War with Iran on the horizon? Glenn Beck’s chief researcher explains the stakes.

Amid escalating tensions over Iran's nuclear program and a massive U.S. military buildup in the Middle East, rumors are swirling that President Trump is on the verge of authorizing military strikes against Iran in the near term, potentially leading to prolonged conflict.

But what does this mean for the United States and the Middle East?

To get some clarity, Glenn Beck is joined by his chief researcher and former Department of Defense intelligence analyst Jason Buttrill, who explains what we need to be looking for in the coming days.

"Axios is reporting: ‘Trump moving closer to a major war with Iran.’ What does that mean, Jason?” Glenn asks.

“A broader regional war is what we're looking at here. I think it'll be primarily an air war, the likes of which we haven't seen since the Gulf War,” says Jason, noting that “every 12 hours or so, we're doubling” our “military hardware” in the Middle East.

But a war with Iran will likely be “very dirty,” he warns.

For one, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf monarchies agree that Iran is a major problem in the Middle East, meaning they are likely to be “drawn into” the conflict.

However, they face a tough “conundrum,” says Jason: Right now, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries “don't have to compete” with Iranian oil because “Iran's portion … is sanctioned” and “not a lot of it comes out,” allowing Saudi Arabia and allies to dominate the oil market and prices. If war breaks out, however, “suddenly a scenario that's very real” emerges where the Saudis “have to compete with Iran” on “oil prices, gas prices — everything.”

“If we are correct that the war is about to happen soon, Iran is about to go into regime survival mode, which everything that they have planned since 1979 to maintain control and power — they are now going to put those into effect,” Jason explains.

“What does that mean?” he asks.

It means Iran will likely “shut down the Strait of Hormuz” and possibly activate “sleeper cells” for attacks or sabotage.

“You better believe that the Iranians will look at all those options once this happens,” he predicts.

For the U.S., says Jason, such a war would be a “massive air campaign to take out the ability for Iran to shoot long-range missiles, to shut down the Strait of Hormuz, and to do whatever else they want.”

Even though Trump has made repeated vows to avoid prolonged U.S. military entanglements abroad, Jason says if this war happens, it’s not going to be a Venezuela situation.

“This will take a while,” he confesses.

But Glenn is conflicted. “Here's the thing I know about Trump, though. He doesn't do long, drawn-out war. … He knows if he gets into a long, drawn-out war, it's going to be horrible for him — horrible. So what do you think his advisers are saying?” he asks.

To hear Jason’s in-depth response, watch the video above.

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