Trump Pulls Back on Iran, Bloodshed at Home and Abroad, and FIFA's Reckoning

MayaMorning, morning. Welcome back to the Morning Rundown.

DavidGood to be here. Coffee's hot and news is heavy today.

MayaYeah, we're starting overseas. Trump just paused news strikes on Iran.

DavidRight. The FT's reporting Gulf allies asked Washington to hold off first.

MayaAnd the Gaza ceasefire is still shaky underneath all that.

DavidWe'll look at what's actually driving that pressure play.

MayaThen there's a rough stretch of stories. A shooting at an In-N-Out in Idaho, a bombing in Moscow.

DavidPlus an avalanche in Pakistan that took climber Nims Purja.

MayaQuite a morning! But we'll close things out lighter.

DavidThe FIFA chief, as Infantino, just got hit with a no-confidence vote from UEFA.

MayaAnd Kevin Durant's got thoughts on LeBron joining the Sixers.

DavidPlus a goodbye to Sopranos actor Vincent Pastore.

MayaLots on deck. So, David, where do we even start with Iran?

DavidWith why Washington blinked. The thing is.

MayaTrump just called off new strikes on Iran this morning.

DavidCalled off or paused?

MayaAccording to the Financial Times, he's saying the perimeters of a deal are already agreed.

DavidPerimeters. That word's doing a lot of work.

MayaBBC's James Chater has it the same way. Trump says the cancellation is subject to the deal getting done, quote, rapidly.

DavidSo the clock's still running.

MayaBasically yeah,

DavidBut why now? Al Jazeera says Iran and other Middle Eastern countries actually asked Washington to hold off.

Mayathat's the part I keep circling back to meaning

DavidIf Iran is the one asking for the pause, that tells you who felt the pressure.

MayaIran wanted this more than they're letting on

DavidOr wanted the bombs to not land more than they're letting on. Follow the money, or in this case follow the fear.

MayaFair enough.

DavidThe threat's still sitting right there on the table; he just hasn't pulled the trigger.

MayaWhich reads a lot different than backing down.

DavidRight, Iran stalls, the threat stays live; Iran signs, it disappears. That's what happens next.

MayaThe same standoff shows up in Gaza, just further down the road.

DavidWashington Post's framing on that is exact: Hamas is supposed to disarm, Israel supposed to withdraw-and neither one wants to. One wants to go first.

MayaTrump's calling it a historic agreement. The Post says the obstacles are still real.

DavidThis week proved it. Al Jazeera's Heba Habib reported eight people killed in Gaza, with strikes hitting infrastructure and residential buildings.

MayaEight people under a ceasefire that's supposed to be holding.

DavidYeah.

MayaSo if Hamas won't disarm first and Israel won't withdraw first, what actually breaks that freeze?

DavidSomebody blinks or somebody outside makes them. Right now, neither's happening.

MayaWhich probably is why the State Department move this week reads heavier than it looks on paper.

DavidBBC's Jaroslav Lukiv reported the U.S. is telling Americans in the Middle East to be ready to leave.

MayaReady to leave. Not evacuate. Just be ready.

DavidBecause U.S. media are reporting America and Israel are planning another intense round of strikes on Iran if this doesn't hold.

MayaSo nobody in Washington actually thinks this is settled?

DavidNo; it's a pause with a deadline nobody's saying out loud.

MayaAnd if a government is telling its own people to pack a bag, where does the danger actually show up first? With that warning still hanging in the air, the danger landed somewhere nobody expected this week, Twin Falls, Idaho.

DavidAnd In-N-Out Saturday afternoon.

MayaThe AP is reporting three dead, seven injured, some critically. A city spokesman named Josh Palmer confirmed the count.

DavidAnd they found a body near the restaurant they believe is the shooter. CBS News had the first word out Saturday before the fuller picture came in.

MayaTwin Falls isn't a big city, David. This is the kind of- The kind of town where a new burger joint opening is the biggest local news of the year.

DavidNow it's this instead.

