- Tuesday April 14th, 2026
- "It Is Not A Question of Who Is Right Or Wrong But What Is Right Or Wrong That Counts."
- --Geoff Metcalf
- Providing an on line Triage of the news since 1998
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World & Nation
Energy Sec. Wright Warns Oil Surge Until Shipping Resumes
Oil prices are likely to hit their peak "in the next few weeks" once
ship traffic resumes through the Strait of Hormuz, U.S. Department of
Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Monday.
Prices are expected to continue rising until "meaningful" ship traffic
resumes through the strait, Wright told the Semafor World Economy Forum
in Washington, despite previous comments he made that oil prices would
likely come down soon.
"We're going to see energy prices high — and maybe even rising — until
we get meaningful ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz," Wright
said. "That'll probably hit the peak oil price at that time. That's
probably sometime in the next few weeks."
Fresh Iran talks could begin this week as US continues blockade on ports
The U.S. and Iran have "all the ingredients of a deal" but have yet to
come to a final agreement, a senior U.S. official told Fox News' Bill
Hemmer on Tuesday.
"A lot is happening today and tomorrow. We have all the ingredients of
a deal, but it's not all there yet," the official told Hemmer.
The official added that President Donald Trump's blockade on Iranian
ports has Tehran "really fearful" and more open to making a deal.
Saudis Urge US to End Blockade
Saudi Arabia is pressing the Trump administration to drop its blockade
of the Strait of Hormuz and return to the negotiating table, The Wall
Street Journal reported Monday.
There have been growing concerns that the escalating conflict could destabilize global energy markets and the regional economy.
Officials fear Iran could retaliate by targeting the Red Sea, particularly the Bab el-Mandeb, putting Saudi oil exports at risk.
The U.S. blockade is intended to pressure Iran's economy after Tehran
shut the strait, disrupting about 13 million barrels of daily oil
exports and driving prices above $100 per barrel.
New Eric Swalwell victim speaks out for first time, reveals moment that shook her to her core
A young woman who alleges disgraced Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) once
tried to lure her to a hotel room after sending her pervy messages on
Snapchat says she constantly thinks about how she dodged a bullet —
saying the close call left her shaken to the core.
Breaking her silence for the first time, Annika Albrecht told CBS News
on Tuesday that the married congressmen started interacting with her
soon after she met him on a class trip in college.
She claimed Swalwell, who initially started chatting to her under the
guise of a professional mentorship, quickly asked for her Snapchat.
Eventually, she alleged, the messages crossed the line to “sexually inappropriate” before he hit her with the hotel invite.
Iran-linked ships transit through Strait of Hormuz — in defiance of President Trump’s blockade
At least four Iran-linked ships, including a Chinese tanker, were seen
transiting the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday — nearly 24 hours after
President Trump’s blockage went into effect, tracking data shows.
Two of the ships — Christianna and Elpis — had visited Iranian ports
despite the US military vowing to block shipping traffic in and out of
them, according to MarineTraffic data.
Meanwhile, the Rich Starry and Murlikishan tankers, which are both
under US sanctions for Iran-related trade, also sailed through the
critical oil chokepoint overnight.
The Rich Starry, which is owned by a Chinese shipping company,
initially appeared to halt its journey ahead of the blockade deadline
Monday but reversed course several hours later and exited the waterway,
the New York Times reported.
Fed Nominee Warsh Files Financial Disclosure; Confirmation Hearing Set
Kevin Warsh, the former Federal Reserve governor chosen by President
Donald Trump to run the central bank, has submitted financial
disclosures that are required for his nomination to advance through
the Senate.
His hearing is reportedly set for April 21.
Warsh's 69-page disclosure was filed overnight with the U.S. Office of
Government Ethics, detailing his income and holdings including two
investments listed as worth more than $50 million each in the
Juggernaut Fund LP, and $10.2 million in consulting fees from the
investment office of Wall Street giant Stanley Druckenmiller.
Netanyahu Slams Europe's 'Moral Weakness'
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday scolded Europe for
failing "to defend civilization from barbarism" and credited Israel and
the United States with "defending the entire world" against Iran.
Speaking during a prerecorded Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony at Yad
Vashem, Netanyahu delivered a sharp rebuke of European leadership,
warning that the continent has grown morally weak in the face of rising
threats from Iran and its proxies, The Times of Israel reported.
"Europe today is afflicted by deep moral weakness," Netanyahu said,
accusing the region of "losing control of its identity, of its values,
of its responsibility to defend civilization against barbarism."
He added that Israel, by contrast, understands "the clear moral
distinction between good and evil," particularly in moments requiring
decisive action.
Germany, Ukraine Sign Defense Deal, MoU on Reconstruction
Germany and Ukraine signed a cooperation deal on defense and a
Memorandum of Understanding to support the reconstruction of Ukraine
and the recovery of its industry, hit by the war with Russia, the
German chancellery said on Tuesday.
The signing took place during a visit by Ukrainian President
Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Berlin, part of wider German-Ukrainian
government consultations.
The US-Iran negotiations in Islamabad became Reykjavík 2.0
President Trump had the measure of the mullahs and sent Vice President Vance to tell them so
By Hugh Hewitt
From the moment the talks between the United States and the Islamic
Republic of Iran commenced in Islamabad, Pakistan on Saturday, only one
of three results could follow: Munich, 1938 with the U.S. appeasing
Iran; Reykjavík, 1986 with diplomatic deadlock; or Appomattox, 1865
with the exhausted and broken Iranians surrendering to the reality of
hard power.
Turns out it was Reykjavík 2.0 with Vice President JD Vance instead of
President Reagan exiting the meetings looking stone-faced and irritated
as he announced an end to the talks and the departure of the United
States delegation.
A blockade of all shipping from all Iranian ports commenced Monday at
10 AM pursuant to President Trump’s order to the U.S. Navy. The Navy
has already commenced mine-clearing operations in the international
waters in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday — during the talks. Quite a
signal, that.
President Trump has indicated that renewed strikes on the teetering
Islamic Republic of Iran are possible as well. Israel continues to
pummel Hezbollah, Iran’s proxy in Lebanon.
How Trump’s Strait of Hormuz blockade puts Iran’s military on the ropes
By Mark Toth and Jonathan Sweet
Team Iran, perhaps fatally, miscalculated in Islamabad last weekend.
Parliamentary Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf believed he could play
out the clock and give a battered Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps
breathing room to regroup.
Ghalibaf naively bet that Iran’s control of the Strait of Hormuz –– and
the 25% of the global oil traffic that flows through it daily –– would
afford the IRGC a badly needed reprieve.
But Vice President JD Vance quickly disabused the IRGC hardliners of that notion.
Team USA didn’t fly 7,500 miles to negotiate, but to demand the Islamic Republic’s unconditional surrender.
Iran refused.
