Roundup
(1) Nobody wants to get this kind of call from the Mossad. Is the story for real? I don’t know. But I do know the Mossad seems to have some extraordinary intelligence capabilities, especially in Iran. That’s probably based on many things, but one of them could be that many Iranian Jews fled to Israel around the time the mullahs came to power 47 years ago. They, and perhaps their children, would be native Farsi speakers.
(2) Citizenship of fraudster revoked:
A Haitian-born fraudster has been stripped of his U.S. citizenship after defrauding COVID-19 relief programs of millions of dollars and concealing his criminal conduct during the naturalization process.
U.S. District Judge Rodney Smith entered an order revoking the citizenship of Joff Stenn Wroy Philossaint, 25, of Fort Lauderdale, after determining that Philossaint illegally procured his citizenship by making false statements to immigration officials.
Note that his citizenship wasn’t revoked because of the crimes he committed. It was revoked because he’d already started the criminal conduct before his citizenship hearing but concealed it from authorities during a sworn naturalization interview.
In addition, I’m wondering what happens now. Does he get deported back to Haiti?
(3) Iran’s intelligence minister Esmail Khatib has been killed by a targeted Israeli strike.
“Khatib played a significant role during the recent protests throughout Iran, including the arrest & killing of protestors and led terrorist activities against Israelis & Americans around the world,” the IDF said in a post on social media.
“Similarly, he operated against Iranian citizens during the Mahsa Amini protests (2022–2023),” they added.
The Iranian president – (rumored to be trying to resign and asking that he not be killed, since he has no control of anything anyone) announced the death.
(4) Chinagate – not. There are allegations that Trump was not told by US intelligence that there was evidence China had interfered in the 2020 election on behalf of Biden:
A nalysts inside the U.S. intelligence community sought to conceal evidence of Chinese influence efforts from President Donald Trump during the 2020 election, with analysts saying they didn’t want their intel used by “that vulgarian in the Oval Office” to pursue policies toward China they personally disagreed with.
The revelation is found within a January 2021 report written by — and never before reported upon comments by — analytic ombudsman Barry Zulauf, who conducted a review of the spy community’s handling of Russian versus Chinese meddling efforts during the 2020 election. Among his conclusions was that intelligence analysts downplayed China’s actions because they had disdain for the “vulgarian” Trump and did not want to support the policies and priorities of the Trump administration toward China with which they “personally disagree.”
It’s a sad thing that at this point most of us are so cynical that – if true – it doesn’t surprise us, and we doubt there will be any significant negative consequences for those who did this.
(5) An elderly Israeli couple were killed by an Iranian cluster bomb. Cluster bombs are banned by international treaty. Amnesty International actually noted back in July that Iran had been using these banned weapons. But it’s not as though the international community cares very much.
(6) Perhaps Trump’s pressure is working? I certainly hope so:
? BREAKING: After pressure from President Trump, NATO SecGen Mark Rutte says allies are RUSHING to find a way to secure the Strait of Hormuz
"I have been in contact with many allies…Strait has to open!"
"Allies are discussing how to do that. What is the best way to do it,… pic.twitter.com/5vKhGAKMU6
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) March 18, 2026
So US “allies” have to be dragged, kicking and screaming to do something that is in their own best interest.
It takes a loud mouthed, Queens, NY real estate guy to compel (the joke that is) NATO to do something.
Of course, do any of the NATO nations have the resources to help keep the Strait of Hormuz open?? We will see.
You can bet that Putin is looking at this and he has to conclude that NATO is a paper tiger. If he was not tied down in Ukraine , his army would be marching to the Baltic nations.
JohnTyler: I think in this case, the missing “resources” are glandular rather than kinetic.
I think Rutte has had his proverbial “come to Jesus” moment with POTUS Trump & knows Europe is toast without US military, political, & economic commitments to its future. He’s desperately swimming upstream against the hate-America-but-love-your-leftists Eurocrats. AND he probably knows, but can’t say the quiet part aloud, that much of Europe is already lost to Islam…and the next shots fired will be near his backyard.
