Trump Warns Economic Warfare For Aiding Iran, Federal Debt Grows, Venezuela Oil Deals

President Trump is warning of economic consequences for any country that supports Iran as he tries to wind down the war, leaving Gulf allies worried about their future with their powerful neighbor. The U.S. national debt has topped 40 trillion dollars, with the government now spending more on interest than on defense and driving up the cost of everything from mortgages to small business loans. U.S. oil companies are signing deals in Venezuela for the first time in nearly two decades, eight months after American forces captured Nicolás Maduro, even as the country’s politics remain unsettled. Want more analysis of the most important news of the day, plus a little fun? Subscribe to the Up First newsletter. Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org. Today’s episode of Up First was edited by Tina Kraja, Rafael Nam, Alfredo Carbajal, Mohamad ElBardicy and Taylor Haney. It was produced by Ziad Buchh and Nia Dumas. Our director is Kaity Kline. We get engineering support from Carleigh Strange and our technical director is Eowyn Fain. And our deputy Executive Producer is Kelley Dickens. (0:00) Introduction (01:55) Trump Warns Economic Warfare For Aiding Iran (06:13) Federal Debt Grows (10:06) Venezuela Oil Deals See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy 🔗 ADDITIONAL RESOURCES: 📩 Get the full transcript and daily news alerts: 👉 https://goo.su/rXoU5U8 👈 📌 Support the show by visiting our sponsors and partners. 🎧 New episodes every morning at 6 AM ET.