THE NEWS

The United States and Israel are winning this battle with the Islamic Republic of Iran — decisively. Our Gulf allies are standing strong. The cost has already been high with seven U.S. service members dead and many wounded, some seriously. Soldiers of the Israeli Defense Forces have been killed and civilians in Israel and among the Gulf states murdered by the lashing out at every country in the region by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.But of course, some hard-left partisans hate the prospect of either President Donald Trump or the United States winning an important, indeed crucial battle.  That includes, shockingly, Catholic Cardinals in the U.S. These cardinals are putting politics ahead of faith and demonstrating deep ignorance of national security affairs combined with indifference to the patriotism of their parishioners — many of whom with family on the front lines — who can be expected to at least stop giving to an anti-American church if not leave it.For anyone who, out of ignorance, real or feigned, does not understand the nature of the regime atop the 91 million innocent people of Iran: These fanatics murdered 35,000 of their own people in two days and nights of terror in January in Tehran and across other cities in the vast country. 35,000!HEGSETH BLASTS BRITS, SAYS IRAN’S CHAOTIC RETALIATION HAS DRIVEN ITS OWN ALLIES ‘INTO THE AMERICAN ORBIT’The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps numbers between 150,000 and 200,000 and their street thugs, the Basij, between four and five times that. So a million of Iran’s people cruelly repress the other 91.The left in America refuses to come to grips with how evil the Iranian regime is and for how long it has been so. They seem to have forgotten the original hostage crisis, the murder of our Marines in Beirut in 1983, the destruction of the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia in 1996 and countless other acts of assassination and mass terrorism since the regime seized power in 1979. They do not know that we know for a certainty that Iran murdered and maimed thousands of our troops in Iraq in the war that began there in 2003. Our political left is defeatist and in the grip of their appeasers and anti-Israel caucus. That left now includes at least three high-profile Catholic cardinals.The Senate and House GOP should stand proudly behind President Trump and proclaim the Islamic Republic of Iran as the evil and malignant terrorist regime run by theocratic fanatics that it has been for 47 years; that the cause of destroying the regime’s ability to threaten the region and the world is just; and that President Trump, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Secretary of State and National Security Advisor Marco Rubio and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Caine are conducting the war in remarkable fashion because the American military has no peer.I hope House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune persuade the caucuses they lead to agree to bring forward a second reconciliation process to quickly resupply the military with the funds to replenish the ordinance expended and, indeed, to go further: To fully fund the next three years of spending necessary to the rapid build-out of the “Golden Dome” and the “Golden Fleet,” while also making sure the equal of any of our allies — Israel — has the funding and hardware we can provide to assist them on all of their fronts. The righteous battle with Iran and its proxies needs to be proclaimed and explained and cannot be done too often or too loudly.MICHAEL OREN: IRAN HAS WAGED WAR ON AMERICA FOR 47 YEARS — TIME TO END ITAnd, as a Roman Catholic, I hope some of our braver and certainly better informed cardinals stand up and address the brothers in red who have flown off the rails of national security reality.Democrats who are defeatist, appeasers, anti-Semitic or simply deranged by their hatred of President Trump: You keep speaking up too. History will record your positions.The region and the whole world is far better off already because of the crushing of Iran’s striking capability and will be immeasurably blessed by the collapse of this insidious regime.What we have witnessed by the “Yosemite Sam” response of Iran to the attacks by the U.S. and Israel should have awakened even the least observant consumer of news to the nature of the regime. The mullahs ordered everything in their arsenal fired at all of their neighbors, none of whom other than the U.S. and Israel were involved in the conflict. In this respect, Iran acted as Hitler’s Germany did after Imperial Japan attacked the United States at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941: Germany unilaterally declared war on the United States four days after the “day that will live in infamy.”While Iran has been in conflict with Israel and the United States since the Islamic Revolution culminated in the return of Ayatollah Khomeini to Iran on February 1, 1979, Iran was not at war with the Gulf States. That Iran attacked everyone it could hit should tell you why the regime was so dangerous. It is an unhinged and revolutionary power. It does not abide by anything remotely like the rules of civilized nation states. Its “threat” was not merely imminent, but ongoing and never ceasing. Its hideousness appeared unveiled on 10/7/23 in Israel when its puppet Hamas invaded Israel to kill, kidnap and maim. Iran could never be trusted with nuclear weaponry or the sort of forest of missiles it was aiming to assemble in order to blackmail the world into acquiescence to its nuclear ambitions.President after president of both parties vowed