Iran Peace Talks Loom & Artemis II’s Return | 4.10.26

Summary

Morning Wire: “Iran Peace Talks Loom & Artemis II’s Return”

Date: April 10, 2026
Hosts: John Bickley & Georgia Howe
Podcast: Morning Wire (The Daily Wire)

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Episode Overview

This episode focuses on three primary stories: the high-stakes peace negotiations between the US and Iran, the anticipated return of the Artemis II lunar mission crew, and President Trump’s executive action addressing the ongoing chaos in college athletics. Featuring expert correspondents and an astronaut guest, the episode delivers insight and analysis on issues at the crossroads of global politics, science, and American sports.

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Key Segments and Insights

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1. Iran-US Peace Talks: Tensions and Hopes (02:40 – 07:12)

Background:
The US and Iran are set for their first face-to-face negotiations in Pakistan following a tense ceasefire. Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz and ongoing skirmishes involving Israel and Hezbollah heighten the stakes.

Key Points:

• The ceasefire, announced Tuesday, is holding but fragile.
• Iran has nearly shut down the critical Strait of Hormuz, disrupting global shipping (from 140 ships daily to about a dozen—03:04).
• US forces remain in position, signaling readiness to act if negotiations fail.
• The US delegation includes Vice President J.D. Vance, special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
• Iran’s demands, particularly regarding Israel and Hezbollah, remain contentious.
• Israel has initiated direct negotiations with Lebanon about demilitarizing Beirut and possibly disarming Hezbollah (04:22).
• The US (and particularly the Trump administration) demands the dismantling of Iran's nuclear and proxy programs and reopening of the strait as non-negotiable aims.

Expert Analysis:

• Retired Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt underscores Iran’s lengthy history of bad-faith negotiations:

  “They are brilliant negotiators. They will pull you in every direction. They will delay, they will deny, they will deceive.” (05:33)

• Kimmitt advises US negotiators to “stay laser focused on their original objectives”—removing Iran’s missile, nuclear, and proxy programs (05:57).
• Vice President J.D. Vance (as quoted by Cabot Phillips):

  “If they’re going to lie, if they’re going to cheat... then they’re not going to be happy. What the President has also shown is that we still have clear military, diplomatic, and maybe most importantly, we have extraordinary economic leverage.” (06:34)

• The Trump administration’s confidence rests on this leverage and a posture of deterrence.

Memorable Moment:

• The description of the negotiating environment:

  “Their fingers are on the trigger if you guys act up.” (03:20, paraphrasing Trump’s social post)

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2. Artemis II: The Return to Earth (07:50 – 12:27)

Background:
The Artemis II crew is set to splash down near San Diego, capping a historic mission and entering the most dangerous stage: re-entry.

Key Points:

• Jeffrey Williams, retired astronaut, details the return process and its perils:

  “It’s always a risk and it’s never routine. We treat every flight as critical as the previous flights.” (01:09)

• Stages of return:
  1. Transition from lunar to Earth gravity (08:59).
  2. Approaching Earth with a precise course correction for atmospheric entry.
  3. Atmospheric drag slows the craft; intense heat (“literally in a fireball”); G-forces peak at about 4Gs.
  4. Parachute deployment — “the longest 25 seconds of my life.” (08:23, Williams)
  5. Splashdown and recovery by Navy teams.
• Astronauts experience extreme heat and high stress despite years of training.

  “We were drenched in sweat… The ventilation system can’t keep up quite with the heat loading that you’re going through.” (11:09)

• Williams notes the intense focus required during re-entry and the relief upon successful landing:

  “There’ll be a little bit of adrenaline flowing, but you’re focused on the process, right?... Once they get to the water and everything is fine, there is a sense of relief. You know, mission accomplished. Kind of thing.” (11:36)

Memorable Moment:

• Williams recalls taking in subsonic wind sounds after fireball dissipates and celebrating with “a little, you know, high fiving, I’m sure, inside the cockpit.” (12:07)

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3. President Trump’s Executive Action on College Athletics (12:58 – 16:59)

Background:
The landscape of college sports has been thrown into chaos by changes in eligibility rules, name-image-likeness payments, and athlete transfers.

