March 2026 - Page 2 of 7

— Iran’s military command, quoted by the Financial Times, in a video message to President Trump rejecting a ceasefire.

Inklings of a Blue Wave Take Shape

March 25, 2026 Buck Banks

30

Chris Cillizza points out that Democrats have now flipped 30 Republican state legislative seats since Donald Trump began his second term. Republicans have flipped none. “30-0 isn’t just noise. It’s a signal. There’s something building out in the country folks. How big it will be and whether it lasts all the way until November remains to be seen. But it’s building.”

Iran Represents an Unprecedented Disruption

March 25, 2026 Buck Banks

“We’ve not seen anything like this — there’s been no disruption of this scale in the past. It’s every oil analyst’s study piece or worst nightmare — one that we never thought would happen.”

— BP chief economist Gareth Ramsay, quoted by Politico, on the impact of the Iran War on the oil market.

Trump joined Israel to attack Iran with bluster and bravado,
But four weeks in, he’s looking for a way out of the imbroglio.
So he postponed blowing up Iran’s power lines,
Which, by the way, is a humanitarian crime,
Now it’s Tuesday in Tehran, and time for a typical Trump T.A.C.O.

The U.S. Is Officially Insolvent

March 24, 2026 Buck Banks

$6.6 trillion vs $47.78 trillion

Fortune: “The U.S. government is insolvent. That’s not hyperbole — it’s the conclusion drawn directly from the Treasury Department’s own consolidated financial statements for fiscal year 2025, released last week to near-total media silence. … The numbers: $6.06 trillion in total assets against $47.78 trillion in total liabilities as of September 30, 2025.”

An Insider Betting on Iran Wins Big

March 24, 2026 Buck Banks

$1 million

“A trader made nearly $1 million since 2024 from dozens of well-timed Polymarket bets that correctly predicted US and Israeli military actions against Iran,” CNN reports. “The bettor won a staggering 93% of their five-figure wagers about Iran, even though the events they predicted were unannounced military operations.”

Farce of a Deal

March 24, 2026March 29, 2026 Buck Banks

In his latest fight against windmills, Trump seems to have won,
Canceling $1 billion in wind farm leases by a French corporation.
If the French invest it in American oil and gas,
We give them every one of the billion dollars back,
Which seems like a really stupid way for a government to be run.

‘We Have Become Baghdad Bob’

March 24, 2026 Buck Banks

“The unsettling reality is that with this president, Americans in wartime are in the unprecedented position of having to suspect that the enemy’s version of events is more likely to be true than our own. We have become Baghdad Bob.”

— Wall Street Journal editor-at-large Gerard Baker, on X.

Iran Conflict Leaves American Conflicted

March 23, 2026 Buck Banks

90%

A new CBS News poll shows majorities of Americans think it’s important for the U.S. to end the war as soon as possible (92 percent), guarantee the freedom of Iranians (80 percent), end Iran’s nuclear programs for good (73 percent) and end the war without Iran’s current leaders in power (53 percent). Americans overall think that the war is going badly — and, by a 2-to-1 margin, they’re not willing to pay more for gas.

Why Is Scott Bessent Discussing Iran?

March 23, 2026 Buck Banks

Month: March 2026

Iran: No Terms

“Our first and last word has always been, is, and will be this: someone like us will never come to terms with someone like you — not now, not ever.”

— Iran’s military command, quoted by the Financial Times, in a video message to President Trump rejecting a ceasefire.

Inklings of a Blue Wave Take Shape

30

Iran Represents an Unprecedented Disruption

“We’ve not seen anything like this — there’s been no disruption of this scale in the past. It’s every oil analyst’s study piece or worst nightmare — one that we never thought would happen.”

— BP chief economist Gareth Ramsay, quoted by Politico, on the impact of the Iran War on the oil market.

T.A.C.O. Tuesday in Tehran

The U.S. Is Officially Insolvent

$6.6 trillion vs $47.78 trillion

An Insider Betting on Iran Wins Big

$1 million

Farce of a Deal

‘We Have Become Baghdad Bob’

“The unsettling reality is that with this president, Americans in wartime are in the unprecedented position of having to suspect that the enemy’s version of events is more likely to be true than our own. We have become Baghdad Bob.”

— Wall Street Journal editor-at-large Gerard Baker, on X.

Iran Conflict Leaves American Conflicted

90%

Why Is Scott Bessent Discussing Iran?

“Sometimes you have to escalate to de-escalate.”

— Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, talking about the Iran War on Meet the Press.

Poetic Justice

Verbatim

“If you are committing fraud against the American people, all of us in public leadership should be trying to stop it and throw you in prison for enriching yourself off the American taxpayer.”

— Vice President JD Vance, on Fox News.

“Your generation has a great bullshit meter, because you’re fed bullshit online all day. And the Democratic Party brand right now is so bullshit.”

— Michigan U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed (D), quoted by The Atlantic, speaking to college students.

“We are done, Americans are done with endless conflict in the Middle East, spending trillions of dollars, American lives… this is insane and we have to call it for what it is.”

— Rep. Jason Crow (D-CO), on CNN.

Numerati

+175,000

“The U.S. State Department announced on Monday that it has revoked more than 175,000 visas during President Donald Trump’s administration so far,” Fox News reports.

$4,600

11

30%

A new American Research Group poll finds just 30% of Americans say they approve of the way Donald Trump is handling his job as president and 67% say they disapprove.

61% to 35%