that Iran would never be allowed to have a nuclear weapon. President Trump made good on that vow with the order to conduct Operation Midnight HammerOperation Midnight Hammer last June, which obliterated the ongoing enrichment and weaponization programs inside Iran.74 RETIRED US GENERALS, ADMIRALS BACK IRAN STRIKES, WARN TEHRAN SEEKS TO ‘SPILL AMERICAN BLOOD’At that point, Iran could have taken the off-ramp, recognized that the U.S. and Israel had reached the point at which no further provocation or prevarication would be tolerated. Indeed, President Trump made repeated efforts to offer terms to the ayatollahs.They refused. They obfuscated, playing for time, and always refusing to negotiate as their missile arsenal accumulated. President Trump then did what every American president of both parties pledged to do: He stopped them. And he ordered the military to prevent the next attempt to rebuild.Stunningly ignorant clerics and critics have damned the United States for breaching international law. Some have incredibly turned their backs not only on the growing, ongoing and imminent threats posed by the fanatics but also on the mountain of corpses the IRGC piled up in the streets of Iran in January. Catholics: Stop giving money to those dioceses that are putting our troops at risk, and make no mistake, some cardinals are doing just that. They are the modern but left-wing versions of Father Coughlin of the 1930s. Their infamy will be as enduring as his.Cardinal Cupich of Chicago joined Cardinal Robert McElroy of Washington, D.C., and Cardinal Joseph Tobin of Newark, New Jersey, in co-authoring an incoherent statement titled “Charting a Moral Vision of American Foreign Policy” that ignores the massive evils perpetrated by the IRGC this year and over the decades. Politicians shouldn’t advise priests on their religious doctrine and priests should not demonstrate their lack of knowledge about basic national security.CLICK HERE FOR MORE FOX NEWS OPINIONThe cardinals are not alone, however, as the upside-down view of this battle has a grip on the Democratic Party. For the first time in my life, the partisanship that marks elections now defines a conflict in which American servicemen and women are on the front lines. We can perhaps excuse clerics for their ignorance of the world. The Catholic bishops of America presumed to lecture Ronald Reagan in the 1980s with lengthy letters on war and peace as well as on economic growth, and conveniently forgot how wrong they were when the policies of Reagan and President George H.W. Bush brought down the Soviet Union and freed much of Eastern Europe and even Russia for a time.But now the American left, both in elected office and in pulpits high and low, have wholly lost their way. To repeat: The Iranian regime murdered 35,000 of its own people two months ago. Its proxy, Hamas, invaded Israel and slaughtered 1,200 on 10/7/23 while starting a war that devastated Gaza. Two other of Iran’s proxies — Hezbollah and the Houthis — also attacked Israel in the months after 10/7, as did Iran. Where were the cardinals then? Hiding, of course.The collapse of moral clarity among American elites on the left is complete, and it has even made inroads on the fringes of the right. The Republican Party should boldly proclaim that, even after 250 years, our country still knows right from wrong and will defend the right.President Trump is leading a winning campaign to rid the world of as malign an actor as there is. The region and the world will be so much better off if the president perseveres. Pray he does, because it is obvious that many who should be doing so lack the wisdom and/or the courage to do so.Hugh Hewitt is a Fox News contributor and host of “The Hugh Hewitt Show” heard weekday afternoons from 3 PM to 6 PM ET on the Salem Radio Network, and simulcast on Salem News Channel. Hugh drives Americans home on the East Coast and to lunch on the West Coast on over 400 affiliates nationwide, and on all the streaming platforms where SNC can be seen. He is a frequent guest on the Fox News Channel’s news roundtable, hosted by Bret Baier weekdays at 6pm ET. A son of Ohio and a graduate of Harvard College and the University of Michigan Law School, Hewitt has been a Professor of Law at Chapman University’s Fowler School of Law since 1996 where he teaches Constitutional Law. Hewitt launched his eponymous radio show from Los Angeles in 1990. Hewitt has frequently appeared on every major national news television network, hosted television shows for PBS and MSNBC, written for every major American paper, has authored a dozen books and moderated a score of Republican candidate debates, most recently the November 2023 Republican presidential debate in Miami and four Republican presidential debates in the 2015-16 cycle. Hewitt focuses his radio show and his column on the Constitution, national security, American politics and the Cleveland Browns and Guardians. Hewitt has interviewed tens of thousands of guests from Democrats Hillary Clinton and John Kerry to Republican Presidents George W. Bush and Donald Trump over his 40 years in broadcasting. This column previews the lead story that will drive his radio/ TV show today.CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM HUGH HEWITT

Germany’s Commuters Bear The Cost Of The Iran Crisis And Tax State

Submitted by Thomas Kolbe

The excessive fiscal burden on fuels has driven gasoline prices in Germany higher since the start of the Iran crisis. Yet it seems unlikely that German policymakers will ease the burden on commuters or businesses. Apart from a task force, nothing has been planned. Other regions are proving more resilient.

