Lawler Calls Out MS NOW's Katy Tur for Spewing Dem Iran War Talking Points #Political
During Tuesday’s Katy Tur Reports, the MS NOW host was in a feisty matchup with Republican Representative Mike Lawler of New York about the success of the war in Iran as she constantly jumped in with points against the strategy of the war and President Trump’s actions. Amid interruptions, Lawler continued with his defense of the war as he called out Tur for her repeated use of, as he put it, “talking points for the left” and some seeming Democratic and media support for Iran.
Tur and Lawler were in a long conversation, where at one point Lawler reminded Tur of Obama’s actions in Libya, in which Tur tried to move away from the conversation, as she shut him down and did not want a “10-minute detour for President Obama,” even if the point was about Democrat and media support of that conflict.
After Tur interrupted a long Lawler answer, she started with a strategy question: “This president, it does not appear that he has a strategy for how to ensure there is no nuclear weapon or enriched uranium that would require a regime change.”
Tur continued to say she was not in defense of the regime, and did not “think they’re good, no one does,” and Lawler chimed in: “Frankly, some of my colleagues seem to be defending them, which is really quite jarring.”
After Tur wondered what he would consider a success, Lawler posed a question to her: “Okay, so let's go through it. Number one, would you agree that the elimination of the ayatollah, the clerics, and the leadership of the IRGC was a positive step forward?”
Tur responded, “There’s a new ayatollah who might be much more hardline.” Her response got Lawler to go all in against media talking points of the war, as Tur asked the congressman if he had better reporting than the media does:
Tur tried to inject again, but Lalwer continued his answer, as he listed successes and the need for the president's decision to finally go after Iran and their nuclear capabilities, as he posed more questions to Tur:
After more crosstalk, where Lawler talked about the war lengths, Lawler went into the rooting games where some Democrats and media want U.S. failure:
Tur’s MS NOW show, a supposed daytime news program, had parroted Democrat talking points throughout the Iran war. Tur’s show masquerades as hard news, but it acts similar to an outright opinion show.
The transcript from Katy Tur Reports is below. Click "Expand":
MS NOW’s Katy Tur Reports
April 21, 2026
2:17:27 PM Eastern
KATY TUR: Alright. As promised, joining us, Republican Congressman Mike Lawler of New York. He serves on the Foreign Affairs and Financial Services Committee. Congressman, thank you very much for joining us.
REP. MIKE LAWLER (R-NY): Thanks for having me, Katy.
TUR: First question, do you think the war with Iran is going well?
LAWLER: On the whole, I do. I think the fact is, over these eight weeks, the Iranian regime has taken a lot of incoming. The ayatollah, the clerics, the leadership of the IRGC have been eliminated. Their ballistic missile capabilities have been severely degraded. Their naval fleet nearly obliterated. Obviously, they have very little to lose, and so they are acting out belligerently, as we see with what they did in the Straits of Hormuz. But the president took action to blockade their blockade, and that has forced them to have to reevaluate.
These are extremely complex and serious issues. And the fact is, if it was easy, it would have been dealt with over the past 47 years, and it would have been resolved. But ultimately, the bottom line here is this: Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. As CBS reported over the weekend on 60 Minutes. They have enough enriched uranium to produce nine to 11 nuclear bombs.
And so the president made a difficult but necessary decision to take action. Republicans and Democrats have said for years they can't get a nuclear weapon, that this regime needed to go. But just saying it is far different than actually taking concrete steps to do.
TUR: Do you believe this administration had a real strategy for how to go in there, and how to ensure that there would not be a nuclear bomb? That would require regime change, and instead of regime change, we've gotten a religious regime to a more hard-line military regime that is currently in place.
The discussion I was just having showed that the Iranians are picking the U.S. Negotiators, demanding Vice President Vance. And you may say they're backed into a corner, but that corner includes leverage over the Strait of Hormuz, which fuels the global economy and has put everybody under strain. And they don't seem all that unwilling to use it and to continue to use it for quite some time.
So, they may be backed into a corner, but that corner is well stocked. And it seems - it appears the president is the one who is more desperate in this moment. Do you not agree?
LAWLER: Well, let's look back. Barack Obama engaged in a seven-month conflict in Libya that resulted in a civil -
TUR: We don’t need to go back to Barack Obama -
LAWLER: No, no, no. We do
TUR: No, let’s stick with President Trump.
LAWLER: Excuse me, Katy. Excuse me, Katy. Yes, we do
TUR: I want to live in the moment and don’t want a 10-minute detour for President Obama
LAWLER: Excuse me, Katy. Excuse me, it’s not a detour, its a relevant fact, okay?
We were in a seven-month war in Libya that resulted in a civil war. Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi fully endorsed it, fully embraced it, said everything was great, and the president was well within his authority. If you look at-
TUR: How does that make this war okay or better? We have to justify what happened then in order to ensure now? I’m talking about this president, who promised no foreign wars?
