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May 6, 2026 - World

Former US Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul admitted he was startled that Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared the war with Iran over at a time when hostilities continued and no agreement is in place in particular with regard to future nuclear capabilities.Speaking with the hosts of “Morning Joe,” McFaul noted Rubio’s remark that “The Operation Epic Fury is concluded. We achieved the objectives of that operation. I'm not going to, you know - we're not cheering for an additional situation to occur. We would prefer the path of peace. What the president would prefer is a deal.”“I’ve got to tell you, honestly, I was completely shocked by what Secretary Rubio said yesterday,” he admitted. “When I saw it on some feed, I couldn't believe it that he was brought — and whether he works at the White House or State Department, it's kind of confusing, right? But there he was, alone, not with the president, by the way, declaring the end of the war that they launched without achieving any of those objectives that Joe [Scarborough] outlined from the centerpiece; none of them, and especially on the nuclear weapons deal. That they've got nothing but a commitment to negotiate in the future. After a one-page memorandum, a memorandum of understanding.”“This is a an epic defeat,” he stated. “In fact, I'm going to make a prediction: I think it's so epic that they're going to reverse it, because they're going to look at this and say, we cannot defend this. And the president's going to change his mind again.” - YouTube youtu.be

May 6, 2026 - World

An offhand comment about the war in Iran by Vice President JD Vance during a speech in Iowa on Tuesday set off a chorus of harsh criticism on MS NOW on Wednesday morning.The vice president spoke at a manufacturing facility during a rally to boost the candidacy of Rep. Zach Nunn (R-IA) to fill the seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Joni Ernst (R) and, while downplaying the economic devastation being visited on US consumers by the war, he awkwardly admitted, "We also know that a lot of our farmers are struggling with high fertilizer prices. I'm aware of that. As the president of the United States has said, we got a little blip in the Middle East. We gotta take care of some business on the foreign policy side."The panel on “Morning Joe” was quick to pounce on Vance’s dismissive comments.Co-host Willie Gest, speaking with conservative columnist David French, prompted his guest with, “We had two days ago the president of the United States calling this a ‘mini war. ‘Yesterday you had Vice President Vance calling this a blip. I think everyone who's lost a family member in this war, or who's now paying $4.50 a gallon on national average, or much more in many states, would consider it much more than a blip. They're trying to sort of minimize and diminish the war and in many ways, wish it away.”“You know, it's very clear at this point that it looks like Trump was essentially sold a bill of goods that he thought, and he keeps using the Venezuela comparison, we've heard it that he thought what he was getting was going to be a short and glorious and victorious military operation and he hadn't thought this through," French noted.Co-host Joe Scarborough turned the conversation back to Vance’s remark.“Over 100 school children being killed the first day of the war is a blip, up to maybe 10,000, 15,000 Iranians being killed, JD Vance is calling a blip,” he recited. “You have JD Vance calling a blip entire communities in Lebanon being wiped off the face of the earth. I mean, how would JD Vance feel if his community that he grew up in didn't have a building left standing? That's what's happening in Lebanon, all across Lebanon, because of this, quote, ‘blip.’”“That's what's happening in Iran because of this blip,” he added. “And as you say, people across the world are paying for this day in and day out with an economy that's getting worse. And of course, I guess only people like me worry about spending money and the national debt, but this war has already cost us $250 billion at minimum.”“If this is what JD Vance calls a, quote, ‘blip,’ well, then JD Vance is not a serious person. He's not a compassionate person. He's certainly — the lack of humanity calling this something that caused this much suffering a blip speaks volumes.” - YouTube youtu.be

May 6, 2026 - World

President Donald Trump's legacy hinges on an issue he has no interest in addressing, according to one of his biographers. Journalist Michael Wolff argued during a new episode of the "Inside Trump's Head" podcast, co-hosted by Nico Hines, the Daily Beast’s global editorial director, that Trump's war in Iran is shaping up to end a lot like the oil crisis that plagued former President Jimmy Carter long after he left office. Wolff noted that Americans have become increasingly sensitive to rising gas prices resulting from the war, similar to the crisis Carter faced when the former Iranian regime fell, he added. At the same time, Trump has failed to pay attention to the changing nature of modern warfare, Wolff argued. Not only could that cost the U.S. a decisive victory in Iran, but it could also make Trump a footnote in history. "So the lesson that everyone should have been learning if they paid attention to Ukraine — which Donald Trump was not doing, was not interested in doing, and rather stubbornly refused to do — is that the nature of warfare was changing," Wolff said. Wolff added that Trump's team inside the White House has no clue how to respond to the crisis that the president has created. "Everybody within the white House and within the Trump political team is aware that they don't know what to do about this," Wolff said. "They literally do not know what to do. They don't know how to get us out of the war, and they don't know how to manage this on a political basis."

May 5, 2026 - World

Secretary of State Marco Rubio showed an impressive command of the issues when going to bat for the Trump administration at his press conference on Tuesday, former George W. Bush strategist Mark McKinnon told MS NOW's Katy Tur on Tuesday, but it won't be enough to salvage the administration's credibility.During the speech, Rubio — who in recent months has been eyed more intensely for another presidential run — did his best to justify the president's decisions in the Iran war, and insist that the United States was on track for a strategic victory."Mark, there's been a lot of talk lately about 2028," said Tur. "What's going to happen after Donald Trump leaves the scene? And the two men that get talked about the most in the Republican Party are Marco Rubio and JD Vance. And there are real questions about whether JD Vance is likable enough to win an election, and a lot more and a lot louder whispers about Marco Rubio. What did you see today?""Well, three things I'd say," said McKinnon. "Number one, it's significant that they've rolled out Marco Rubio to explain something that nobody else in the administration has been able to very clearly, compellingly explain. Number two, watching him, he's a really good explainer. I mean, he's an adult. He's really wired on foreign policy. I used to cover his foreign policy events years ago, and when he was heading up the committee, he knows what he's talking about. But thirdly, I'd also say, if you're explaining in politics, you're losing. That was a lot of explaining and not a lot of clarity.""Yeah, that's a really good point," said Tur. "You'd have to imagine that if they put him out there in the beginning ahead of all this, or maybe had him go and attempt diplomacy with our allies to get him on board, whether we'd be in a different situation, Mark.""No question about it," agreed McKinnon. "And I again, I say watching him today, you see how effective he is. He's a great communicator. You know, he knows diplo-speak really well. You could tell that he'd be good dealing with foreign adversaries and allies, maybe better than, you know, a couple of guys that don't have any foreign policy experience. And Witkoff and Jared.""So again, I think you make a great point," he said. "Had he been involved up front, not only in the negotiations, not only the decision, I don't know what he was involved in the decision, but in articulating it with our allies, I think we'd be in much better place than we are today." - YouTube youtu.be

May 5, 2026 - World

Reporters at the White House press briefing on Tuesday were audibly laughing after Secretary of State Marco Rubio called on a pro-MAGA correspondent to ask a question. Rubio called on Cara Castronuova, a White House correspondent for LindellTV, which is owned by Mike Lindell, a Trump ally who also founded My Pillow, when the laughter broke out. "What happened, why is everyone giggling? What happened? I'm sorry, are they being mean to you? Rubio asked."I don't think they are, I don't think they are, I hope not," Castronuova said, asking Rubio to comment on Trump's comment that Iranians needed guns and if the U.S. would supply those. reporters start giggling as Rubio calls upon a Lindell TV correspondent to ask a question pic.twitter.com/UCfu3OVwAa— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 5, 2026