The Director of the National Economic Council, Kevin Hassett, pushed back on claims that Iran could use the Strait of Hormuz to significantly damage the U.S. economy after Tehran suggested other countries could negotiate safe passage through the waterway.
During an interview, CBS News’ Margaret Brennan asked whether the proposal, floated by Iran’s foreign minister, was an attempt to sideline the United States from economic and oil arrangements in the Middle East, and whether such a strategy could ultimately harm the U.S. in a broader economic sense.
Kevin Hassett LAUGHS in Margaret Brennan’s face after she repeats Iranian regime claims about harming the U.S. economy from oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz.
— Johnny Midnight ⚡️ (@its_The_Dr) March 16, 2026
“There couldn’t be anything that was a stupider thing to say.”
BRENNAN: “You just heard Iran’s foreign minister… pic.twitter.com/CRnTgXTlOa
"You just heard Iran's foreign minister saying Tehran has been approached by other countries about negotiating their way through the strait," Brennan said. "If that kind of negotiation happens, are Americans just going to get cut out here?"
"Well, first of all, you have to understand that America is not going to have its economy harmed by what the Iranians are doing," Hassett said. "The bottom line is that in the 70's, we didn't produce much oil, but now we do. And so America's in a very strong position. They think that they're going to harm the U.S. economy and get President Trump to back down. There couldn't be anything that was a stupider thing to say, because the bottom line is that our economy has got all this momentum in the world, and we've got lots and lots of oil."
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Hassett went on to argue that America’s allies are far more vulnerable to pressure from Tehran, noting that many European countries rely heavily on oil from Iran, Russia, and other foreign adversaries. As a result, he said the situation could pose a problem for U.S. allies, but not nearly to the same extent for the United States. Still, Hassett added that the administration is working to address the issue.
"We have lots of trading partners that are more on the hook from imported oil from these guys. And as we can see, it's completely unacceptable that a government that would murder 40,000 of their people just a few months ago would be blackmailing countries to let stuff through."
"President Trump thinks that is unacceptable, and for the global economy, we need to fix it, and we're going to fix it fast," he added.
Editor's Note: For decades, former presidents have been all talk and no action. Now, Donald Trump is eliminating the threat from Iran once and for all.
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