Key Points:

• The “mess” stems mainly from overly permissive transfer rules and extended eligibility after COVID, not just players being paid (13:23).
• Players are staying in school for up to seven years; transfer rules allow for confusion and lack of team stability.
• President Trump’s executive order will:
  • Limit athletes to five years of eligibility.
  • Restrict most to one transfer, with an added transfer after graduation.
  • Adjust transfer windows to avoid disruption of academic and athletic seasons.

  “Fair competition cannot occur without a consistent set of rules concerning pay for play or player eligibility that cannot be endlessly relitigated in court.” — Quoting Trump order (14:40)

• Legal challenges are expected; Trump’s confidence lies in the current Supreme Court (15:50).
• There is demand for Congressional action to avoid more lawsuits and to stabilize the system, echoing calls from coaches such as Nick Saban.
• The NCAA must act quickly, with the order set to take effect August 1 (16:45).

Memorable Moment:

• The contrast drawn during Final Four coverage:

  “Coaches will leave for more money in a heartbeat, but how can you tell these kids you can’t transfer?” (16:02, summarizing Jay Bilas’ debate with John Calipari)

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Notable Quotes and Moments

• On Iran Negotiations:

  “They will pull you in every direction. They will delay, they will deny, they will deceive, and they will typically end up in a better place than you hope they would be.” — Gen. Mark Kimmitt (05:33)

• On US Leverage:

  “What the President has also shown is that we still have clear military, diplomatic, and maybe most importantly, we have extraordinary economic leverage.” — Cabot Phillips quoting VP Vance (06:34)

• On Artemis II’s Reentry:

  “You’ll be going about 25,000 miles per hour when they hit the upper part of the atmosphere. That’s a lot of energy to dissipate.” — Jeffrey Williams (09:36) “The longest 25 seconds of my life.” — Jeffrey Williams, on parachute deployment (08:23)

• On College Athletics:

  “You have people in school for seven years trying to milk a doctorate degree and still compete in their sport. So it’s not sustainable.” — Lyndon Blake (13:44) “It looks like Trump and his staff, including Nick Saban, all these commissioners and college presidents are very determined to get something done.” — Lyndon Blake (16:35)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• Peace Talks Overview & Stakes: 02:40 – 04:57
• Iran Negotiation Dynamics & US Leverage: 05:13 – 07:07
• Artemis II Splashdown Preview: 07:50 – 08:59
• Astronaut Details Return Process: 08:59 – 12:22
• College Sports Crisis & Trump’s Executive Order: 12:58 – 16:54

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Summary Tone and Language

The tone is urgent yet balanced, with a focus on facts and informed analysis. Quotes capture both direct warnings and technical details from expert sources, while the correspondents relay complexity in accessible language.

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Conclusion

Listeners are brought up to speed on three major ongoing stories — the precarious US-Iran peace negotiations, a historic American space mission nearing its conclusion, and sweeping executive changes to college sports policy. With expert perspectives, direct analysis, and engaging storytelling, this episode provides critical updates on the present and near-future issues shaping national and international headlines.

Transcript

[Georgia Howe]

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[John Bickley]

The attempt to forge a lasting peace comes to a head as the US And Iran prepare to meet face to face in Pakistan.

[Cabot Phillips]

I encourage the Iranians to come to the table. Seriously, We've seen some signs that they're going to do that. Fundamentally, we're in a good spot.

[John Bickley]

I'm Daily Wire executive editor John Bickley with Georgia Howe. It's Friday, April 10th. This is Morning Wire.

[Georgia Howe]

The Artemis II crew is set to splash down tonight. We talked to an astronaut about this final and most crucial phase of the mission.

[Jeffrey Williams]

It's always a risk and it's never routine. We treat every flight as critical as the previous flights.

[John Bickley]

And amid calls for sweeping changes to college athletics, President Trump intervenes.

[Jeffrey Williams]

4.1 billion was paid to the students in the form of scholarships and everybody was happy. And now you got yourself a mess.

[Georgia Howe]

Thanks for waking up with MORNING wire. Stay tuned. We have the news you need to know.

