Iran loses BILLIONS as US sanctions STRANGLE regime

♪. >> WELCOME TO A SPECIAL. EDITION OF SATURDAY IN AMERICA. I'M MOLLY LINE. KAYLEIGH MCENANY IS OFF TODAY. WE BEGIN WITH A FOX NEWS ALERT. THE WAR IN IRAN CONTINUES WITH. NO CLEAR END IN SIGHT. VICE-PRESIDENT J.D. VANCE E ON. WHAT COMES NEXT. >> WE'RE NOT GOING TO SET AN. ARTIFICIAL TIMELINE BECAUSE, LET'S JUST SAY HYPOTHETICALLY, LET'S SAY I TOLD YOU THREE. MONTHS, SAY YOU TOLD YOU THREE. DAYS AND THEN THE IRANIANS.

START BLOWING UP OIL AND GAS. SHIPS AND THE UNITED STATES IS. THE ONLY COUNTRY WITH THE. CAPABILITY TO ENSURE THOSE. SHIPS GET TO MARKET. WHAT I WOULD SAY IT WOULD BE. IRRESPONSIBLE FOR US TO RIDE. OUT OUR STRATEGY AND OUR. TIMELINE FOR AN IRANIAN NATION. THAT SIMPLY CANNOT HONOR ITS. COMMITMENTS AND CANNOT STOP. SHOOTING AT COMMERCIAL SHIPS. MOLLY: THIS, AS THE U.S. CONTINUES TO LAUNCH FRESH. ATTACKS ON IRAN. STRIKING THREE OIL TANKERS THIS. MORNING IN RESPONSE TO IRAN.

TARGETING U.S. NAVAL WARSHIPS. WHERE DOES THE CONFLICT GO FROM. HERE? JOINING ME NOW RETIRED AIR. FORCE BRIGADIER GENERAL AND. THANK YOU FOR GIVING US YOUR. THOUGHTS. I WANT TO TALK ABOUT THE. VICE-PRESIDENT SAYING THERE ARE. NO ARTIFICIAL TIMELINES AND. WHERE DOES IT GO FROM HERE? YOUR THOUGHTS. >> MOLLY, IT'S PRETTY CLEAR. THAT PRESIDENT TRUMP HAS. SETTLED INTO THE IDEA THAT THE. STRATEGY OF ECONOMIC.

ASPHYXIATION IS THE RIGHT ONE. TO CAUSE THE REGIME TO EITHER. CAPITULATE OR TO CRUMBLE. BUT THERE'S TWO DOWNSIDES TO. THAT STRATEGY. THE FIRST ONE IS THERE'S NO. EVIDENT WAY WE CAN KNOW THE. TIMELINE TO ACHIEVE OUR. OBJECTIVES, IT COULD BE MONTHS, NOT WEEKS, TO SEE SUCCESS AND. RELATED TO THAT, NUMBER TWO, THERE'S A COST FOR THE U.S. MILITARY BECAUSE DURING THE. EXECUTION OF THE STRATEGY WE. NEED TO MAINTAIN THE 50,000.

BRAVE AMERICANS IN THE AREA OF. RESPONSIBILITY IN ORDER TO. ENFORCE THE BLOCKADE AND ESCORT. FRIENDLY SHIPS FILLED WITH OIL. AND TO MAKE SURE WE'RE DEFENDED. WELL. SO THE ONE DOWN SIDE OF THIS. STRATEGY THAT THE PRESIDENT HAS. SETTLED ON IS RELATED TO THE. TIMELINE THAT NOW IS NEBULOUS. AS THE VICE-PRESIDENT SAID. MOLLY: WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE. TIMELINE, THERE ARE A LOT OF. PEOPLE THAT WOULD LIKE CLARITY. ON THAT, HAVE SOME IDEA. SPECIFICALLY AS TO WHEN THE. SITUATION IN IRAN WRAPS UP. BUT IN REALITY, WE'RE DEALING.

WITH A REGIME THAT HAD BEEN IN. POWER FOR MANY, MANY DECADES. AND WHERE DO THEY GO FROM HERE? THE PRESIDENT HAS NOT QUITE. CRYPTICALLY, BUT CALLED ON THE. IRANIAN PEOPLE, WHERE ARE THEY. TO RAISE UP. THAT WAS NEVER THE GOAL. SPECIFICALLY OF GETTING INTO. IRAN. THAT WAS ABOUT ENSURING THAT. IRAN NEVER HASAS A NUCLEAR DEVIE. THAT CAN THREATEN THE GLOBE, THREATEN ISRAEL, ALL OF OUR. ALLIES AROUND THE REGION, BUT. YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE POLITICAL. POSSIBILITIES THAT MAY ALSO.

