag, New Inflation Report, Sexual Abuse at Elite School

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Up First from NPR 15 min 4 speakers 8 chapters transcribed 1 month ago
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?

Leila Fadel 0:02
Negotiations to end the war in Iran and reopen the Strait of Hormuz are dragging on, and that may be Iran's strategy.
Unknown 0:09
Iranian media is tracking President Trump's falling popularity.

Why are Iran‑U.S. talks on the Strait of Hormuz dragging and could it affect the U.S. midterms?

Unknown 0:11
How much are the midterm elections influencing Iran's negotiating tactics?
Leila Fadel 0:15
I'm Leila Falden, that's A Martinez, and this is up first from NPR News. New data about the cost of living in the US comes out this week. It is expected to be rising faster than wages. What can the Federal Reserve do about it?
Unknown 0:31
Plus a new report reveals decades of sexual misconduct at an elite art school in Michigan.
Ava Berger 0:36
Some 70 allegations of sexual abuse against students by nearly 50 adults from the 1950s to the 2010s.
Unknown 0:44
How did this happen at such a prestigious institution? Stay with us, we've got the news you need to start your day. 1A is named for the First Amendment, which protects the freedom of the press and your freedom to speak out. Our weekly series, If You Can Keep It, tackles the big political stories of the day. And why they matter for our democracy. We answer your questions from what's at stake in the midterms to court reform to fixing wealth inequality. And beyond. Join me, Todd Zwillick. And me, Jen White, on the One A podcast from WAMU and NPR. This week on Wait Wait W. So tell me, we talked to legendary Oscar and Emmy-winning icon Sally Field about her starring role in the 60s television series The Flying Nun.
Sally Field 1:28
I was on a fifty foot crane and they would fly me into the side of a building. And I'm like like like Spider-Man.
Unknown 1:36
Don't miss our full conversation and the rest of our games. Listen to the Wait Wait Don't Tell Me podcast on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.
Leila Fadel 1:43
Tehran has laid out tough conditions for the US to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which may mean the talks drag on much longer.
Unknown 1:51
Some experts say that could be a deliberate strategy to prolong negotiations so that President Trump goes into midterm elections even more unpopular than polls show he already is.
Leila Fadel 2:01
To understand this thinking better, we're joined by NPR's Hadil El Shalchi in Istanbul. Good morning. Good morning. What is Iran saying it wants in order to make a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz?

What specific demands is Iran making to reopen the Hormuz Strait and why might they be “maximalist”?

Hadil Al-Shalchi 2:12
Yeah. So we know that the Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council issued a statement over the weekend saying that Iran would only open the Strait of Hormuz, that key global waterway, if the US lifted its naval blockade as well as sanctions. He said that the US military must withdraw from around Iran, pay it reparations for war damages, release frozen Iranian assets. and end its attacks. Now in the deal itself that Iran is currently negotiating with Oman, Iran has banned any US or Israeli ships from moving through the strait and says that Iran will charge a fee and impose fines of up to twenty percent of the cargo value if those conditions are broken. And the White House has yet to comment on those Iranian demands.
Leila Fadel 2:55
Now these conditions just just several of them sound like something the US just would never agree to. What's Iran's strategy here?
Hadil Al-Shalchi 3:03
Well, the conversation inside Iran is very much about President Trump's vulnerability ahead of the midterms. Iran is very aware of the US political discourse. In Iranian media tracks Trump's polling rates, it discusses how the Democratic Party's base is shifting. For example, a news agency closely tied to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard published an article entitled The Iran War and the Start of Trump's Political Decline, outlining Trump's drop in population. popularity and the dilemma he faces if he continues the war. I spoke to Asla Aidant Tashbash, a fellow at the Brookings Institution who's been following the talks. She says that Iran wants to make clear to Trump that even if they can't defeat the US militarily, they have other ways.
Unknown 3:42
They can drag this out, that they are resilient, and therefore they want to have a stronger hand than they normally would in hormones negotiations.
Hadil Al-Shalchi 3:54
And so, like you said, Iran is keeping those demands as maximalist as possible and trying to push any nuclear talks further into the future.

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