[Cabot Phillips]

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[Georgia Howe]

As the United States and Iran prepare for their first round of face to face negotiations, their fragile ceasefire is being tested.

[John Bickley]

Wired in live. Host Cabot Phillips joins us now with the latest on this volatile situation. Morning, Cabot. So a lot has transpired since Trump's announcement Tuesday night. Now, we have this big talk coming very soon tomorrow. First, where do things stand now?

[Unnamed Correspondent]

Yeah, Tuesday's ceasefire continues to hold as of this morning. But it is a tenuous situation, no doubt. Iran has essentially closed the Strait of Hormuz. Only around a dozen ships went through as of yesterday. Normally there are around 140 ships passing through. So that, no doubt is keeping the American side very upset as these talks loom. President Trump says that US Forces will remain in position and are ready to act if needed. He posted a sort of threatening social media post saying, hey, everyone is still there. Their fingers are on the trigger if you guys act up. So that again, is President Trump showing strength ahead of these talks? As you mentioned, they are going to take place tomorrow in Pakistan. Vice President J.D. vance is going to be leading the US delegation along with special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. Now, we've reported on the show about some of the initial demands from the Iranians, but the White House has made clear that many of them are no go's. They say that there has been progress on some points, but the biggest for Trump, of course, is completely dismantling Iran's nuclear program and defanging the military and fully reopening the strait. So those will be the big hurdles to get over in Pakistan tomorrow.

[John Bickley]

Now, one of the key players here, of course, is Israel. And they've been in this continuous battle with Hezbollah in Lebanon to their north. There was a major development on that front. Where does Israel stand now in all of this?

[Unnamed Correspondent]

Yeah. Keep in mind, one of the original conditions for the Iranians in this ceasefire was reportedly that Israel stop their war on Hezbollah in Lebanon. The Iranians actually reclosed the strait after the Israelis continued bombarding Hezbollah positions. But there has been a potential breakthrough. Prime Minister Netanyahu announced yesterday that he had ordered direct negotiations with Lebanon after he says, they requested to talk. Lebanese prime minister is reportedly calling to demilitarize Beirut. Netanyahu said specifically that the Negotiations will, quote, focus on disarming Hezbollah and establishing peaceful relations between Israel and Lebanon.

[John Bickley]

Now, the Trump administration remains bullish that they can ultimately reach a deal here. And that's despite, you know, the Iranian regime consistently, they can't be trusted to act in good faith. Why is the Trump administration so confident going into this? Why do they think they can reach a deal?

[Unnamed Correspondent]

Yeah, there's just no doubt that the Iranians have a long and storied history of not being trustworthy, not being good faith actors in these types of negotiations all the way back to the 1979 revolution. They've repeatedly broken their word. It's just a fact. We talked to retired Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt about his decades of experience dealing with the Iranian regimental, and his warning could not have been more blunt. I've seen the Iranians, how they negotiate, frankly, since it was a Persian Empire. They are brilliant negotiators. They will pull you in every direction. They will delay, they will deny, they will deceive, and they will typically end up in a better place than you hope they would be. And as for what Vice President Vance and the rest of the US Delegation needs to accomplish for success, General Kimmitt says the US Needs to stay laser focused on their original objectives. Their sticking points should be their original war aims, the removal of the ballistic missile program, the nuclear program, and the proxy program. Now, look, the Trump administration is no doubt going into these talks with their eyes wide open. They know who they're dealing with on the other side of the table. In fact, Vice President Vance, who's heading up the team, as we said, made that very clear this week. And he also signaled why the White House is so confident that they can force Iran into a deal.

[Cabot Phillips]

If they're going to lie, if they're going to cheat, if they're trying to. Going to try to prevent even the fragile truce that we've set up from taking place, then they're not going to be happy. Because what the President has also shown is that we still have clear military, diplomatic, and maybe most importantly, we have extraordinary economic leverage. So the President has told us not to use those tools. He's told us to come to the negotiating table. But if the Iranians don't do the exact same thing, they're going to find out that the President of the United States is not one to mess around.

[John Bickley]

As we said, so much hinging on these upcoming talks. Kabat, thanks so much for reporting.

