week ending Feb 21

Fed officials discussed interest rate hike scenarios last month - At their most recent meeting, Federal Reserve officials discussed scenarios in which an interest rate hike might be appropriate, according to minutes of it released Wednesday. "Several" Fed officials thought there was a "possibility that upward adjustments" to interest rates "could be appropriate" if inflation continues to track above 2%, as it has for nearly five years. The deliberations underscore how inflation remains a pressing concern for the central bank, even as public attention remains primarily on the labor market. The minutes also suggest that the Fed's internal conversations remain largely insulated from President Donald Trump's monthslong pressure campaign to get the central bank to lower borrowing costs. Trump's multipronged attacks on the central bank and its chair, Jerome Powell, culminated late last year in subpoenas served to the Fed related to its headquarters renovation. Nonetheless, there are few signs of the Fed moving rates in either direction anytime soon. Fed policymakers voted to keep interest rates unchanged at their late January meeting, after cutting rates three times at the end of 2025. The Fed is not expected to cut interest rates again until late summer, if it does at all this year. The meeting minutes say that at the Jan. 27 and Jan. 28 meeting in Washington, most officials thought the risk of the labor market weakening further "had moderated in recent months while the risk of more persistent inflation remained, and some commented that those risks had come into better balance." The balance they are speaking of is the balance of maintaining a strong labor market while keeping a lid on inflation, preferably as close to the central bank's 2% target as possible. The Fed has been trying to steady that balance since the Covid-19 pandemic began in 2020, and while inflation has come down significantly since then, it has been on a bumpy ride over the last year. In April 2025, overall inflation fell to 2.3%, before rising as high as 3% in September. On Friday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that overall inflation had fallen to 2.4% in January from 2.7% the month before. At the same time, BLS reported that job growth in 2025 had been revised down sharply from 584,000 jobs to just 181,000. The news followed significant downward revisions for the year before. BLS also reported last week that the economy added 130,000 jobs in January, more than expected, which economists viewed as the potential stabilization of recent weak hiring trends. The unemployment rate ticked down only slightly to 4.3% from 4.4% in December. With inflation showing no sign of hitting 2% just yet, members of the rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee, who are already splintered down political lines, could grow more divided. But, they said, “further downward adjustments” to interest rates “would likely be appropriate if inflation were to decline in line with their expectations.” “Some participants commented that it would likely be appropriate to hold the policy rate steady for some time as the Committee carefully assesses incoming data.” In January, Trump said he planned to nominate Kevin Warsh to be the Fed's next chair after Powell's term ends in May. Warsh has spoken favorably over the last year of lower interest rates, a position that is already generally supported by Trump's three nominees already serving on the central bank's boards.

Fed officials split on where interest rates should go, minutes say - Divided Federal Reserve officials at their January meeting indicated that further interest rate cuts should be paused for now and could resume later in the year only if inflation cooperates. While the decision to hold the central bank's benchmark rate steady mostly was met with approval, the path ahead appeared less certain, with members conflicted between fighting inflation and supporting the labor market, according to minutes released Wednesday from the Jan. 27-28 Federal Open Market Committee meeting. "In considering the outlook for monetary policy, several participants commented that further downward adjustments to the target range for the federal funds rate would likely be appropriate if inflation were to decline in line with their expectations," the meeting summary said. However, meeting participants disagreed on where policy should head, with officials debating over whether the focus should be more on fighting inflation or supporting the labor market. "Some participants commented that it would likely be appropriate to hold the policy rate steady for some time as the Committee carefully assesses incoming data, and a number of these participants judged that additional policy easing may not be warranted until there was clear indication that the progress of disinflation was firmly back on track," the minutes said. Moreover, some even entertained the notion that rate hikes could be on the table and wanted the post-meeting statement to more closely reflect "a two-sided description of the Committee's future interest rate decisions." Such a description would have reflected "the possibility that upward adjustments to the target range for the federal funds rate could be appropriate if inflation remains at above-target levels." The Fed reduced its benchmark borrowing rate by three-quarters of a percentage point in consecutive cuts in September, October and December. Those moves put the key rate in a range between 3.5%-3.75%. The meeting was the first for a new voting cast of regional presidents, at least two of whom, Lorie Logan of Dallas and Beth Hammack of Cleveland, have publicly said they think they Fed should be on hold indefinitely. Both have said they see inflation as a continuing threat and should be the focus of policy now. All 19 governors and regional presidents participate at the meeting, but only 12 vote. With the Fed already split along ideological lines, the fissure could grow deeper if former Governor Kevin Warsh is confirmed as the next central bank chair. Warsh has spoken in favor of lower rates, a position also supported by current Governors Stephen Miran and Christopher Waller. Both Waller and Miran voted against the January decision, preferring instead another quarter-point cut. Current Chair Jerome Powell's term ends in May. The meeting minutes do not identify individual participants and featured an array of characterizations to describe positions, rotating between "some," "a few," "many" and even featured two rare references to "a vast majority." Participants generally expected inflation to come down through the year, "though the pace and timing of this decline remained uncertain." They noted the impact tariffs were having on prices and said they expected the impact to wane as the year goes by. "Most participants, however, cautioned that progress toward the Committee's 2 percent objective might be slower and more uneven than generally expected and judged that the risk of inflation running persistently above the Committee's objective was meaningful," the document said. At the meeting, the rate-setting FOMC adjusted some of the language in its post-meeting statement. The changes noted that the risks to inflation and the labor market had come more closely into balance, softening prior worries over the employment picture. Since the meeting, labor data has been a mixed bag, with indications that private sector job creation is slowing further and that the meager growth is coming almost entirely from the health-care sector. However, the unemployment rate dipped to 4.3% in January and nonfarm payroll growth was stronger than expected. On inflation, the Fed's key personal consumption expenditures prices metric has been mired around 3%. However, a report last week showed that the consumer price index when excluding food and energy prices was at its lowest in nearly five years. Futures traders are placing the best bet for the next cut to come in June, with another in September or October, according to the CME Group's FedWatch gauge.

