Day: April 16, 2026

The Iranian regime is banking that the closure of the Strait of Hormuz will: Tank the world economy. Propel Democrats back into power in 2026. That would work, if not for the fact that Iranian allies, like China, are the ones being severely hurt by closure, and the Iranian economy has no way to survive embargo-like conditions, argues Victor Davis Hanson on this week’s “Victor Davis Hanson: In His Own Words”: “[Iran] has counted on the Left to embolden them. So their strategy is to indulge in accrued stereotypes of the Middle East. They want to do a rug deal. And they want to barter and barter and barter and feign anger. “And they want to draw that out for three to four to five months. And they want the world economy, and then they want the Left to come in and take the House and take the Senate and cut off funds and stop the war. “I don't think that's going to happen. That's their strategy. But what he's trying to argue is that strategy requires a quiet population that can be intimidated, as it is now, but permanently so, and it requires some economic viability to survive. And they already can't afford food, they can't afford gas, they're under attack, they've lost probably half a trillion dollars in weapons and infrastructure that was accrued over 47 years.