[Unnamed Correspondent]

Absolutely.

[Georgia Howe]

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[John Bickley]

The Artemis II crew is expected to splash down to Earth this evening at just after 5pm Pacific off the coast of San Diego. It will be the most dangerous moment of the entire journey.

[Georgia Howe]

Someone who knows something about coming home from space is Jeffrey Williams, a retired U.S. army colonel who once spent 534 days in space. He joins us now. Jeffrey, thanks so much for coming on.

[Jeffrey Williams]

Great to be with you, Georgia. Thank you.

[Georgia Howe]

So this trip is quite a bit shorter than yours, but historic nonetheless. They're returning to Earth tonight. What will that aspect of the trip entail?

[Jeffrey Williams]

Of course, it's kind of key after you do a successful mission. The hardest part, one of the hard parts is re entering in the atmosphere. Critical part, going through the heated phase, of course, the G loading coming through the atmosphere and then finally getting subsonic. And the parachute opening sequence starts, which takes a little time. I can tell you from my experience that was the longest 25 seconds of my life. And then of course drifting down on your parachute, then you gotta, you land in the ocean and they have to be recovered.

[Georgia Howe]

So break it down for us a little bit. What exact stages will they have to go through between now and splashing down tonight?

[Jeffrey Williams]

Sure. So now they're out in deep space and they've just transitioned from having the lunar gravity be overcome by Earth gravity. So they're approaching the Earth now. They've done a course correction so that they impact the atmosphere at just the right angle, kind of at the edge of the Earth. And once they impact the atmosphere, then the drag of the atmosphere will slow them down, put them deeper into the atmosphere. And as they're slowing down and getting deeper into the denser atmosphere, the G loading, the acceleration that they feel, builds up. It'll build up to about 4 G's. At the same time, they will be literally in a fireball because of the speed, the friction increases the temperature outside to several thousand degrees. So that's it's all it's heating along with the G loading. And then that slows them down, dissipates all of that energy that they have entering the atmosphere, which they're going. They'll be going about 25,000 miles per hour when they hit the upper part of the atmosphere. That's a lot of energy to dissipate.

[Georgia Howe]

And you said that was the longest 25 seconds of your life. What does that feel like to enter that speed?

[Jeffrey Williams]

Yeah, you finally go through that fireball that I talked about, and the high G loading, then G loading starts dissipating, get down to about two GS, twice the force of gravity. The fireball dissipates. And in my case, you would hear a rush of wind outside. You knew you were subsonic then, and then that would. Shortly after that, the deployment sequence of the parachute would begin. They'll land on target, and the Navy will be out there waiting for them. They'll splash down into the ocean. It should be a relatively benign impact to the water. And then if everything goes as planned, they'll just hang out there and wait for the search and rescue forces to get to them, the team, and they'll open the hatch from the outside and help them get out safely on the boat.

[Georgia Howe]

Now, there was a very famous scene in, I think it was Apollo 13, the movie, where they seemed like they were really burning up in that ship when they were coming through the atmosphere. Is it physically hot in the ship?

[Jeffrey Williams]

Well, Ryan, I have. I don't have experience in, obviously, but I expect. Yes. When I came back three times in a Russian Soyuz, we were drenched in sweat. We had been. You know, you're wearing heavy suits, for one thing. The ventilation system can't keep up quite with the heat loading that you're going through. And then you have the heating on the outside, which is you're insulated somewhat, but you still get some of that heat transfer into the inside.

[Georgia Howe]

Yeah, that sounds terrifying.

[Jeffrey Williams]

There'll be a little bit of adrenaline flowing, but you're focused on the process, right? You're focused. You're monitoring the systems, you're monitoring your trajectory, you're making sure you're staying on target. So there's that focus. And remember, these guys have been doing this for years, and some of them have even military backgrounds in their background as well. So you're used to spending your entire career in maybe high stress environments, flying jets and whatnot. So they'll be focused once they get to the, to the water and everything is fine. There is a sense of relief. You know, mission accomplished. Kind of thing. And there'll be a little, you know, high fiving, I'm sure, inside the cockpit.