Fourth-quarter U.S. GDP up just 1.4%, badly missing estimate; inflation firms at 3% -Economic growth slowed more than expected near the end of 2025 while inflation held firm, according to data released Friday that could complicate the Federal Reserve's path on interest rates. Gross domestic produce rose at an annualized rate of just 1.4%, according to Commerce Department numbers released Friday, well below the Dow Jones estimate for a 2.5% gain. For the full year in 2025, the U.S. economy grew at a 2.2% pace, down from the 2.8% increase in 2024. At the same time, inflation held firm in December, according to the gauge most closely watched by Fed officials. The core personal consumption expenditures price index, which excludes food and energy, rose 3% in December, according to a separate release. That matched the consensus forecast but kept the pivotal inflation measure well above the Fed's 2% target. On a headline basis, the PCE index accelerated 2.9%, or 0.1 percentage point higher than expected. Both indexes rose 0.4% for the month, compared to the respective forecasts for 0.3%. Just prior to the data release, President Donald Trump warned that the GDP number would be soft, blaming it on the government shutdown that ended in November. "The Democrat Shutdown cost the U.S.A. at least two points in GDP. That's why they are doing it, in mini form, again. No Shutdowns!" Trump said in a Truth Social post. "Also, LOWER INTEREST RATES. "Two Late" Powell is the WORST!!!" The latter part of the post was a reference to Fed Chair Jerome Powell, whom Trump has repeatedly criticized for not lowering rates more aggressively. The Fed cut its benchmark rate by three-quarters of a percentage point in late 2025 but has since signaled a more cautious approach as officials assess progress on inflation alongside risks to the labor market. While Trump blamed the shutdown, the Commerce Department said the deceleration in GDP, which grew at a 4.4% rate in the third quarter, was the result in a pullback in consumer spending and exports. Personal consumption expenditures, a proxy for consumer outlays, rose 2.4% in the quarter, down from the 3.5% gain in the prior period. Exports fell 0.9% after surging 9.6% in Q3. Though the headline GDP number looked weak, underlying signs of demand were strong. Another key Fed metric, called final sales to private domestic purchasers, posted a 2.4% increase for the quarter, half a percentage point lower than the prior quarter but still indicative of solid underlying demand in the $31.5 trillion U.S. economy.

Live updates: DHS shuts down without funding deal; House and Senate out all week - The Munich Security Conference ended Sunday, with lawmakers and officials making their way back to the U.S. from Germany. But with the Senate and House out this week, things are looking grim for a speedy resolution to cover the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) budget lapse.DHS shut down Saturday morning after Democrats and Republicans were unable to come together on a funding package for the department. Democrats have been slow to accept GOP offers that do not address their main demands in reforming Immigration and Customs Enforcement.Democrats rejected the White House’s latest offer on Thursday, with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) labeling it “not serious, plain and simple.”But immigration operations aren’t the only things that will be impacted. Others, like the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Transportation Security Agency, are also in the department.Employees of the TSA are working without pay as of early Saturday morning — when the funding lapse began. According to DHS’s shutdown contingency plan published in September, just over 95 percent of TSA employees are exempt and will remain on board during the shutdown, without pay. On Saturday, the Department of Justice sent a letter to Congress outlining its justification for redactions made in the released Jeffrey Epstein files following pushback from members of both parties regarding the redactions.The six-page letter to lawmakers also includes a list of “all government officials and politically exposed persons” named in the files for any reason. It includes many high-profile figures, including Trump. On Sunday, Trump said members of his newly created Board of Peace have pledged $5 billion toward Gaza reconstruction efforts and will commit thousands of personnel to “maintain security and peace” in the territory.

