S9 Ep55: Espresso Martini | Operation Midnight Hammer, Trump’s Claims, and What Comes Next

This week, Chris and Matt return for an emergency deep dive on
Operation Midnight Hammer, the largest US strike on Iran since
1979. They break down what the bombing raid and actually
achieved, why initial White House claims of “obliterating” Iran’s
nuclear program don’t hold up to scrutiny, and what the
intelligence community’s more cautious battle damage assessments
reveal. They also unpack the legal debate around preemptive
strikes, Israel’s unfinished campaign against Iran, and the risk
of a new status quo in which these strikes become routine. Plus,
Denis Villeneuve takes on Bond, and Chris dares to revisit the
great “blonde Bond” panic of 2005.

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Audio: https://pod.fo/e/2f0e51
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Articles discussed in today’s episode

"Shifting Views and Misdirection: How Trump Decided to Strike
Iran" by Mark Mazzetti, Jonathan Swan, Maggie Haberman, Eric
Schmitt & Helene Cooper | The New York Times:
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/22/us/politics/trump-iran-decision-strikes.html


"Early US intel assessment suggests strikes on Iran did not
destroy nuclear sites, sources say" by Natasha Bertrand, Katie Bo
Lillis & Zachary Cohen | CNN:
https://www.cnn.com/2025/06/24/politics/intel-assessment-us-strikes-iran-nuclear-sites


"Strike Set Back Iran’s Nuclear Program by Only a Few Months,
U.S. Report Says" by Julian E. Barnes, Helene Cooper, Eric
Schmitt, Ronen Bergman, Maggie Haberman & Jonathan Swan | The
New York Times:
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/24/us/politics/iran-nuclear-sites.html


"Israeli officials see 'significant' damage to Iran's nuclear
facilities" by Barak Ravid & Zachary Basu | Axios:
https://www.axios.com/2025/06/25/iran-nuclear-program-israel-damage-intelligence


"In New Assessment, C.I.A. Chief Says U.S. Strikes ‘Severely
Damaged’ Iranian Program" by Julian E. Barnes, Mark Mazzetti
& Maggie Haberman | The New York Times:
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/25/us/politics/trump-iran-nuclear.html


"Centrifuges at Fordo ‘No Longer Operational,’ U.N. Nuclear
Watchdog Head Says" by Aurelien Breeden | The New York Times:
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/26/world/middleeast/centrifuges-fordo-damage-iran.html


“Post-Attack Assessment of the First 12 Days of Israeli and U.S.
Strikes on Iranian Nuclear Facilities” by David Albright &
Spencer Faragasso | Institute for Science & International
Security:
https://isis-online.org/isis-reports/post-attack-assessment-of-the-first-12-days-of-israeli-strikes-on-iranian-nuclear-facilities


"Questions on the Fordo Strike (Wonky)" by Cheryl Rofer |
Lawyers, Guns, Money:
https://www.lawyersgunsmoneyblog.com/2025/06/questions-on-the-fordo-strike-wonky


"Everything We Just Learned About The GBU-57 Massive Ordnance
Penetrator Strikes On Iran" by Joseph Trevithick | The War Zone:
https://www.twz.com/air/gbu-57-massive-ordnance-penetrator-strikes-on-iran-everything-we-just-learned


"Largest Patriot Missile Salvo In U.S. Military History Launched
Defending Al Udeid Air Base Against Iranian Attack" by Howard
Altman | The War Zone:
https://www.twz.com/land/largest-patriot-salvo-in-u-s-military-history-launched-defending-al-udeid-air-base-against-iranian-missiles


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Secrets and Spies sits at the intersection of intelligence,
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