"They Are NOT Chastened" – Marc Thiessen Warns Against Lifting Iran Sanctions

Summary

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Podcast Summary: Brian Kilmeade Show

Episode: "They Are NOT Chastened" – Marc Thiessen Warns Against Lifting Iran Sanctions

Date: June 23, 2026
Host: Brian Kilmeade
Guest(s): Marc Thiessen (Washington Post columnist, FOX News contributor), with audio from General Jack Keane and others

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Episode Overview

This episode focuses on the ongoing negotiations with Iran regarding their nuclear program, U.S. and Israeli regional security interests, and domestic political implications of foreign policy decisions. The second half shifts to the influence of socialism and far-left candidates in New York politics, as well as reflections on upcoming electoral contests and prominent political personalities.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. U.S.-Iran Nuclear Talks & Sanctions

• U.S. Strategy and Israeli Interests:

  • The conversation opens with Brian Kilmeade stressing that U.S.-Israeli interests in the region are deeply aligned due to shared democratic values.
  • Marc Thiessen: “Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East. It shares our values and it's important that we stand together.” [00:41]

• Iranian Accountability and Sanctions:

  • Thiessen criticizes the U.S. move to lift sanctions on Iranian oil before Iran makes substantive concessions.
  • He notes Iran is receiving large revenues which strengthens their regime without reciprocating with meaningful commitments.
  • Marc Thiessen: “They are getting hundreds of millions, possibly billions of dollars in revenue...when they haven't given us anything…” [01:22]
  • Suggests Iran should explicitly admit to past nuclear weapons pursuits and share all plans if a deal is made.

• Efficacy and Monitoring Challenges:

  • There’s skepticism around the effectiveness of international inspectors (from the IAEA), with Iran denying access even while U.S. leaders project progress.
  • Kilmeade: "...a representative from Iran says we never agreed to that." [01:15]

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2. Military Operation Impacts and Political Messaging

• Acknowledging Trump’s Approach:

  • Thiessen credits President Trump’s administration for being uncompromising and setting back Iran’s nuclear ambitions through decisive action.
  • Marc Thiessen: “President Trump has done more than any president in 47 years to set back the Iranian nuclear program…” [02:43]

• General Jack Keane’s Strategic Insight:

  • Keane advocates for U.S. experts leading the nuclear oversight, emphasizing trust only in American oversight and a “anywhere, anytime” approach for inspections.
  • Gen. Jack Keane: “We have to make certain that the President's goals are being achieved here, not somebody that's not related to the United States objectives…” [03:22]

• Post-Strikes Iranian Attitude:

  • Despite significant military setbacks, Thiessen sees the Iranian regime as “not chastened”—still defiant and offering minimal compliance merely for negotiation leverage.
  • Marc Thiessen: “This is not the behavior of a government that feels like it's been defeated and that it's weak. And so they are defiant still.” [04:53]
  • “This is not the Japanese on the deck of the USS Missouri signing their surrender document.” [04:53]

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3. Regional Security & Negotiation Critiques

• Deconfliction Mechanisms (Lebanon, Hezbollah):

  • Talks include efforts to deescalate via regional communication channels, but Thiessen asserts that the real problem is treating Israel as a U.S. proxy, when in reality only Hezbollah is a true foreign proxy.
  • Marc Thiessen: “Israel is not our proxy. Israel is a sovereign democratic state that is trying to defend itself. The only proxy here is Hezbollah…” [06:42]

• Concerns About Foreign Mediators:

  • Both Kilmeade and guest refer to skepticism around Pakistan and Qatar’s roles in the negotiation, with Thiessen sarcastically suggesting, “Why don't we bring North Korea into the negotiations too?” [09:34]

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4. Impact of Oil Prices and Election Timing