Department of Homeland Security shutdown has no clear off-ramp: 5 takeaways - There’s no end in sight for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shutdown as both sides point fingers while seemingly moving no closer to a resolution. The Senate left town on Thursday after Democrats decided against supporting a stopgap spending bill over concerns that talks about the full-year funding measure haven’t advanced far enough. They are demanding reforms to immigration enforcement tactics after federal agents shot and killed two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis amid enhanced operations in the city. DHS funding lapsed Saturday, leaving much of the department — particularly the agencies not involved in border efforts — working without pay. Negotiators are showing few signs of backing down from their demands, and there’s little holding back talks from dragging on for the foreseeable future. The White House and top Democrats have traded proposals and counteroffers for a week and a half. While lawmakers indicated late last week that the two sides have made some headway, it wasn’t enough for Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) to cancel this week’s recess. The nearly a dozen demands for reforms to immigration enforcement that Democrats unveiled weeks ago were headlined by calls to tighten warrant requirements, unmask agents engaging in field operations and end roving patrols. Democratic negotiators responded with a counteroffer to the White House’s proposal from late last week, which Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) deemed “not serious.” The latest offer had been expected by Republicans over the weekend. Despite Schumer’s declaration, Republicans have insisted that the White House is not only negotiating in good faith, but it also has made its fair share of concessions. “They’ve offered a lot, and at some point, Democrats have to show that they’re trying to pass an appropriations bill or whether this is about November for them,” one senior Senate GOP aide said. It appears highly unlikely that talks will reach a stage that prompts lawmakers to be called back to Washington this week. Thune told reporters last week members could be hauled back in as little as 24 hours if needed. Absent an agreement, they will return to Washington next week. … And any deal might take a while to strikeThere are myriad reasons an accord doesn’t appear imminent. Democrats are under immense pressure from their base not to strike a deal that directs any additional money to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or Customs and Border Protection (CBP) without significant reforms — or at all — after a Border Patrol agent shot and killed ICU nurse Alex Pretti in Minneapolis last month. At the same time, Schumer over the past year has found himself on the back foot with progressives, who are the loudest voices urging him to stick to his guns, and is eager not to upset his left flank. Republicans, meanwhile, are not feeling the heat enough to give in on what they view as big asks of Democrats. The DHS shutdown has little effect on ICE because the GOP greenlighted billions in funding for the agency and for border security writ large in its “big, beautiful bill” — meaning that despite a funding lapse, deportations will continue. And while funding has lapsed for other agencies, a vast majority of DHS employees are considered essential, which means they will continue running operations even if they’re doing so without pay. Republicans also believe they’ve extended themselves pretty far in talks, having already agreed to a bipartisan DHS deal that included compromises and funding increases for body cameras and de-escalation measures, among other reforms. In their view, they already met Democrats halfway on a series of items the minority party now wants to put back on the table — and absent any deal, there are few guardrails on ICE. “Right now, ICE is operating on no imposed constraints by Congress,” the GOP aide continued. “I don’t know why Democrats would want that to continue on because what we’ve offered is far better than what the status quo is.” Democrats, however, are casting their demands as “common sense” and betting that the discontent with immigration operations that’s started to show up in recent polling will continue. “These are common sense proposals,” Schumer told CNN on Sunday, referring to unmasking and having every ICE and CBP official wear a body camera. “They’re supported by the American people. Why won’t Republicans go for them? They don’t give any good answers. It’s something that every police department does across the country. But ICE is rogue, out of control.” Perhaps the biggest reason for the impasse dragging on is that unlike a full government closure, it will not hit nearly as hard for millions of Americans. Congress has already passed 11 of the 12 full-year funding bills for fiscal 2026. Unlike in past lengthy shutdowns, air traffic controllers — a group that has played a role in ending past lapses — are funded. So is the Department of Defense, meaning service members will be paid, and Department of Agriculture, which means payments under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) will go out. Similarly, despite the lack of DHS funding at present, roughly 90 percent of the department’s 260,000 employees are deemed essential during a shutdown — meaning there will be little interruption to services. That is the case at the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), where 95 percent of the employees are considered essential. Nevertheless, the historic fall shutdown created major impacts for travelers that outside groups and lawmakers were hoping to avoid only months later, especially with spring break on the horizon. The possibility of TSA workers getting caught in the crossfire only heightens those fears. “Funding uncertainties create lasting damage to the entire travel ecosystem, especially the airlines, hotels and thousands of small businesses the travel industry supports,” three key industry groups — U.S. Travel, Airlines for America and the American Hotel Association — said in a statement. They also noted that the shutdown last year “resulted in an economic impact of $6 billion—nearly $140 million per day—and disrupted travel for more than 6 million travelers.” One potentially key date to watch is Feb. 27, as that is when DHS employees are scheduled to get paid next. On top of TSA workers, a missed paycheck would also affect employees at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Coast Guard and the Secret Service, among others — and at a time when some are still picking up the pieces from the fall shutdown that resulted in missed paychecks and was only resolved three months ago. Fortunately for them, backpay is guaranteed. But that will do little to assuage them in the meantime.

Senate Democrats send counteroffer to White House amid DHS shutdown -Senate Democrats late on Monday night sent a counterproposal to the White House to fund the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as the impasse reached Day 4 with no deal in sight. A spokesperson for Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) confirmed the latest horse-trading as talks continue between the two sides. Democrats initially sent a 10-point plan featuring their wishlist on Feb. 4, headlined by calls to tighten warrant requirements, unmask agents engaging in field operations and end roving patrols. That was sent to Republicans in the form of legislative text on Feb. 7. The White House responded in kind with a proposal of its own days later. They hoped that would convince Democrats to support a stopgap measure to keep the DHS open until a final deal was struck. That did not happen, with lawmakers leaving on Thursday for a planned recess around Presidents Day. Schumer panned the previous White House offer as “not serious.” Republicans have widely viewed the three key Democratic asks as red lines in negotiations, while the minority party has insisted that all three items be dealt with. “These are commonsense proposals,” Schumer told CNN on Sunday, referring to unmasking agents and having every Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection authority wear a body camera. “They’re supported by the American people. Why won’t Republicans go for them? They don’t give any good answers. It’s something that every police department does across the country. But ICE is rogue, out of control,” he said. Details of the back-and-forth offers have been sparse, a sign that negotiations remain serious despite the public barbs.

