Raging Moderates: Trump Threatens to WIPE OUT Iran and Triggers 25th Amendment Calls (preview)

Summary

The Prof G Pod with Scott Galloway – Raging Moderates

Episode Preview: "Trump Threatens to WIPE OUT Iran and Triggers 25th Amendment Calls"

Date: April 8, 2026
Host: Jessica Tarlov (with guest attorney and Midas Touch Network host Katie Fang)

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Episode Overview

This preview episode of “Raging Moderates,” hosted by Jessica Tarlov with guest Katie Fang, confronts the alarming state of American and global politics using their trademark centrist—but candid—lens. The focus: President Trump’s recent threats against Iran, what happens when global brinkmanship meets unmoderated leadership, and the broader danger of statesmen acting recklessly on the world stage. Throughout, the hosts explore the exhaustion of living “on the extremes” of politics, the inadequacy of supposed moderating voices in the current administration, and the very real implications for global security.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Extreme Times, Extreme Leaders

[00:54] – [01:47]

• Both hosts lament the political climate defined by leaders (like Trump and Orban) with "very small men with very big dreams with very powerful weapons" (Fang).
• Regret is expressed that regime change has occurred without honest public discourse or clear strategy.

2. Trump’s Threats: Bluster or Real Danger?

[02:34] – [03:39]

• Jessica Tarlov details Trump’s latest ultimatum to Iran: Open the Strait of Hormuz by his arbitrarily-set deadline or face civilization-scale destruction ("A whole civilization will die tonight").
• Trump threatens to decimate Iran’s bridges and power grid, acts which could constitute war crimes.
• Iran has issued counter-threats and tabled a 10-point proposal, but a breakthrough seems unlikely.
• A sense of absurdity and gallows humor pervades (“Is it wrong for me to be laughing?... you just kind of have to like chuckle your way through it, right?” – Fang, [02:11]).

3. Dangerous Normalization & “Taco Tuesdays”

[03:39] – [04:34]

• Fang expresses disbelief at the casualness with which existential threats are discussed:

  "We can chuckle through a Taco Tuesday where you have a man who has the control over the nuclear codes saying that he's going to eliminate an entire country in one fell swoop..."

• Both hosts note the lack of “adults in the room” to constrain presidential excess, singling out Fox anchor Pete Hegseth as complicit rather than moderating.

4. Media, Morality, and the Cabinet

[04:34] – [07:45]

• Fang and Tarlov mock the idea of a responsible Secretary of Defense in this administration, given Hegseth’s apparent “bloodlust.”
• Fang: “There’s no morality, there’s no caution, there’s no discretion, there’s no measure in Hegseth. If there was ever anybody who was the chef’s kiss match for Trump ... it was definitely Hegseth.” ([04:39])
• Tarlov: “There are bridges that we are crossing that because of the deluge... the delusional deluge... [of] information... we're not really taking stock of.” ([05:45])
• The normalization of extreme acts is decried; a sense of moral and political fatigue is palpable.

5. Loyalty Tests and Generals in Trouble

[07:00] – [08:51]

• Debate over whether military leadership is actually moderating anything (with Fang objecting to Gen. Dan Kane’s sycophancy; Tarlov is more pragmatic).
• Fang: “Cain saying, ‘this man as in Trump delivers on his promises’... The flattery is very North Korean. It’s very gross. I, I, I hard pass.” ([07:45])
• The hosts dissect the survival mechanisms of officials in the administration, weighing the value of ‘ass-kissing’ for staying in the room versus standing on principle—with both skeptical whether any effective constraint exists at all.

6. Living on the Political Edge

[09:32] – [10:12]

• Returning to the episode’s core question: "Aren't we at a moment... where we are literally living on the extremes? Like I feel like... we are 100% living like on the edges of everything." (Fang)
• Tarlov and Fang muse on the implications of a government and media environment where lines formerly uncrossable are now ignored or normalized.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Katie Fang:

  "We just have these very small men with very big dreams with very powerful weapons that are carving up our world." ([00:54])

• Jessica Tarlov:

  “President Trump is warning that a whole civilization could be wiped out if Tehran doesn't open the Strait of Hormuz by his deadline of 8pm tonight... In a social media post just hours before that cutoff, he said, ‘a whole civilization will die tonight.’” ([02:34])

• Katie Fang:

  "[Pete] Hegseth’s bloodlust, I think, exceeds Donald Trump." ([04:34])

• Tarlov & Fang on the Situation Room:

  "Do we need a situation room that is in Mar a Lago and it's Donald Trump, Stephen Miller, Pete Hegseth?"
  "It's next to the buffet brunch." ([09:07])

• Fang on Generals:

  "The flattery is very North Korean. It's very gross. I... hard pass." ([07:45])

• Fang on Exhaustion:

  "I'm kind of at my, my end on that tolerance level, I think..." ([05:45])

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Timeline of Important Segments

• [00:54] — Setting the context: “Literally living on the extremes”
• [02:34] — Trump’s threat: “A whole civilization will die tonight”
• [03:39] — Fang cautions against casual normalization (“Taco Tuesday” analogy)
• [05:45] — Flood of destabilizing news; “delusional deluge”
• [07:45] — Critique of military leadership’s flattery and moral compromise
• [09:07] — Satirical take on Situation Room dynamics
• [09:32] — Condemnation of continuous edge-living in American politics

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Tone and Takeaways

• The mood oscillates between gallows humor, frustration, and serious anxiety about present danger.
• The hosts are forthright and frequently irreverent, balancing sharp analysis with humor to process the extremity of current events.