I believe that France and Italy have very good Frigates that could be used in the Strait. Sweeden, Norway, Finland have Navies that could help. We will see.
I call bullshit on NATO “working together to determine the best way to secure the strait”.
Dither, dither at best.
@JohnTyler,
Yeah, about the “rare reluctance” of some NATO members, + some other USA allies, to provide [money or resources], when [the M + R] are needed or requested, to be paid:
In a 1920s [?], George Gershwin, musical play, [it’s a play with a fictional plot, everyone]- the wife of The USA president asks USA’s allies/diplomats [to pay back the USA…money given to the Allies by The USA, so that the USA’s Allies could fight + win World War One].
…When she asks them to pay back this money, this money…also called [the war debts], the diplomats reply with messages like:
” …Gosh. We don’t understand you, or English, all of a sudden!
…No capisce.
…No comprendo.
What did you say?
…I guess that we are [very] dumb, today….whenever you mention MONEY, you know that it’s very funny…, we respond:
…No capisce.
…No comprendo.
What did you say?”
[I’ve paraphrased that dialog, from the play, that I think is named- “Of Thee I Sing, Part 2”.
The above issue, that’s mentioned in the play, was written as comedy, but in my opinion, regretfully- this type of dialog to the USA’s Government is more [of a common event], rather than [a funny, fictional, comedy event].
That’s how things go, I guess. *shrugs*
Cheers. 🙂
Amnesty International actually noted back in July that Iran had been using these banned weapons.
The United States also uses these “banned weapons” and has not agreed to the international treaty that “bans” them. We’ve also transferred them to Ukraine to be used there. I think we last used them ourselves in 2009.
(6) Former Merchant Marine Captain John Konrad raises an interesting question:
“What if the White House has no intention of reopening the Strait of Hormuz? What if this war is really about ships & tariffs?”
This may or may not been part of the plan going in but it presents POTUS with incredible economic leverage over allies and adversaries alike. Standing up a $20 B maritime insurance facility under the US Development Finance Corporation and making the US the insurer of last resort for Gulf Shipping moves the on/off switch the Strait of Hormuz to the US not London, Europe or China. With carriers sitting off the chokepoints and minesweepers redeployed he may be right…
https://gcaptain.com/the-hormuz-hypothesis-what-if-the-u-s-navy-isnt-in-a-hurry-to-reopen-the-strait/
US never signed the treaty banning cluster munitions, for the same reason it didn’t sign the treaties banning land and naval mines. Those types of ordnance benefit the defenders in warfare much more than the offenders.
The banned weapons concept has never made total sense to me.
Is being killed by an exotically named weapon worse than dying from a conventional one? (Conventional defined as powered by gun powder that launches shards of metal that rip apart your insides?)
If given the choice, I’d go with dying in the atomic bombing of Hiroshima rather than in the firebombing of Dresden.
“The Vulgarian” – I love that they had a special moniker for Trump, which they chanted before crying themselves to sleep no doubt. The Euro’s probably call him the ugly American. I couldn’t care less. Trump is the most DYNAMIC president of my lifetime. He has made the world a better place. He has made America a better place.
@ James Sisco: “Trump is the most DYNAMIC president of my lifetime.”
He thereby also seems to be the most “executive” executive branch leader we have had in a long time ( at least for his 2nd term).
We might think that being a state governor would provide some of the skills and experience needed to be a “dynamic” president. But perhaps the strategic thinking required for running at least a national, if not also a global, business comes to the fore even more so. Keeping the many policy and activity plates spinning while connecting dots over months long and years long “campaigning” is something I gather senior and successful business leaders do or manage [consider Jack Welch? Elon Musk? Larry Ellison? Steve Jobs? etc. Even Ross Perot or Michael Bloomberg, as lesser lights?]
Corresponding attention to the legislative body and its personalities and peccadillos is also part of the job, so maybe there is an analog in working with a board of directors? And market analysts??