State Department Official: No 'Gentlemen's Agreement' With Russia on Maintaining New START Limits - A State Department official said on Tuesday that he wasn’t aware of any informal understanding between the US and Russia on maintaining the limits imposed by New START, the last nuclear arms control treaty between the two powers that expired earlier this month. New START limited the number of warheads each side can deploy to 1,550, and the number of deployed and non-deployed strategic launchers to 800. Before New START expired, Russia proposed maintaining the limits for another year to make room for diplomacy to reach an agreement on a replacement treaty, but the US didn’t accept the offer, and since its expiration, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that Moscow would continue to abide by the New START limits if Washington did as well.Christopher Yeaw, the Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Arms Control and Nonproliferation at the State Department, was asked on Tuesday if there was a “gentlemen’s agreement” on maintaining the New START limits and said, “I know of no such agreement. And that is still in the President’s hands.”So far, there’s no sign that the US or Russia has increased nuclear deployments following the end of New START, but for the first time since the Cold War, there are no longer any constraints on the arsenals of the world’s largest nuclear-armed powers.The Trump administration’s position is that any new arms control treaty must include China, though Beijing opposes trilateral arms control with the US and Russia, as its nuclear arsenal is much smaller. Chinese officials have previously said they wouldn’t join arms control negotiations with the US and Russia unless the two powers significantly reduced their nuclear stockpiles.

Russia Rattled by America’s Nuclear Move in Armenia - Since the United States and Armenia signed a nuclear cooperation deal on February 9 during Vice President JD Vance’s visit to Yerevan, the Kremlin has seemingly gone to a civilian equivalent of DEFCON 3with a wide-ranging effort to scuttle the construction of a US-designed nuclear plant on Armenian soil. In addition to media brickbats to discredit US reliability, the Kremlin is offering lots of economic incentives to encourage Armenian leaders to remain loyal to Russian nuclear technology.While the Armenian government has not awarded a contract to replace the aging Metsamor nuclear facility, multiple signs suggest that Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s government heavily favors an American solution as part of a broader diplomatic realignment designed to reduce Russia’s economic influence over Armenia. Prior to signing the bilateral nuclear cooperation deal, Armenian officials disclosed that the country’s next nuclear plant would have a modular design. The US is seen as a global leader in modular nuclear technology.Beyond Armenia, the Trump administration is making a push to expand into what has traditionally been Russia’s nuclear market in Eurasia. Azerbaijan has committed to exploring nuclear energy cooperation as part of a strategic partnership agreement signed on February 10. And late last December, Kazakhstan indicated an interest in exploring American modular nuclear technology.The shrill, multifaceted reaction by Russia to the US-Armenian nuclear deal indicates that the Kremlin is alarmed about its teetering position in the regional atomic energy market. Moscow’s concerns are not only driven by geopolitics; financial considerations are another major factor. Rosatom, Russia’s state-controlled nuclear entity, is a cash cow for the Kremlin, generating desperately needed revenue to maintain the Ukraine war effort. Russia is pursuing a variety of lines of attack. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov suggested that the lack of experience of US nuclear energy companies operating in Eurasia would mean that an American-built reactor would take longer and cost more than any plant built by Rosatom. “Russia is capable of providing better quality for many years to come at a lower cost,” he claimed during a February 11 press briefing.The following day, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova heaped scorn on American nuclear modular technology, hinting that it is untested and thus dangerous.“The choice of American technology truly raises questions,” she stated at a press briefing. “The small nuclear power plants … proposed by Washington are not only not found in the US itself, but they don’t even exist – they exist only on paper.” Armenia “will essentially be used as a testing ground for truly unproven American technologies,” she continued, adding that the cost of an American modular reactor “could be significantly higher than the estimates featured in the ‘advertising brochures.’”After slinging arrows at the United States, Zakharova attempted to blow some kisses to Pashinyan’s government. “Given the nature of bilateral relations between our countries, we were prepared to develop preferential financial models,” she said. “All proposals remain on the table.” In addition to offering a sweetheart deal for the next nuclear plant, Russia is pitching substantial assistance to Yerevan to improve the Armenian agricultural sector and restore the country‘s rail network.

