Newsmax guest: “This memorandum of understanding is a surrender” by the United States
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From the June 23, 2026, edition of Newsmax's Rob Schmitt Tonight
ROB SCHMITT (HOST): So there's a lot of criticism, right, of this potential deal, what it looks like right now. The idea of opening up a tremendous amount of money to this awful regime that's in control of Iran has done so much terror and damage to the world. Trump reminding his critics of this deal that — the deal comes with the threat of decimation ruling over it, which is something you certainly didn't see in the previous deal with Barack Obama. If you don't — if you mess with us on this, we're just going to blow up your country and kill all of you, everyone in the regime anyway. Oil continues to drop like a rock at this point, down to around $73 a barrel, so gas prices are going to ease, very important coming in the midterms. Trump says the blockade has lifted 19 million barrels of oil went through the Strait of Hormuz. That's close to what it was before the war started. Batya Ungar-Sargon is the author of the new book, The Jews and the Left, and joins us now. Batya, I wanted to talk to you because you've been critical of the memorandum of understanding and the negotiations with Iran, and I think what you say is resonating with a lot of people that are watching us open up oil sales to Iran and and this potential deal, and thinking, what what are we doing? Give me your perspective as it stands tonight.
BATYA UNGAR-SARGON (GUEST): Thank you so much for having me. Let me preface this by saying that I love this president very, very much, and his agenda thus far has been the best of my life. So I say this with a lot of love, but I think that this memorandum of understanding is a surrender. I think what Iran did was we had this amazing military victory in the early weeks. We decimated their navy. We destroyed their ballistic capabilities. We destroyed their nuclear facilities. But what they have just very successfully done is move the theater of war from the military front where we have absolute supremacy to the economic front to the Strait of Hormuz, where they have complete control because they know that we're not going to go to war with them over a few mines. In fact, they were able to end this war with a few mines in the Strait of Hormuz. And the most important thing in that memorandum of understanding, there's a line there that says Iran commits not to charge tolls on the Strait of Hormuz for 60 days.
SCHMITT: Just through the negotiations.
UNGAR-SARGON: That is a road map they intend on the 61st day, so 57 days from now, to start charging tolls. And to me, they have realized that the ability to charge tolls on the Strait of Hormuz, which nobody is now going to fight them on —
SCHMITT: Right.
UNGAR-SARGON: Is the equivalent of having a nuclear weapon.
SCHMITT: To push back for a second though on that because there were things in the memorandum that have been clarified since it came out last week. And I do think that one of those that will be clarified, I don't think there's any way in hell that Trump's going to let them charge any kind of toll. He's going to want that international water open and free because it always has been. And you can't change that just for this deal and nor would I think the president want to look so weak. I think they're just saying let's get into the negotiation, and then they're going to they're going to have to win on that one, I would believe. My other question to you to you is is this. Obviously, you're a major supporter of Israel. I've got half of my family as part of the diaspora that had to come to the United States to flee that regime. So there is there's a disappointment that they're negotiating with these people at all because there's so much visceral hatred for the people that run that country. Do you think that's — is that part of your fury? And I only have 10 seconds for you to answer it, but go ahead.
UNGAR SARGON: No.
SCHMITT: It's not.
UNGAR-SARGON: I mean, if we could succeed in the negotiation, I would be very happy to. I just think these are the biggest liars in the international community, and they don't mean a word that they say.
SCHMITT: Right.