LAWLER: I know you just want to spew out the talking points for the left here. But the fact is this: This was a just war that the president engaged in to stop this regime from possessing a nuclear weapon. And ultimately, okay, you can say that over the past eight weeks, in your opinion, seemingly nothing has been done. But the fact is, their leadership is gone. The ayatollah is dead. The clerics are dead, the leadership of the IRGC is dead. The remnants are what we are dealing with right now.
And yes, if you think they're using the Straits of Hormuz as leverage is a problem, what do you think it would have been if they actually had a nuclear weapon? What do you think they would have done? Using a nuclear weapon to extort the rest of the world? The president made a very difficult decision, but it was a necessary one. And the fact is, yes, things have progressed significantly forward.
For the first time in a very long time, they are actually engaged in real negotiations over their 60% enriched uranium. They are engaged in negotiations over their financing of terrorism. And yes, they are trying to kick and scream along the way. But the fact is, this is a belligerent regime. We all know that. That's why there was a problem. That's why there's been a problem for 47 years.
What is amazing to me is all the people on Capitol Hill who have said this is a problem. All the members of the media who have said this is a problem, but because something was actually done, now say, I can't believe we did something, give me a break. The fact is that they needed to be dealt with, and somebody actually took action to go after a regime that has acted belligerently for 47 years, killing thousands of Americans.
TUR: This president - I'm going to - I'm going to reclaim my time here. This president said that he was not going to get into foreign wars. This president, it does not appear that he has a strategy for how to ensure there is no nuclear weapon or enriched uranium that would require a regime change. There is a new ayatollah. They have made no concessions on that.
I'll ask you this instead - And I'm not defending this regime. I don't think they're good. No one does.
LAWLER: Frankly, some of my colleagues seem to be defending them, which is really quite jarring.
TUR: Hold on, hold on. What is your line for what would how this would be considered a success? What is the president need to get out of this from the Iranians to determine or deem this war a success?
LAWLER: Okay, so let's go through it. Number one, would you agree that the elimination of the ayatollah, the clerics, and the leadership of the IRGC was a positive step forward?
TUR: There’s a new ayatollah who might be much more hard-line.
LAWLER: You say-
TUR: There’s a new ayatollah who might be much more hard-line.
LAWLER: It’s amazing, Katy. Based on what? Based on what? The guy has not even been seen in eight weeks -
TUR: Based on the reporting that we have. The best reporting that we have about him
LAWLER: Yeah, the best reporting -
TUR: Do you have the best reporting? Do you have better intelligence that says this guy is more-
LAWLER: You all repeat the same - you all repeat the same talking point - you all repeat the same talking point. This is the problem.
TUR: Well, I’m sorry. Do you have better intelligence? You're on the foreign affairs committee. Do you have better intelligence that you can relay to us about who this Ayalotahh is? Tell me.
LAWLER: I am on the foreign affairs committee, and I am the chair of the Middle East, and I actually sit down and engage on these issues.
You’re literally repeating the same nonsensical talking point that every member of the media and very far left Democrats does, that this is now a much more hard line Ayatollah. Give me a break. The fact is-
TUR: Tell me about him. If you know about him, tell me about him.
LAWLER: - you have seen the Ayatollah, you have seen the clerics, and you have seen the leadership of the IRGC eliminated. You have seen the ballistic missiles program severely debilitated. You have seen their naval fleet nearly obliterated. Yes, there are still issues to resolve, including the enriched uranium. But as CBS News reported this weekend, they had the capabilities to produce nine to 11 nuclear bombs. Would you have liked to wait until they actually had the nuclear bomb? Would you have liked to wait until they used the nuclear bomb? Would you have liked to wait until they use it in a negotiation? Decisions had to be made, and it was made
TUR: So, Congressman, what is your definition of success? What is your definition of success?
LAWLER: Well, we have already seen over these eight weeks serious progress made in dealing with a regime that has been at war with the United States for 47 years. We have also seen an Iranian regime, the remnants of it, actually start to negotiate on red lines that we have said, including turning over their enriched uranium. Is it going to be resolved in five seconds? No, that is the challenge with war. That is the challenge with complex negotiations involving a terrorist regime -
TUR: The president promised six weeks.
That it would be over and done.
LAWLER: Yes, and if you look at -
TUR: Six weeks.
LAWLER: - And if you look at the military operation itself, okay, we are ending the two-week ceasefire right now. The military operation took about six weeks. What we are dealing with is the remaining issues to negotiate, which is their enriched uranium and their financing of terrorism.
These are things that I would hope every member of the press and every Democrat in elected office would support, ensuring that their enriched uranium is removed from their country and that they stop financing terrorism. When you have people like Chris Murphy, he could say it was sarcastic, but actually saying “amazing” about a false report about 26 Iranian ships getting through a blockade. Didn’t happen, but of course, you have people actively rooting for failure here. That is embarrassing, it is pathetic, and it is something that everybody in Congress would be working against. We want success. Success means getting the enriched uranium out of Iran, that is something you and everyone else -
TUR: Everybody wants success. Everybody wants a new regime -
LAWLER: Well, I would hope - I would hope - that doesn't seem what you all want.
TUR: Everybody wants democracy for Iran, absolutely. Everybody wants to be safer. Everyone is worried it is going to become something much more dangerous.
(...)
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