US meets Iran in search of historic deal - U.S. and Iranian officials are set to meet for a second round of talks on Iran’s nuclear program today as the Trump administration strives for a deal that has so far proved elusive. Tuesday’s talks are taking place in Geneva, Switzerland. The U.S. delegation is led by President Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner, both of whom have been heavily involved in peacemaking efforts in various conflicts, including between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. Representatives from the two countries met earlier this month for indirect talks in Oman to try to reach a diplomatic solution on Iranian nuclear developments. After the meeting, both sides described those discussions as productive and indicated they would plan to meet again. The U.S. and Iran took part in nuclear talks last year, but Iran pulled out of those discussions after Israel launched airstrikes targeting Tehran’s nuclear facilities and military sites in June.. The U.S. subsequently launched its own strikes against three Iranian nuclear sites days later. Tensions have been rising between the U.S. and the Middle Eastern nation in recent months, especially amid nationwide protests that the Iranian regime cracked down on harshly, resulting in thousands killed. The Trump administration ultimately held off on striking Iran while the protests were at their peak, but it has built up its military assets in the region in preparation for a possible attack. Iranian naval forces began military exercises in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday on the eve of the planned discussions, in a show of strength. The exercises included rehearsing scenarios to respond to security threats in the area. But Trump hasn’t taken diplomacy off the table and is still in search of a breakthrough deal to further cement his legacy on foreign policy, which has been a major focus throughout his second term. The president’s decision to hold off on strikes so far suggests he sees at least some path to a deal, even if it’s a difficult one. Witkoff and Kushner on Tuesday are also expected to participate in a separate set of talks between Russian and Ukrainian officials as part of the ongoing push to bring an end to the war between those two countries. The administration has sought to portray Trump as a global peacemaker, bringing an end to various conflicts around the world, though ending the Russia war has proven the most challenging yet. Settling tensions around Iran’s nuclear program would be a major achievement to add to the president’s global peacemaking efforts, but officials have recognized the hurdles facing them. “These people make policy decisions on the basis of pure theology,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said of Iran during a trip to Hungary on Monday. “That’s how they make their decisions. So, it’s hard to do a deal with Iran. We’ve always said it’s hard, but we’re going to try.” Rubio’s comments come as he has been taking part in a multiday trip that included a visit to the Munich Security Conference in Germany over the weekend. He struck a much more conciliatory tone toward the U.S.’s European allies than Vice President Vance did at last year’s conference, seeking to reassure Europe the U.S. wants to work together on security issues.

Iranian leader Ali Khamenei warns US military amid ongoing nuclear talks --Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei threatened on Tuesday to sink U.S. warships amid continuing nuclear talks between the Middle Eastern nation and the U.S. “The Americans constantly say that they’ve sent a warship toward Iran,” Khamenei posted on the social platform X. “Of course, a warship is a dangerous piece of military hardware.”-“However, more dangerous than that warship is the weapon that can send that warship to the bottom of the sea,” he added.This stark warning comes as officials from both the U.S. and Iran met for a second round of discussions about Iran’s nuclear program in Geneva on Tuesday. U.S. representatives are pushing for a new deal with the country after the first Trump administration withdrew from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, an Obama-era nuclear deal that placed limits on Iran’s enrichment of uranium in exchange for sanctions relief. President Trump expressed his hope for the negotiations to reporters on Friday, warning that if the two countries fail to reach an agreement, it would be a “bad day for Iran, very bad.” The president also confirmed that the U.S. is deploying the world’s largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, to the Middle East. The vessel and its escort ships will join American warships currently positioned in the U.S. Central Command (Centcom) area. Trump has warned he plans to issue commands to use military force against Iran if a nuclear deal is not reached and if the Iranian regime continues its deadly crackdown on protesters. An estimated 6,159 people have been reported dead, according to activists’ reports in January, after demonstrations broke out in the country at the end of last year over the plummeting value of the country’s currency. Iran has been conducting maritime military training sessions this week with live missiles in the Strait of Hormuz, a major thoroughfare for international trade. Centcom previously cautioned the country against any “unsafe and unprofessional behavior” at the end of January.

Report: US Preparing for Sustained, Weeks-Long War Against Iran If Trump Orders Attack - The US military is preparing for the possibility of a sustained, weeks-long operation against Iran if President Trump orders an attack on the country, Reuters has reported, as the US continues to build up its forces in the region.The report, which cited two unnamed US officials, said a US attack on Iran could lead to a far more serious conflict than the two countries have seen before. All signs indicate that Iran wouldn’t hold back or give the US notice in advance of a counterattack as it did during the 12-Day War after the US bombed its nuclear facilities.President Trump has continued his threats against Iran despite Washington and Tehran now engaging in negotiations, which are set to resume on Tuesday in Geneva. Trump said on Friday that regime change in Iran would be “the best thing that could happen.”The New York Times reported that Trump is considering a range of military options against Iran, including strikes on its nuclear facilities, attacks meant to hurt its ability to launch missiles, and even the possibility of sending US commandos into the country. US officials acknowledged to the Times that taking out Ayatollah Ali Khamenei would be much more difficult than the attack on Venezuela to kidnap President Nicolas Maduro. If Iran is attacked and believes it faces an existential threat, it could unleash its missiles on US bases and warships in the region, a scenario that would inflict a massive number of American casualties. To prepare for Iranian counterattacks, the US has reportedly been deploying additional Patriot missile systems and an additional THAAD air defense battery to its bases in the Middle East. During the 12-Day War, the US used about 20% of all of its THAAD interceptors defending Israel from attacks, and missiles still got through.