• Effect of Oil Prices:
  • The conversation notes that oil prices dropping is a short-term political good, but Iran is aiming to stall until after the U.S. midterms, when they believe the U.S. president will have fewer political constraints.
  • Marc Thiessen: “…as you get closer and closer to the midterms, it becomes less and less likely that we're gonna be taking military action. And Iran knows that.” [08:08]

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5. Shift to Domestic Politics: Socialism & Far-Left Momentum

• Progressive and Socialist Candidates:

  • Audio clips of candidate Claire Valdez and Brad Lander highlight positions advocating to abolish ICE, defund Israel, and show solidarity with anti-U.S. regimes (Cuba, Venezuela, Gaza).
  • Claire Valdez: “Palestine is on the ballot. Pennies are on the ballot. Abolishing ICE is on the ballot. And we have a world to win…” [10:53]
  • Brad Lander: “Our solidarity stretches out to Cuba and Venezuela and to Gaza...” [13:05]

• Effect on NYC and Broader Democrats:

  • Thiessen jokingly bemoans New York's direction, but predicts massive outmigration leading to losses in congressional representation.
  • Marc Thiessen: “You want to just elect a socialist slate, you know, have at it. It's terrible for New York...great for the Republican Party...they're going to take their congressional seats and their electoral votes with them.” [11:50]

• Critique of Far-Left Ideology:

  • Accuses candidates of parroting Marxist/communist doctrine under the guise of democratic socialism.
  • Marc Thiessen: “He just said the quiet part out loud, which is that...all these people are just communists… That’s straight out of Karl Marx and the Communist Manifesto.” [13:47]

• Democratic Intra-Party Dynamics:

  • Notes that the "energy" of far-left candidates may work in deep-blue NYC or LA, but will be politically disastrous in swing states.
  • Marc Thiessen: “You're not going to win swing states by going out, out lefting…” [14:51]

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6. Senate Race in Maine & Contradiction in Political Arguments

• Susan Collins’ Challenger and Fallout:
  • Sen. Collins, in a clip, criticizes her opponent Grant Platner for scandal, dismissiveness toward veterans, mistreatment of women, and anti-police stances.
  • Susan Collins: “To me, one of the most appalling is his making fun of a Purple Heart recipient…another example is his treatment of women…” [15:39]
  • Thiessen expresses Collins’ luck to draw such an opponent, and highlights double standards among anti-Trump and anti-Collins coalitions.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On U.S-Israel Alignment:
  Marc Thiessen: “Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East. It shares our values and it's important that we stand together.” [00:41]

• On Iranian Non-Concessions:
  Marc Thiessen: “They are getting hundreds of millions, possibly billions of dollars in revenue...when they haven't given us anything…” [01:22]

• On Iran’s Attitude:
  Marc Thiessen: “This is not the Japanese on the deck of the USS Missouri signing their surrender document.” [04:53]

• On Progressive Rhetoric:
  Brad Lander: “Our solidarity stretches out to Cuba and Venezuela and, and it stretches to Gaza...” [13:05]

• On Socialist Impact:
  Marc Thiessen: “You're going to drive more and more people out of New York...and you're going to take their congressional seats and their electoral votes with them.” [11:50]

• On Far-left Ideology:
  Marc Thiessen: “He just said the quiet part out loud, which is that...all these people are just communists…” [13:47]

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Important Timestamps

• 00:41 – Marc Thiessen on U.S.-Israel shared values
• 01:22 – Thiessen outlines flaws in negotiating with Iran
• 02:43 – Thiessen credits Trump for hardline Iran policy
• 03:22 – General Jack Keane’s take on nuclear inspection
• 04:53 – Thiessen: “Iran is not chastened” after military losses
• 06:42 – The problem with treating Israel as a U.S. proxy
• 08:08 – Iranian negotiation strategy and midterms
• 11:08 – Claire Valdez on progressive aims
• 13:05 – Brad Lander aligns with Cuba, Venezuela, and Gaza
• 13:47 – Thiessen critiques “communist” Democrats
• 15:39 – Susan Collins blasts her opponent's scandals

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Tone & Language

• The episode maintains a fast-paced, conversational, and often caustic tone, especially when critiquing progressive and foreign adversaries.
• Marc Thiessen combines policy analysis with sharp, direct language, mixing humor and derision when discussing domestic politics, particularly in New York.
• The show features a blend of policy wonkishness and media-savvy political commentary, true to the FOX News style.

