Trump News for Friday, March 27, 2026

Airfare Is Just the Beginning

Will Gottsegen, The Atlantic

Expensive plane tickets are a preview of what could come next.

Hegseth’s War On Anthropic Encounters The First Amendment

Cathy Gellis, Techdirt

The expression, “to make a federal case out of something” usually describes making a bigger deal out of something than it should be. But in the case of Anthropic and Hegseth, Trump, and the Department of Defense*, this federal case is actually quite simple: w…

WATCH: One month into war with Iran

ABC News, Abcnews.com

ABC News' Ian Pannell looks at the state of the U.S. and Israel's war with Iran nearly one month since the war began.

WATCH: Why has the price of gold fallen since the start of the Iran war?

ABC News, Abcnews.com

Gold prices have plunged 13% since the outbreak of war with Iran, betraying the yellow metal's reputation as a safe-haven asset.

President Trump Is Now Posting Animal Crossing AI-Slop

Zack Zwiezen, Kotaku

The posts were part of his administration celebrating plans to bail farmers out of a situation created by Trump's own actions

What is the TACO trade and are investors profiting amid war on Iran?

Al Jazeera Staff, Al Jazeera English

Global energy crisis continues to widen amid market volatility, while so-called 'TACO traders' attempt to capitalise.

Jane Fonda Leads First Amendment Rally Near Kennedy Center To Warn Of Paramount-Warner Bros. Merger & Trump’s Media Attacks

Ted Johnson, Deadline

Jane Fonda brought her Committee for the First Amendment to Washington, D.C. on Friday, for a pre-No Kings Day that focused on Donald Trump’s attacks on the media and the pending merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery. Held on a street just near …

The Justice Department plans to share sensitive voter data with Homeland Security

Jude Joffe-Block, NPR

The Justice Department has sought voter data from states. It now says it plans to share that data with the Department of Homeland Security, to run it through a controversial citizenship check tool.

Using US ground troops against Iran could prove very costly, retired generals say

Steven Beynon, Chris Boccia, Luis Martinez, Abcnews.com

Retired generals told ABC News that using U.S. ground troops against Iran would significantly escalate the war and carry a steep risk of American casualties.

WATCH: Tennessee murder suspect escapes county jail, added to TBI Most Wanted

ABC News, Abcnews.com

Joshua Wayne Metcalf, 48, is wanted for escaping from the Hancock County Jail in northeast Tennessee, the Hancock County Sheriff's Department said on Thursday.

WATCH: The Department of Homeland Security said that TSA workers will start seeing their paychecks on Monday, March 30.

ABC News, Abcnews.com

The Department of Homeland Security said that TSA workers will start seeing their paychecks on Monday, March 30.

WATCH: Johnson said the government "will reduce the lines and the waits at the airlines" after Trump announced that he will sign an executive order instructing DHS Sec. Mullin to pay TSA workers immediately.

ABC News, Abcnews.com

Johnson said the government "will reduce the lines and the waits at the airlines" after Trump announced that he will sign an executive order instructing DHS Sec. Mullin to pay TSA workers immediately.

Mexico’s navy searches for two missing boats involved in Cuba aid convoy

Al Jazeera, Al Jazeera English

The Nuestra America Convoy said that the sailboats were led by 'experienced sailors' with access to safety equipment.

Israel launches strikes on Iran nuclear sites as war enters fifth week

Al Jazeera Staff, Al Jazeera English

Uranium facility, steel plants and heavy water complex among targets hit as IRGC warns of escalating retaliation.

WATCH: Cigarette smoking among U.S. adults continues to fall to record low levels as e-cigarette use rises, according to a new report from the CDC.

ABC News, Abcnews.com

Cigarette smoking among U.S. adults continues to fall to record low levels as e-cigarette use rises, according to a new report from the CDC.

WATCH: Tiger Woods was involved in a rollover crash in Jupiter Island, Florida, on Friday afternoon, the Martin County Sheriff’s Office said.

ABC News, Abcnews.com

Tiger Woods was involved in a rollover crash in Jupiter Island, Florida, on Friday afternoon, the Martin County Sheriff’s Office said.