Huckabee Says US and Israel 'Absolutely Aligned' on Iran - US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said on Monday that the US and Israel are “absolutely aligned” on the need to “deal” with Iran as Washington continues building up its forces in the Middle East to prepare for a potential attack on the Islamic Republic. Huckabee made the comments when addressing the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations in Jerusalem, where he cast doubt on the idea that the US and Iran could reach a diplomatic deal and said that another US attack on the country is likely. “At some point, the United States has to say, enough is enough,” Huckabee said, according to Haaretz. “Either Iran makes a radical change in direction, or it experiences what we call in the South the second kick of a mule. There is no education in the second kick. If you didn’t learn the first time, you won’t learn the second.” The US and Iran are set to hold a second round of talks in Geneva on Tuesday. Israel wants any deal to involve restrictions on Iran’s ballistic missiles, a demand designed to collapse diplomacy since Tehran’s missiles are its only form of deterrence. According to Iranian officials, the US has dropped the demand for an agreement that includes missiles, but President Trump and other Trump administration officials continue to push the issue. Huckabee said that the US and Israel have agreed that Iran cannot “continue building vast surpluses of ballistic missiles.” President Trump has repeatedly threatened to attack Iran if a deal isn’t reached, echoing threats he made in the lead-up to the 12-day US-Israeli war against Iran that was launched in June 2025, just days before another round of negotiations between Washington and Tehran were scheduled to be held.

From Israel, Sen. Lindsey Graham Pushes for War on Iran While Admitting US Troops Could Be 'Hit' - From Israel on Monday, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) pushed for a US war against Iran while acknowledging that US soldiers in the region could get “hit” by Iranian counterattacks, a risk he said was worth it.“Could our soldiers be hit in the region? Absolutely, they could. Can Iran respond if we have an all-out attack? Absolutely, they can,” Graham said during a press briefing at the David Kempinski hotel in Tel Aviv.The South Carolina senator also said that the US decision on potential military action against Iran is “weeks” away, not months, and described Israel as the place where “the wars of the future are being planned.”All signs indicate that if the US bombs Iran, Tehran will not hold back in its response or provide the US with a warning ahead of time as it did before launching retaliatory missile strikes on the US’s Al Udeid airbase in Qatar following the US airstrikes on its nuclear facilities. Many US bases and warships are in range of Iranian missiles, leaving open the possibility of thousands of US casualties if Iran goes all-out with its response. “I think the risk associated with that is far less than the risk associated with blinking and pulling the plug and not helping the people as you promised. We told him to go back in the street, keep protesting, help was on the way. We have to be good to our word,” Graham said, referring to President Trump’s threats to bomb Iran amid recent major protests in the country.

USS Gerald Ford Crossing the Atlantic Ocean as US Continues Major Mideast Buildup to Prepare for Attack on Iran - The aircraft carrier USS Gerald Ford and its strike group are crossing the Atlantic Ocean and heading toward the Middle East, a US Navy official told USNI News on Tuesday, as the US continues its massive military buildup in the region to prepare for a potential attack on Iran.The Ford left the Caribbean after operating in the waters for several months as part of “Operation Southern Spear,” the US military operation that has involved airstrikes on alleged drug-running boats and the US attack on Venezuela to kidnap President Nicolas Maduro.The Ford will be the second US aircraft carrier entering US Central Command’s area of responsibility, joining the USS Abraham Lincoln, which has been operating in the Arabian Sea. If the Ford is deployed through mid-April, it will break the post-Vietnam War 294-day record for US carrier deployments.The US has also positioned additional fighter jets at its bases in the region, moving 50 F-35, F-22, and F-16 jets to the Middle East just over the past 24 hours, according to a US official speaking toAxios. More than 150 US military cargo aircraft have flown to the region since last month as the US is beefing up its air defenses to prepare for Iranian counterattacks, which could cause significant US casualties if Tehran doesn’t hold back in its response.The US has continued its military buildup in the region despite renewed negotiations with Iran, which were held in Geneva on Tuesday. The talks ended without a breakthrough, and while Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said there was a “clear path” to a deal, US Vice President JD Vance said Tehran wasn’t acknowledging President Trump’s “red lines.”Israel’s Channel 12 reported that the White House has given Israel the impression that the talks with Iran have reached an end and that Israeli officials are convinced Trump will launch an attack on the Islamic Republic. The report said the US sought to create the impression that it had exhausted negotiations to “legitimize” a potential US attack.

Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Says Ball Is in US Court To Reach a Deal - Iran’s deputy foreign minister said in an interview published on Sunday that Tehran is ready to make compromises to reach a nuclear deal with Washington, but that any agreement hinged on whether the US is serious.Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi told the BBC that the ball was “in America’s court to prove that they want to do a deal … If they are sincere, I’m sure we will be on the road to an agreement.”A second round of talks between US and Iranian officials is set to be held in Geneva this Tuesday, though the diplomacy doesn’t mean a US attack is not coming, as the two sides were engaged in nuclear negotiations in the lead-up to the 12-Day War in June 2025.According to Takht-Ravanchi, the US has indicated it is dropping its demands for any deal to include limits on Tehran’s ballistic missiles and a commitment to zero nuclear enrichment, although President Trump has said publicly that any agreement must include those two conditions.“Our understanding is that they have come to the conclusion that if you want to have a deal, you have to focus on the nuclear issue,” the Iranian official said, adding that the “issue of zero enrichment is not an issue anymore, and as far as Iran is concerned, it is not on the table anymore.”The issue of including missiles and a commitment to zero uranium enrichment reflects Israel’s demands, which also include Iran cutting support for its allies in the region, and are likely designed to collapse diplomacy and ensure war.Takht-Ravanchi explained why Iran wouldn’t negotiate its missiles, which are the country’s only form of deterrence and way to respond to US or Israeli attacks. “When we were attacked by Israelis and Americans, our missiles came to our rescue, so how can we accept depriving ourselves of our defensive capabilities?” he said.Iranian officials have said that they are willing to dilute Iran’s stockpile of uranium that’s enriched at the 60% level as part of a deal with the US, an offer Takht-Ravanchi pointed to. “We are ready to discuss this and other issues related to our programme if they are ready to talk about sanctions,” he said.

After Talks With the US in Geneva, Iran's Foreign Minister Says There's a 'Clear Path' to a Deal - Following indirect talks with US officials in Geneva on Tuesday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said there was a “clear path” to a deal, though he stressed that an agreement wasn’t imminent and that more work needed to be done.Araghchi told reporters that “good progress” was made and that the US was more “serious” this time than in the previous round of negotiations in Oman. “Finally, we were able to reach an agreement on a set of guiding principles based on which we will move forward and discuss the text of a potential deal,” he said. US Vice President JD Vance later threw cold water on the idea that a deal could be reached soon, saying, “In some ways, it went well. They agreed to meet afterward. But in other ways, it was very clear that the president has set some red lines that the Iranians are not yet willing to actually acknowledge and work through.” Iranian officials have previously said that the US dropped its demands for a deal to include zero nuclear enrichment and restrictions on Iran’s ballistic missiles, conditions sought by Israel that are designed to collapse diplomacy and ensure war. But US officials, including President Trump, continue to mention the demands when discussing what they want a deal to include. Araghchi added that the two sides would work on the text of a potential agreement and exchange it before holding another round of negotiations. The US side was led by US envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law, who have not yet made public comments on the negotiations. An unnamed US official told Axios that the talks “made progress” but “there are still a lot of details to discuss.” The US is also continuing its massive military buildup in the region, with a second aircraft carrier on its way and the US military deploying 50 F-35, F-22, and F-16 fighter jets to the Middle East over the past 24 hours, according to the Axios report. Despite the negotiations, the threat of a US attack remains since during the lead-up to the 12-day US-Israeli war on Iran that was launched in June 2025, the US and Iran were engaged in nuclear talks, and President Trump claimed he was committed to that diplomacy as Israeli jets were getting in the air to launch the first strikes on the Islamic Republic.

Report: Trump Close To a Major Attack on Iran That Will Be Bigger Than 12-Day War - The Trump administration is close to launching a major attack on Iran as it continues a massive buildup of military forces in the Middle East, according to a report from Axios reporter Barak Ravid.Sources told Ravid that the potential US attack on Iran would likely be a massive multi-week operation, much bigger than the US operation to abduct Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. They said it would also be much broader in scope than the 12-day US-Israeli war on Iran that was launched in June 2025. Reuters also recently reported that the US was preparing for a sustained, multi-week attack on Iran.Israeli officials said that the Israeli government, which is pushing for the US to pursue regime change in Iran, is preparing for the possibility of the attack starting in the coming days, and CNNlater reported that the US military is ready to start the war as soon as this weekend. Other sources put the timeline a little later, saying the war would likely start in a few weeks.“The boss is getting fed up,” a Trump adviser told Ravid. “Some people around him warn him against going to war with Iran, but I think there is 90% chance we see kinetic action in the next few weeks.”The Axios report noted that there has been little public debate about the potential war amid the major US military buildup and said that Americans will likely be surprised by the scale of the coming attack.All signs indicate that if the US bombs Iran, Tehran will not hold back in its response and could target multiple US bases and warships in the region, leaving open the possibility that the war could result in hundreds or thousands of US casualties. The conflict could also have a major impact on the global economy, as Iran could close the Strait of Hormuz, through which 31% of seaborne crude oil shipments passed in 2025.The US and Iran held talks on Tuesday, and while the Iranian side said there was a “clear path” toward a deal, US Vice President JD Vance said that Iran was not acknowledging President Trump’s “red lines.”Vance claimed the main US demand was that Iran must not pursue a nuclear weapon, but for many months, the administration had insisted the June 2025 US strikes on Iran “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear facilities, and there’s no sign Tehran can enrich uranium at the moment. Iran has also made clear it’s willing to enter a deal that would involve a commitment to low enrichment levels, and Iranian officials maintain they don’t seek a nuclear bomb.

