He’s not the greatest coach of all time, but he’s probably the greatest turnaround expert in American sports history: Bill Parcells rebuilt five NFL franchises — the Giants, Patriots, Jets, Cowboys, and Dolphins — turning losing teams into playoff teams. He’s the only head coach who’s ever led four different teams to the playoffs (and the number grows to five, if you count his office work with the Dolphins).
From 2002 to 2021, his coaching tree reached the Super Bowl 12 times in 20 years (inflated, of course, by protégé Bill Belichick’s visits, but still, it’s a remarkable legacy).
One of Parcells’ most famous quotes: “Don’t tell me about the pain, just show me the baby.”
Meaning, he doesn’t want to hear the gruesome details of the birthing process. Spare him your torrid tales of blood and gore.
Just show him the baby!
It’s also the mindset of most Americans when it comes to politicians and public policy: Good political decisions lead to good political outcomes.
And bad political decisions do the opposite.
I’m a unicorn in conservative media, because I focus on tactics, strategy, and vulnerabilities. (Most writers focus on ideology.) Because, from my perspective, if you care about ideology, then you ought to care about strategy: The former without the latter gets you nowhere.
Everything — especially public policy — needs a delivery system, or it’s just noise.
But most Americans don’t consume political media, nor do they consider tactics. Only 37% even know who the hell their own congressman is. They’re aware that Donald Trump is president, Democrats hate him, and we just had a war with Iran, but they’re not big on details. It’s not that important to them.
They only care about one thing: The actual outcome.
Show them the baby!
If, 50 days from now, Iran is still playing games in the Strait of Hormuz (and hide-and-seek with enriched uranium) and thumbing its nose at Uncle Sam, the American people won’t like it. And they won’t blame the Iranians for acting like Iranians — they’ll blame the Trump administration for getting us into this mess.
Which will spell disaster for the GOP in the 2026 midterms.
On the other hand, if it’s 50 days later and Iran is a neutered nation without a nuclear program, its war cannons are permanently silenced — and U.S. casualties remain historically low — the Trump administration will receive credit. Despite the bluster of the Dems, the American people realize that Muslim extremists shouldn’t have nuclear weapons — and they’ll reward the party that solves the Iranian mess.
Because they know it’s a real, actual mess. It’s not a secret. Iran has been America’s enemy for a very long time.
They’re uninterested in the day-to-day details, but don’t you dare conclude that they’re indifferent to the outcome: One way or another, they want the Iran problem solved, so they no longer have to deal with it.
“Don’t tell me about the pain, just show me the baby.”
If the Trump administration can show the American people a beautiful, healthy baby, then the Iran War will be celebrated as a landmark victory. Donald Trump, Marco Rubio, and Pete Hegseth will all be hailed as visionaries.
(We’ll get to JD Vance is a sec.)
But right now, Iran is still playing games. Donald Trump can’t pull a Lion King and show the American people our beautiful new baby yet. So instead, all the American people are hearing is the hysterical screams of labor.
It’s all pain, no baby.
That’s a loser for the Trump administration. To be a winner, it needs the opposite.
Right now, we’re only about four days into a two-week ceasefire. It would’ve been extraordinarily out of character for the Iranians to have signed a peace deal after the first day of negotiations: A quick, speedy capitulation would’ve signaled weakness to the regime’s (many) enemies — especially domestically.
To look tough, triumphant, and unbowed, Iran won’t sign a peace deal until the very last minute — if at all.
Which means, JD Vance never had a prayer of walking away with a peace deal. (At least, not yet.) It was a mission doomed to fail.
Yet it still failed on his watch. To quote another Parcellsism: “You are what your record says you are.”
But PR-wise, Vance’s perceived isolationism worked against Iran: If, say, Lindsey Graham was our lead negotiator and talks blew up, there’d be rampant suspicion that Graham did it deliberately, because he’s a bloodthirsty warmonger. But this was JD Vance — widely perceived to be the biggest dove/isolationist in the Trump White House!
If Vance can’t make a deal with the Iranians, who the hell can?
Iran has two audiences, the international community and the Iranian people. Its message to both is the same: Iran wasn’t even close to quitting this fight because it’s so strong and powerful.
All hail mighty Iran!
The mainstream media will amplify Iran’s PR, because in its eyes, Trump is FAR more dangerous than Iran. This means the Iran War must be remembered as a tragic, disastrous mistake — something that made Iran stronger and America weaker.
Iran’s PR will give the mainstream media everything it needs to write the stories it wants us to believe.
