Top Items:
Barak Ravid / Axios:
Scoop: U.S. asks Israel to halt strikes on Iran's energy infrastructure — The Trump administration asked Israel on Monday not to carry out further strikes on energy facilities in Iran, particularly oil infrastructure, according to three sources familiar with the matter.
Discussion:
BBC, Reuters, NewsMax.com, Radio Free Europe/Radio …, The Hill, The Gateway Pundit and New York Post
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Edward Luce / Financial Times:
Taco on Iran will come too late for Trump — The US president has already done lasting damage to international trust in America — Sometime soon Donald Trump will ring the closing bell on his Iran war. That moment will have less to do with whether his mission is accomplished (whatever that is) than how much pain he can endure.
Discussion:
Fox News, Al Jazeera, Digby's Hullabaloo, The Japan Times, Grabien, France 24 and Bloomberg
Herb Scribner / Axios:
5 scenarios for how the Iran war could end
Discussion:
The Hill, Reuters, Scripps News, Fox News, Algemeiner.com, Melanie Phillips and Foreign Affairs
New York Times:
U.S. Showers Iran With Bombs in Most Intense Strikes of the War, Pentagon Says
U.S. Showers Iran With Bombs in Most Intense Strikes of the War, Pentagon Says
Discussion:
Bangor Daily News, Bloomberg, HuffPost and Los Angeles Times
Associated Press:
Live updates: About 140 US troops wounded in Iran war, 8 severely, Pentagon says
Live updates: About 140 US troops wounded in Iran war, 8 severely, Pentagon says
Discussion:
New York Times, Associated Press, DNYUZ, WFAA-TV, The Independent, CBS News, Boston.com, WTTG-TV and New York Daily News
Associated Press:
Iran Live Updates: Pakistani Navy Escorts Tankers as Conflict Chokes Off Oil Traffic
Iran Live Updates: Pakistani Navy Escorts Tankers as Conflict Chokes Off Oil Traffic
Discussion:
The Times of Israel, Responsible Statecraft, Asia Times, HotAir, HuffPost, DNYUZ, New York Times, Mediaite, Axios, Bloomberg and UN News
Steven Nelson / New York Post:
Sen. John Kennedy apologizes for Iran school strike after Trump suggests enemy misfire
Sen. John Kennedy apologizes for Iran school strike after Trump suggests enemy misfire
Discussion:
New York Times, NewsMax.com, CNN, MeidasTouch News, The Daily Caller, PolitiFact, The Hill, TMZ.com, Mediaite, New Republic, ABC News, BizPac Review, Washington Examiner, HuffPost, Politico and Newsweek
William Kristol / The Bulwark:
TACOs With a Side of War Porn
TACOs With a Side of War Porn
Discussion:
New York Magazine and Reason
Finya Swai / Politico:
MAGA war skeptics rage over Lindsey Graham
MAGA war skeptics rage over Lindsey Graham
Discussion:
DNYUZ, NewsMax.com, The Daily Caller, The Hill, Mediaite and Esquire
Tara Suter / The Hill:
Retired Army general: Iran regime ‘fundamentally miscalculated’ Trump
Retired Army general: Iran regime ‘fundamentally miscalculated’ Trump
Discussion:
NewsMax.com
Jonathan Saul / Reuters:
US Navy tells shipping industry Hormuz escorts not possible for now — The U.S. Navy has refused near-daily requests from the shipping industry for military escorts through the Strait of Hormuz since the start of the war on Iran, saying the risk of attacks is too high for now, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Discussion:
The Hill, Bloomberg, Reuters, The Maritime Executive, The Preamble, Asia Times, New York Times, The Spectator, Al Jazeera, Mediaite and New Republic
RELATED:
Natasha Bertrand / CNN:
Iran begins laying mines in Strait of Hormuz, sources say — The Middle East Oil & gas Investing National security — Iran has begun laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz, the world's most important energy chokepoint that carries about one-fifth of all crude oil, according to two people familiar …
Discussion:
Bloomberg, Axios, The Hill, CBS News, The Guardian, RedState, Forbes, The Maritime Executive, The Independent, Mediaite, The Daily Wire and Middle East Monitor
Claire Carter / Washington Examiner:
Trump says US destroyed 10 ‘inactive’ Iranian mine-laying vessels
Trump says US destroyed 10 ‘inactive’ Iranian mine-laying vessels
Discussion:
Scripps News, New York Sun, Fortune, The US Sun, 19FortyFive, Raw Story, Reuters and Bloomberg
Politico:
US official: ‘Not true’ Navy successfully escorted oil tanker through Strait of Hormuz
US official: ‘Not true’ Navy successfully escorted oil tanker through Strait of Hormuz
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, Bloomberg, Daily Mail, UPI, CNBC, Washington Times, New Republic, Mediaite, The Hill, The Floridian and The Daily Wire
Lee Ying Shan / CNBC:
Oil extends slide as investors assess Trump comments on Iran war, Strait of Hormuz
Oil extends slide as investors assess Trump comments on Iran war, Strait of Hormuz
Discussion:
New York Magazine, Axios, Wall Street Journal, Competitive Enterprise …, The Daily Wire, New York Times, Reuters, NewsMax.com, Townhall, The Daily Signal, Al Jazeera, France 24, The Hill, Forbes, IJR, Washington Examiner, Politico, The Independent, CBS News, Washington Post, NBC News, Raw Story, Mediaite, Fox News, BizPac Review and Real Patriotism …
Jordain Carney / Politico:
Thune eyes action on SAVE America Act next week — without a ‘talking filibuster’ — Senate Majority Leader John Thune is aiming to take action on a GOP-only election bill next week — without pursuing a longshot procedural gambit advocated by some Republican hard-liners.
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, One America News Network, The Daily Signal, New York Sun and The Hill
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Alexander Bolton / The Hill:
GOP leaders, Trump see tensions flare over Senate filibuster — Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) is standing his ground against President Trump's campaign to pressure Republicans to radically reinterpret the filibuster rule to pass sweeping voting reform, a contest of wills …
Wall Street Journal:
Republicans Grow Nervous Over Iran War, Gas Prices
Discussion:
Washington Post, Fox News and NOTUS
Politico:
Capitol agenda: Trump's Doral demands ripple through GOP
Capitol agenda: Trump's Doral demands ripple through GOP
Discussion:
New Republic and The Hill
Jack Fitzpatrick / MS NOW:
Trump's newest pledge has Democrats cheering — and Republicans squirming
Trump's newest pledge has Democrats cheering — and Republicans squirming
Discussion:
PinkNews, Raw Story, The Post Millennial, Semafor, Bloomberg, Washington Times and Washington Examiner
Politico:
Trump's revised SAVE America Act faces headwinds in the House
Trump's revised SAVE America Act faces headwinds in the House
Discussion:
NOTUS, NBC News, Straight Arrow News, CBS News, Atlanta Black Star, Townhall, Deseret News, Washington Examiner, Joe Pags and Democracy Docket
Max Rego / The Hill:
Rand Paul: Midterms will be ‘disastrous’ for Republicans
Rand Paul: Midterms will be ‘disastrous’ for Republicans
Discussion:
New York Post, Washington Times, Raw Story, LGBTQ Nation and Mediaite
Washington Post:
Whistleblower claims ex-DOGE member says he took Social Security data to new job — The Social Security inspector general's office is investigating allegations that the former DOGE engineer took sensitive data on a thumb drive in a major potential security breach, said people familiar with the process.
Discussion:
Bloomberg, Engadget, The Independent, New Republic, TechCrunch and Raw Story, more at Techmeme »
Axios:
Scoop: White House tells House Republicans to stop talking about mass deportations … - Nearly half — 49% — of Americans say Trump's mass deportation campaign is too aggressive, including 1 in 5 voters who backed the president in 2024, a Politico poll from January found.
Discussion:
New York Magazine, The Independent and Mediaite
RELATED:
Reuters:
Exclusive: As many as 150 US troops wounded so far in Iran war, sources say — As many as 150 U.S. troops have been wounded so far in the war with Iran, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters on Tuesday. — The figure has not been previously reported and is far higher …
Discussion:
Axios, CBS News, Politico, UPI, Al Jazeera, Truthout, The Daily Signal, Forbes, Raw Story, Krassencast and Mediaite
Hannah Allam / ProPublica:
The U.S. Built a Blueprint to Avoid Civilian War Casualties. Trump Officials Scrapped It. — Images from the missile strike in southern Iran were more horrifying than any of the case studies Air Force combat veteran Wes J. Bryant had pored over in his mission to overhaul how the U.S. military safeguards civilian life.