Millions of student-loan borrowers kicked off Biden's affordable plan are required to restart payments this fall

Ayelet Sheffey, Business Insider

After eliminating the SAVE student-loan repayment plan, Trump's Education Department is now advising borrowers to select a new plan and start paying.

Was the Iran War Caused by AI Psychosis?

Mohammed Omar, Houseofsaud.com

AI sycophancy, RLHF bias, and Ender's Foundry simulations shaped Operation Epic Fury. 7 planning assumptions failed in 23 days as the Iran war defied every AI prediction.

House Republicans shoot down bill that would pay federal airport workers

Al Jazeera Staff, Al Jazeera English

White House memo says Trump has instructed DHS to pay federal airport workers as long lines snarl travel.

Meta Gets Called Out by Its Own Oversight Board Over Expanding Community Notes

Omar Gallaga, CNET

A look into the way Meta handles moderation suggests Community Notes aren't an effective substitute for the third-party fact-checking program it disbanded last year.

Trump Drops $1B to Kill 2 Wind Farms, Then Watches a Bigger One Go Online

Ellyn Lapointe, Gizmodo.com

A first-of-its-kind deal killed two offshore wind projects and reinvested the funds in fossil fuels. The next day, the nation’s largest offshore wind farm started delivering power.

Wait, the Trump phone might actually exist

Dominic Preston, The Verge

Where's the Trump phone? We're going to keep talking about it every week. We've reached out, as usual, to ask about the Trump phone's whereabouts. This week I think I've found an FCC listing for the phone, showing it's received certification to launch in the …

WATCH: Artemis II crew arrives at Kennedy Space Center

ABC News, Abcnews.com

NASA’s Artemis II crew is preparing for a 10-day mission, set to launch April 1. Former NASA astronaut Susan Kilrain and ABC News contributor Hakeem Oluseyi discuss more.

Musician who canceled Kennedy Center holiday performance asks for suit to be dismissed

STEVEN SLOAN, Yahoo Entertainment

Chuck Redd, the musician who canceled a Christmas Eve performance at the Kennedy Center in protest of President Donald Trump's influence over the venue, is...

White House’s Mysterious ‘Covfefe Moment’ Was Stupider Than We Imagined

Matt Novak, Gizmodo.com

Government of trolls.

The religious right is breaking up over Israel and Iran

Christian Paz, Vox

Nearly a month into the joint US-Israeli war on Iran, there’s a good chance you’ve heard something about the apparent civil war on the right over the conflict. Though polling shows steady support for President Donald Trump from his MAGA base, the war has been…

WATCH: US fighter jet in close call with Iranian missile

ABC News, Abcnews.com

New video shows a U.S. fighter jet narrowly evading an Iranian missile. The close call comes as the Pentagon weighs sending 10,000 more troops to the Middle East.

US diplomat Marco Rubio denounces settler violence, tolls in Hormuz strait

Al Jazeera Staff, Al Jazeera English

Rubio reiterated President Donald Trump's call for other countries to participate in securing the Strait of Hormuz.

The sneaky way Trump’s lawyers are supercharging ICE

Ian Millhiser, Vox

Shortly after President Donald Trump took office for the second time, his administration started illegally detaining immigrants without giving them a bond hearing or other method of avoiding incarceration while an immigration judge determines if they are in t…

The Regime Survives, Trump Has to Deal, and Iranians Are the Biggest Losers

Hooman Majd, The Intercept

Short of a full-scale invasion, it looks like Trump will need to deal with the Iranian regime. The post The Regime Survives, Trump Has to Deal, and Iranians Are the Biggest Losers appeared first on The Intercept.

Iran protest before friendly remembers victims of deadly school attack

Adwaidh Rajan, BBC News

The Iran men's national football team wore black armbands and held schoolbags as their national anthem played before a match against Nigeria.

“No blank check for a lawless ICE”: Senate funds TSA, leaves out immigration groups

Jelinda Montes, Salon

Airport chaos drove the compromise to fund DHS without immigration enforcement. But House approval is uncertain.

