After failed peace talks last weekend, President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. military would institute a blockade of Iranian ports in an effort to apply pressure to the Persian Gulf country. And while the move is intended to hurt Iran’s economy, MS NOW’s Stephanie Ruhle warned that Americans may pay the price as well.
On Monday’s “The 11th Hour,” Ruhle said the president’s decision to combat the Iranian takeover of the strait by instituting a “blockade on top of a blockade” took her “three iterations to figure out what this even was,” pointing to the confusion surrounding Trump’s plan.
“How does the White House actually see this playing out?” she asked. “Because it hurts everybody.”
Ruhle explained that the blockade will “hurt Iran’s economy by cutting off oil exports, but it will also send global oil prices even higher.”
“Here at home, oil is just under $100 a barrel,” she continued. “The average price of gas is $4.13 a gallon, and diesel is $5.65 — that is 16 cents off the all-time high. And by the way, the Strait of Hormuz: We’re not dependent on it, but we certainly use it. Just ask any American farmer who needs that fertilizer.”
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While the move is meant to increase pressure on Iran, the MS NOW host said she doubted whether it would be enough to bring Tehran to the negotiating table. “Iran has shown us, time and again, that they are willing to wait it out, even if it causes economic pain for them,” she said.
Ruhle said the president’s decision is a result of his failure to find a diplomatic off-ramp for the war. “This is all happening because of this weekend’s peace talks. What happened? They failed almost immediately,” she said.
“With a naval blockade from the U.S. and continued Israeli attacks in Lebanon, it is hard to even say that there is anything that resembles a ceasefire going on right now,” Ruhle added.
You can watch Ruhle’s full analysis in the clip at the top of the page.
Allison Detzel is an editor/producer for MS NOW. She was previously a segment producer for “AYMAN” and “The Mehdi Hasan Show.”