Iran, Bolton, Pulte & Blanche (with Ben Wittes)

Iran, Bolton, Pulte & Blanche (with Ben Wittes)

From CAFE Insider by CAFE

June 9, 2026 · 47 min · Episode 708

About this episode

Ben Wittes joins Preet Bharara and Joyce Vance to discuss recent political developments involving Trump and U.S. military actions.

On this week’s Insider podcast, Ben Wittes joins Preet Bharara and Joyce Vance. Wittes is the co-founder and editor-in-chief of Lawfare and a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. They discuss: – A reported plea deal between the Justice Department and President Trump’s former national security advisor John Bolton; – A bipartisan House resolution halting U.S. military action against Iran; – Trump’s appointment of Bill Pulte as Acting Director of National Intelligence; and – Trump’s appointment of Todd Blanche as Attorney General. We hope you’re finding CAFE Insider informative. Email us at letters@cafe.com with your suggestions and questions for Preet and Joyce.  Watch livestreams on YouTube or Substack . This podcast is brought to you by CAFE and Vox Media Podcast Network.  Executive Producer: Tamara Sepper; Supervising Producer: Jake Kaplan; Associate Producer: Claudia Hernández; Senior Audio Producer: Matthew Billy; CAFE Team: Celine Rohr, Nat Weiner, Jennifer Indig, and Liana Greenway.

People in this episode

Hosts: Preet Bharara, Joyce Vance

Guest: Ben Wittes

Topics covered

  • Iran
  • John Bolton
  • U.S. military action
  • Trump appointments
  • Justice Department
  • bipartisan resolution

Keywords

  • Iran
  • John Bolton
  • Trump
  • military action
  • Bill Pulte
  • Todd Blanche
  • Justice Department
  • bipartisan resolution

Sponsors

CAFE, Vox Media Podcast Network

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Lawfare, Brookings Institution

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