[Georgia Howe]

Amazing. Amazing. Jeffrey, thank you so much for coming on and explaining all of this for us.

[Jeffrey Williams]

You bet, Georgie. Great to be with you today.

[Cabot Phillips]

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[Georgia Howe]

President Trump says there needs to be urgent national action to save college sports. And he's stepping in to help.

[John Bickley]

Daily Wire reporter Lyndon Blake, who's been on the sports beat for over a decade now joins us to, you know, kick things off or tee things up, whatever sports metaphor you want. So an executive order here from President Trump. We'll get to that in a second. But first, what is the problem with college sports? Why do so many people, including me, think it needs fixing?

[Lyndon Blake]

Yeah, okay, I'm gonna say tee things off. Cause it is Masters week, so we'll go with golf for our sport of choice today. But yeah, the college athletic space is a mess right now for a lot of people that are working in it, for a lot of fans that are confused of who's even on the team. Because we've started this world now where players are getting paid for their name, image and likeness, which if you talk to people that are close to the situation, say that's not even really the problem. The problem is the transfer rules. You have people that are in their mid twenties still playing college sports. It all started with COVID because you got granted that extra year of eligibility because of COVID but then you kept building upon it. And now you have people in school for seven years trying to milk a doctorate degree and still compete in their sport. So it's not sustainable. And that's what so many coaches and the President have been discussing over the last several years. And now action is being taken. So in Trump's order, he says let college athletes have five years of eligibility. And he now is going to restrict most athletes to one transfer and you get an additional transfer permitted after earning a four year degree. So the order is going to seek to ensure that the transfer window does not incentivize interference with athletic seasons or academic year or otherwise undermine the integrity of participation and competition in college athletics. Because what did we see this past year with a college football playoff? You saw Lane Kiffin leave his team, went to a different school because he had to start recruiting these players for LSU and building next year's team while Ole Miss was in the playoff. So it is a total mess. This is what Trump order states. He said, fair competition cannot occur without a consistent set of rules concerning pay for play or player eligibility that cannot be endlessly relitigated in court. So that is meaning you have all these scenarios, and it's still going to become a problem, I think, with this, with these lawyers taking it to court and taking cases. And that's why you have people like Nick Saban saying, we need Congress involved in this, too, to prevent all these ensuing lawsuits, because that's how we're here in the first place.

[John Bickley]

And for the people that say, hey, look, this isn't that big of a deal, it really is the financial part of this, the legal aspect of this, super complicated, super costly, and like you said, unsustainable. The NFL has rules that are very clear on for both parties on both sides. It's totally unclear right now what can and can't be done. So the big question here, does Trump actually have the authority to do what he's doing? Does this executive order have teeth?

[Lyndon Blake]

Well, he thinks he's going to win over the Supreme Court. So he is confident in the Supreme Court right now, the justices that are serving, that he can push this through without any issues. I've talked to people close to the situation that are very involved in college sports, and they say that things will settle down, but it could be a couple years. A fascinating part of the Final Four coverage this past weekend was seeing John Calipari, who was the coach of Arkansas, a longtime Kentucky coach, go back and forth with Jay Billis, who is, you know, the college basketball expert, because Jay was saying, how can you tell these kids you can't transfer? And coaches will leave for more money in a heartbeat. But there's some still things to work out there with saying, you know, are you making all these people, these. These athletes sign contracts and, you know, have a clause in there saying, well, if the coach leaves, then you can transfer a lot to still settle out. But it looks like Trump and his staff, including Nick Saban, all these commissioners and college presidents are very determined to get something done.

[John Bickley]

And when is this scheduled to go into effect?

[Lyndon Blake]

So the executive order is expected to go into effect August 1st of this year. So that leaves the NCAA, the governing body of college sports, less than four months to adjust their system.

[John Bickley]

Well, we'll see if this ends up being the fix that a lot of people have been calling for. Lyndon, thank you so much for reporting.

[Lyndon Blake]

Thanks, guys.

[Georgia Howe]

Thanks for waking up with us. And if you're listening to the show now, you can watch for free on Daily Wire. We'll be back later this evening with more news you need to know.

[Unnamed Correspondent]

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