The Iran conflict has entered its second week, and with it, concerns are growing over the consequences of the slowly but steadily building energy crisis for the global economy.

In Germany, the rise in oil prices was quickly reflected at the pumps. Prices jumped from around €1.65 per liter to over €2 – a roughly 25 percent increase in a very short period (Apollo News reported).

At the same time, suspicions arise that oil companies are securing quick profits by selling already invoiced and refined petroleum as well as existing gasoline stocks at the now significantly higher retail price, realizing excess profits.

However, this is a temporary effect, likely to be balanced quickly by market dynamics. The internationally high increase in German gasoline prices is almost entirely due to the fact that the state, through its tax policies, accounts for roughly 65 percent of the retail price. A silent profiteer in the crisis, while commuters face growing problems.

Whether CO₂ levies, fuel taxes, or VAT – the government should now act with fiscal restraint and provide significant relief to both commuters and businesses. So far, this is not the case. German politics stares like a rabbit at the snake in the Iran conflict. Slowly, it becomes clear that decades of ideologically driven energy policy were nothing more than a trillion-euro, subsidized fantasy – now turning into a nightmare.

USA Operate Autarkically 

Across the Atlantic, the situation is very different. Gas prices in the United States rose by about five to ten percent. Eight months before the crucial midterm elections, this will be decisive for President Donald Trump to uphold his campaign promises and keep inflation under control.

A quick end to the Iran war is now imperative. Washington is weighing the geopolitical effects, control of global oil markets, and domestic inflation risks.

Since 2018, the United States has been the world’s largest oil producer with a daily output of 18 million barrels and is also an exporter of “black gold.” Its dominant position makes it relatively insulated from major oil price shocks while giving it significant market influence.

If the crisis persists, the global energy market risks fragmentation. Massive price hikes threaten import-dependent states, such as many European countries, while energy-autarkic nations retain pricing power and are largely shielded from extreme increases.

South Korea as a Special Case 

Looking to Asia, South Korea is highly energy-dependent like Europe but boasts substantial refining capacity. Companies such as SK Energy, GS Caltex, or S-Oil typically operate on long-term supply contracts and fixed prices, while holding significant crude inventories that can be drawn down during a supply disruption.

The South Korean economy is temporarily insulated from a Hormuz blockade. Gas prices rose about 13 percent since the outbreak of the war, from €1.11 to €1.25 per liter – markedly less than in Germany.

Taxes and levies account for only around 40 percent of the retail gasoline price in South Korea, providing an advantage compared with Germany’s steadily rising mobility and energy taxes.

It may take up to three weeks for an oil shock to reach Korean gas stations. During this time, firms hedge currency and price risks on futures markets, operating largely in isolation. Refineries and storage practices act as an additional strategic oil reserve directly integrated into the processing of the economy’s key resource.

Politically, the government remains on alert. Seoul has so far refrained from temporary fuel tax cuts, a measure historically used to support the economy. Most recently, this occurred during the lockdown phase. This suggests that Korean authorities do not expect a prolonged conflict – and certainly not a ground invasion by U.S. or Israeli troops. Such a scenario would inevitably escalate, including on global commodity markets.

Crystal Ball Outlook 

It is currently almost impossible to predict how the conflict will evolve. Regime change in Tehran appears to be neither a U.S. nor Israeli objective. Likewise, ground troop interventions remain highly unlikely, especially given the approaching midterms in the U.S.

This makes a short conflict duration likely. Strategic oil reserves in most EU countries cover roughly three months and have not yet been tapped. Despite rapid price increases, no acute supply shortages currently exist.

To relieve pressure at the pumps, fuel taxes would need to be cut. Yet it is unlikely that Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil will forgo the additional revenues generated by the temporary energy price spike.

Politically, the focus remains on optics: a gasoline price task force has been convened – a media maneuver during election season, a political chimera drawn reflexively from the government’s toolkit.

