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Home » Max Blumenthal: Netanyahu Tries to Ambush Tucker Carlson (Transcript)

Max Blumenthal: Netanyahu Tries to Ambush Tucker Carlson (Transcript)

Editor’s Notes: In this episode of Judging Freedom, Judge Andrew Napolitano sits down with journalist Max Blumenthal to examine the “Epstein class’s” influence on current U.S. foreign policy and the persistent drive for regional domination. The discussion highlights Benjamin Netanyahu’s reported attempts to sabotage potential negotiations with Iran and provides a detailed account of Tucker Carlson’s recent detention at the Tel Aviv airport. Blumenthal also offers a scathing critique of the “Board of Peace” meetings, where figures like Jared Kushner and Tony Blair discussed plans for the financialization and biometric occupation of Gaza. This analysis provides a sobering look at the renewed push for regime change in nations like Cuba and Venezuela and the potential for further global escalation. (Feb 19, 2026)

TRANSCRIPT:

“Undeclared wars are commonplace. Tragically, our government engages in preemptive war, otherwise known as aggression, with no complaints from the American people. Sadly, we have become accustomed to living with the illegitimate use of force by government. To develop a truly free society, the issue of initiating force must be understood and rejected.”

JUDGE ANDREW NAPOLITANO: “What if sometimes to love your country, you had to alter or abolish the government? What if Jefferson was right? What if that government is best which governs least? What if it is dangerous to be right when the government is wrong? What if it is better to perish fighting for freedom than to live as a slave? What if freedom’s greatest hour of danger is now?”

Introduction

JUDGE ANDREW NAPOLITANO: Hi everyone. Judge Andrew Napolitano here for Judging Freedom. Today is Thursday, February 19, 2026. Max Blumenthal joins us now. Max, thank you very much.

Before we get to what happened to Tucker Carlson at the Tel Aviv airport yesterday, a couple of other questions on relevant events. Will Netanyahu and the donor class in America allow Trump a peaceful off ramp from the mess that he’s created by amassing all the military gear outside of Iran?

The American Petroleum Institute and Regime Change in Iran

MAX BLUMENTHAL: Great question. And it appears that they’re on board with it. I reported last week on a major event in Washington, D.C. that received very little coverage in any media, partly because I did have a source inside the event who was backstage with some of the bigwigs who were on hand for the American Petroleum Institute’s State of American Energy gathering this January in Washington — right after Trump’s kidnapping of Nicolas Maduro, about two weeks after Maduro’s kidnapping.

JUDGE ANDREW NAPOLITANO: Right.

MAX BLUMENTHAL: And they were not so excited about going back into Venezuela. But one thing they were excited about — and this took place on stage with a figure named Bob McNally, who’s an oil industry analyst for something called the Rapidon Energy Group — is the possibility of regime change war in Iran. McNally said, “We can take that oil immediately and it will be a win for our industry,” openly declaring that these industry elements seek regime change war.

Along with the figure who just had a presidential-style visit to Washington — at least presidential-style, with security shutting down highways — Benjamin Netanyahu, who is clearly here to sabotage negotiations between Trump and Iran. Today, at the ironically named Institute of Peace, which has been taken over by Trump’s Board of Peace, Trump said Iran basically had 10 days to make a deal or things would get really bad. And then he started almost erotically describing B2 bombers.

What kind of deal does Trump seek? It appears at this point that the only thing Iran could do to mollify Trump and make a deal sufficient for him and Netanyahu would be for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to join the Board of Peace and basically bow before Trump. And that’s not going to happen.

Iran has red lines — ballistic missiles, its alliances in the region — and Netanyahu is trying to push Trump to violate all of Iran’s red lines. Meanwhile, we’re seeing this unprecedented force posture by the US military. Over one-third of all US naval assets are currently in and around, or moving towards, the region. Along with, as Matthew Ho — a frequent guest on your show — pointed out, aircraft that would not be deployed for just a show of force, that are there to coordinate between fighter bombers, and are clearly being positioned in the region for action.

So I don’t see how Trump finds an off ramp at this point. However, I’m hearing from other analysts that there simply are not enough naval assets for the US and Israel to secure the open passage of freight through the Strait of Hormuz and to neutralize Iran’s deterrent capacity. So Trump is really, I think, in a quandary here.

The Window for War: A Very Short Timeline

JUDGE ANDREW NAPOLITANO: We’re hearing the same thing from Larry Johnson, Scott Ritter, Colonels McGregor and Wilkerson. Suppose Trump shows up at the State of the Union on Tuesday night and waves a piece of paper and says, “This is the president’s signature. We both signed it. No nukes, gone forever.” What would Netanyahu do?

MAX BLUMENTHAL: There is the World Cup coming up in June. It would be disastrous for the US and Israel to be involved in a blood-drenched regional war that they launched for absolutely no reason other than Israel sought this war — in the middle of the World Cup. There are already efforts to push Israel out of FIFA. It should be pushed out of FIFA. They killed dozens and dozens of soccer players in Gaza during the genocide.

Gianni Infantino, who uses FIFA as basically a money dump for international billionaires in the Gulf states, was at the Board of Peace. He clearly wants to be a member of this Trumpian one-world government, but they can’t do this. I don’t see them being able to do this after June.

Then you have congressional midterms coming up, in which Trump’s numbers are below 37% — historically low approval ratings.