Today's top stories, with context, in just 15 minutes.
On today's podcast:
1) The US struck Iran for a fifth straight day and hit a sanctioned oil tanker near the country's main export terminal. Iran responded to the US's barrage by firing upon American bases in Kuwait and Jordan, with the Jordanian government intercepting eight missiles. The US and Iran accuse each other of breaching the terms of a memorandum of understanding, which was meant to reopen the Strait of Hormuz but worded ambiguously as to how fast that would happen. It comes as Fatih Birol, the Executive Director of the International Energy Agency, says the global economy faces a renewed challenge if the conflict that's choked the Strait of Hormuz isn't resolved in a matter of weeks.
2) Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche told senators he would support legislation to foreclose the creation of a $1.8 billion government weaponization fund. Blanche committed to helping craft the legislation during a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on his nomination to be attorney general. Senators questioned whether Blanche can operate independently from President Trump, who he previously represented in criminal cases while in private practice.
3) Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh said that President Trump hasn’t tried to interfere with the central bank. Warsh stated that he would continue to do his job independently, even if Trump tried to influence the conduct of monetary policy. Trump reiterated his view that he would like to see interest rates go down, saying he would like the country to have the lowest rate anywhere in the world.