US weighs Saudi military support

News · Heat 1.0 / 10 · 2 shows · 21m airtime

On October 12, 2026, President Donald Trump began considering US military support for Saudi Arabia after deadly Houthi attacks on Riyadh. Reporting has since established that the Houthis crossed into Saudi Arabia weeks ago and took the Bab al-Mandab Strait with no US reaction, and that the economics of attack have shifted, with a non-state group able to strike Saudi infrastructure at a fraction of the cost to defend it. Bloomberg Surveillance's Roule says direct US strikes on Houthi targets are increasingly likely. Whether Washington commits to direct action, and how far it would go, remains open.

How 2 podcasts covered it

1. Bloomberg Surveillance, 2026-10-12 (0:34 to 7:24)
   Explains Saudi air defense gaps and US strikes
   Norman Roule walks through Saudi air defense gaps and the risk of direct US strikes on Houthi targets, and explains why the Red Sea disruption has not moved oil.
   New angle: Roule says it is increasingly likely the US would directly strike Houthi targets.
2. Squawk Pod, 2026-10-14 (16:36 to 25:10)
   Lays out three options for Trump
   Hochstein walks through the Houthi escalation: the Bab al-Mandab takeover with no U.S. response, the airport attack, and the three options he says Trump faces. He argues for negotiating nuclear restrictions and freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
   New angle: The Houthis crossed into Saudi Arabia weeks ago and took the Bab al-Mandab Strait with no U.S. reaction.
3. Bloomberg Surveillance, 2026-10-14 (8:38 to 13:52)
   Argues the economics of attack have flipped
   Gibson walks through the expanded Houthi strikes and the Aramco headquarters hit, arguing the economics of attack have flipped: cheap drones and cruise missiles now threaten infrastructure that costs far more to defend.
   New angle: The economics of attack have shifted: a non-state group can now strike Saudi infrastructure at a fraction of the cost to defend it.