For listeners and non-listeners alike:
This episode preview encapsulates the “Raging Moderates” ethos—an unflinching, centrist critique of extremism in American (and global) leadership, and a call for more principled, less performative politics.

Transcript

[A]

What goes up must come down. Except when it comes to gas prices. The price tends to rocket up very quickly at the pump, as when crude oil prices go up, but gasoline prices tend to take a little bit longer to go down in many cases. This week on Explain it to me why gas and everything else is so expensive these days. Find new episodes Sundays wherever you get your podcasts.

[B]

Hey, thanks for listening to Raging Moderates here on the Prof. G feed. This is just a preview of today's episode, and soon we'll be leaving this feed entirely to get the full episode. You'll want to subscribe to the Raging Moderates feed on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen. We're dropping new episodes every weekday evening, so you can now get Scott and me five days a week. Subscribe on YouTube or check us out on Substack if you want it ad free. All right, here's a preview of today's show.

[A]

Aren't we at a moment, Jess, where we are literally living on the extremes? We are 100% living, like on the edges of everything. Footnote apparently we did do this for regime change, which everybody denied in this administration from day one. But I guess now the latest excuse, according to this presser yesterday, was we've successfully achieved regime change, which again, nobody ever said what was the plan, the purpose, or the goals behind going into this war. Is it just a handful of autocrats, wannabe dictators like Trump and Orban and others that get to divvy up the world? Is that it? I mean, it's so, to me, frustrating that we just have these very small men with very big dreams with very powerful weapons that are carving up our world.

[B]

Welcome to Raging Moderates. I'm Jessica Tarlev, and today I'm very lucky to be joined by attorney and host of the Katie Feng show on the Midas Touch Network, Katie Fang. Thank you for coming back. It's been a while.

[A]

It's been too long. And I figured if there was anybody with whom I could spend end of days with, it would be Jess Tarloff.

[B]

So I'm happy to be here. I was thinking of that. What was that movie? A Friend for the End of the World. Yes.

[A]

That is totally. I don't even know. You know, it's like, is it wrong for me to be laughing? Shouldn't be laughing. But this is just absurd. Like, you just kind of have to like chuckle your way through it, right?

[B]

I guess so. Or until 8pm when we see if something actually happens or if it's another round of taco I've been calling it Taco Tuesdays.

[A]

Taco Tuesdays.

[B]

Kind of perfect. Okay. All right, I'm going to set the table because we already got to the conclusion. But in case you hadn't noticed, President Trump is warning that a whole civilization could be wiped out if Tehran doesn't open the Strait of Hormuz by his deadline of 8pm tonight. Set your calendars, your alarms, whatever you need to do. In a social media post just hours before that cutoff, he said, a whole civilization will die tonight. While still holding out faint hope that something, quote, revolutionarily wonderful could prevent the strikes. Trump's also threatened to decimate Iran's bridges and shut down its power grid, moves that could constitute war crimes. Iran, for its part, is vowing crushing and extensive retaliation of civilian infrastructure's hit. And despite a reported 10 point proposal from Iran to end the conflict, seems like there's no sign of a breakthrough before tonight's deadline. Let's watch this clip from Trump's presser yesterday. The entire country could be taken out in one night, and that night might be tomorrow night. Short clip. But to the point, what do you think is going to happen this evening?

[A]

I don't think the United States is going to annihilate the people of Iran. I mean, doesn't that kind of defeat the whole purpose? It's like you, you want the people of Iran to do something revolutionarily wonderful, but then, hey, we're just going to take you all out in the same stroke. I just, I do think it's a Taco Tuesday. I do find it to be alarming though, that again, we can chuckle through a Taco Tuesday where you have a man who has the control over the nuclear codes saying that he's going to eliminate an entire country in one fell swoop, I, I find it to be remarkable more so that there is, are there, there are literally no adults ever left in this administration. I mean, you, you, you look at what he posted on Easter Sunday of all days, of all days to post. And then you look at, listen, I, and I know that used to work with him, but I don't think Pete Hegseth is ever going to reign in Trump. Pete Hegseth's bloodlust, I think, exceeds Donald Trump.

[B]

This is say what you want about Pete Hegseth show. Oh, gosh.

