{"id":149246,"date":"2026-04-20T14:51:27","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T22:51:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2026\/04\/20\/the-tart-of-the-deal\/"},"modified":"2026-04-20T14:51:27","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T22:51:27","slug":"the-tart-of-the-deal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2026\/04\/20\/the-tart-of-the-deal\/","title":{"rendered":"The Tart Of The Deal"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
(Photo by Win McNamee\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Many people think that Donald Trump\u2019s threats and bluster are all a negotiating strategy.\u00a0Threaten to destroy a country\u2019s civilization; the country\u2019s leaders\u2019 knees will tremble; the country will surrender.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not sure that works so well in a country where the government doesn\u2019t care about the people and where the leaders believe that dying in the name of the cause is the path to martyrdom.\u00a0But, effective or not, perhaps Trump is employing a strategy.<\/p>\n

Recently, it struck me that the Iranians might be employing a negotiating strategy in their approach to Trump.<\/p>\n

Years ago, a billionaire told me his strategy when he was negotiating to buy a person\u2019s family-owned business:<\/p>\n

\u201cOffer the seller a fortune; let \u2019em taste it.\u00a0Let the seller fantasize about the fancy new home and car, the yacht, and the private island.\u00a0Let that sink in for a while.\u00a0After the seller has his heart set on all of the fancy new things that he\u2019ll own, then slowly bring down the price you\u2019ll pay for his company.\u00a0The new home is irresistible; the person simply has to own it; and the person will accept less money from you because the seller now desperately needs some deal \u2014 even a somewhat less valuable deal \u2014 to satisfy his new dreams.\u201d<\/p>\n

Let the seller taste a transaction; then, tighten the screws.<\/p>\n

Perhaps the Iranians met my billionaire.<\/p>\n

On Friday, the Iranians appeared to have reopened the Strait of Hormuz to maritime traffic.<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s a hero!\u00a0He can taste it.<\/p>\n

The stock market goes through the roof.\u00a0The price of oil plummets.\u00a0Trump could fantasize about other prices beginning to decrease over time.\u00a0Trump could go on the road and talk about affordability, instead of fighting about whether he\u2019s better than the pope on foreign policy.<\/p>\n

Trump could taste it.<\/p>\n

In fact, you know he could taste it:\u00a0He made\u00a013 posts in an hour<\/a>\u00a0on Truth Social claiming total victory.\u00a0He won!\u00a0Thank God!\u00a0It\u2019s over.<\/p>\n

This week, however, when negotiations recommence, the Iranians might tighten the screws.\u00a0Maybe Iran will insist on reparations for the war. Or billions of dollars in sanctions relief.\u00a0Or the right to enrich just a little bit of uranium. Or the right to impose tolls on ships that pass through the Strait of Hormuz.\u00a0Or the right to give money or weapons to Iranian allies in the Middle East.<\/p>\n

Trump won\u2019t be happy with\u00a0this.<\/p>\n

The war was over, for chrissakes.\u00a0He was a hero.\u00a0He could taste it.<\/p>\n

It tasted swell.<\/p>\n

Maybe Trump will show just a little bit more flexibility with the Iranians because he could savor the taste of peace \u2014 the tart of the deal.\u00a0 Maybe Trump should let the Iranians keep just a little bit of enriched uranium, or receive just a little bit more relief from sanctions, or maybe the U.S. and Iran should split the tolls that are charged for passing through the Strait.<\/p>\n

After all, \u201cunconditional surrender\u201d or \u201cregime change\u201d were never really what Trump had in mind.\u00a0Everyone knows he was just kidding about those things.<\/p>\n

And ending the war would be great.\u00a0Look at the Dow.\u00a0Look at the price of a barrel of oil.<\/p>\n

Will we ever know that this was the Iranians\u2019 strategy?<\/p>\n

Of course not.<\/p>\n

Perhaps the ceasefire will end, and the war will resume.<\/p>\n

Perhaps the ceasefire will technically end, the U.S. and Iran will agree on a few issues, and there will be no more shooting while the parties negotiate the rest.<\/p>\n

Perhaps (although it seems unlikely) the parties will reach a deal on all of the issues in the next couple of weeks.<\/p>\n

But we\u2019ll never know what terms the U.S. would have accepted before the Iranians made their most recent move:\u00a0They let Trump experience what ending the war would taste like, whetting his appetite, and causing him to be a bit more flexible in what he demanded in negotiations.<\/p>\n

\n

Mark\u00a0Herrmann\u00a0spent 17 years as a partner at a leading international law firm and later oversaw litigation, compliance and employment matters at a large international company. He is the author of\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>The Curmudgeon\u2019s Guide to Practicing Law<\/em><\/strong><\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>Drug and Device Product Liability Litigation Strategy<\/em><\/strong><\/a>\u00a0(affiliate links). You can reach him by email at\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>inhouse@abovethelaw.com<\/em><\/strong><\/a>.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The post The Tart Of The Deal<\/a> appeared first on Above the Law<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"
(Photo by Win McNamee\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Many people think that Donald Trump\u2019s threats and bluster are all a negotiating strategy.\u00a0Threaten to destroy a country\u2019s civilization; the country\u2019s leaders\u2019 knees will tremble; the country will surrender.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not sure that works so well in a country where the government doesn\u2019t care about the people and where the leaders believe that dying in the name of the cause is the path to martyrdom.\u00a0But, effective or not, perhaps Trump is employing a strategy.<\/p>\n

