Up next in 10
What happens when Trump and Netanyahu are no longer on the same team? | James O'Brien
Jun 8, 2026
James O’Brien reacts to Donald Trump’s NBC Meet the Press interview walkout after clashing with Kristen Welker over ‘rigged election’ claims. As tensions rise between Iran and Israel, James asks: what happens if Netanyahu loses Trump’s patronage? Listen to the full show on the all-new LBC App: https://app.af.lbc.co.uk/btnc/thenewlbcapp #jamesobrien #politics #news #uspolitics #donaldtrump #debate #LBC LBC is the home of live debate around news and current affairs in the UK. Join in the conversation and listen at https://www.lbc.co.uk/ Sign up to LBC’s weekly newsletter here: https://l-bc.co/signup
Show More Show Less View Video Transcript
0:00
Your elections are crooked and you're crooked and Mr. Press is crooked and so is ABC and CBS and CNN
0:08
But Mr. President. You're one-sided crooked networks. Let's call it quits because I've had enough
0:12
Thank you, darling. Have a good time. Mr. President, let's please. I traveled all the way to Wisconsin
0:17
I've sat in the rain with you. I know. I've sat in the rain with you for an hour
0:22
On and off in the rain and I've given you enough time. You ought to straighten out your press because you know what
0:27
A country can never be great with a dishonest person. Listen, we travelled all the way to Wisconsin for this interview
0:34
That clip should sort of echo through your memory banks, shouldn't it
0:38
The clip of Donald Trump just sort of storming out of an interview with Kristen Welker
0:45
because she had the audacity to ask him for some tiny amounts
0:49
or just the slightest scintilla of evidence regarding his claims about election rigging
0:54
His completely false claims, his lies, his blatant lies. I mean, Fox News ended up on the hook for hundreds of millions of dollars
1:01
for repeating some of the lies with regards to voting machines. It's extraordinary how the world turns
1:08
But by sheer sort of force of depravity, Donald Trump can rewrite history in his own head
1:15
And what you heard in that clip was an example of what happens when reality manages to break through
1:21
And the answer is meltdown, absolute meltdown. I think that's helpful when we turn our attention to the Middle East
1:28
because you cannot leave Donald Trump out of the conversation, obviously but the absence of reference to or recognition of reality
1:39
it's an extraordinary psychological process, isn't it by which you can somehow persuade yourself
1:47
that black is white, that up is down, that north is south
1:52
You can persuade yourself of almost anything, but the persuasion is so fragile
2:00
so fragile that when someone pulls a thread calmly and politely, as that NBC journalist just did
2:08
the whole thing comes down in an avalanche of fury and retribution and shame
2:16
So that was the act of a man feeling shame briefly and blaming everybody around him for the shame
2:23
So I'm fascinated by the confection of it all, by the assembly, the construction, the erection
2:30
of absolute nonsense, absolute lies. But his own relationship with his own lies
2:39
is what came to light in that clip. And the fact that it is so fragile
2:45
his grasp upon the lies, his dedication, his necessity, his need for the lies is so complete but his
2:54
his grasp upon them is so fragile he knows that the most cursory scrutiny can make the whole thing
3:03
come tumbling down and you saw it come tumbling down so now he turns his attention this morning
3:09
to the ceasefire what day is it keith monday so monday well i used to joke about a month ago i
3:17
started joking that it's monday so it's a ceasefire it's tuesday so it's a threat of what's going to
3:22
happen if there isn't a ceasefire it's wednesday so it's a declaration of glorious victory and the
3:26
complete obliteration of iran's military capabilities it's friday so i missed out thursday
3:32
it's thursday and iran has done something which has prompted donald trump to threaten
3:36
the things that he's already obliterated with imminent obliteration it's friday we're back to
3:41
the ceasefire again it's saturday they're firing at each other um well it's monday and they're
3:46
firing at each other. And this is what the President of the United States of America has reduced to writing this morning
3:51
Both sides, Israel and Iran, are looking to do an immediate ceasefire
3:57
capital letters, exclamation mark. Final negotiations on, quote marks, peace, end quotes
4:02
are proceeding, subject to ignorance or stupidity getting in its way. I don't know if those are his new nicknames
4:10
for J.D. Vance and Pete Hegseth, but if they are they work for me subject to ignorance or stupidity getting in its way The blockade with an utterly pointless capital B will remain in place That his blockade not Iran blockade because Iran blockaded the Strait of Hormuz
4:26
and he responded by blockading the Strait of Hormuz. And in full force and effect until a, quote, final deal, end quotes
4:32
also in, well, caps for the F and the D, is reached. Things should move quickly. Thank you for your attention to this matter
4:40
i mean you can't stop reporting it but it's increasingly difficult to yze it and and
4:48
then you come to recent events benjamin netanyahu bombed beirut israel launched strikes in the
4:54
beirut area for the first time since the truce was announced for lebanon last week so you can
5:00
count how long that lasted in in hours in retaliation iran launches a salvo of missiles
5:05
of missiles at Israeli targets, which puts the peace talks that are currently ongoing
5:10
between the US and Iran at risk. And, of course, any solution to this, any resolution to this
5:17
ends up being a watered-down, less satisfactory, less effective version of what Barack Obama's administration