Senators want datacenters to come clean on power consumption

Dan Robinson, Theregister.com

Ratepayer Protection Pledge is unenforceable without hard numbers, Warren and Hawley argue US senators are pushing to require datacenters and other large energy customers to report consumption, arguing the data is essential to hold them accountable to local c…

The Missouri v. Biden ‘Settlement’ Is A Fake Victory For A Case They Lost

Mike Masnick, Techdirt

Last week, Senator Eric Schmitt of Missouri got into a heated exchange during a Senate hearing with Stanford’s Daphne Keller. Schmitt, who, as Missouri’s Attorney General, originally filed the Missouri v. Biden lawsuit, was berating Keller over Stanford’s sup…

What is RFK doing to vaccines for children in America?

BBC News

Trump’s Health Secretary hits a major setback to “Make America Healthy Again”

Sundance Rejected It, the MPA Censored It, but ‘Our Hero, Balthazar’ Still Stands Among the Year’s Most Provocative Movies

Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire

Writer/director Oscar Boyson and co-writer Ricky Camilleri's dark comedy about edgelords, internet trolls, social media addiction, and school shootings was also shut out by SXSW, as the filmmakers tell IndieWire.

Splinter: The Other Major Chokepoint Iran Can Use to Squeeze Trump

Jacob Weindling, Jezebel

This is all so unprecedented and gargantuan in scale, it's hard to really put into words what this all means for the global economy should this status quo persist, other than bad bad bad bad bad.

House panel finds Florida Democrat guilty of ethics violations

Barbara Sprunt, NPR

The House Ethics Committee has found evidence that Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick violated House rules. This comes after the panel held a rare public hearing to review investigations into allegations against the Florida Democrat.

CPAC crowd demands impeachment as panicked speaker tries to walk back comments...

Alana Loftus, Irishstar.com

CPAC crowd demands impeachment as panicked speaker tries to walk back comments... (Top headline, 3rd story, link) Related stories:TRUMP WEALTH BALLOONS TO '$6.5 BILLION'... First president to put signature on dollar bills...

'$26 Million Doesn’t Mean a Thing’: Farmer (Hero?) Who Rejected Data Center Buyout

Claire Guinan, Jezebel

Giving up millions is one thing, but denying AI big shots the pleasure of thinking they can buy up our towns? Priceless.

Trump, 79, Humiliated With Brutal Community Note on His ‘Cognitive Test’

The Daily Beast, Daily Beast

President Donald Trump’s dubious “cognitive test” claims have been given a brutal reality check. Users on X have slapped community notes on viral clips of...

Nixon to Trump: Pakistan’s long record as backchannel between rival powers

Abid Hussain, Al Jazeera English

Islamabad reprises its role as diplomatic broker as US and Iran edge closer to wider confrontation.

The First Post-Reality Political Campaign

Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic

Hungary’s Viktor Orbán is waging cognitive warfare on a new scale.

Norway to add more than $11bn to defence budget over 10 years

Al Jazeera, Al Jazeera English

Norway, as well as other NATO countries, has been under pressure from the US to boost defence spending.

IS IT FINALLY OVER?

Bridget Brown, Curtis Yee, Associated Press

The Senate approved DHS funds to pay TSA agents and most other agencies, but not the immigration enforcement operations at the heart of the budget impasse that has disrupted travel.

Trump’s new science panel includes 9 tech billionaires—and just one scientist

Dan Garisto, Nature magazine, Nature.com

There’s a glaring hole in the president’s new science and tech council

Trump, 79, Reveals Disturbing Nickname for Don Jr.’s Ex

Yahoo Entertainment

I canceled my flight and paid $200 for a 20-hour Amtrak ride to avoid TSA airport chaos. It was better than flying.

Kristine Villarroel, Business Insider

TSA chaos and long airport lines pushed me to cancel my flight and take a 20-hour Amtrak ride instead. Here's why I'd do it again.

