The Rita Cosby Show: Hour 1 | 04-10-26

April 11, 2026·43 min·3 clips

Keane says the U.S. has already stripped Iranian air defenses and can force ships through with Apache helicopters and A-10s — 'not as difficult as people think.'

1. The Rita Cosby Show covers two breaking stories simultaneously: the splashdown of NASA's Artemis II and the lead-up to U.S.-Iran negotiations in Islamabad. 2. Host Rita Cosby, an Emmy-winning journalist, leads the broadcast; the primary expert guest is retired four-star General Jack Keane, who says he spoke with President Trump approximately one hour before the interview. 3. The episode's core question is whether the U.S. can credibly reopen the Strait of Hormuz and whether the upcoming Islamabad talks between J.D. Vance and Iranian officials can produce a meaningful deal. 4. Artemis II splashed down at exactly 8:07 p.m. Eastern in San Diego after a 10-day mission that circled the moon — the first crewed lunar-vicinity flight since Apollo — with all four astronauts confirmed safe. 5. Cosby plays NASA's live audio announcing 'a perfect bull's-eye splashdown for Integrity and its four astronauts,' calling it 'awe-inspiring.' 6. Caller Mike from Maryland reveals his college roommate is a NASA systems engineer on Artemis and shares that the habitable capsule measures 330 cubic feet — a seven-by-seven-by-seven foot cube — occupied by four people for 10 days. 7. General Keane argues Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz for two explicit strategic purposes: to secure a ceasefire and to signal to regional oil buyers in China, India, and Pakistan that Iran retains influence despite U.S.-Israeli strikes. 8. Keane says only about two ships have transited the Strait since the ceasefire, compared with 100 to 200 per day in normal operations, and President Trump has warned Iran to reopen it. 9. Keane outlines Option 1: intercept Iranian oil ships in the Gulf of Oman and call President Xi, telling him to pressure Tehran or the U.S. will stop those shipments — while acknowledging Iran could retaliate with strikes on Gulf oil fields. 10. Option 2, per Keane, is to forcibly escort ships through the Strait with drones covering 100 to 200 miles of airspace, Apache helicopters, and A-10 fighters doing close air support, calling it 'not as difficult as people think.' 11. Keane states that Iran has fired 'hundreds of drones, ballistic missiles, and anti-ship missiles' at U.S. forces in the region without hitting a single asset, pointing to degraded Iranian air-defense capability. 12. On the Islamabad talks, President Trump says his non-negotiable demand is 'no nuclear weapon,' adding that the Strait 'will open up automatically' once Iran realizes it is cutting off its own oil revenue. 13. Keane says Hezbollah fired 6,000 rockets and missiles against Israel in roughly one week at Iranian instruction — after months of silence during the prior 12-day war when Hezbollah declined to fire because it doubted Iran's survival. 14. Keane reports that Netanyahu has decided to destroy all Hezbollah infrastructure south of the Litani River, with Israeli airstrikes happening 'by the hour, not by the day,' and ground troops back in place. 15. Keane adds that Hezbollah stayed silent during the earlier 12-day war because, as Israeli commanders told him, 'they don't have the will to do it because they're not sure Iran is going to survive.' 16. Caller Julian challenges Keane's credibility, suggesting Fox News signs his paycheck; Cosby responds that Keane 'is a straight shooter' and attributes Julian's skepticism to 'Trump derangement syndrome.' 17. The tone is driven by Cosby's open cheerleading for the Artemis mission and the Trump administration's Iran strategy, with minimal adversarial questioning of General Keane. 18. The format blends live commentary, call-in segments, and a rebroadcast of an interview originally aired earlier in the day on Cosby's morning show, Cats and Cosby. 19. Best suited for listeners who follow conservative talk radio, U.S. military news, and Middle East geopolitics. 20. Unlikely to satisfy listeners seeking neutral or multi-perspective foreign policy analysis or those skeptical of retired military figures as primary sources.

As heard by us

A high-alert hour that turns breaking news into live, host-led argument.

Rita Cosby's hour moves from the Artemis return to the sharper political questions around Iran and the Strait of Hormuz, all under a steady breaking-news frame.

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You want a high-voltage news hour that never sits still.

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