5:24
negotiated 10 or so, more than 10 years ago, and which Donald Trump set fire to
5:29
on pretty much his first day in the White House. Here is the latest contribution to US-Israeli relations
5:35
under Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu. It's not going to have any impact on the deal
5:40
I call the shots. I call all the shots. He doesn't call the shots. He's also been reported recently
5:50
to have described Netanyahu, or a conversation between the two of them
5:54
describing him as shouting. Shouting at Benjamin Netanyahu and telling him that everyone hates Israel
6:01
as a consequence of what he's been doing and what the hell are you doing and using bad language
6:05
I'll refresh your memory as to exactly what words were reportedly used in that conversation shortly
6:12
But every single time we return our attention to this, when does the World Cup start
6:19
Is it on Thursday? It's imminent, isn't it? So he's probably going to want something to announce in time for the World Cup to start
6:24
Otherwise, he might have to give back his FIFA Peace Prize. Every time we turn our attention to this, I don't know what happens to your minds or your conscience
6:33
is it your heart or your head but it's so torn I really like talking about important things
6:42
it's why I do what I do for a living I even like talking about important things when the important
6:47
things are terrible I enjoy the intellectual process of our exchanges every day even when
6:54
the subject matter is unbearable enjoy seems like the wrong word perhaps value would be a better
6:59
word. Last week was tough. Last week was really tough. But I still valued our conversations
7:06
your contributions to our conversation when we were talking about the attempts to turn
7:12
Henry Novak, well, the decision by various people to completely ignore the wishes of
7:16
Henry Novak's family, the judge, the prosecution lawyer and the pathologist, and to pretend
7:21
instead that that hideous crime was evidence of some sort of anti-white bias, or a consequence
7:26
of immigration, a point taken up by J.D. Vance this weekend in a characteristically hideous
7:33
intervention. So that was tough, but I still valued it. It still was worthwhile. And yet
7:40
when it is as awful as this, when you're looking at the absolute destruction of diplomacy in the
7:49
Middle East, and I don't even know what we're looking at now. You're looking at the death of
7:54
anything that is ysable. You know how it ends. It ends with a settlement that's worse than what
8:01
was there before. That's how it ends. That is the only case scenario. Either it goes on forever
8:08
or it ends with a settlement that is worse than the one that Barack Obama put there. That's it
8:15
I don't think anybody really disputes that. You can't even anymore subscribe to the idea that it's
8:20
very important that they remove is iran's nuclear capability because they've told us several times
8:25
that they have and then they've said that they haven't and then they've said that they're about
8:29
to and then they've said that they have and then they've said that they will and then they've said that they haven but they will and they won and they will but they do thank you for your attention to this matter president donald j trump it insane It objectively insane But he the President of the United States of America so we have to all behave as if it isn
8:46
Because what other choice is there? Just sit here every day for three hours going bonkers, bonkers, bonkers, bonkers, bonkers, bonkers, bonkers
8:52
And of course he's in charge. He is in charge. He, according to himself, calls all the shots. Netanyahu doesn't call any shots
9:00
So he tells Netanyahu not to retaliate, and Netanyahu retaliates. So, the interesting thing, if you enjoy talking about interesting things, is the schism that has now grown up between Benjamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump, between whom I would say little love is lost now, which is a remarkable turnaround from that ludicrous visit to Israel that Donald Trump undertook when he was greeted almost as the second coming in the Knesset
9:32
a hideous spectacle, which was a sort of glorious thank you for either endorsing or looking the other way
9:39
while Israel embarked upon its hideous campaigns in Gaza. That road appears to have expired
9:46
Of course, when you're talking about Trump, the biggest problem is that what's true today will not be true tomorrow
9:51
because he neither believes in nor subscribes to anything except self-advancement, self-enrichment and self-aggrandisement
9:57
So it may well be that today he holds Benjamin Netanyahu, in the very lowest regard
10:03
But Benjamin Netanyahu will give him, I don't know, a blankety-blank checkbook and pen
10:08
and suddenly he'll like him again. I'm not exaggerating. Well, obviously it wouldn't be a blankety-blank checkbook and pen
10:13
but it would be similarly pointless, like a FIFA peace prize. And his ego is such that it will be preened and stroked
10:19
and pricked to such a degree that he will change his opinion again
10:23
And he doesn't care how many Iranians die, he doesn't care how many Israelis die
10:27
as long as he feels good briefly, and nobody dares ask him for evidence of all the things that he's claiming
10:33
Knitting together all of the elements of Donald Trump's regime that we've discussed so far this morning
10:39
But what if Trump... Well, it's been clear for a while, hasn't it
10:46
that Netanyahu is going to do what's best for Netanyahu. And he reckons that a form of perpetual war is best for Netanyahu
10:55
Attacks upon Beirut. I wish you'd look at pictures of Beirut. I mean, there's no point looking at pictures of Gaza
11:02
You might as well look at some sort of Star Wars landscape of a completely obliterated habitations
