BY ELLEN MITCHELL AND FILIP TIMOTIJA |
© Altaf Qadri, The Associated Press |
President Trump is facing a difficult set of options in attempting to reopen the Strait of Hormuz amid Iranian attacks on tankers in the vital shipping route.
Naval escorts to ferry vessels through the waterway could prove costly and risky, while using ground troops to secure the Iranian coast would mark a escalatory and politically unpopular turn in the U.S.-Israeli war in the country.
Either choice, meant to avoid an oil crisis amid soaring global prices, carries a high risk of fresh casualties after 13 U.S. service members have already been killed in the conflict. |
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President Trump said on Friday that the U.S. military conducted one of the most "powerful" bombing raids and totally "obliterated" every military target on Iran's Kharg Island, one of the country's most vital economic outposts.
The president said that for "reasons of decency," the U.S. military did not wipe out the oil infrastructure on the island, from which some 90 percent of the nation's oil exports depart. "However, should Iran, or anyone else, do anything to interfere with the Free and Safe Passage of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz, I will immediately reconsider this decision," Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. |
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Long lines and flight delays are plaguing airports around the country as spring break ramps up, sparking concerns that the partial government shutdown could exacerbate problems during an already busy travel season.
Industry leaders say this spring could bring record-breaking air traffic, with an estimated 171 million passengers expected to fly in March and April, up 4 percent from the record set last year, according to a forecast from Airlines for America (A4A).
Airlines have responded to rising demand by adding roughly 2 percent more flights and seats, but as the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) remains unfunded for its fourth week, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is grappling with mounting strain as officers work without pay, staffing shortages worsen and passenger volumes continue to climb. |
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President Trump said Friday that he has his "own idea" of how long the conflict in Iran could last, adding to a series of shifting messages about the timeline for the joint U.S.-Israeli operation.
"I mean, I have my own idea. But what good does it do?" Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews when asked about the duration of the war. "It'll be as long as it's necessary."
Trump and the Pentagon have offered conflicting signals about when the conflict could come to an end, despite asserting that the U.S. is close to achieving its objectives. |
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The Trump administration's attacks on universities have led to a slowdown in hiring, with international academics particularly caught in the crossfire.
Colleges are being forced to navigate both threats to federal funding and immigration roadblocks, a landscape that many find increasingly untenable to navigate.
The U.S. has a reputation for research that some say will survive the Trump onslaught, but the real harm could be deterring future candidates from pursuing certain fields. |
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BY ELLA LEE AND SYLVAN LANE |
A federal judge ruled that Justice Department subpoenas of the Federal Reserve and its chair, Jerome Powell, may not be enforced, according to court filings unsealed Friday.
U.S. District Judge James Boasberg quashed two subpoenas served on the Fed's board of governors that sought records about a $2.5 billion renovation project on which Powell testified before Congress.
The judge, who has come under President Trump's fire before, pointed to "abundant evidence" that the subpoenas were part of a pressure campaign against Powell. |
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House Republicans are threatening to oppose all Senate-passed legislation until the upper chamber advances the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE America) Act, a GOP-backed voting requirements bill.
"I'll be voting 'no' on all Senate bills – other than DHS funding – until the Senate passes the SAVE America Act," Rep. Brandon Gill (R-Texas) wrote Friday on the social platform X. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) also wrote on X that, "The Senate will no longer have legislation passed until the SAVE America Act is passed and on the President's desk." |
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A federal judge ruled Friday that the Trump administration unlawfully took the position last year that it couldn't request more funding for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).
U.S. District Judge Edward Davila ordered the agency's acting director, Russ Vought, to continue requesting the necessary funds from the Federal Reserve to carry out the CFPB's obligations. It's a legal loss for top Trump administration officials as they look to curtail the consumer watchdog agency. Created in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis with largely Democratic support, many conservatives have targeted the CFPB as unaccountable. |
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Ric Grenell is leaving his role as head of the Kennedy Center, a source close to the Trump Kennedy Center confirmed to The Hill on Friday.
President Trump announced in a Truth Social post that Matt Floca, the current vice president of operations, would succeed Grenell as CEO and executive director, pending approval from the Board of Directors. "Ric Grenell has done an excellent job in helping to coordinate various elements of the Center during the transition period, and I want to thank him for the outstanding work he has done," Trump wrote. |
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BY MATTHEW A. FRAKES AND BENJAMIN V. ALLISON | OPINION | The military campaign to topple the Iranian regime, launched by the U.S. on Feb. 28, draws on a playbook over 40 years old. As President Trump looks to make his mark on the Middle East and reshape the still-murky future of this war-torn region, his strategy toward Iran looks to the past — to strategies pioneered by presidents since Ronald Reagan to combat the menace of rogue states.
This critical moment for the future of the Middle East and America's role in molding it is a "Back to the Future" moment in more ways than one. Not only does President Trump's strategy toward Iran build on the foundations laid by past presidents, from Reagan to both Presidents Bush, but it also traces its roots to Reagan's strikes against the Libyans, the boogeymen of the 1985 blockbuster movie. |
OPINION | Just when the U.S. economy appeared to have circumvented steep increases in tariffs, it now faces a new global shock amid the conflict with Iran. The price of oil fluctuated wildly this week between $120 a barrel and $90.
Some observers have compared it to the 1979-1980 oil shock, when prices quadrupled following the Iranian revolution. Iran's oil production plummeted from 5.2 million barrels per day in late 1978 to 1.4 million barrels per day in 1980, effectively removing 6 percent of world oil production. |
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BY EDWARD WONG AND MICHAEL CROWLEY |
Soon after President Trump joined Israel in launching a new war against Iran, an A.I. video featuring Secretary of State Marco Rubio circulated online.
Clad in a black turban and robe, he presides over an Iranian military parade, speaks at a mosque and gazes over the Tehran skyline. The caption: "Marco Rubio realizing he's the new Supreme Leader of Iran." |
BY ALEXANDER WARD, LARA SELIGMAN, ALEX LEARY AND VERA BERGENGRUEN |
Before the U.S. went to war, Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told President Trump that an American attack could prompt Iran to close the Strait of Hormuz.
Caine said in several briefings that U.S. officials had long believed Iran would deploy mines, drones and missiles to close the world's most vital shipping lane, according to people with knowledge of the discussions. |
BY ED WHITE AND ANTHONY IZAGUIRRE |
The Michigan synagogue that came under attack this week when an armed man drove his car into the building had for months been strengthening its security apparatus by hiring a seasoned police lieutenant as its security director and holding active shooter training.
That beefed up security, which came in response to rising antisemitism and other attacks at places of worship, is being credited with saving lives in an event that ended with only the attacker dying. |
"Hello, the FOIA office has been placed on admin leave and is unable to respond to any emails."
This was how the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention responded by email this past spring to a Freedom of Information Act request for records about the risk of catching measles in areas with low vaccination rates. |
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