Structural solutions to Europe’s dangerous energy dependence would require a geopolitical reset, including a peace settlement with Russia, exploitation of domestic resources such as the continent’s immense gas reserves, and potentially a return to nuclear power in Germany.

* * * 

About the author: Thomas Kolbe, a German graduate economist, has worked for over 25 years as a journalist and media producer for clients from various industries and business associations. As a publicist, he focuses on economic processes and observes geopolitical events from the perspective of the capital markets. His publications follow a philosophy that focuses on the individual and their right to self-determination.

Tyler Durden
Thu, 03/12/2026 – 05:00

Changing of the cards.

President Donald Trump on Wednesday endorsed Texas Republican Brandon Herrera after his primary rival exited the race amid an ethics investigation into an admitted affair with a former staffer.Herrera, a self-described Second Amendment activist and social media personality, was touted by Trump as a Republican who would promote the MAGA agenda in Texas’ 23rd District.”Brandon is strongly supported by many Highly Respected MAGA Warriors in Texas, and Republicans in the U.S. House,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. “As your next Congressman, he will work tirelessly to advance our MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN Agenda.””Brandon will fight hard to Grow the Economy, Cut Taxes and Regulations, Advance MADE IN THE U.S.A., Unleash American Energy DOMINANCE, Safeguard our Elections, Champion School Choice, Keep our Border SECURE, Stop Migrant Crime, Support our Brave Military, Veterans, and Law Enforcement, and Protect our always under siege Second Amendment,” Trump added.MIKE JOHNSON ASKS EMBATTLED HOUSE REPUBLICAN TONY GONZALES TO DROP RE-ELECTION BIDHerrera thanked the president for his endorsement, which adds to backing from conservative lawmakers, including Reps. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., and Mary Miller, R-Ill.”Thank you President Trump,” he said in a post on X. “It’s now time to take the fight to the Democrats in November and continue working to deliver great wins for TX23 and the rest of the nation.”Trump’s endorsement comes after Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, announced last week that he would not seek re-election, clearing the path for Herrera to claim the GOP nomination.TRUMP ALLY CLAY FULLER ADVANCES IN GEORGIA FIGHT FOR MTG’S FORMER SEATHerrera narrowly edged Gonzales by a 43.33% to 41.73% margin in Texas’ GOP primary for the 23rd Congressional District earlier this month, forcing a runoff because neither candidate earned 50% of the vote.Gonzales — who was initially backed by Trump — bowed out of the race amid a House Ethics investigation into an affair he admitted took place with a former staffer.Gonzales, a married father of six, admitted to the affair during an appearance on a conservative talk radio show the day after advancing to the primary runoff.”I made a mistake, and I had a lapse in judgment, and there was a lack of faith, and I take full responsibility for those actions,” he said on “The Joe Pags Show” last week. “Since then, I’ve reconciled with my wife, Angel. I’ve asked God to forgive me, which he has, and my faith is as strong as ever.”Herrera previously called his opponent’s withdrawal from the race the “appropriate decision.”He will face Katy Padilla Stout, a local attorney and the Democratic nominee, in November.

Team USA hockey player Matthew Tkachuk said it is hard to compare the achievements of winning the Winter Olympics versus the Stanley Cup on “Hang Out with Sean Hannity.”Tkachuk, who won the National Hockey League’s ultimate prize in back-to-back seasons with the Florida Panthers, shared that the Stanley Cup is physically demanding and earning the title is an extraordinary accomplishment.”Winning a Stanley Cup physically on your body is so tough, he said. “It’s the hardest trophy to win in sports.””When it’s done, and you’re lifting the cup and your body’s just mangled, like you realize how hard it is to win it. And there’s something special about having your engraved on that for history,” he added.TEAM USA HOCKEY HERO JACK HUGHES ‘EXCLUSIVELY’ DATING CANADIAN POP STAR: REPORTBut the outpouring of support he received for representing the “greatest country in the world” at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina was equally meaningful.”But with that being said… we had people tuning in that have never watched hockey, that were just fans of USA,” Tkachuk added.”I had somebody that came up to me the other day that said that the only reason they watched is because how like patriotic we were and how we were representing the country, and now they’re big hockey fans and they couldn’t name a handful of players.”TAGE THOMPSON RESPONDS TO MAGA HAT CRITICISM AFTER TEAM USA GOLD: ‘PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN’Tkachuk helped secure the United States’ historic win against Canada for the first time in 46 years at the 2026 Winter Olympics.Tkachuk, 28, also announced he is expecting his first child with his wife Ellie after nearly one year of marriage.After five years together, Matthew and Ellie married in July 2025. The couple is waiting to learn the baby’s gender until it is born, Tkachuk shared.DEVILS FANS WELCOME JACK HUGHES BACK TO NEW JERSEY WITH PREGAME CELEBRATION”We aren’t finding out,” he revealed. “We’re going old school approach, which I wasn’t too fond of early, I will say.”The star hockey player shared his excitement for potentially having a son, who could carry on his hockey legacy, joking that he will get him on the ice as soon as possible.”At some point would definitely love to have a boy,” he said.”I’m lacing him up… the second he can… at least stand up, I’m gonna carry him around the ice,” he added.”I think I’m more excited for youth hockey one day than my current hockey right now like honest to God,” he told Fox News. “I can’t wait for the road trips, I can’t wait for the family to come, I can wait for tht the parents to be in the hotel lobby bar at night talking about the day.”Tkachuk’s full conversation with Hannity drops Thursday morning on the “Hang Out with Sean Hannity.” podcast