Discussion:
The Atlantic
NBC News:
FBI finds ‘explosive residue’ in storage unit related to ‘ISIS-inspired terrorism’ outside NYC mayor's home — The FBI said Tuesday it also conducted a controlled detonation of material found in the Pennsylvania storage unit due to safety concerns. — ADD NBC NEWS TO GOOGLE
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, The Guardian, The Post Millennial, US Department of Justice, The Daily Caller, NewsMax.com, UPI, WTOP News, No More Mister Nice Blog, USA Today, Blaze Media, NPR, Townhall, The Daily Wire, FOX 9 Minneapolis-St. Paul, CNN, MS NOW, Bloomberg, Washington Times, Chicago Tribune and Mediaite
Charles P. Pierce / Esquire:
The Shadow Docket Thing Is Bumming Me Out — During a joint public appearance, Justices Kentanji Brown Jackson and Brett Kavanaugh disagreed over how the Supreme Court has been operating over the past year. — Okay, let's get the rules straight. Guns or gavels? From NBC News:
Discussion:
Washington Post, Fox News, Washington Examiner and NBC News
Axios:
Exclusive: U.S. dismissed Ukraine deal for anti-Iran drone tech last year — Nearly seven months ago, Ukrainian officials tried to sell the U.S. their battle-proven technology for downing Iranian-made attack drones. They even made a PowerPoint presentation — obtained exclusively by Axios …
Discussion:
Mediaite, Washington Examiner, New Republic, DNYUZ, Semafor, NewsMax.com, Raw Story and CBS News
Ellie Quinlan Houghtaling / New Republic:
Pete Hegseth Blew Billions on Fruit Basket Stands, Chairs, and Crab — The Pentagon spent more money in September—the end of the 2025 fiscal year—than it had in any other year since 2008. But a good chunk of the budget wasn't used for anything that could be considered a pertinent military expense.
Discussion:
Politico, OpenTheBooks, TMZ.com, The Federalist, The List, DNYUZ and Balloon Juice
NBC News:
Trump has questioned aides about Corey Lewandowski's role in DHS ad campaign, sources say — The $220 million ad campaign was at the center of a pair of contentious congressional hearings last week that led in part to Trump's decision to fire Kristi Noem as homeland security secretary.
Discussion:
The List, Mediaite, The Independent and Raw Story
Paul Waldman / Public Notice:
The worst cabinet in American history — Public Notice is supported by paid subscribers. Become one ⬇️ — ☄️ Subscribe to PN ☄️ — While he may not have quite the walking-car-crash charisma of the woman he's set to replace …
Discussion:
Human Events
Meredith Lee Hill / Politico:
Mike Johnson declines to condemn Republicans' anti-Muslim remarks — DORAL, Florida — Speaker Mike Johnson said Tuesday he has discussed “our tone and our message” with the two House Republicans who have made anti-Muslim remarks in recent days but defended the right of the lawmakers to oppose “the impostion of Sharia law.”
Discussion:
NOTUS, Fox News, The Guardian, NewsMax.com, Courthouse News Service, The Gateway Pundit and The Hill
Ellen Mitchell / The Hill:
Erika Kirk appointed to Air Force Academy board — President Trump has appointed Erika Kirk, the widow of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, to the Air Force Academy's Board of Visitors, having her replace her late husband. — Consisting of 16 members, the Board of Visitors is responsible …
Katelyn Polantz / CNN:
Ed Martin, outspoken Justice Department lawyer, is formally accused of ethical violations — Federal agencies Donald Trump Diversity and equity — Ed Martin, an outspoken Trump administration official, is facing attorney discipline proceedings in Washington, DC, for a letter he sent …
Discussion:
CBS News, New York Times, MS NOW, NBC News, NOTUS, Washington Times, Bloomberg, Raw Story, New Republic and The Floridian
Dana Rubinstein / New York Times:
Mamdani Chooses His Words Carefully After Alleged Terror Attack — Mayor Zohran Mamdani has been spare in his remarks following the attempted bombing at Gracie Mansion and arrests of two men who said they were motivated by ISIS. — In the days after a homemade bomb laced with metal …