11:08
But Beirut is a sophisticated, civilised city, and Netanyahu has started bombing it, started attacking it
11:15
And I don't think Trump wanted him to. I don't think that's controversial
11:19
I don't even think that's questionable. So Netanyahu is going to do whatever he wants to do in this space
11:26
I don't know I don't know what Trump can do to stop Netanyahu
11:34
if he actually wanted to how can he announce a lasting peace
11:40
so I think and listen this is just me and you are 100% welcome to challenge the very parameters
11:47
of the question that I'm about to ask you but where I think we are now
11:51
is that Benjamin Netanyahu has since not long after the terror attack that Hamas visited upon Israel on October the 7th
12:02
Since not long after that, because for a while at least, it felt to almost everybody that the response would be both justified and proportionate
12:13
But it didn't take long for anybody honest and unbiased to realise
12:18
that the response was both entirely disproportionate and wholly unjustified. ever since that moment benjamin netanyahu has been doing whatever he wanted and attacking
12:30
whoever he wanted and paying barely even lip service to peace agreements or ceasefires whether
12:37
they've been announced by donald trump or otherwise he's been doing whatever he wanted
12:40
and he's been doing whatever he thinks is best for his own political ambitions including turning
12:46
the attack onto lebanon going into lebanon attacking lebanon pushing back the boundaries
12:50
into Lebanon. Even as Donald Trump was announcing that they weren going to go into Lebanon he was going into Lebanon And I think we reached a point now where you have two possibly psychopathic egos
13:05
that have been in lockstep with each other since October 7, that are now pulling in completely different directions
13:16
Trump wants a ceasefire. He wants peace. He probably regrets getting involved in this in the first place
13:22
We can rely upon Marco Rubio's testimony that he only did so because Benjamin Netanyahu told him it would be easy and he'd be able to spend the rest of the year doing laps of honour, claiming that he'd brought peace to the Middle East where all previous presidents had failed
13:34
Except, of course, they hadn't because the deal that was in place with Iran when Trump became president was imperfect but working
13:41
The only people who didn't like it were Benjamin Netanyahu and his closest allies
13:46
because they kind of need some form of perpetual war in order to keep the population compliant, I suppose
13:53
or supportive, or whatever word you prefer. So you've got two possible psychopaths, certainly two narcissists
14:01
dedicated solely to self-protection, self-aggrandizement, self-enrichment, because, of course, Netanyahu still hasn't faced his corruption trial
14:10
self, dedicated to self that's why I use the word narcissist I don't have the diagnostic qualifications
14:16
but I think we can use that word fairly confidently you've got two narcissists
14:22
that have been in cahoots until this point what happens when they want different things
14:33
0345 6060 973 I genuinely have no clue what happens now. Can, for example, Netanyahu carry on attack
14:43
Does Trump just bottle it and claim that this is what he wanted all along
14:49
Your answers aren't going to be provable. So we'll take theories and ideas and thoughtfulness on this question
14:55
It seems to me that the rift between Netanyahu and Trump is now both significant and serious
15:03
And I don't know what that means. Netanyahu starts attacking Beirut Trump tells him not to, he ignores Trump
15:09
Trump finds him up, calls him names shouts at him, claims that everybody hates
15:13
Israel as a consequence, anybody else said that, they'd be called anti-Semitic by tea time
15:17
wouldn't they? Anybody else said that what Benjamin Netanyahu is doing is making everybody hate Israel
15:23
you'd hear the conflation accusation, you'd hear the anti-Semitism accusation, for some reason Trump gets a free pass
15:29
on that, why? Because usually the people who use anti-Semitism dishonestly to describe critics of Israel
15:36
are quite comfortable with anything Donald Trump says as long as he keeps endorsing the attacks upon Gaza
15:43
and latterly Lebanon. So what happens? What happens when Netanyahu no longer has Trump's support
15:53
Answers on a postcard, please. Well, ideally, answers on the phone. 0345 6060 973
16:00
In a way, I'm asking what happens next. But I think, unless you're following it differently
16:06
or you're reading it differently from me, Trump and Netanyahu are now pulling in different directions
16:13
Trump's dreams of a ceasefire or a peace, even though we know he's going to pretend
16:17
that it is something better than what Obama delivered, even though it will be measurably and objectively worse
16:23
he can tell those lies, but he can't tell those lies if Netanyahu is still bombing Beirut
16:28
So what happens when Trump and Netanyahu are no longer on the same side
16:33
I haven't got a Scooby-Doo. Have you? 0345 6060 973. And I wonder whether Netanyahu is sitting
16:43
there laughing at Trump. He puts the phone down having been called all the names under the sun
16:47
and just goes, I've played you, pal. You're in it up to your ears. You can't back out of this now
16:53
You joined us in Iran. You were too busy talking about Iran that you didn't really pay enough
16:58
attention to when we started attacking Lebanon. We started occupying even more territories
17:02
I've played you like an old mandolin, Mr. Trump. So I don't know
17:06
I want to know what you think about this. But what happens when Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu
17:12
are no longer on the same side or on the same team
#news