MayaFamilies are still waiting on notifications. That's where it stands right now.

DavidMoscow had its own nightmare Saturday night.

MayaA bombing near an Italian restaurant. The Guardian says three dead, more than twenty injured.

DavidAnd Politico's reporting the device was carried in by a woman. She's among the dead.

MayaWait, she was carrying it in herself?

DavidThat's what Russian officials are saying. What they're not saying yet is who she was working for or why that restaurant.

MayaNo claim of responsibility so far.

DavidNot one that's public, no.

MayaAnd then there's Pakistan. Al Jazeera is reporting an avalanche on the world's 12th highest peak killed 10 climbers. Nims Purja was one of them.

DavidIf that name doesn't land, he's the guy who climbed all 14 of the world's 8,000-meter peaks in under seven months. People said that record wasn't possible.

MayaWow. I'll just- Al Jazeera says rescuers have only recovered three bodies so far.

DavidHe built a career going places most of us would never survive.

MayaHe didn't even do it for the record, really-he said he wanted to show people what was possible.

DavidGuess this week is the reminder that possible and safe were never the same word.

MayaAnd the mountain won this time.

DavidYeah.

MayaHard note to sit on, but it feels right-a life spent chasing something bigger than himself.

DavidWhich is funny, because that's the opposite of where we're headed next.

MayaOh?

David"FIFA," where the people running the biggest game on earth just got caught chasing something a lot smaller.

MayaOh, I like that. Let's go there. From mountains to boardrooms, real quick, FIFA's having a rough week too.

DavidA rough week is generous. UEFA just said on the record they have no confidence in Gianni Infantino.

MayaWait, UEFA said that? Out loud?

DavidYeah, AP reported it Saturday. The World Cup equity plan, the one to sell stakes in a $20 billion company, is dead.

MayaRemind me what that plan even was.

Speaker 3Private equity buys into World Cup revenue, FIFA gets cash up front. Follow the money, the money was supposed to flow to federations that stayed loyal to Infantino.

MayaAh, so it's a carrot for allies.

Speaker 3Exactly the shape of it; and his own advisor sat on a White House panel and resigned this weekend, according to AP That's what broke it.

MayaOne resignation and the whole thing folds?

Speaker 3When Asia's Federation joined Europe and North America again Against it? Yeah, that's not a coalition. That's everybody.

MayaSo what does accountability even look like for FIFA? It's not like there's a board that fires him.

Speaker 3There isn't really. UEFA is calling for a full review and saying nothing's off the table. Whether that means anything in six months, I'd watch it.

MayaAll right, quick turn. Sad one. Vincent Pastore died. He was 80.

Speaker 3Big Pussy.

MayaYeah, AP says his manager found him Saturday. I hadn't heard from him for a few days at his home on City Island.

Speaker 3Man, The Sopranos cast keeps losing people.

MayaHe was one of those faces you just knew, you know? Rest easy, Vincent.

Speaker 3Okay, one more before we go. Kevin Durant had thoughts on LeBron joining the Sixers.

MayaOh, I saw this! Bleacher Report had him comparing it to the Warriors dynasty.

Speaker 3The actual dynasty he played on. That's a strong comparison from a guy who'd know.

MayaHim saying it lands different than some random analyst saying it.

Speaker 3Right. Credibility matters. We'll see if Philly lives up to it.

MayaThat's the rundown. Heavy start, weird finish, very on brand for a Monday. Catch you tomorrow. All right, that's the rundown for today.

Speaker 3Heavy one, honestly, from Iran Pauses to that avalanche taking Nims Purja.

MayaYeah, makes you realize how fast things swing from diplomacy to nature just doing whatever it wants.

Speaker 3And Washington's still playing for time on Iran, not backing off.

MayaRight. So if you're catching up on your drive-in, that's basically the whole Morning covered.

Speaker 3Subscribe if you haven't and leave us a review. It actually helps people find the show.

MayaIt really does. Thanks for spending part of your Morning with us.

Speaker 3We'll see you tomorrow.

MayaTake care, everybody.