Recently, it struck me that the Iranians might be employing a negotiating strategy in their approach to Trump.<\/p>\n

Years ago, a billionaire told me his strategy when he was negotiating to buy a person\u2019s family-owned business:<\/p>\n

\u201cOffer the seller a fortune; let \u2019em taste it.\u00a0Let the seller fantasize about the fancy new home and car, the yacht, and the private island.\u00a0Let that sink in for a while.\u00a0After the seller has his heart set on all of the fancy new things that he\u2019ll own, then slowly bring down the price you\u2019ll pay for his company.\u00a0The new home is irresistible; the person simply has to own it; and the person will accept less money from you because the seller now desperately needs some deal \u2014 even a somewhat less valuable deal \u2014 to satisfy his new dreams.\u201d<\/p>\n

Let the seller taste a transaction; then, tighten the screws.<\/p>\n

Perhaps the Iranians met my billionaire.<\/p>\n

On Friday, the Iranians appeared to have reopened the Strait of Hormuz to maritime traffic.<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s a hero!\u00a0He can taste it.<\/p>\n

The stock market goes through the roof.\u00a0The price of oil plummets.\u00a0Trump could fantasize about other prices beginning to decrease over time.\u00a0Trump could go on the road and talk about affordability, instead of fighting about whether he\u2019s better than the pope on foreign policy.<\/p>\n

Trump could taste it.<\/p>\n

In fact, you know he could taste it:\u00a0He made\u00a013 posts in an hour<\/a>\u00a0on Truth Social claiming total victory.\u00a0He won!\u00a0Thank God!\u00a0It\u2019s over.<\/p>\n

This week, however, when negotiations recommence, the Iranians might tighten the screws.\u00a0Maybe Iran will insist on reparations for the war. Or billions of dollars in sanctions relief.\u00a0Or the right to enrich just a little bit of uranium. Or the right to impose tolls on ships that pass through the Strait of Hormuz.\u00a0Or the right to give money or weapons to Iranian allies in the Middle East.<\/p>\n

Trump won\u2019t be happy with\u00a0this.<\/p>\n

The war was over, for chrissakes.\u00a0He was a hero.\u00a0He could taste it.<\/p>\n

It tasted swell.<\/p>\n

Maybe Trump will show just a little bit more flexibility with the Iranians because he could savor the taste of peace \u2014 the tart of the deal.\u00a0 Maybe Trump should let the Iranians keep just a little bit of enriched uranium, or receive just a little bit more relief from sanctions, or maybe the U.S. and Iran should split the tolls that are charged for passing through the Strait.<\/p>\n

After all, \u201cunconditional surrender\u201d or \u201cregime change\u201d were never really what Trump had in mind.\u00a0Everyone knows he was just kidding about those things.<\/p>\n

And ending the war would be great.\u00a0Look at the Dow.\u00a0Look at the price of a barrel of oil.<\/p>\n

Will we ever know that this was the Iranians\u2019 strategy?<\/p>\n

Of course not.<\/p>\n

Perhaps the ceasefire will end, and the war will resume.<\/p>\n

Perhaps the ceasefire will technically end, the U.S. and Iran will agree on a few issues, and there will be no more shooting while the parties negotiate the rest.<\/p>\n

Perhaps (although it seems unlikely) the parties will reach a deal on all of the issues in the next couple of weeks.<\/p>\n

But we\u2019ll never know what terms the U.S. would have accepted before the Iranians made their most recent move:\u00a0They let Trump experience what ending the war would taste like, whetting his appetite, and causing him to be a bit more flexible in what he demanded in negotiations.<\/p>\n

\n

Mark\u00a0Herrmann\u00a0spent 17 years as a partner at a leading international law firm and later oversaw litigation, compliance and employment matters at a large international company. He is the author of\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>The Curmudgeon\u2019s Guide to Practicing Law<\/em><\/strong><\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>Drug and Device Product Liability Litigation Strategy<\/em><\/strong><\/a>\u00a0(affiliate links). You can reach him by email at\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>inhouse@abovethelaw.com<\/em><\/strong><\/a>.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The post The Tart Of The Deal<\/a> appeared first on Above the Law<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(Photo by Win McNamee\/Getty Images) Many people think that Donald Trump\u2019s threats and bluster are all a negotiating strategy.\u00a0Threaten to destroy a country\u2019s civilization; the country\u2019s leaders\u2019 knees will tremble; the country will surrender. I\u2019m not sure that works so well in a country where the government doesn\u2019t care about the people and where the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":149247,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-149246","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-above_the_law"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/xira.com\/p\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/trump-debate-GettyImages-2171255004-Z1Ixbp.jpg?fit=1024%2C683&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/149246","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=149246"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/149246\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/149247"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=149246"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=149246"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=149246"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}