‘Pissed’ Trump told Netanyahu that he’s ‘f***ing crazy’: Axios

The big question with Iran is what now and what next?Iranian state media signaling that talks to end the war are now back on track.That's just after reports that Iran had suspended talks with the United States over Israel's offensive in southern Lebanon.And according to Axios, President Trump just yesterday unloaded on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over this.With expletives flying over the phone, Axios reports that Trump demanded that Netanyahu back off his plans to take his attacks and offensive against Hezbollah straight to the center of Beirut.A U .

S.official summarized the call this way to Axios that Trump told Netanyahu, quote, You're effing crazy.You'd be in prison if it weren't for me. I'm saving your ass.Everybody hates you now.Everybody hates Israel because of this.Joining us now is one of the reporters who broke this news, global affairs correspondent for Axios, Barack Ravid.

Quite the read, Barack, of course, and quite the call.I mean, is this how these two leaders speak to each other often?

Well, I don't know if often, but it's not the first difficult and tough call they had.Although a senior U .S.official told me yesterday that it was definitely one of the worst calls they had, and that maybe there was one call over the war in Gaza that was more difficult than the call yesterday.And I think what led to this?is a growing feeling that the president had that Netanyahu is out of control.

I heard it from several of the president's people.And Trump, at the end of the day, wants to end the war with Iran and to de -escalate in the region more broadly.And he felt that what Netanyahu is doingin Lebanon and his plan to escalate the war further by expanding the Israeli ground operation in southern Lebanon and by going on a massive bombing campaign in the center of Beirut, knocking down buildings, that that is disproportionate And that would cause an escalation that would undermine what the president was trying to do with getting a deal with Iran.I think this is how the president went in to this call yesterday with Netanyahu, yesterday around noon.And he told Netanyahu that he needs to stand down and that he needs to understand that this war broadly in the region has to come to an end, and that you cannot just continue it.

And over this call, Trump used the F -word several times, told Netanyahu he's F -ing crazy, mentioned the fact that he helped him.numerous times regarding his pardon request and his corruption trial.And therefore, what I heard from U .S.officials and what I heard and my colleague Mark Caputo worked with me on the story, what we heard is that Trump message to Netanyahu was that by doing what he's doing in Lebanon, he's being ungrateful to all the assistance Trump gave him on the pardon issue.And I think this is also what, you know, what led to the mention of, if not for me, you would have been in prison by now.

That does sound very Trumpesque of saying you have not been grateful or shown you're grateful enough.So then the what now?I mean, is it clear that Israel is going to slow or pull back on operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon because of this?Or just specifically exactly maybe where they're targeting?And isn't there a responsibility?And where's that conversation of Iran to take

Hezbollah its proxy to stop as well?

No, definitely.And I think the Iranians for two or three weeks now told Hezbollah to escalate because they wanted to put pressure on Israel and to also put pressure on Trump.And this is why we saw Hezbollah escalating.On the other hand, once Israel escalated its response, the Iranians came to the U .S.and said, oh, if they're escalating, we're out.

We're not talking to you anymore.I think this was part of this Iranian maneuver to, you know, to try and, because the Iranians, at the end of the day, they want a deal to end the war, and they want it on their terms.And I think they thought that through Lebanon, through putting pressure through Lebanon, they would get better terms or would get Trump closer to where they are.But I think now the question is what happens.So the ceasefire at the moment, we had numerous announcements on the ceasefire.Most of them stayed on paper.

So I think we need to see if this is actually implemented because we're just in the first phase.The first phase is Hezbollah stops shooting rockets at Israeli towns in the northern border, and Israel holds or suspends its plans to attack Beirut.This is a very minimal thing.There's fighting on the ground in southern Lebanon.Israel has ground forces there.They're demolishing buildings in southern Lebanon.

Hezbollah is firing attack drones at Israeli forces in southern Lebanon.So the fighting is still ongoing.And I think that today, actually, I think in 40 minutes at the State Department, Israeli and Lebanese diplomats will meet under U .S.auspices to try and actually consolidate the ceasefire and try to agree what does it actually mean and how.do we actually make it work and not just stay as a true social post.

The group chat is back, but this time we have got Gordon Sondland, the former ambassador to the EU.Thank you so much for being here.Good morning.So what is the relationship between Trump and Netanyahu?I don't want to say that just because people were swearing things are bad, but what do you know about that relationship?

Well, I can tell you they're like brothers from another mother.They talk all the time.Yes, they swear at each other.And the swearing, by the way, goes both directions.They literally are almost like siblings.They think very, very much alike when it comes to U .

S.policy vis -a -vis Israel and vice versa.I don't view this as anything other than business as usual.Netanyahu is in a real box with Hezbollah.because they started with a real ceasefire, and of course, Hezbollah violated it within two minutes.And Netanyahu has no choice, he has to hit back.

