Top Items:
William Kristol / The Bulwark:
Trump to America: Thank Me for Your Gas Bill — At today's Pentagon press briefing on the ongoing war in Iran, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth started the show laser-focused on what really matters: not that more American service members had lost their lives in the Middle East …
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, The Hill and Fox News, more at Mediagazer »
RELATED:
Politico:
‘Oh, boy’: Oil industry frets over Trump's profit-minded Iran post … “The idea that the industry profits from war and death is not one a VP of public relations wants to promote,” said Mark Jones, political science fellow at Rice University's Baker Institute. — Trump's post drew groans from some in the industry.
Discussion:
Honolulu Star-Advertiser, Raw Story, Bloomberg, Truthout, New Republic, IJR and NewsMax.com
Finya Swai / Politico:
Trump: Iran war will end when I ‘feel it in my bones’ … Trump on Friday said he expected the conflict to end soon but added that it could also continue indefinitely if necessary. The president dismissed reports that the U.S. was facing a munitions shortage.
Discussion:
The Hill, MS NOW, Mediaite and The Guardian
Alan Rappeport / New York Times:
Trump Removes Sanctions on Russia to Help Oil Flow Amid Iran Conflict — Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said it was “unfortunate” that the move could benefit Russia, but maintained that it was only for the short term. — The United States on Thursday temporarily lifted sanctions …
Discussion:
EconomyNext, Reuters, MS NOW, Small Wars Journal, CBS News, New Republic, The Hill, Mediaite, France 24, Raw Story, DNYUZ, WTOP News, BizPac Review and Roll Call
Evan Halper / Washington Post:
Trump administration allows for Russian oil sales as energy prices soar
Discussion:
The Hill, Financial Times, CNN, Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, Al Jazeera, NewsMax.com, Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion, France 24, The Floridian, Daily Mail, Washington Times, Washington Examiner, Bloomberg, Politico, New York Post, Forbes, CNBC, The American Conservative, Raw Story, The Gateway Pundit, Mediaite, CoinDesk and WTOP News
Reuters:
Exclusive: With Iran war exit elusive, Trump aides vie to affect outcome
Exclusive: With Iran war exit elusive, Trump aides vie to affect outcome
Discussion:
The Guardian, DNYUZ, Raw Story, Washington Times, Wisconsin Examiner and Axios
Paul McLeary / Politico:
Hegseth, attacking press, declares victory is near amid ongoing Iran conflict
Hegseth, attacking press, declares victory is near amid ongoing Iran conflict
Will Saletan / The Bulwark:
The Trump War Glossary: What He *Really* Means About Iran
The Trump War Glossary: What He *Really* Means About Iran
Discussion:
The Free Press, American Greatness and Time
CNN:
Trump administration underestimated Iran war's impact on Strait of Hormuz — The Middle East Donald Trump Oil & gas Economy — The Pentagon and National Security Council significantly underestimated Iran's willingness to close the Strait of Hormuz in response to US military strikes …
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, Talking Points Memo, The Hill, RedState, Media Matters for America, The Nation, Breitbart, The Atlantic, New Republic, MS NOW, The Hollywood Reporter, Good Politics/Bad Politics, New York Times, Mediaite, Deadline, Semafor, HotAir, BBC, Raw Story, Al Jazeera, Forbes, Sky News and NBC News
RELATED:
Financial Times:
France and Italy open talks with Iran in hope of securing safe Hormuz passage — Europeans look for ways to restart energy shipments as Iran's new supreme leader vows to keep strait shut — European countries including France have opened talks with Tehran seeking to negotiate a deal …
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, The Guardian, Forbes, NewsMax.com, Reuters, The Gateway Pundit, NBC News, Agence France-Presse, France 24 and NPR
Barak Ravid / Axios:
Scoop: Trump claimed in G7 call that Iran is “about to surrender”
Discussion:
NewsMax.com, CNBC, HotAir, Metro.co.uk, Mediaite, Raw Story, The Week and Los Angeles Times
Michael M. Grynbaum / New York Times:
Pete Hegseth Says ‘the Sooner David Ellison’ Buys CNN, ‘the Better’
Pete Hegseth Says ‘the Sooner David Ellison’ Buys CNN, ‘the Better’
Discussion:
New Republic, The Hill, Fox News, Reuters, RedState, IJR, Washington Examiner, Raw Story and Washington Times
Paul Waldman / The Cross Section:
Welcome to the Derp State
Politico:
Vance was ‘skeptical’ voice in White House on Iran strikes … A second senior Trump official said “his role is to provide the president and the administration, you know, all points of views of what could happen from many different angles and, you know, he does that. But once the decision has been made, he's fully on board.”