In fact, as part of the 250th year history stories coming out, I was reminded or learned that George Washington was really an “entrepreneur in chief” before he was president. Part of his drive for revolution was his hating the restrictions the English Parliament was placing on his planned business activities and expansions.
Is there any other president with a comparable [non-legal] business background?
@R2L:I was reminded or learned that George Washington was really an “entrepreneur in chief” before he was president.
I think he was more analogous to a CEO, since he was managing his wife’s money and her estates. He had land, but his wife brought him capital. Even given the legal doctrine of coverture which was in force then, I don’t think he had 100% control over his wife’s property, but I am not sure about this.
Aren’t we talking here about hypersonic cluster-munitions being used EXPRESSLY against CIVILIAN populations????
Oh…silly me…we’re talking about cluster-munitions being used against Israel…
– – – – – – –
WRT Trump, much more should be made of the fact that he was, once upon a time, a dyed-in-the-wool Democratic…**
…not that that would matter…but still.
*…and that IF he still declared himself a Democrat he would be drummed out of the party (like his Secretary of Health and Human Services)…
R2L asks, “Is there any other president with a comparable [non-legal] business background?” Certainly Hoover. And possibly Carter and George W Bush, if we ignore their stints as Governors.
At least a couple of posters opine on Trump and the Hormuz question.
At least a couple three or four mil bloggers have outlined the likely uses of the Amphibious Carrier USS Tripoli, charging West from the South China Sea after three weeks war-gaming the same scenario it is likely to see duty with Iran and in the Straits of Hormuz.
This ship, along with two companion destroyers, can put jet planes and helicopters, including the Osprey, to ferry 2,500 troops of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit on board.
The expectations are that the Tripoli will do double duty, supplying defense of the three hostile islands Iran holds in these waters, as well as wage offense against coastal missile emplacements.
“U.S. Sends Something POWERFUL Toward the Strait of Hormuz… Iran’s Worst NIGHTMARE!”
The Military Show, over 2 million subscribers. 17m?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qY0YW-5krIw
“BREAKING: How a Single U.S. Warship Could Reopen the Strait of Hormuz Overnight”
Global Defense, 11m https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NUqYpPeynUY
“Why the US Navy Rushed USS Tripoli to the Strait of Hormuz?”
Navy Decoded, 17m. This video is big on preparation and explains tactical means expected to solve security of the Straits. “The doctrine is new, the weapon is not.” THE single most informed take on this answer. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMy69tl25r8&t=620s
And nearing midnight Eastern time, this fresh video of Marines, almost silent and immersive take,,
“USS Wasp Leads Massive Marine Deployment to the Strait of Hormuz Amid Rising Tensions,” another amphibious landing vessel.
US Current Affairs, 9m https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6VkKl2Zlzj0
#4.
More Tales from the Crypt…of the FOS “Biden” Administration (but I repeat myself)…
“Unearthed Docs Reveal More Names Targeted in Biden DOJ’s Fishing Expedition”—
https://www.zerohedge.com/political/unearthed-docs-reveal-more-names-targeted-biden-dojs-fishing-expedition
But take it from Susan Rice: in best DPOTUS tradition,!she’s going to wreak Biblical payback on Republicans and Trump supporters WHEN the Democrats regain power…
+ Bonus:
“Turns out Mar-a-Lago wasn’t overvalued, Tish”—
https://nypost.com/2026/03/18/opinion/turns-out-mar-a-lago-wasnt-overvalued-tish/
@Paul S. –
The ban on cluster munitions, as well as the ban on land mines, is almost entirely about the lingering effects, which can be lethal for years, even decades after the fact.
With cluster munitions, the submunitions are designed to explode on impact, but the problem is that they have a high dud rate, somewhere in the range of 10-15%. So, for example, the US M864 155mm DPICM artillery round dumps 72 submunitions, which would mean 7-10 unexploded bomblets per round fired, just scattered around the target area. And a typical fire mission would be at least 18 rounds, possibly more, depending on the target. The M26 rocket, fired from the MLRS (12 rockets) and the HIMARS (6) has 644 submunitions per rocket.
