Nation and World Politics
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US national debt surges past $39 trillion just weeks into war in Iran
Mar 18, 2026 8:47 pm - The national debt surpassed a record $39 trillion on Wednesday, a milestone that comes just weeks into the U.S.-Israeli war in Iran.
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Pentagon seeks more than $200 billion in budget request for Iran war
Mar 18, 2026 8:43 pm - The Pentagon has asked the White House to approve a more than $200 billion request to Congress to fund the war in Iran, according to a senior administration official, in an enormous new ask that is almost certain to run into resistance from lawmakers opposed to the conflict.
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Ex-counterterrorism official says he wasn’t allowed to share concerns about Iran war with Trump
Mar 18, 2026 8:18 pm - Joe Kent, the former counterterrorism director who resigned this week over concerns about the Iran war, said Wednesday that he and other senior officials with doubts about the airstrikes “were not allowed” to share them with President Donald Trump.
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Madison County judge finds name in Epstein files because of legal representation
Mar 18, 2026 6:16 pm - Andrew Carruthers was an associate in the Edwardsville civil firm HeplerBroom when he was assigned a collection case in Lake County related to Jeffrey Epstein in 2013. Carruthers, who was appointed to the bench eight years later, said Epstein “was completely unknown to us” when the firm accepted his business. Carruthers said he never met or communicated with the convicted sex offender, but acted as local counsel to enforce a judgment handed down in the Virgin Islands.
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César Chávez accused of sexually abusing labor rights leader Dolores Huerta
Mar 18, 2026 3:40 pm - Labor rights leader Dolores Huerta says she was sexually abused by César Chavez amid reported allegations of abuse by others during his tenure as president of The United Farm Workers union.
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Gabbard deflects when asked on Capitol Hill about intelligence she’d offered Trump before Iran war
Mar 18, 2026 2:02 pm - Democratic senators pressed the U.S. government’s top intelligence official at annual worldwide threats hearings Wednesday about the war with Iran, including whether she had advised President Donald Trump that Tehran was likely to block the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial passageway for oil and gas from the Persian Gulf, if attacked.
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DHS pick Mullin boasts of ‘special assignments’ abroad but offers few details
Mar 18, 2026 10:48 am - The top Republican on the Senate committee considering Sen. Markwayne Mullin’s nomination to run the Department of Homeland Security criticized his “machismo” Wednesday and said he should “explain to the American public why they should trust a man with anger issues” to lead the agency.
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How AIPAC, crypto and a billionaire governor shaped the Illinois primaries
Mar 18, 2026 9:47 am - The win capped a mixed night for AIPAC and crypto, which spent heavily in Illinois’ primary elections.
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US eases Venezuela oil sanctions as Trump seeks to boost world oil supply during Iran war
Mar 18, 2026 9:21 am - U.S. companies will be allowed to do business with Venezuela's state-owned oil and gas company after the Treasury Department eased sanctions, with some limitations, on Wednesday as the Trump administration looks for ways to boost world oil supplies during the Iran war.
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Jet fuel prices and airfares are rising. Travelers are still booking flights, US airlines say
Mar 18, 2026 9:01 am - Rising jet fuel costs tied to the war in the Middle East are adding hundreds of millions of dollars in expenses for some major U.S. airlines. But executives from Delta, American and United told investors Tuesday that strong ticket sales are helping offset those higher costs, with all three carriers reporting record bookings this year.