EXTEND THE TIMELINE? >> MOLLY, FIRST OF ALL, HUGE. CREDIT TO PRESIDENT TRUMP FOR. 14 MONTHS AGO EXECUTING. ""OPERATION MIDNIGHT HAMMER,". NOW WE'RE INTO ISOLATING IRAN. UNTIL THEY CAPITITULATE OR. THERE'S A MECHANISM FOR SOMEONE. OR SOME ENTITY TO RISE UP TO. OVERTHROW THE REGIME. OTHERWISE, BECAUSE LIKE YOU.

SAID WE'VE SEEN 47 YEARS OF. MALIGN ACTIVITY BY IRAN, UNLESS. THE REGIME IS GONE, WE CAN. NEVER QUITE KNOW THAT OUR. INTERESTS ARE GOING TO BE SAFE. IN THE REGION AND AROUND THE. WORLD AND SO, BY STRANGLING THE. REGIME ECONOMICALLY, WE'RE. HOPING FOR WITHIN OF THOSE. MECHANISMS OF REGIME CHANGE TO. TAKE PLACE WHILE WE ALSO. ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE TOOK CARE. OF THEIR NUCLEAR PROGRAM 14. MONTHS AGO. MOLLY: WE'VE SEEN THEM STRIKING. BACK. THERE WAS A MONTH LONG LULL. BOTH WAYS AND NOW WE'RE SEEING.

AN UPTICK, SO TO SAY. SO IN THE COMING WEEKS, THEY'RE. ALSO GOING ONCE AGAIN AFTER. MANY OF OUR ALLIES IN THE. REGION. JORDAN, KUWAIT TAKING HITS, BUT. THEY DON'T HAVE THE SAME POWERS. THAT THEY DID MONTHS AGO. AND WILL THAT BECOME EVEN MORE. OBVIOUS NOT ONLY TO THE REGIME, BUT ALSO TO THE ALLIES IN THE. REGION IN THESE COMING WEEKS. >> MOLLY, ONE OF THE GREATEST. THINGS THAT WE DID WITH OUR. MILITARY INSTRUMENT OF POWER. DURING THE WEEKS OF COMBAT, NOT.

JUST TO DESTROY IRANIAN'S. MILITARY, BUT THEIR INDUSTRIAL. CAPACITY SO THEY COULDN'T. RESURRECT THEIR MILITARY. CAPABILITY AND WE'RE STARTING. TO SEE, NO DOUBT, THAT IRAN IS. LIMITED IN THEIR ABILITY TO. STRIKE. WE HAVEN'T'T DRIVEN THE THREAT O. ZERO, BUT WE CERTAINLY ARE. SEEING THAT IRAN IS FAR LESS. POTENT IN PROJECTING POWER THAN. THEY WERE SIX MONTHS AGO. MOLLY: AND CIRCLING BACK, YOU. MENTIONED THAT THE ECONOMIC. STRANGULATION OF IRAN'S ECONOMY. AND THE DEVASTATION THERE.

THE EUROPEANS HAVE COME ON. BOARD VERY PUBLICLY, BUT THEY. STILL HAVE THEIR ALLIES AND. COUNTRIES WILLING TO HELP WITH. THEM. HOW DO YOU FINISH THE JOB ON AN. ECONOMIC ASPECT OF WARFARE? >> MOLLY, TWO THINGS, NUMBER. ONE, CONTINUE TO ENFORCE THE. IRAN CLAD BLOCKADE THAT. ELIMINATES 9 BILLION OF INCOME. THAT THE REGIME WOULD OTHERWISE. RECEIVE. NUMBER TWO, I AM EAGER TO HEAR.

WHAT SPECIFICS IN WHAT. SANCTIONS AND SECONDARY. SANCTIONS THEY'RE IMPLEMENTING. SINCE THE TREASURY SECECRETARY'. ANNOUNCEMENT A WEEK AND A HALF. AGO I THINK WE NEED TO MAKE. SURE WE'RE DILIGENT FOLLOWING. THROUGH WITH THE THREAT THAT WE. MADE 10 DAYS OR SO AGO. OTHERWISE WE WON'T BE ABLE TO. STRANGLE THE REGIME AND WON'T. SEE THE QUICKER RESULTS WE WILL. HOPE FOR WITH THEM EITHER. CAPITULATING OR CRUMBLING. BECAUSE OF THE ECONOMIC. PRESSURE. MOLLY: TREASURY SECRETARY. BESSENT SAID WE WILL NOT STOP.

UNTIL ANY REMAINING FINANCIAL. LIFELINE HAS BEE.