Balance of Power

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill. Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF . President Donald Trump sought to ratchet up pressure on Iran to cut a deal as the two sides prepared for direct talks in Pakistan to turn their fragile truce into a lasting peace. Trump posted on social media Friday that Tehran’s only leverage is “short te...

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill. Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF . The US and Iran prepared for peace talks in Pakistan with a fragile ceasefire largely holding, though issues such as Israel’s offensive in Lebanon and the opening of the Strait of Hormuz remain unresolved.  US Vice President JD Vance is expected to lead the...

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill. Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF . The US and Iran said they are prepared to hold talks to end the war in the Middle East during a proposed two-week pause in hostilities, even as Israeli strikes on Lebanon threatened to derail the fragile truce. Further adding uncertainty, sporadic fighting continued t...

The US and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire that’s expected to halt the American-Israeli military campaign in exchange for Tehran reopening the Strait of Hormuz. President Donald Trump announced the agreement Tuesday on social media hours after Pakistan, a mediator in talks, implored the US leader to back off his deadline to unleash massive devastation on Iran if it did not meet...

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill. Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF . President Donald Trump threatened Iran with civilizational destruction as the US attacked military targets on the country’s key oil export hub, ramping up pressure on Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz by his Tuesday deadline or face massive strikes on critic...

A review of President Donald Trump's fiscal year 2027 budget request -- and the implications for the defense sector given the White House's $1.5 trillion ask for national security -- led Bloomberg Intelligence's April 6 version of the Washington Policy Pulse. While White House budget requests are never fully implemented by Congress, Trump's goal of $350 billion in additional funding for the Irania...

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill. Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF . US allies are reportedly pressing for a last-minute deal with Iran, as President Donald Trump extended his deadline to Tuesday for Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, keeping markets on edge over whether a breakthrough can be reached. Axios reported that Pakistan,...

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill. Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF . Attorney General Pam Bondi is leaving her post as head of the US Justice Department, ending a tumultuous tenure as the nation’s top law enforcement official after stumbles in her efforts to carry out President Donald Trump’s agenda. “We love Pam, and...

President Donald Trump said the war in Iran is “very close” to completion, even as he signaled strikes could escalate in the near term.   Trump in a rare prime-time address on Wednesday cast the war as a success, saying the operation had nearly achieved its military goals, including destroying Iranian ballistic missiles and drones, air force, navy and industrial base. He...

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill. Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF . US President Donald Trump said he’ll only consider a halt to attacks on Iran when the Strait of Hormuz is reopened, sowing further confusion about how long he’s prepared to continue the war.     Iran’s “New Regime President” has...

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill. Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF . US President Donald Trump called on other nations to wrest control of the Strait of Hormuz as Iran maintained missile fire across the Persian Gulf, expressing his frustration that the monthlong war remains unresolved.  Countries that can’t get energy suppli...

An update of the Congressional outlook for the ongoing DHS shutdown -- as well as Congressional plans after their April recess -- led Bloomberg Intelligence's Washington Policy Pulse on March 30. We also discussed ongoing Senate plans for a crypto market structure bill plus what the outlook for Kevin Warsh's nomination at the Senate Banking Committee after reports suggest a nomination hearing can...

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill. Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF . US President Donald Trump repeated threats to destroy Iranian energy assets if the Strait of Hormuz isn’t reopened soon, raising fears the war could escalate after more American troops arrived in the region. The US “is in serious discussions” with wh...

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill. Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF . The Trump administration is signaling to allies that it has no immediate plans for a ground invasion of Iran, even as it deploys thousands of troops to the Middle East, people familiar with the matter said. The people, who asked not to be identified discussing private...

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill. Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF . US President Donald Trump sent conflicting signals on the prospect that talks with Iran would bring a halt to the nearly month-long war, further roiling global energy markets.  “I say they’re lousy fighters, but they’re great negotiators, and th...

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill. Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF . Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz deliver insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. On this edition, Joe...

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill. Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF . President Donald Trump signaled that Iran had offered a “present” as a show of good faith in negotiations the US leader has claimed are ongoing to end a 25-day conflict that’s upended global markets, even as he deploys more troops to the Middle East....

An update of reports that the US and Iran are engaged in indirect negotiations over the conflict -- as well as the outlook for a potential $200 billion supplemental defense package -- led Bloomberg Intelligence's Washington Policy Pulse on March 23. While a defense package would benefit contractors like Lockheed Martin, we expect Congress to slow walk any ask. We also discussed forthcoming legisla...

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill. Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF . President Donald Trump said the US would postpone strikes against Iran’s energy infrastructure after what he called “productive conversations” with the country, in comments that spurred confusion over the participants in the talks and parameters of a...

Stocks and bonds rebounded after President Donald Trump said the US and Iran had “very good” conversations about an end to the conflict in the Middle East.   President rump said strikes against Iranian energy infrastructure and power plants would be postponed for five days following the start of talks with Iran to end the war.   For details on this development, Tom Keene...

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill. Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF . Iranian officials have become reluctant to even discuss reopening the Strait of Hormuz as they focus on surviving the US-Israeli onslaught, according to a person involved in direct, high-level contacts with Tehran. Energy infrastructure attacks and strikes on high-pro...

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill. Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF . Iran stepped up its assault on key oil and gas infrastructure across the Middle East, defying US President Donald Trump’s calls for restraint and triggering a fresh surge in energy prices that have highlighted the cost of the ever-widening conflict.  The Is...

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill. Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF . The US took fresh steps to curb the turmoil in energy markets as Iran vowed to escalate its attacks on oil and gas infrastructure in the Middle East with the conflict stretching toward three weeks. President Donald Trump temporarily waived a century-old shipping manda...

Insight & analysis on the White House and Capitol Hill. Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF . Europe is learning how to say “no” to Donald Trump over his war in Iran. Nearly three weeks into the expanding conflict, European leaders have stopped equivocating and started outright telling the US president they won’t help his campaign with Israel...

President Donald Trump's options towards the Iran conflict -- with a focus on the US midterms and the political calculus of his decisions -- led Bloomberg Intelligence's Washington Policy Pulse on March 16. Bloomberg News reports that despite Trump's call for a coalition of ships to guard the Strait of Hormuz, several countries have yet to commit support. We also discussed the upcoming Basel III E...