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Transcript

[Fox 1 Announcer]

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[Host]

Iran talks have begun and news is pouring out all over the talks. We examined it all and what it means for security in the region and why Israel's interests are our interests. Mark, I think you agree with that, right?

[Mark Thiessen]

I do, absolutely. Just, you know, just like the NATO alliance is our, is an ally and we have shared interests, not all the interests are the same but, but we broadly have, you know, we, we are both. Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East. It shares our values and it's important that we stand together.

[Host]

So just usual we watch. We watched the vice president come out of the meeting said good news, we made progress. Weapons inspectors, the IAEA are going back into express inspect and evaluate their nuclear program. We tried to call the inspectors at 2 o' clock in the morning. We weren't able to get anybody. So we're going to work on that today. And then a representative from Iran says we never agreed to that.

[Mark Thiessen]

Yeah, look, I, part of me doesn't want to nitpick everything that happens and I'm sort of holding, holding back and like watching to see how this process plays out because, but the, the problem we have is, is that there we've lifted sanctions on Iranian oil. Right. So Iran is, right now they're selling, yeah, so they're selling oil right now we've lifted the blockade, we've allowed, we've lifted the sanctions. And so they are getting hundreds of millions, possibly billions of dollars in revenue that's going to pour into their, into the regime that is helping them lift up, lift them up off the mat when they haven't given us anything, they haven't done anything yet to deserve it. I mean, you know, they've opened the straight. First of all, they shouldn't have the say whether the strait is open or not. That should be a, that it shouldn't be a weapon that they can wield to close or open at their, at their will. And second of all, they haven't, they haven't made any concessions. You know, I mean they do, they do say in the memorandum of understanding that they will not have or build or procure a nuclear weapon. But, you know, they've been denying that they want to do. They want a nuclear weapon to begin with. I mean, you know, one of the things, one of the things that we should do once we have a deal is they should admit. Have to admit that they were pursuing a nuclear weapon and give us all the details, all the bomb plans and everything else as part of a deal. So, you know, I don't. I just.

[Susan Collins]

I.

[Mark Thiessen]

Look, President Trump has done more than any president in 47 years to set back the Iranian nuclear program and to fight, frankly, set back the Iranian regime. This is a country that's been waging war on US for 47 years. Terrorist attacks from the taking of the hostages to the Marine barracks bombing, all the way through the Khobar Towers, the. The embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. You go through it. The assassination attempt in Washington, D.C. where they're gonna blow up Cafe Milano. They've been killing Americans, launching attacks on Americans, and America didn't fight back until Donald Trump became President.

[General Jack Keane]

News General.

[Mark Thiessen]

So he deserves enormous credit for that.

[Host]

Here's General Jack Keane on what the President should think about cut 9.

[General Jack Keane]

The Nuclear Enterprise has gotta go. We don't need to get into the details of the specifics. And to do that, I believe he's got to have United States military and civilian nuclear experts on the ground executing his goals and objectives here, and the IAEA supporting that. They should be there because they have so much experience there. But we have to make certain that the President's goals are being achieved here, not somebody that's not related to the United States objectives and goals here that's going to try to work between Iran and the United States. No, it's gotta be exactly what we're talking about here, and it has to be anywhere and anytime.

[Host]

So that's true. These are all conditions. But now we have Iran denying that we're even allowing inspectors in.