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, The Hill, DNYUZ, New Republic, Raw Story, Digby's Hullabaloo, Political Wire, New York Magazine and The Japan Times
Lara Seligman / Wall Street Journal:
Pentagon Is Moving Additional Marines, Warships to the Middle East — The Pentagon is moving additional Marines and warships to the Middle East as Iran steps up its attacks on the Strait of Hormuz, according to three U.S. officials. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has approved a request …
Discussion:
New York Post, Townhall, The Maritime Executive, The Daily Caller, Forbes, USA Today and Middle East Monitor
RELATED:
Axios:
U.S. sending USS Tripoli, thousands of Marines to Middle East — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is sending an amphibious assault ship, the USS Tripoli, and its Marine expeditionary unit to the Middle East, a senior U.S. official confirmed to Axios on Friday.
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, Wall Street Journal, Metro.co.uk and The National Pulse
NBC News:
Judge blocks subpoenas against Fed Chair Jerome Powell, citing ‘essentially zero evidence’ — Powell said the subpoenas were related to his testimony before the Senate in June about the renovation of Federal Reserve office buildings. — A federal judge on Friday said he was blocking subpoenas …
Discussion:
Reuters, New York Times, Politico, Scripps News, The Hill, NewsMax.com and Fox News
RELATED:
Patrick Smith / NBC News:
All 6 U.S. crew members killed after refueling plane crashes in Iraq — The crash brings the number of U.S. service personnel killed since the Iran war began Feb. 28 to 12. A 13th died of a medical issue. — ADD NBC NEWS TO GOOGLE — All six U.S. crew members have been confirmed dead …
Discussion:
Time, Axios, Associated Press, The Hill, CBS News, Daily Mail, Forbes, CNBC, The Floridian, Los Angeles Times, The Gateway Pundit, Mediaite and Task & Purpose
RELATED:
New York Times:
6 Killed in Crash of U.S. Refueling Plane in Iraq, Military Says
Discussion:
GZERO, Townhall, Salon, New York Post, Los Angeles Times, Military and Veteran …, The Daily Caller, France 24, Breaking Defense, WNYW-TV, One America News Network, TimesLive, The National Pulse, DNYUZ, Honolulu Star-Advertiser, Air & Space Forces Magazine, The Gateway Pundit, Raw Story, Breitbart, WXIA-TV, Human Events, Metro.co.uk, Middle East Monitor, News Talk 105.9, CBS News, The Week, Radio Free Europe/Radio …, The US Sun, The War Zone, NewsMax.com, Mediaite, Wall Street Journal, Semafor, Forbes, Politico, Washington Examiner and WTOP News
Tucker Reals / CBS News:
All 6 crew members killed in crash of American KC-135 refueling aircraft in Iraq, U.S. military confirms
All 6 crew members killed in crash of American KC-135 refueling aircraft in Iraq, U.S. military confirms
Discussion:
NPR, Associated Press, Washington Examiner, Defense One, KHOU-TV, Fox News, The American Conservative, Townhall, Forbes, Breitbart, The Daily Caller, DNYUZ, Middle East Monitor, KXTV, Al Jazeera, Breaking Defense, The Gateway Pundit, The Aviationist, The Hill, WTOP News, WKZO and Air & Space Forces Magazine
Talmon Joseph Smith / New York Times:
Consumer Prices Rose in January, Before Iran War Added Price Pressures — The economy also grew more slowly at the end of 2025 than first thought, revised data showed. — Economic growth was slower at the end of 2025 than data first showed and inflationary pressures persisted at the start of this year …
Discussion:
Associated Press, Reuters, DNYUZ, Reason, Semafor and Buenos Aires Times
RELATED:
Justin Lahart / Wall Street Journal:
Economy Was Even Slower in Fourth Quarter, New Estimate Shows
Discussion:
CNN, Associated Press, U.S. Bureau …, Fox Business and Raw Story
Jeff Cox / CNBC:
Fourth-quarter GDP revised down to just 0.7% growth; January core inflation was 3.1%
Fourth-quarter GDP revised down to just 0.7% growth; January core inflation was 3.1%
Discussion:
WKZO, Democrats, MS NOW, New Republic and Washington Examiner
New York Times:
Cuban President Acknowledges Talks with the Trump Administration — Facing a massive energy crisis and increasing protests on the streets, the Cuban government acknowledged that it had entered into negotiations with the Trump administration. — With oil running out and the nation increasingly plunging …
Discussion:
Washington Post, The Guardian, Politico, CBS News, HotAir, GZERO, New York Post, CNN, Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion, Florida Politics, El País, DNYUZ and Mediaite
RELATED:
Sergio Candido / CBS News:
Cuba's leader Miguel Diaz-Canel confirms talks with Trump administration but warns agreement still far off
Discussion:
NBC News, Washington Examiner, Reuters, RedState, Los Angeles Times, France 24, Bangor Daily News, DNYUZ, The Hill, Al Jazeera, MercoPress, Bloomberg, CNBC, The Floridian, Responsible Statecraft and NewsMax.com
Brandy Zadrozny / MS NOW:
Dark money group offers influencers $1,500 for posts attacking Chicago Democratic primary candidate — Progressive House candidate Kat Abughazaleh told MS NOW the secretive campaign is “filled with false and defamatory claims.” — A week out from a crowded and contentious Democratic primary …
Discussion:
New Republic and Election Law Blog
Wall Street Journal:
Hegseth: Strait of Hormuz Is Open — The Strait of Hormuz is open for transit, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said. “The only thing prohibiting transit in the straits right now is Iran shooting at shipping,” he said. “It is open for transit should Iran not do that.”
