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Call Me Back - with Dan Senor

Is the U.S. Winning the Iran War? With Suzanne Maloney and Mark Dubowitz

Episode length: 52m

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The US seems to have won the Battle of Hormuz; what would it take to win the Iran War?

Seven months into the war, the US and Iran are locked in a high-stakes test of endurance, with the Strait of Hormuz, the global economy, and the future of the Middle East hanging in the balance. Dan Senor brings together two leading Iran experts, Mark Dubowitz and Suzanne Maloney, who sharply disagree on whether America is gaining the upper hand–or paying too steep of a strategic price. Their debate gets to the hardest question of all: Can the US win the war militarily and still lose strategically?

In this episode:

  • Two experts, two very different verdicts: Is Iran running out of options, or is Washington getting trapped in a war with no clear endgame?

  • The Strait of Hormuz was supposed to be Iran’s ultimate weapon. Has the US really taken that leverage away?

  • Why the Houthi threat could pull America deeper into a conflict it can’t easily contain

  • Can economic pressure bring down the Iranian regime—or are ordinary Iranians paying the price while the regime holds on?

  • Why have negotiations stalled, and is a nuclear deal still possible when the two sides fundamentally disagree on uranium enrichment?

  • With the nuclear program damaged but not eliminated, how much of a threat does Iran still pose?

  • Could another round of US or Israeli strikes be coming—and how might elections shape the timing?

  • If the regime survives but its military and nuclear capabilities are severely weakened, is that a victory—or a strategic failure?

Listen to Mark Dubowitz’ podcast, The Iran Breakdown:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-iran-breakdown-with-mark-dubowitz/id1798788194

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Get your tickets to a live taping of Call Me Back at the Streicker Center in NYC on October 22.

https://streicker.nyc/event/cmb_f2026/

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This episode was sponsored by Birthright. Invest in the Jewish future today at https://onetripchangeseverything.com.

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Credits: Ilan Benatar, Devan Schwartz, Mindy Schaper, Ava Weiner, Andrej Todorovski, Martin Huergo, Mariangeles Burgos, Karina Logiohio, Leonardo Erhardt, Ignacio Herbojo, and Yuval Semo

Hosted by Dan Senor