About this episode
Today’s Headlines: The Middle East conflict has rapidly expanded to 12 countries in under 72 hours, with six U.S. troops killed after an Iranian strike hit an operations center in Kuwait. President Donald Trump signaled the fighting is far from over, saying Operation “EPIC FURY” could last four to five weeks and will continue “as long as necessary.” Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned that “the hardest hits are yet to come,” while Joint Chiefs Chairman Dan Caine cautioned the operation will be “difficult and gritty” and likely involve additional U.S. losses. The State Department is urging Americans to evacuate more than a dozen countries, and U.S. cities are on heightened alert, according to FBI Director Kash Patel. In a twist, the Pentagon reportedly used Anthropic’s Claude AI model in the Iran strikes — despite the administration recently clashing with the company and canceling contracts. Abroad, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Ukrainian drone experts will assist Gulf nations in intercepting Iranian drones, as Russia ramps up missile attacks on Ukraine. In Epstein news, federal prosecutors under Trump in 2019 reportedly took over New Mexico’s investigation into Jeffrey Epstein’s Zorro Ranch. The state’s attorney general has now reopened the probe, and the House Oversight Committee released video testimony from Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton. Meanwhile, the Justice Department is also expected to drop appeals defending Trump-era executive orders that targeted major law firms. And finally, Rep. Nancy Mace is under House Ethics Committee investigation over nearly $9,500 in alleged excess reimbursements.
Resources/Articles mentioned in this episode:
CNN: Live updates: US Gulf allies fend off attacks as Trump warns Iran of ‘big wave’ of strikes
The Guardian: Ukraine war briefing: Starmer says Ukrainian experts will help shoot down Iranian drone attacks in Gulf
Axios: US cities step up security amid Iran tensions
WSJ: U.S. Strikes in Middle East Use Anthropic, Hours After Trump Ban
NYT: Epstein’s New Mexico Ranch Gets Scrutiny at Last. It May Be Too Late.
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