PRediction: Get ready for another week of Trump getting hammered in the press. And if you’re thinking, “So what, he was already getting hammered,” buckle up and strap on a helmet, ‘cause it’s gonna get SO MUCH worse.
Ten days are left in the ceasefire agreement. Assuming it doesn’t fall apart before then, every day that goes by without a peace deal being signed will be a negative news cycle for Team Trump. (And since Iran isn’t incentivized to capitulate until it’s forced, this probably means at least 9.5 days of very bad press.)
Iran’s boasting will be accepted as gospel. Trump’s rebuttals will be ignored or dismissed. Media criticism will grow louder, nastier, and more aggressive.
This has all the signs of a catastrophic PR week.
PRojection: But not necessarily, because President Trump is a frickin’ genius at flipping the media narrative. He’s under no obligation to give Iran another ten days to spike the football and lie to the world — because with our current trajectory, that’s exactly what’s going to happen. Unless, of course, he does something to change it.
And nobody hijacks headlines better than Trump.
Trump needs to define the stakes: Iran can either surrender its nuclear ambitions diplomatically or militarily, but one way or another, it’s not getting nukes. This is its last chance for a diplomatic solution.
Because one of two things is true: Either Iran is negotiating in good faith or it’s not.
If Trump/Vance believes Iran is negotiating in good faith, then eating another 9.5 days of bad press is 100% worth it. Losing a news cycle in the middle of April isn’t a big deal. Who cares?
By the first Tuesday of November, the focus will be on what we won when the negotiations were over. All this hoopla will be a distant memory.
“Show me the baby!”
“Aw, he’s gorgeous!”
But if Iran isn’t negotiating in good faith, we ought to kill the ceasefire and return to bombing ASAP. This isn’t the right trajectory for winning hearts and minds.
PRaise: To JD Vance for having the courage to walk away. No deal is better than a bad deal.
Vance came across as reasonable yet tough — exactly the right PR posture. Hopefully, he’ll continue to lead U.S. negotiations. He deserves more than one bite at the apple.
Otherwise, sending him on what was essentially a diplomatic suicide mission was grotesquely unfair.
PRedators: The PR tightrope for Iran is that it must be perceived as powerful to survive — but if it’s perceived as too powerful, support for American military action will actually grow.
An Iranian cleric said the country’s delegation delivered what he described as “another slap” to the United States during talks in Islamabad.
— Iran International English (@IranIntl_En) April 12, 2026
“Since our counterpart is the United States, which is the ‘Great Satan’ and the source of corruption of the century, it was predictable…
Senior Iranian officials pointed to control over the Strait of Hormuz after talks in Islamabad ended without agreement, framing it as a central outcome of the conflict.
— Iran International English (@IranIntl_En) April 12, 2026
“Today the key to the Strait of Hormuz is in our powerful hands,” Ali Akbar Velayati, an adviser to Iran’s…
A deputy speaker of Iran’s parliament described US demands in recent negotiations as unrealistic, following talks that ended without agreement.
— Iran International English (@IranIntl_En) April 12, 2026
“In 40 days of war they learned that victory is determined by the will of nations and strength on the ground, not rhetoric on social…
🚨U.S. Vice President Vance: “Iran refuses to give up its nuclear program.” https://t.co/Ifx5o6Qbnc
— The Middle East (@A_M_R_M1) April 12, 2026
Iran wins the PR war when the focus is one U.S.-Israeli aggression — and their failure to force Iran to yield. That’s why the current PR trajectory is so positive for the mullahs.
But they lose the PR war when the focus is on the Iranian nuclear program and the irationality of the mullahs.
So if they brag about being so strong and powerful, nobody can stop ‘em from acquiring millions of nuclear weapons, it unmasks them as extremists who won’t be deterred with words, promises, or treaties. Bombing ‘em into submission is the only solution.
Because they’re predators.
It turns their PR positive into a PR negative. And therein lies the smartest PR play for the Trump administration:
- “Don’t tell me about the pain, just show me the baby.” Take the quickest, easiest path to solving the Iranian problem for good — whatever it is — because that’s the best PR of all: complete and total victory.
- Keep the PR focus on Iran’s nuclear ambitions and irrational leaders. Every time a member of the Trump administrations mentions the Strait of Hormuz, he ought to mention Iran’s nuclear program at least ten times.
- If Iran is acting in bad faith, keep bombing ‘til its faith changes.
The PR upside of agreeing to a two-week ceasefire is that it proved Trump’s willingness to seek a peaceful solution. Our president is no warmonger — and shame on anyone who suggests otherwise. Like all good men, he dreams of a peaceful tomorrow.
The downside? Trump just can’t let his hope for peace make him look like a sucker.
