Joe Rogan slammed the ongoing Iran war as his guest Harland Williams pressed him on the subject, just one area in which the podcaster has been increasingly critical of President Donald Trump.
Rogan was joined by fellow comedian Williams on Friday's The Joe Rogan Experience where Williams had particular fun trolling his friend and at times taking a contrarian position.
During a discussion about the upcoming outdoor UFC event at the White House, Rogan said he still likes that Trump does “wild s*it,†but doubled down on his concerns about the ongoing Iran conflict.
“I don't like the Iran war thing, but I like that,†he said.
“You don't like the concept that Iran can no longer have nuclear weapons? I think that's better than a UFC fight,†Williams said.
“That's a good concept. However, I don't necessarily know there's a clear way to get out of this and if you know what we did in Afghanistan for 20 years and how much American taxpayer dollars yeah and how many people lost their lives—†Rogan said as Williams jumped back in.
“But in Afghanistan it felt like they were just sweeping out like goat farmers and guys hiding in caves whereas here there's a directive where they're preventing a rebel country from having a bomb that could annihilate portions of our planet. I think that's a much more clear and more positive agenda than wiping out guys living in the hills of Afghanistan and creating opium,†Williams said.
Rogan cited experts arguing Iran wasn't close to being capable of creating a nuclear weapon and he blamed Israel for the current conflict.
He said:
Essentially, this is Israel wanting us to go to this war. Israel wants — and it makes sense, if I was Israel, if we were America and Mexico had nukes pointed at us — or whatever, it's not nukes, but you know what I'm saying — like, if they did, if they were trying to build a nuke, if Mexico and America were constantly in conflict, and Mexico was trying to build a nuclear bomb, that would be a good reason where America would want to go f*ck up Mexico. Like, hey, you can't have a nuclear bomb. This is Israel's position. And Israel is right there with Iran. They're close enough to throw missiles at each other. I get why they want it. I don't know if it's a good thing for America and I don't notice a way out of it.
“Well, I think what we have to look at is the bigger scope. If not America cleaning it up, who does it? Who has the power and the wherewithal to do it?†Williams asked.
Rogan then raised concern about the United States' missile usage in the conflict, calling the country “under-armed†for other threats that may present themselves.
Rogan has grown more and more critical of Trump since endorsing him in the 2024 presidential election, taking issue with the Iran war, ICE mass deportations, and the Epstein files. He has remained in Trump's orbit though, last appearing at the White House in April. He'll also be attending and doing commentary for the June White House UFC event. That, however, has been another point he's had issues with.
During the interview with Williams, Rogan expressed concern about so many high profile people being gathered in one place outside the White House while a major conflict is ongoing. He's also criticized the event for being outdoors.
“I do not like it… because it's outside and I think world championship fights should be in a controlled environment out of respect for the athletes and how difficult it is to compete professionally in a world title,†he said. “However, I should say however, it's gonna be a spectacle. Whether I was there or not, I'd be watching.â€
Watch above via The Joe Rogan Experience (time stamp beginning at 11:27).
The post ‘This Is Israel Wanting Us to Go to This War' Joe Rogan Debates Guest on Iran Conflict as Trump Criticism Grows first appeared on Mediaite.
