The New Yorker contributor Ruth Marcus joined Friday’s edition of PBS News Hour to recap the week’s news that focused heavily on the Middle East. During a discussion about a potential nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia, Marcus rewound roughly 50 years to the 1970s and claimed that the reason why the U.S. finds itself in a difficult situation with Iran today is because it made a similar deal with the shah.
Co-panelist and The Atlantic staff writer David Brooks was supposed to be talking about the Saudi deal, which may now be in jeopardy because Trump has since said it is contingent on Saudi Arabia joining the Abraham Accords.
During a discussion on Trump's nuclear deal with the Saudis, New Yorker contributor Ruth Marcus tries to analogize the situation to Iran, "We are mired in this situation with Iran because we helped them get nuclear technology when the shah was in power. How did that work out for… pic.twitter.com/2l9rU12Aoa
— Alex Christy (@alexchristy17) July 25, 2026
However, he launched into an unrelated argument about the U.S. nuclear umbrella providing global security and what happens when that is taken away, “So you have—you could see a dozen, 15 countries not getting nuclear weapons, but considering it, because the U.S. umbrella is no longer there. So if you wonder what the effect of U.S. power is, whether it's a force of stability or not, here's your sign. It is a force of stability, and when you withdraw that force, the world gets a lot more dangerous right quick.”
That led moderator Amna Nawaz to turn to Marcus and exclaim, “I mean, that's a major reworking of the global security landscape, Ruth.”
Marcus agreed, “And that's precisely why this is a bad idea, this nuclear deal is a bad idea, because more proliferation is—and the risk of proliferation is worse than nonproliferation.”
She then blamed the U.S. using similar logic 50ish years ago for the current problems with Iran, “And we are mired in this situation with Iran because we helped them get nuclear technology when the shah was in power. How did that work out for us? So, Trump—and it was a bad idea, by the way, when the Biden administration was talking about doing this, though it at least had the prospect of getting the benefit of Israeli recognition.”
Marcus concluded by claiming Trump’s “erratic” behavior might end up saving him from himself, “Here, Trump, he's so erratic. He knows that Saudi Arabia can't at the last minute agree to the Israel recognition, and he throws it in anyway, like he's still negotiating leasing the top two floors of Trump Tower or something, and thinks he can wring something else out of people at the last minute. It's not going to work, and I think we should probably be semi-thankful for that.”
While Marcus’s idea may seem to have the benefit of long-term thinking and imagination, the problem with her diagnosis is that history did not end when the shah fell. American adversaries, such as Russia and China, have been helping Iran with its nuclear program, and there’s no reason to believe Saudi Arabia couldn’t also enlist their help.
Whatever one thinks of the pros and cons of a nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia, the reason why the U.S. is in “this situation with Iran” is because of the regime’s anti-American, clerical ideology and its unwillingness to let its neighbors live in peace.
Here is a transcript for the July 24 show:
PBS News Hour
7/24/2026
7:37 PM ET
DAVID BROOKS: So you have—you could see a dozen, 15 countries not getting nuclear weapons, but considering it, because the U.S. umbrella is no longer there.So if you wonder what the effect of U.S. power is, whether it's a force of stability or not, here's your sign. It is a force of stability, and when you withdraw that force, the world gets a lot more dangerous right quick.
AMNA NAWAZ: I mean, that's a major reworking of the global security landscape, Ruth.
RUTH MARCUS: And that's precisely why this is a bad idea, this nuclear deal is a bad idea, because more proliferation is—and the risk of proliferation is worse than nonproliferation.
And we are mired in this situation with Iran because we helped them get nuclear technology when the shah was in power. How did that work out for us? So, Trump—and it was a bad idea, by the way, when the Biden administration was talking about doing this, though it at least had the prospect of getting the benefit of Israeli recognition.
Here, Trump, he's so erratic. He knows that Saudi Arabia can't at the last minute agree to the Israel recognition, and he throws it in anyway, like he's still negotiating leasing the top two floors of Trump Tower or something, and thinks he can wring something else out of people at the last minute. It's not going to work, and I think we should probably be semi-thankful for that.
