{"id":4767,"date":"2026-06-27T18:00:17","date_gmt":"2026-06-27T18:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usglobalnews.com\/2026\/06\/27\/jd-vance-claims-us-holds-all-the-cards-in-iran-and-will-win-either-way\/"},"modified":"2026-06-27T18:00:17","modified_gmt":"2026-06-27T18:00:17","slug":"jd-vance-claims-us-holds-all-the-cards-in-iran-and-will-win-either-way","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/?p=4767","title":{"rendered":"JD Vance claims US holds all the cards in Iran and will win \u2018either way\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-gu-name=\"media\" class=\"dcr-14sl0e4\">\n<div class=\"dcr-17l77cs\">\n<figure id=\"65a84d48-8318-4824-95f7-f7b8e07cdd5d\" class=\"dcr-191xnya\">\n<div id=\"img-1\" class=\"dcr-1t7hdmw\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Two men in suits speak to each other.\" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/e0d0d03b95f2f99a2e5a00434bfc56711aa011ff\/0_0_2418_1612\/master\/2418.jpg?width=465&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" width=\"465\" height=\"310\" loading=\"eager\" class=\"dcr-up96pv\"><span class=\"dcr-kogzpx\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-18mnkpm\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1294qmb\"><label for=\"the-checkbox\" class=\"dcr-4sl2vt\"><\/label> <\/p>\n<div id=\"the-caption\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1mfxiaj\"><span class=\"dcr-13i4yc9\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1cipnsy\">JD Vance and Bill Maher on HBO\u2019s Real Time on 26 June 2026.<\/span> Photograph: HBO<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><a href=\"#img-1\" data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-zwabc0\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><button data-element-id=\"65a84d48-8318-4824-95f7-f7b8e07cdd5d\" type=\"button\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-1bitgpn\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><span class=\"dcr-1shbixy\">View image in fullscreen<\/span><\/button><\/a><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"dcr-qda0hp\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1e9iiy9\"><span class=\"dcr-13i4yc9\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1cipnsy\">JD Vance and Bill Maher on HBO\u2019s Real Time on 26 June 2026.<\/span> Photograph: HBO<\/figcaption><\/span><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"headline\" class=\"dcr-ql9l8l\">\n<div class=\"dcr-6mja0y\">\n<h1 class=\"dcr-l0wuod\">JD Vance claims US holds all the cards in Iran and will win \u2018either way\u2019<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"standfirst\" class=\"dcr-1xpojbf\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1gm5ptv\">\n<p>Vice-president appeared on Bill Maher\u2019s show hours before more military strikes were exchanged in strait of Hormuz<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"body\" class=\"dcr-x1al2c\">\n<div class=\"dcr-11gq2tx\">\n<div id=\"maincontent\" class=\"dcr-1w2vkyc\">\n<div class=\"article-body-commercial-selector article-body-viewer-selector dcr-ogvvui\">\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/jd-vance\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">JD Vance<\/a> said on Friday that the US wins \u201ceither way\u201d regarding negotiations with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/iran\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Iran<\/a>, pointing to what he called the destruction of its nuclear program and diminishment as a country.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cIf we make the final deal, then great,\u201d the US vice-president told HBO\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/tv-and-radio\/bill-maher\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Bill Maher<\/a>. \u201cIf we don\u2019t make the final deal, their nuclear program is still destroyed. They\u2019re still much weaker as a country, so my attitude is America wins either way.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Vance said that the increased flow of oil through the strait of Hormuz was a \u201csignal that there\u2019s something real going on\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">But he acknowledged that the ceasefire deal between Donald Trump and the Iranian president, Masoud Pezeshkian, under a 60-day memorandum of understanding (MOU), \u201cis always going to be a little messy when you\u2019re dealing with the Iranians\u201d.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"abdeab17-b85c-46d0-a710-6ee3aaa74496\" data-spacefinder-role=\"richLink\" data-spacefinder-type=\"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.RichLinkBlockElement\" class=\"dcr-1oq85qr\">\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" data-link-name=\"rich-link-4 | 4\" data-component=\"rich-link\" data-name=\"placeholder\" class=\"dcr-1rx5ky9\">\n<div data-format-theme=\"5\" data-format-design=\"0\" data-format-display=\"0\" class=\"dcr-15vltj4\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/ng-interactive\/2026\/jun\/19\/jd-vance-catholicism\" class=\"dcr-f35c0u\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-vvxpdt\">\n<div class=\"dcr-6z6e7\">\n<div class=\"dcr-zh9rih\">JD Vance, once an \u2018angry atheist\u2019, is America\u2019s most powerful Catholic. How will he wield his faith?<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-oj13vq\">\n<div class=\"dcr-ef9nua\">Read more<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Vance\u2019s appearance on the politics-flavored comedy talkshow Real Time came hours before it was reported that a tanker was struck by a projectile in the strait and the US and Iran each launched strikes in the worst escalation since they signed the interim peace deal.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Washington said \u200bit hit Iranian targets overnight, while Iran said it had struck targets linked to US forces on Saturday in response. Saturday\u2019s attack on a tanker followed an attack on a cargo ship on Thursday that triggered the hostilities.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Vance\u2019s comments came during an appearance to promote his new memoir, Communion: Finding My Way Back to Faith, but most of the segment concerned foreign and domestic policy issues.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Vance said his negotiations with an Iranian delegation in Lucerne, Switzerland, have been successful because oil is \u201cdown to $73 a barrel\u201d and Iran\u2019s nuclear program was \u201cfunctionally destroyed\u201d, pointing to the country\u2019s ability to enrich uranium.