With mines, the problem is removing them after. Minefields are supposed to be mapped and recorded, but very often are not, especially the further away from first world militaries you get. Which makes removing them after the war an extremely hazardous undertaking. When I was at Bagram in 2009, there were several mined areas that were simply fenced off. Fun fact: there area areas of the Falkland Islands that were mined by the Argentinians in 1982 that have never been cleared. They have become de facto protected penguin habitats, since the penguins aren’t heavy enough to set off the mines.
So the problem isn’t how those weapons kill or maim during the battle, but rather how they keep doing it long after the war is over.
And yes, the US is not a signatory to either treaty. Neither is Iran.
“What if the White House has no intention of reopening the Strait of Hormuz? What if this war is really about ships & tariffs?”
——————————
I have read several interesting articles about this angle – the idea that London’s outsized financial/political heft continues due to two things:
– The massive amounts of gold stored by many actors in the Bank of England’s vaults.
– The monopolistic control Lloyd’s exercises over maritime insurance underwriting for the shipping industry.
Trump is certainly focused on bringing business back to the US, and eliminating potential foreign chokeholds on American trade…. this would be yet another Greenland – an unglamorous, yet structurally crucial issue that the chattering classes completely ignored until the Trump Administration took action.
… and *they* think *he’s* the feckless one!
Dave L. — insightful contribution, here. Thanks!
By my reckoning, the USS Tripoli is about 5 days away from getting to the Straits of Hormuz.
Reported travelling at 22 knots, making about 600 miles travel a day. Thus, next Monday, or Tuesday.
Expect the oil price spike to last at least that span of time. Actual combat time may, of course, add time to that figure.
I understood that Germany has many minesweepers, but doesn’t want to use them against Iran.
It’s good that Trump is highlighting how the weak, dependent “allies” are unwilling to use what few military assets they have.
Every time I hear or read about anybody complaining about Trump & international law, I’m thinking: this person doesn’t care enough about law to fight Russian aggression in Ukraine. Doesn’t really care about law, just wants justify their Hate America First b.s.
Rule of Law requires enforcement. Those against enforcement are against rule of law, and against a free & prosperous civilization.
Trump’s results are, so far, great. Just as Biden’s were terrible. Too many Dems accepted Dem words without judging the actions & results. Naturally, some Dems deflect their own culpability by claiming it’s the Left, or recently I saw one claim it’s the far left. A little yes, such folk say it first, but a big NO. It’s those who vote Dem who empower the Dems to support & excuse the Dem left.
Americans need to vote for law enforcement, Reps, in order to have a better America.
Euro voters need to understand their elected wimpy politicians, supporting a wimpy Europe of wimpy nations, are why their lives are falling to get much better. And, that they really have been free riding on US protection.
I hope Trump keeps bombing the regime until there is regime change, with or without EU support.
TJ, thanks for that response. I certainly was drawing a blank at that point, given the examples you provided. Yet, with a little further thought, I think those gentlemen did not really exhibit the application of business strategy to domestic or foreign policy in the way that Trump has.
However, my knowledge of such historical details is weak compared to that shown by several commenters here.
@ NC, “I think he [George Washington] was more analogous to a CEO,…”
You are the deeper historian here than I am, and he clearly was performing as a CEO as you mention. But wasn’t he also adding to his land holdings over time, opening up new lines of business activity such as a whiskey distillery, converting to tobacco crops, etc.? He may have been using his wife’s assets to push these along, but they were still new endeavors we generally assign to innovation and entrepreneurial activity?
My reading did emphasize his chaffing at British restrictions on his business plans.
@R2L: CEOs sometimes do the kinds of things you mention. I think Washington had more constraints on him than someone like Trump, is really what I’m getting at. What he was risking was not always his own, and he was limited I think in the kinds of risks he could take, and so I’d think he was less of an entrepreneur than Trump who I don’t think had those kinds of constraints. Just really comes down to labels I guess.
Thanks Dave L. That is not an aspect I had thought of, re land mines.