“I’m always going to support that.”

Middle East Conflict Tightens LNG Supply, Redirects Cargoes To Asia

The shutdown of key gas export facilities in the Middle East is tightening global liquefied natural gas supplies, raising the risk of a deficit and pushing cargoes toward Asia as buyers compete for limited shipments, according to Bloomberg.

Ras Laffan in Qatar — the world’s largest LNG export complex — has halted production, while shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has also been disrupted. Bloomberg calculations based on 2025 output suggest that roughly three Qatari LNG cargoes are effectively removed from the market for every day the disruption continues. A smaller export facility in Abu Dhabi is also unable to ship, leaving about 20% of global LNG supply offline.

The tightening market is already reshaping trade flows. Ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg show that at least nine LNG cargoes originally bound for Europe have diverted to Asia since the fighting began, with the pace increasing in recent days as spare supply in the market rapidly dwindles.

“If this situation were to persist for multiple months, dragging well into the summer, there aren’t enough alternative LNG sources to sufficiently supply the global market,” said Mathieu Utting, an analyst at Rystad Energy. “The two other major LNG suppliers, the US and Australia, are already operating at full capacity with little room to increase utilization.”

The squeeze comes at a critical moment for both regions. Europe needs additional LNG to rebuild storage depleted during winter, while hotter-than-normal weather in parts of Asia is expected to boost air-conditioning demand in the coming months. Prices in both regions have surged over the past week, raising concerns about inflation and economic impacts.

“Asian buyers will need to supplement their term supply with spot cargoes,” said James O’Brien, head of LNG at D.Trading, a unit of Ukraine’s private energy company DTEK. “This will inevitably pull more Atlantic molecules east.”

Bloomberg writes that buyers in India, Bangladesh and Thailand have already turned to the spot market for additional supply, though some recent tenders for March delivery — including ones from India — failed to attract sellers because of limited availability and high prices.

52% of VG float is short, indirectly a short also on LNG. Good luck https://t.co/zC5o8OVOAZ pic.twitter.com/UHsamIacTt
— zerohedge (@zerohedge) March 6, 2026
New LNG supply from the US is unlikely to arrive quickly. While projects including Golden Pass in Texas and expansions at Corpus Christi and Plaquemines are progressing, additional capacity will come online only gradually.

Analysts say the disruption is also reducing the chances of a widely expected LNG glut this year. Morgan Stanley said any extension of the Qatar outage beyond a month “quickly brings a deficit,” after the bank had previously forecast 6 to 8 million tons of oversupply.

Rabobank strategist Florence Schmit estimates that each week of lost Qatari production cuts the expected surplus by about 1.5 million tons, leaving only a few weeks before the market tips into deficit.

“Markets are now facing a supply deficit even with higher US flows,” Schmit said. “The LNG glut has been delayed by a year.”

Tyler Durden
Thu, 03/12/2026 – 04:15

Trump indicated he was aware of an alarming FBI memo issued to law enforcement in California, warning that Iran could deploy drones from a vessel off the Golden State coastline to attack the mainland. 

Jodie Daunis, who spent several years working as a customer service operator on Brisbane’s iconic ferries, was shown the door in July last year by transport giant Kelsian Group.

There was no sugarcoating an ugly first-half performance from the Knicks, and the harsh words during the break helped spur their comeback win.