Krugman: Trump Screwed Himself Badly on Iran—and May Not Even Know It

Krugman: Trump Screwed Himself Badly on Iran—and May Not Even Know It

From THE DAILY BLAST with Greg Sargent by Greg Sargent

April 29, 2026 · 29 min

About this episode

Paul Krugman discusses how Donald Trump is struggling in the conflict with Iran and the potential economic repercussions.

In today’s episode, economist Paul Krugman lays out an expansive case that Donald Trump holds a losing hand in the war with Iran. Krugman argues that Trump can’t seem to admit that the Strait of Hormuz problem has cornered him. Krugman also details why the situation could get worse, if Iran continues holding out and constraints on oil supply drive the global economy into recession. As Krugman puts it, this will keep getting uglier for Trump until he “swallows his pride” and accepts that he doesn’t hold the cards. This builds on the piece Krugman posted on his Substack arguing that time is on Iran’s side. Gas prices just hit a new high, and Republicans quietly fear their midterm prospects are darkening due to what Trump has unleashed. Krugman takes us through these dynamics, notes that Trump is obsessing over his ballroom in search of a win, and explains why this all could tailspin further for the GOP. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

People in this episode

Host: Greg Sargent

Guest: Paul Krugman

Topics covered

  • Iran
  • Trump
  • economy
  • oil supply
  • recession
  • politics

Keywords

  • Trump
  • Iran
  • economy
  • oil prices
  • recession
  • politics
  • Krugman

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Republicans

Places: Strait of Hormuz, Iran, GOP

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