[A]

So there's no morality, there's no caution, there's no discretion, there's no measure you in Hegseth. So, I mean, if there was ever anybody who was, I think like the Chef's kiss match for Trump. When it comes to having an appointment, like a cabinet appointment, like the Secretary of Defense, it was definitely Hagseth. But what's more crazy, the fact that Trump posted what he posts and says what he says, or the fact that somebody doesn't stop him from doing it and somebody doesn't tell him to take it down or people don't quit over it. I mean, there, there has to be an off ramp to, to the Looney Tunes moment that seems to be repeating itself day in and day out. But I, I, I find it also very upsetting because this is not just a United States, Iran thing. We've got Israel involved. We have other countries in the Middle east region that are involved. And so it's, you know, one life lost is one life lost too many. And what upsets me is that we're just gonna watch the day come and go and then people are gonna wake up on Wednesday morning and he will not have bombed around into the Stone Ages. And then we're all just gonna kind of move on. I'm kind of at my, my end on that tolerance level, I think, Yeah,

[B]

I think that there are bridges that we are crossing that because of the deluge. Deluge, I should say, of information all the time.

[A]

Delusional deluge.

[B]

Yeah, the delusional deluge that we're not really taking stock of. The fact that you're talking about a country with over 90 million people on it.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Right. This is no small threat. And I'm not sure how seriously Iran takes it. I mean, their social media would indicate that they know that this is a meme game more than a bombs game. And we should note that at the same time that this was going on, there was another US Military attack on Carg island, which appears to be more of a double tap than something new. It was just us. Israel was not affiliated with this particular move. But that signals a very different approach than we're going to bomb you into the Stone Age. Right. That's more targeted. And about the oil. And I keep going back to, I guess, two things. One, about the adults in the room. I think that General Kane seems like an adult in the room, even though he always gets pushed to the side and ignored in the press conferences. Like when.

[A]

But yesterday Kane disappointingly, was kissing his ass. Like that was.

[B]

You always have to kiss the ass. No, no, no. I, I, I think that there has to be. Why? Because then you're going to lose your job. And I think that people who serve in these capacities and have the chance to rein it in when it actually counts. If it looks like public flattery, but they have some sort of moderating force in there versus another version of a heg Seth coming up like Dan Driscoll as well. The one that Hegseth is so concerned is going to get his job if he does get pushed out as the Secretary of Defense. I can handle some ass kissing in a press conference if I know that the Situation Room isn't just Donald Trump, Stephen Miller, and Pete Hegseth. That's how I feel.

[A]

But that also presupposes, Jess, that Trump will listen to Kaine and that Hegseth will listen to Cain. What I heard yesterday from Cain was our dear cult leader Commander in Chief is so amazing. And, and what I, what, what disturbed me was Cain saying, this man, as in Trump delivers on his promises. And I understand he was talking in the context of rescuing our downed service members, which I want to make clear. The, the level of heroism that is involved from people in our armed services right now is stunningly amazing. And I don't ever want to sound like I don't support our armed services, but I says something like, this man keeps his promises. Then you couple it with what we're seeing. I get very worried about Kane giving any accolades to Trump. He could just get up and he could deliver the information that he should be delivering to the American people that we're not really getting from this administration. And instead he, the flattery is very North Korean. It's very gross. I, I, I hard pass. I don't think that's a part of your job requirement. Sure.

[B]

But like it is part of your job requirement to survive this administration.

[A]

And does he need to like, does he have, I don't know, do we

[B]

need a situation room that is in Mar a Lago and it's Donald Trump, Stephen Miller, Pete Hegseth.

[A]

It's next to the buffet brunch.

[B]

Yeah, I know, 100%. There's a black curtain up for some privacy. There are Apple watches. Apple watches everywhere with a, with an Apple watch. Right. And there's not a legit general insight. So I'm going to take the ass kissing general. Okay. Versus that alternative. But I understand your standards are perhaps higher than mine and maybe I'm a little conservative media coded and how I'm looking at this.

[A]

No, but maybe I'm not being realistic and I understand. But I do think, aren't we at a moment just where we are literally living on the extremes? Like I feel like we live on the edge of the sound like we are 100% living like on the edges of everything. And if we are living in that extreme land, and I feel like the extreme would be if Kane doesn't agree, then Kane shouldn't be there. And I don't mean like I wanted them to have green khaki uniforms versus blue. I'm talking like this is wrong. Everything I'm seeing is wrong. Or it's too gray. We're two in the gray on this one. I'm not comfortable. I feel like it's the imprimeter of credibility that makes me worried by somebody like Dan Kane.

[B]

Before we go, another reminder that not only is Raging Moderates five days a week, we're also available on Substack. Subscribers get ad free episodes, which I know you all love. Live streams, place to connect with me, the Prof. G team in general, which includes Scott. Plus you'll get access to the new Raging Moderates newsletter, the Monday Rage. Our first one was out yesterday. Did you like it? Find us at raging moderate stepprofgmedia.com and we've got our Webby Award for best news in Politics podcast. I'm gonna ask you again. If you haven't voted, please do vote.webbyawards.com if you've already voted, consider doing it again. Or like getting your mom or your dad or boyfriend, girlfriend, whoever. Just people should be voting for us. That's all for this episode. Thank you so much for joining.