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Critics of the MOU and the ongoing negotiations say the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/trump-administration\" data-link-name=\"in body link\" data-component=\"auto-linked-tag\">Trump administration<\/a> is negotiating with a weak hand in part because Iran still has a stockpile of 60%-enriched uranium, which may not accessible but remains in the country nevertheless.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">The director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, said on Friday that reducing Iran\u2019s stockpile or transferring it abroad remains a viable option while the US and Iran pursue a comprehensive agreement.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Pressed by Maher on whether Iran\u2019s nuclear program is destroyed, Vance shot back: \u201cWhat part of it is not destroyed? The thing that you have to destroy is their ability to enrich uranium, which has been destroyed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">He offered Iran an olive branch. \u201cIf they are willing to give up nuclear weapons ambitions for the long term, then the United States is willing to fundamentally transform our relationship with that country,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cIf they\u2019re willing to change, we\u2019re willing to change too; if they\u2019re not willing to change, we still fundamentally have all the cards and I think that\u2019s a good place to be.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure id=\"c306fed4-376d-4985-b76f-114e1c2b3508\" data-spacefinder-role=\"richLink\" data-spacefinder-type=\"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.RichLinkBlockElement\" class=\"dcr-1oq85qr\">\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" data-link-name=\"rich-link-14 | 14\" data-component=\"rich-link\" data-name=\"placeholder\" class=\"dcr-1rx5ky9\">\n<div data-format-theme=\"5\" data-format-design=\"0\" data-format-display=\"0\" class=\"dcr-15vltj4\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/jun\/25\/jd-vance-watergate-richard-nixon\" class=\"dcr-f35c0u\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-vvxpdt\">\n<div class=\"dcr-6z6e7\">\n<div class=\"dcr-zh9rih\">JD Vance says Nixon\u2019s Watergate scandal would be \u201812-hour news story\u2019 today<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-oj13vq\">\n<div class=\"dcr-ef9nua\">Read more<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Vance\u2019s media appearance comes two days after he visited the Richard Nixon presidential library and museum in California, where he appeared to defend Nixon \u2013 who is celebrated by Republicans for negotiating landmark nuclear arms control deals with the Soviet Union \u2013 for the Watergate break-in scandal that ended his presidency.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cI think that his historical legacy is enjoying a bit of a renaissance \u2013 but I think deservedly so,\u201d Vance said of Nixon, who also opened diplomatic relations with communist China and formed a Republican party allegiance with working-class Americans. \u201cIf Watergate happened tomorrow, it would be like a 12-hour news story. Like, the idea that it would have taken down a presidency is crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">On Real Time, Vance sidestepped an effort by Maher to acknowledge that the administration\u2019s immigration enforcement policies had gone too far. \u201cYou can\u2019t do a law enforcement operation like that without having some situations that are recorded like that,\u201d Vance said. \u201cI don\u2019t think there was an easy way to do this.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" class=\"dcr-swayiu\"><span class=\"dcr-1xhbmzr\">Explore more on these topics<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-2c03t5\">\n<ul class=\"dcr-p7nd18\">\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/jd-vance\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">JD Vance<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/tv-and-radio\/bill-maher\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">Bill Maher<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/world\/iran\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">Iran<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/world\/us-israel-war-on-iran\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">US-Israel war on Iran<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/trump-administration\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">Trump administration<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/us-foreign-policy\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">US foreign policy<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/usdomesticpolicy\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">US domestic policy<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/tone\/news\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">news<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-313bdz\"><a href=\"mailto:?subject=JD%20Vance%20claims%20US%20holds%20all%20the%20cards%20in%20Iran%20and%20will%20win%20%E2%80%98either%20way%E2%80%99&amp;body=https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/jun\/27\/jd-vance-bill-maher-iran-war?CMP=share_btn_url\" class=\"dcr-ncybeu\">Share<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-19bkree\"><a data-link-name=\"meta-syndication-article\" href=\"https:\/\/syndication.theguardian.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fus-news%2F2026%2Fjun%2F27%2Fjd-vance-bill-maher-iran-war&amp;type=article&amp;internalpagecode=us-news\/2026\/jun\/27\/jd-vance-bill-maher-iran-war\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\" title=\"Reuse this content\" class=\"dcr-1c41onw\">Reuse this content<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"right-column\" class=\"dcr-axwinp\"><span class=\"dcr-1ryr20k\"><\/span><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>JD Vance and Bill Maher on HBO\u2019s Real Time on 26 June 2026. Photograph: HBO View image in<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":4769,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4767","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4767","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4767"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4767\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4769"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4767"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4767"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4767"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}