Sony is raising PS5 prices by $100 in April

Emma Roth, The Verge

Sony is raising the price of its PlayStation 5 consoles globally starting April 2nd. In an announcement on Friday, Sony says that the standard PS5 will now cost $649.99, up from $549.99. Meanwhile, the PS5 Digital Edition now costs $599.99 instead of $499.99,…

BBC journalist caught in travel chaos at Houston Airport

BBC News

The airport is experiencing some of the longest delays in the US as TSA agents work without pay in a partial shutdown.

You Can Prob Guess Who Just Blocked 2 Women and 2 Black Officials from Their Pentagon Promotions

Danielle Han, Jezebel

Unfortunately, you can probably also guess who reportedly didn’t want to “stand next” to a Black female officer at military events.

CBS News Under Bari Weiss Sees Worst Ratings In Quarter Century

Karl Bode, Techdirt

When right wing billionaire Larry Ellison (and his nepobaby kid David) hired trolling blogger Bari Weiss to run CBS News, Weiss arrived with the promise of “balanced, fact-based news,” “independent, principled journalism,” and a unique “entrepreneurial drive …

Man jailed for four years after Barron Trump reported attack to UK police

BBC News

The US president’s youngest son contacted officers when he was in the US to say his friend had been attacked in January 2025.

France calls IOC sex testing a ‘step backwards’ while Trump praises move

Al Jazeera Staff, Al Jazeera English

Transgender women athletes now excluded from female events at the Olympics after IOC agrees new eligibility policy.

Senate votes to fund most of DHS. And, Trump extends Iran's deadline to reopen strait

Brittney Melton, NPR

The Senate has voted to fund most of the Department of Homeland Security. And, President Trump extends the deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

How do mRNA vaccines work, and why are they safe and effective?

Meghan Bartels, Scientific American

The COVID pandemic ushered mRNA vaccines into the spotlight, and the technology has even greater potential. Here’s what to know about the way that they work, their safety, and more

Sunrise Movement Pushes Anti-War Candidates, Endorsing Melat Kiros in Denver

Jessica Washington, The Intercept

The group’s increasing anti-war push shows how progressives are leveraging an unpopular war in the midterms. The post Sunrise Movement Pushes Anti-War Candidates, Endorsing Melat Kiros in Denver appeared first on The Intercept.

Trump’s Iran war has no clear endgame

Brian Karem, Salon

Republicans and a former Pentagon official raise concerns over the war's conduct and what victory means

AP Photographer Recounts Cabinet Meeting and Getting Photos of Trump’s Sharpies

Matt Growcoot, PetaPixel

An Associated Press photographer has recounted how he captured President Trump's first Cabinet meeting since the United States and Israel launched airstrikes on Iran. [Read More]

WATCH: 'Grandpa George' is living his best life at 102

ABC News, Abcnews.com

George Strausman is becoming a viral sensation on social media by shaping clay at his weekly pottery class.

So This Is What Happens When Dems Don’t Cave...

Danielle Han, Jezebel

The Senate agreed to a partial DHS funding bill on Friday that excluded funds for ICE and CBP.

Minnesota kicks off legal battle to hold ICE shooters accountable

Andy Mannix, Salon

The dispute with the Trump admin is a game of constitutional chicken over states’ rights versus federal immunity

Protesting the Smash-and-Grab Presidency With Nikhil Pal Singh

The Intercept Briefing, The Intercept

Nikhil Pal Singh on building bigger coalitions and where the opposition goes in this increasingly hostile protest environment. The post Protesting the Smash-and-Grab Presidency With Nikhil Pal Singh appeared first on The Intercept.

Trump administration to face questions about seizure of Fulton County ballots

Peter Charalambous, Abcnews.com

Trump administration attorneys will face serious questions for the first time on Friday about the seizure of 2020 election records from a Fulton County election site.

The US Navy is pouring almost $1 billion into automating submarine production amid skilled worker shortages

Chris Panella, Business Insider

The new facilities are expected to quickly build components for Virginia- and Columbia-class submarines.

How Army paratroopers heading to Iran are trained to jump from airplanes

Graham Flanagan, Business Insider

The Pentagon is sending 2,000 Army paratroopers to the Middle East.