[Mark Thiessen]

Yeah, I mean, Jack Keane is right, as always. You're always safe to say Jack Keane is right. That sentence is almost always correct. And look, if what we've accomplished in operation between Midnight Hammer and Epic Fury is we have absolutely decimated the Iranian nuclear program. Their nuclear dust is on, is deeply, so deeply buried that the Iranians have actually told their negotiators they can't reach it. We would have to come in and excavate it to get it right. Their centrifuges have been destroyed, their conversion facilities have been destroyed. The nuclear scientists are dead, all the rest of it. So the goal now having done all that is to lock in those gains and make sure that they are irreversible.

[General Jack Keane]

Yeah.

[Mark Thiessen]

There are two ways to do that. You can do that at the negotiating table, or you could do that through military action. The President obviously wants to do it through negotiations. The problem is, as weakened as the Iranian regime is, they're not chastened. Just look at their behavior. This is not the behavior of a government that feels like it's been defeated and that it's weak. And so they are defiant still. They're doing the minimum they need to do in order to get the ceasefire. But I don't see them behaving in a way that they are. This is. This is not the Japanese on the deck of the USS Missouri signing their surrender document. And so we're gonna have a hard time getting these concessions from them.

[Host]

Right. The talks reportedly now talking about the region Lebanon, cease fire arrangements, communication channels to prevent escalation, maritime security in the Strait of Hormuz, and deconfliction mechanisms among the parties operating in the region. Among the people who think that's a good. I like to play. Your Jack Keen bites is General Jack Keane. He thinks that this is a good move to have a deconfliction.

[Mark Thiessen]

Why don't you just have Jack on instead of me? Well, cut to the chase.

[Host]

It's a.

[General Jack Keane]

It's a good.

[Host]

I was thinking about it. The legendary. But I could not get his number.

[General Jack Keane]

There you go.

[Host]

Here's cut 11.

[General Jack Keane]

It's likely a step in the right direction. A couple of things we have to recognize, though. Iran doesn't have a claim here, Larry. This is Lebanese citizens under the guise of a terrorist organization, Hezbollah. That Iran resources and the country of Lebanon. So it's the Israel who is being attacked right on their border, Hezbollah who's doing the attacking, and Lebanon, the country from which it's coming from, and that they have to be the principals involved here. Yeah.

[Mark Thiessen]

So here's the problem with what we've done. So apparently Israel is not part of this deconvliction group. Right. And what's fundamentally problematic about that is that the way they're negotiating this, it's like Hamas is Iran's proxy and Israel is an American proxy. And we are the two states that. That negotiate and we control. Our proxies. Israel is not our proxy. Israel is a sovereign democratic state that is trying to defend itself. The only proxy here is Hezbollah, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Iranian regime that is attacking Israel and. And using it. And if, quite frankly, illegally occupying parts of Lebanon. Lebanon wants them out. Right. Israel wants them out. So who's, who's, you know, whose sovereignty is being violated here? Hezbollah has no business being in Lebanon, period, full stop. And they should be. If Iran wants to. Wants to have a peace, wants to make Lebanon part of the process, their role is to pull Hezbollah out and disarm Hezbollah.

[Host]

So, you know, the President loves that oil is going down, and who wouldn't, to 70 something in the 70s. Okay. And 65 is the threshold where the oil and gas companies say, can't go any further, else it doesn't pay for us to drill and sell. So, okay, we're getting close to that threshold. But do you believe the 60. Once we get to 60 days, it starts working more and more towards Iran because of the midterms.

[Mark Thiessen]

So I think.

[Host]

Do you think they know that?

[Mark Thiessen]

I think the problem is, I think Iran certainly feels that way. The President says he doesn't care about the midterms. And truth be told, if the midterms were driving his thinking, then he would have never started Operation Epic Fury to begin with. I think it's one of the most courageous decisions any American president has made in my lifetime. It didn't help him politically in any way. He just did it because he believes Iran shouldn't have a nuclear weapon. But as you get closer and closer to the midterms, it becomes less and less likely that we're gonna be taking military action. And Iran knows that. So they're trying to extend the negotiations as long as they can, but then that ends. They're going to be midterm elections. And after that, the President has a completely free hand. So I think they may be misplaying their hand because they think they have more Runway than they do.