Discussion:
New York Magazine, Wonkette, HotAir, Fortune and The Hill
RELATED:
Dan Mangan / CNBC:
Pete Hegseth on Strait of Hormuz: 'Don't need to worry about it'
Pete Hegseth on Strait of Hormuz: 'Don't need to worry about it'
Discussion:
New York Times, Townhall, 19FortyFive, Truthout, Wall Street Journal, Axios, Human Events, The Hill, HuffPost, TMZ.com, Mediaite, Newsweek, The Daily Signal, Raw Story, Reuters, CBS News, Associated Press, New Republic, Bloomberg, National Politics, IJR, Little Green Footballs, New York Post and NewsMax.com
Will Sommer / The Bulwark:
How a Catch-a-Predator Sting Nabbed a Right-Wing Hatemonger — Was Jake Lang evaluating a teenage girl for a bikinis-and-burkas protest? Or was something more lecherous at play? — ∙ Paid — Welcome back to False Flag! … ONE OF THE MOST NOTORIOUS HATEMONGERS on the far right appears …
Discussion:
Raw Story
Alex Leary / Wall Street Journal:
Trump: Will “Feel It in My Bones” When Iran War Should End — When asked about when the war will be over, President Trump said in an interview that aired Friday, “When I feel it—feel it in my bones.” — Trump also refused to say whether the U.S. is considering seizing Kharg Island …
Discussion:
CNBC, New York Post, New Republic, Reuters, Mediaite, Raw Story, Fox News and WKZO
RELATED:
Hadriana Lowenkron / Bloomberg:
Trump Says Iranians in US Are ‘Under Watch’ Over Terrorism Fears
G. Elliott Morris / Strength In Numbers:
I graphed every president's approval rating during “rally around the flag” events — Donald Trump launched airstrikes against Iran on Feb. 28, 2026. In the two weeks since, I've already written about how the public opposed the strikes from the start and how nearly every poll on the war so far confirms this trend.
Discussion:
Newsweek
Emmett Lindner / New York Times:
How This Oil Supply Shock Compares With the Embargo of 1973 — Governments have stockpiled oil, and cars are more efficient but the supply shock is global, and there's no sense of when it'll end. — In October 1973, oil-producing countries in the Middle East imposed an oil embargo …
Discussion:
WKZO, IEA, Politico, Washington Examiner and Forbes
Maxine Joselow / New York Times:
E.P.A. Moves to Weaken Limits on a Cancer-Causing Gas — The gas, ethylene oxide, plays a crucial role in sterilizing medical devices. But long-term exposure is linked to several types of cancer and other ailments. — The Environmental Protection Agency on Friday proposed to weaken limits …
Discussion:
The Hill, WKZO and The Washington Free Beacon
Christian Gläßel / Can We Still Govern?:
The Secret Police Playbook — Since the Pendleton Act of 1883, the U.S. federal government has rested on a simple promise: professionalism, merit-based recruitment, independent oversight. Over time, U.S. federal law enforcement became a global reference point—effective, technically sophisticated …
Ana Swanson / New York Times:
Wall Street Bankers Offered Lucrative Access to Join the Pentagon — A presentation from a headhunting firm aimed to recruit Wall Street investors to the Pentagon by offering “unmatched access” to government officials and fund-raising opportunities among foreign sovereigns.
Discussion:
Raw Story
Jay Willis / Balls and Strikes:
Trump Nominee Kara Westercamp Has a Pretty Alarming Twitter History — Earlier this year, President Donald Trump nominated Kara Westercamp, a lawyer in the White House Counsel's office, for a life-tenured judgeship on the U.S. Court of International Trade. On Truth Social, Trump called Westercamp a …
