News On Tap For Friday, March 13, 2026

World Keeps Turnin’

While some folks think the world revolves around them, today’s “News On Tap” confirms it doesn’t. We’ve got news updates on Trump’s damned stupid war in Iran, and his oily backfire (Apologies for that mental image). We’ve also got updates & recaps on the two major shooting incidents in the U.S. yesterday. There’s also news on Trump’s failing economy. Plus, we’ve got lots of guests tonight! Kat Abughazeleh is back to talk about her campaign, ‘Brother’ David Nichols is in with his Oscars preview, and Karen & Anita of the Tru Blu Politics podcast are back too, to recap all the news of the week. Read up, get informed, & join us tonight!

First Round - Donald & Bibi’s Middle East Mess

Update On Trump’s Damned Iran War

• Iran War Live Updates: Hegseth Vows To Reopen Strait Of Hormuz, As U.S. Measures Fail To Calm Oil Market

• U.S. Military Confirms All Six Crew Members Killed In KC-135 Refueling Plane Crash In Iraq

• Iran Hits Back At The U.S. & Israel By Strangling The Vital Strait Of Hormuz

• Trump Admits He Thinks Putin Is Helping Iran

• Sec. Of Defense Pete Hegseth Dismisses Concerns About Iran Blocking The Strait Of Hormuz: ‘Don’t Need To Worry About It’

• Pentagon Pete Ignores Dead Troops At Presser To Melt Down At CNN

• They Still Think It’s A Game: Trump Admin. Compares Deadly Conflict To Video Games And Movies In Memeified Videos

• Alex Shephard: With The War In Iran, Trump Has Launched His Own Brand Of Stupid Forever War

Israel’s Role In The War

• Israel Strikes Iran’s Ally Hezbollah In Beirut, As Regional Conflict Increases

• Netanyahu Threatens Iran’s New Leader, Says Collapse Of Iranian Government Uncertain

• Israeli Officials Think Iran’s Regime Isn’t Likely To Fall Anytime Soon

An Oily Backfire

• 16 Ships Hit And Counting: Oil And Cargo Ships Are Growing Targets In War With Iran

• Trump Admin Now Planning Jones Act Waivers In Effort To Lower Skyrocketing Fuel Costs

• What The Jones Act Does And How A Trump Suspension Could Affect Fuel Prices

• Trump Removes Sanctions On Russia To Help Oil Flow Amid Iran Conflict [Gift Link]

• Russia Receives Up To $150 Million In Additional Daily Revenue Because Of The War In The Middle East

• China Could Also Emerge A Winner From Trump’s Global Energy Shock

• Ryan Cooper: The National Security Case For Renewable Energy

Second Round - Another Day That Ends In Why

A Shooting In Virginia

• ROTC Students At Old Dominion University Subdued And Killed Shooter Who Left 1 Dead, 2 Hurt

• Man Killed In Old Dominion Univ. Shooting Identified As Professor & Head Of University’s Army ROTC Program

• Suspect In Old Dominion University Shooting Was Convicted ISIS Supporter

• FBI Confirms Old Dominion Shooting Is Being Investigated As Act Of Terrorism

A Shooting In Michigan

• DHS Says Man Who Rammed His Vehicle Into Michigan Synagogue Was Naturalized Citizen From Lebanon

• Officials Confirm Man In Michigan Synagogue Attack Lost Family In Israeli Airstrikes In Lebanon

Third Round - Trump's Failing Government

Trumponomics Is Failing

• Two Newly Released Economic Benchmarks Prove U.S. Economy Was On Shakier Ground In Early 2026 Than Previously Reported

• Commerce Dept. Revises Down Fourth-Quarter GDP To Just 0.7% Growth; January Core Inflation Was Up 3.1% Year-Over-Year

• New Guardian Survey: Seven In 10 Americans Now Agree - Trump’s Tariffs Caused Higher Prices

• Oil Supply Shock From Trump’s War On Iran Sends Tremors Through World Economy: ‘This Really Is The Big One’ Everyone Feared [Gift Link]

Immigration Wars

• New Reporting Confirms Kids Are Still Languishing In ICE Detention Long Past Legally Mandated 20-Day Court Limit

• In Rare Court Testimony, ICE Agents Forced To Reveal Details Of Daily Arrest Quotas And Surveillance App

Fourth Round - More News To Drink About

Election Land

• New Report Confirms Dark Money Group Offering Influencers $1,500 For Posts Attacking Chicago Democratic Primary Candidate Kat Abughazaleh

• Democrats Deal Republicans Double Polling Blow In Both Ohio Senate & Governor’s Races

Other Foreign Affairs

• Cuban Pres. Díaz-Canel Confirms Talks With Trump Officials Amid U.S. Blockade

• Ukrainian Pres. Zelenskyy Meets With French Pres. Macron In Paris As Iran War Overshadows Ukraine

Fifth Round - Media, Entertainment, & More

Media Matters

• Trump Nominates Kari Lake’s Replacement At Voice Of America Parent Agency

• Amazon To Hike Fee For Prime Video Ad-Free Tier To $5 Per Month In U.S., On Top Of Prime Membership

Entertainment & More

• Chaz Bono Marries Shara Blue Mathes, Surrounded By Their Loved Ones, Including Mom Cher

• Final Oscar Predictions: Best Picture — It’s A Two-Film Showdown Between ‘Sinners’ Vs. ‘One Battle After Another’

• Rob Reiner’s Tribute Set To Be A ‘Powerful Part’ Of The Oscars

• It’s A USA Vs. Canada Rematch In Tonight’s World Baseball Classic Rematch

• U.S. Mens’ Sled Hockey Team Beats Czechia 6-1, Advances To Their Fifth Straight Gold Medal Game

• How To Watch The Closing Ceremony Of The 2026 Milan Cortina Paralympics This Sunday

Tonight’s First Special Guest

Kat Abughazaleh, former journalist & media researcher & social media explainer - and a friend of Shawn’s - is now a candidate for the Democratic nomination for U.S. House in Illinois’ Ninth district. She’s been changing how campaigns work, and she’s in the running to be the Democratic primary winner. But there has been some dirty campaigning against her - so she’s stopping by the bar tonight to set the record straight. Of course, we’ll have to talk a little about baseball too.

Tonight’s Second Special Guest

‘Brother’ David’ Nichols isn’t just one of our regular listeners here at The Politics Bar. He’s also the former theatre & movie critic for the Los Angels Times! So who better to do our Oscar preview tonight than David! He’ll look into his crystal ball & join us tonight to point out which movies & actors we should be watching to win this weekend.

Your Bar Regulars Tonight…

Our friends Karen from Chicago, & Anita From San Antonio, co-hosts of Tru Blu Politics (and on Patreon too) are back in the bar tonight, to talk about another crazy busy week of news. From Donald’s stupid war in Iran, to Trump’s failing economy and more, we’ve got lots to talk about. Grab a seat & a sip, & join us tonight!

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