[Host]

I talked to Senator Tim Sheehy on Fox and Friends yesterday, and he such a great interview. Thank you. He said, there's two things I don't like about it. There's a lot, but two main things. He goes, I don't like the Pakistan's involved. I don't like Qatars involved. Because I see Qatar, I see a country that plays both sides financing terror. And when I see Pakistan, I think of a country that house bin Laden, that allowed terrorists to stage in Pakistan and go and kill people in Afghanistan.

[Mark Thiessen]

Yeah.

[Host]

Do you think it's wrong to think that way?

[Mark Thiessen]

No, I agree with him 1,000%. I mean, Pakistan, you know, A. Q Khan was like selling weapons, nuclear technology all around. All around the world. You know, if we're gonna bring in, you know, all the Bad players. Why don't we bring North Korea into the negotiations too?

[Brad Lander]

Right.

[Mark Thiessen]

You know, so. Yes. And I believe. And Qatar is.

[Host]

Because Trump loves this guy. Because Trump has said great things about the field. Field marshal.

[Mark Thiessen]

He loves the field marshal. Look, because Trump is somebody who likes to deal with. He likes to deal with the bad actors and befriend them and to, and to influence them. And so he's not afraid to talk to anybody. So I think, I think that it doesn't surprise me that he wants to work with them and if he thinks that they're useful to the process, then he's going to engage them. So, you know, he's looking for a neutral arbiter.

[Host]

When we come back, I want to talk socialism. I want to find out where you stand. I, you know, I don't know, like you might it. I don't. Don't give it away. This is a tease, Martin. Is he for socialism? Will we be voting in the Democratic primary today in New York City? That's not even a good teach. You're not from New York back.

[Mark Thiessen]

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[Host]

Cheers to America's 250th birthday. Get 20% off your first purchase at foxnewswineshop.com with code FNRADIO20. 20% discount excludes wine club offers and

[Mark Thiessen]

cannot be combined with any other promotion.

[Host]

Expires July 31, 2026.

[Fox 1 Announcer]

Must be 21.

[Host]

Order to order.

[Mark Thiessen]

Please drink responsibly. Palestine is on the ballot. Pennies are on the ballot. Abolishing ICE is on the ballot. And we have a world to win because when we fight,

[Host]

that is Claire Valdez. And she wants to win because she wants to abolish ice and she also wants to defund Israel. Does not want a support for Israel. This is. Some of the people that are on the ballot is Mondami against Hakeem Jeffries, Martiz. And it's significant because these are established Democrats. You're not going against. I don't, I'm not bringing up Republicans. Yeah, they got three. Jeffrey's got three. Mondami's got three. They do not fear this would be maybe this next speaker.

[Mark Thiessen]

Yeah. So Brooklyn. So my, my favorite mayor growing up in New York City was Ed Koch. And Ed Koch famously said when he lost the mayoral primary, they said, Mr. Mayor, will you ever run again? And he said, no, the people have spoken and they must be punished.

[Brad Lander]

Right.

[Mark Thiessen]

And that's how I feel about New York today. Go for it. You know, you want to, you want to just elect a socialist slate, you know, have at it. It's terrible for, it's terrible for New York. I feel badly for all my friends who, who still live here, but great for the Republican Party because you're going to drive, also, you're going to drive more and more people out of New York. They're going to, they're going to take their money, they're going to take their capital, they're going to go to red states and they're, you know what they're going to do? They're going to take their congressional seats and their electoral votes with them. After the 2030 census, there's going to be a hemorrhaging of electoral college votes and congressional seats from New York and California and Illinois to Florida and Texas and other red states. So, you know, she may be, she may get elected to Congress, but then they're going to have to have redistricting and she might lose her seat because so many people have left New York.