And Trump is trying to play three -dimensional chess with Iran.

But he is.Can I ask about that?Because so far on this show, we often talk about Iran and the US.That's the conversation.What is the deal, nuclear?And in the meantime, these bulldozers moving through southern Lebanon says, there's another actor here.

And that issue has not been addressed.And Iran has brought it up.Does it have, is Trump having this conversation with Netanyahu in this way because it's jeopardizing any hopes of the deal, reopening the Strait of Hormuz, all these other issues that are all tied together?

Don't kid yourself.There's not another actor here.Hezbollah is a complete proxy for Iran.Here's where Israel is in the conversation.The news that never really hit page one, that should have been, well it probably hit page one but it disappeared instantly.When Peshkian Resigned the president of Iran resigned that told you everything you need to know about what's going on there Trump is dealing with a five -headed monster He's dealing with multiple factions of the IRGC and they're fighting amongst each other The more moderates and what calling pesky on a moderate is really saying something because he's no moderate but compared to the others He really is when he resigned it tells you that Trump does not have one solid Interlocutor in Iran with whom to negotiate this deal And they're all trying to placate one another.

The IRGC has billions of dollars stashed overseas in Swiss bank accounts and elsewhere.They want to keep their money.They want to keep their power.

But he's negotiating with someone, right?So there is a conversation.

With many.

But here's something Axios was reporting.We mentioned the cursing.Axios went further.They said, summarizing Trump's remarks to Netanyahu, the U .S.official said, so this is coming from our side leaking this, you're effing crazy.

You'd be in prison if it weren't for me. I'm saving your ass.Everybody hates you now.Everybody hates Israel because of this.This is what they're attributing to Trump.And in the meantime, I just want to show for audience Pew Research Center American views of Israel and specifically Netanyahu are upwards of 60 % disapprove.

Which means he's doing a fantastic job.Netanyahu.Netanyahu is doing a fantastic job.

So is Trump responding to the fact that there are large numbers of the U .S.population that don't think he's doing a fantastic job?

Trump is responding to a situation that is momentary.In other words, he's clearly getting somewhere with someone in Iran, and he views Netanyahuat that moment in time, not generally, as effing that up.So he's saying, like you would to a brother, just stop for a minute.Just stop.I'm trying to get this deal over the edge.

I'm going to draw Terry into the conversation, because when I tried to break out the numbers in Pew, Democrats versus Republicans, we saw what we know from the last two years.Democrats, 80%, Democrats within US, view Israel and Netanyahu unfavorably.The number that struck me is Republicans going up to 41%.And it seemed to be in line with the world of what we have been calling marquee podcast land, right?Your Tucker Carlsons and whoever, even the Rogans of the world who are being very, who are expressing their frustration with Netanyahu in Israel to their to their constituencies, to their listeners?

Yeah, well look, this is what happens when you get $5 a gallon for gas.Republicans are very frustrated.We did not vote for this at all.And I think a lot of the discrepancy is coming because Trump's trying to get a peace deal.He's trying to tone this down and get out of this and meanwhile take away Iran's nukes.But Israel doesn't want Iran to exist, right?

That's the reality.And that's why they keep doing these things and screwing up our peace talks.But you're going to see that number continue to tick up the longer this conflict goes on.And that's why it's very important that President Trump gets through the conflict.I don't agree at all.

You're saying Israel does not want Iran to exist?Israel very much wants Iran to exist as a partnership.What they don't want is the clerical regime to exist.There are about 90 million people in Iran, and about 88 million of them would love to be a peaceful partner of Israel.The two million that don't happen to have all the money and the weapons.

Well, I think actions speak louder than words.I'll defer to you.You are the foreign policy expert, but I think that there's a lot of really bad things that we're seeing coming out of this entire conflict, and the quicker we can get out of it, I think the better it is for us.for our country and for the future of America.

Can I let you answer one more thing just because he said screwing up the talks and like that this is I guess kind of the question I was asking.Can you respond to that world of and maybe Republican voter that thinks Israel is, quote unquote, screwing up the talks.

I think, unfortunately, and this sounds sort of unctuous and I don't mean to, but I think the American public is not well educated on what Israel does for and with the United States and why Israel is such a key ally.And it's very popular right now to hate Bibi Netanyahu.But Bibi Netanyahu is fighting for the existence of his country.And when you're fighting for the existence of your country, which could be wiped out just like that, you take a very different position than when you're just fighting for a little more territory or a little of this or a little of that.And that's the difference.This is a very long conversation, which I know we don't have time for, but what Bibi Netanyahu is doing, he will go down 20 or 30 years from now, long after he's gone, as one of the most consequential leaders in the world.