How extensive is Russia’s military aid to Iran?

Mansur Mirovalev, Al Jazeera English

Russia has long exchanged weapons with Iran and is likely offering satellite support, but lacks the will to do much more

Iran bans sports teams from travelling to ‘hostile’ countries amid war

Al Jazeera, Al Jazeera English

Sports Ministry says ban for 'security' of athletes before a game between Iranian and Emirati clubs in Saudi Arabia.

Iran forbids its sports teams from traveling to 'hostile' countries

The Associated Press, Abcnews.com

Iran has banned its sports teams from traveling to countries it considers “hostile,” Iranian state TV reported ahead of Tractor FC’s scheduled soccer game in Saudi Arabia

Judge weighs whether Venezuela can pay Maduro's legal costs in US drug trafficking case

The Associated Press, NPR

A U.S. judge pressed the Trump administration Thursday about its basis for barring Venezuela's government from paying former President Nicolás Maduro's legal fees in the drug trafficking case that has put him behind bars in New York.

US-Israel war on Iran: What’s happening on day 28 of attacks?

Elizabeth Melimopoulos, Al Jazeera English

Trump has delayed attacks on Iran's energy facilities by 10 days, claiming talks are going well - though Iran disagrees.

WATCH: Trump extends deadline second time for Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz

ABC News, Abcnews.com

For the second time this week, President Trump extended an ultimatum for Iran to completely open the Strait of Hormuz to international shipping traffic, saying peace talks "are going very well."

WATCH: Nicolas Maduro returns to federal court for first time in 3 months

ABC News, Abcnews.com

Ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro was shackled at the ankles and wearing a beige smock over an orange shirt as he appeared in federal court Thursday for the first time in three months.

A surprise resignation could open the door for an independent to win a Montana Senate seat

Kirk Siegler, NPR

Two-term GOP Sen. Steve Daines shocked Montana when he announced his retirement. Democrats worry a new independent candidate will split their party's vote.

Trump’s signature to appear on US currency in first for sitting president

John Power, Al Jazeera English

Announcement is the latest example of Trump literally stamping his name on US institutions.

Albanese says Australia playing “constructive” role in the war on Iran

Al Jazeera English

Australia’s prime minister says his government has made a “constructive” contribution to the war on Iran.

2 months after his arrest in Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro still has a long road to his criminal trial

Jacob Shamsian, Business Insider

While prosecutors press sweeping narco-terror allegations, the Nicolás Maduro proceedings are bogged down in a bitter dispute over legal fees.

TSA officers to get paid: Will airport security wait times improve?

Sean Cudahy, The Points Guy

The Trump administration ordered paychecks for TSA officers. Now, all eyes are on airport security checkpoints ahead of the weekend.

Analysts say Trump doesn’t understand Iran reality has changed

Al Jazeera English

Watch this discussion between Ross Harrison and Hassan Ahmadian on US strategy regarding Iran.

The depleted Education Department will move out of its headquarters

Cory Turner, NPR

In August, Education Department employees will relocate to a smaller office roughly a block away, and the larger Energy Department will take over the old headquarters.

WATCH: Dramatic video shows the moment a U.S. fighter jet narrowly dodges an Iranian missile

ABC News, Abcnews.com

Dramatic video shows the moment a missile came dangerously close to shooting down a F-18 fighter jet over Iran. It comes as Israel announced it killed Iran's navy chief.

Trump Rants On Fox Against Jimmy Kimmel’s Derision Of “Country Smart” Markwayne Mullin: “He’s Got No Talent”

Dominic Patten, Deadline

Donald Trump’s effort today to praise his new Homeland Security Secretary and defend him from mocking by Jimmy Kimmel kind of backfired. “I never heard low-level MMA,” the former Apprentice host said of the former Senator from Oklahoma on Thursday on Fox News…

Iran war live: Trump delays attacks on Iranian energy sector by 10 days

Lyndal Rowlands, Zaid Sabah, Al Jazeera English

Iranian missiles, drones target Kuwait, UAE, Saudi Arabia and Jordan as Trump says Iran has 'chance to make a deal'.