[Brad Lander]

So.

[Host]

Yeah, because it just going to have as many seats. So what about Brad Lander, this guy who ran for mayor and this. That's okay. I don't have to run for mayor. I'll just step over if you'll support me. Running against Dan Goldman, by the way. Goldman pretty much as left as it gets. A brutal Trump critic.

[Mark Thiessen]

Just doesn't hate Jews.

[Host]

He just doesn't hate Jews because he is one. Yeah, my, one of the reasons probably doesn't like Netanyahu, but listen to what Brad Lander believes in Brooklyn, cut 26.

[Brad Lander]

And our solidarity, it doesn't end at the Hudson or at the poma. Our solidarity stretches out to Cuba and Venezuela and, and it stretches to Gaza where we're show solidarity with Palestinian kids who can't go to school because our taxpayer dollars paid for the bombs that destroy them all. That's why everyone on this slate is committed to sign on to the Block the Bombs act and not to send one more dime for Netanyahu's wars. That's solidarity.

[Host]

All right, so he's a clown, but can you believe he's reaching out to Venezuela?

[Mark Thiessen]

Well, so this is, so in Cuba, this is how you know he's a moron. Is that the, the, the line in the democratic socialists is that we're democratic socialists. We're not like Cuba. We're not Like Venezuela. We're not like the communists. Like we're, we, we're different than them. And so, you know, he's just, he just said the quiet part out loud, which is that they're just, all these people are just communists, you know, from each according to his ability, to each according to his knees. That's Mondami's economic philosophy. That's straight out of Karl Marx and the Communist Communist Manifesto. These people are communists.

[Host]

So Jeffries is supporting Dan Goldman and Mamdani's back candidate, that guy, that clown Brad Lander has got almost a double digit lead. So he's going to unseat this guy. Yeah, because he likes Israel. And then he was denied coffee by a barista that doesn't like juice and says that he's genocide supporting. So I mean, this is unbelievable that, I mean, I'm not going to bat for Dan Goldman. I think he's, I think he's a senator that's just a partisan senator. But wait, nobody thought he wasn't liberal enough. So this is Jeffries losing. He told him not to do this. He did it anyway.

[Mark Thiessen]

So this, this is again, this is the, what I would call the Mamdani fallacy, which is taking over the Democratic Party, which is, look at the energy Mamdani and the Democratic socialists are bringing to the party. We need to replicate that energy all across America. Yeah, that works in New York, which is possibly the bluest city in America. It certainly works in Los Angeles where you've got like, you know, left fighting far left for the mayor's race over there. But it doesn't work in, it doesn't work in Minnesota, it doesn't work in Wisconsin, it doesn't work in Georgia, it doesn't work in North Carolina, it doesn't work in Nevada. You're not going to win swing states by, by going out, out lefting.

[Host]

I want you to bring it to Maine because Susan Collins finally did an interview yesterday and talked about Platner. He's one of the most, most despicable candidates I've seen in my lifetime.

[Susan Collins]

Cut 32, the number of scandals keep going on each day. To me, one of the most appalling is his making fun of a Purple Heart recipient who had been wounded by the Taliban is lying on and he ridicules this individual. Another example is his treatment of women in general and also his opposition to law enforcement on all those things.

[Host]

Just weigh in. I mean, what kind of opponent is this for Susan?

[Mark Thiessen]

So first of all, it's the greatest opponent she could possibly pull. She must be very happy that Grant Platner is her opponent. But also think of it, in Texas, they were just telling us we have to vote against, against Paxton because he's an adulterer. And now they're saying we have to vote for the adulterer because Susan Collins is such a threat to democracy that we have to do what we have to do to get rid of her. Really?

[Host]

She doesn't even barely votes with Donald Trump. Thanks a lot, Mark Thiessen. You seem very nice.

[Mark Thiessen]

Thank you.