What a week it was! But something tells me this one will be equally wild.
As long as the Iran war continues, we can expect crazy headlines to appear.
Take a look below to understand what's going on π
We are hearing surprisingly little about the Board of Peace.
I think it's bound to change in the coming months. All the countries that rejected the invitation will be scrambling to join.
The Iran war is truly fascinating. The second "internet war" after Ukraine, but wildly different.
While the Ukraine war showed us FPV drone footages, the Iran war is a masterclass in propaganda.
Let's decode what actually happened here.
Axios reported that Trump exploded at Netanyahu. Called him "fucking crazy." Said "you'd be in prison if it weren't for me." Said "everybody hates you now."
The journalist is Barak Ravid again, we talked about it. Israeli. Based in Washington. Covers the Netanyahu-US relationship for Axios, and every latest deals to calm the markets.
This is the same journalist who wrote the exact same type of story about Biden. There is literally a book chapter about this pattern. It is called "Fuming Biden." The same reporter. The same format. The same function. Different president.
Now watch the response.
Mark Levin, a close ally of both Trump and Netanyahu, did not deny the story. He demanded an FBI investigation into who leaked it. When your defense is "this should never have leaked" instead of "this never happened," you have confirmed the call happened.
But here is the part that matters.
Why would Levin, a friend to BOTH men, confirm the most explosive account of their relationship ever published?
Because it serves both.
Trump gets to look tough. Not Netanyahu's puppet. Willing to put Israel in its place. His base loves it.
Netanyahu gets cover. He "paused" the Beirut strike, but not because Iran threatened him. Because his "friend" asked him to. His base loves it too.
And look at what actually changed on the ground. Nothing.
Israel cancelled the Beirut strike. But the ground invasion of Lebanon continues. The IDF is still miles deep. A soldier died today from a Hezbollah drone. Netanyahu's office said: "position unchanged."
The performance was perfect. Trump gets the headline. Netanyahu gets the cover. The deal gets another 48 hours of "progress." Markets get a reason to breathe.
And the war continues exactly as planned.
This is the same playbook. Every time public opinion turns against the war, a story appears showing the US president is "furious" with Israel. It creates the illusion of restraint while changing nothing.
Biden was "furious" for 14 months. The war never stopped.
Trump is "furious" now. The ground invasion is expanding.
The visible game is: Trump controls Netanyahu.
The real game is: both men are performing for their audiences while the machine moves forward.
Nothing has been signed. Nothing has stopped. The war is not winding down. It is being managed.
Neither one controls the other. They walk arm in arm. Know that.
I wake up and:
1. Barak Ravid is up with another fake story about the Iran and Lebanon war.
2. Polymarket did another questionable clarification.
3. MicroStrategy sold BTC in May.
Iranβs state-run Tasnim News Agency reports that Iran has suspended all further diplomatic communication and messages with the United States, in protest of Israelβs violation of the current ceasefire βon all fronts,β specifically citing Israeli strikes and military operations in Lebanon.
JP Morgan had a base case for oil in which the Strait of Hormuz would be fully open by June 1st.
Dismal forecast, probably a testament to the quality of recent analyst classes.
What are they going to do now? Move the forecast up a month? Or maybe, finally, look at Polymarket?
What a week it was! But something tells me this one will be equally wild.
As long as the Iran war continues, we can expect crazy headlines to appear.
Take a look below to understand what's going on π