White House Claims There Are 'Many Reasons' to Strike Iran, Doesn't Elaborate Further -As a US attack on Iran appears increasingly likely, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt claimed on Wednesday that there are “many reasons” for the US to bomb the country, but declined to elaborate further, as the administration hasn’t given a coherent reason for the potential war. Leavitt made the comments when asked why a potential attack on Iran was necessary after President Trump insisted for months that the US airstrikes launched against Iran during the 12-Day War in June 2025 “obliterated” the country’s nuclear facilities. “Well, there are many reasons and arguments that one could make for a strike against Iran,” Leavitt said. “The president had a very successful operation as commander-in-chief with Operation Midnight Hammer. As you know, as you just said, totally obliterated Iran’s nuclear facilities.” Leavitt was then asked whether the president felt the need to make the case for war to the American people, potentially in his upcoming State of the Union address, but she declined to answer, saying she wouldn’t “engage in a hypothetical.” Vice President JD Vance has claimed the US’s main demand of Iran is that it must not pursue nuclear weapons, but there’s no sign Tehran is able to enrich uranium following the US strikes on its nuclear facilities, and Iranian officials have been clear that they would agree to a deal where they would commit to enrichment levels far beyond the 90% needed for a weapon, a level they’ve never even attempted. In recent weeks and months, President Trump has frequently threatened to bomb Iran or back an Israeli attack on the country and has repeatedly shifted the pretext. Back in December, he said he would back an Israeli attack if Iran “continued” its conventional missile program, then in January, he repeatedly threatened to attack over the protests in the country, and now appears to be back to the nuclear issue.

Rep. Ro Khanna To Force a Vote on Iran War Powers Resolution Next Week - Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) said on Wednesday that he will force a vote on a War Powers Resolution meant to prevent President Trump from attacking Iran without congressional authorization, as required by the Constitution.The resolution was introduced by Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), Khanna, and several other Democrats back in June 2025 amid the 12-day US-Israeli war against Iran, but a ceasefire was reached before a vote was held. Massie was the original sponsor, and the legislation currently has 77 co-sponsors, all Democrats.Americans can contact their House representative and urge them to support H.Con.Res.38 to prevent a disastrous war with Iran, which appears imminent amid the major US military buildup in the region.

Trump Says 'War Is Over' in Gaza Despite Israel Killing Over 600 Palestinians Since Ceasefire Deal Was Signed - President Trump claimed at his first “Board of Peace” meeting on Thursday that the “war in Gaza is over” despite Israel’s repeated violations of the ceasefire deal, which have killed more than 600 Palestinians. While declaring the conflict is over, Trump added that there have been “little flames,” an apparent acknowledgement of at least some ceasefire violations. Israeli attacks in Gaza continued as he held the meeting. The mother of the deceased, Abdul Hamid al-Farra, and his relatives bid a final farewell to his body at the morgue of Nasser Medical Complex, after he was killed by Israeli army fire in the al-Tahliya area, east of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, on February 19, 2026 (IMAGO/APAimages via Reuters Connect)Israeli airstrikes and shelling were reported across Gaza on Thursday, and at least one Palestinian was injured by Israeli gunfire in the southern city of Khan Younis. Photos from Gaza show Palestinians at the Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis on Thursday mourning a man who was killed by Israeli fire in the area.Gaza’s Health Ministry said on Thursday that at least two Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces over the previous 24-hour period, bringing the total number of Palestinians killed since the deal was signed in early October to 611. Another 1,630 Palestinians have been injured.The Health Ministry’s numbers account for dead and wounded Palestinians brought to hospitals and morgues. “A number of victims are still under the rubble and in the streets, as ambulance and civil defense crews have been unable to reach them so far,” the ministry wrote on Telegram.

US Plans To Build a 5,000-Person Military Base in Gaza for International Force - The Trump administration is planning to build a 5,000-person military base inside Gaza, theGuardian reported on Thursday, citing contracting records from the so-called “Board of Peace.”The report said that the base would take up more than 350 acres of land in southern Gaza and is envisioned as a future base for the international force that may deploy to the Strip under President Trump’s plan for the Palestinian territory, though so far, only Indonesia has announced plans to commit troops to the force.The Guardian said that the plans it reviewed “call for the phased construction of a military outpost that will eventually have a footprint of 1,400 metres by 1,100 metres, ringed by 26 trailer-mounted armored watch towers, a small arms range, bunkers, and a warehouse for military equipment for operations. The entire base will be encircled with barbed wire.” The contracting document includes protocol for what happens if construction teams come across human remains, since the bodies of at least 8,000 Palestinians are missing under the rubble. “If suspected human remains or cultural artifacts are discovered, all work in the immediate area must cease immediately, the area must be secured, and the Contracting Officer must be notified immediately for direction,” the document says. It’s unclear how much the base would cost to build, but earlier reports suggested the US was planning to construct a major military facility on the Gaza border at a cost of between $500 millionand $600 million.

President Trump Threatens War With Iran at His First 'Board of Peace' Meeting - President Trump on Thursday convened the first meeting of his so-called “Board of Peace,” a body he formed to oversee the Gaza ceasefire, which Israel continues to violate, and appeared to threaten that a US attack on Iran could come within 10 days. In a speech at the meeting, Trump referenced his June 2025 attack on Iran, which targeted the country’s nuclear facilities. “Now, we may have to take it a step further — or we may not. Maybe we’re going to make a deal. You’re going to be finding out over the next, probably 10 days,” he said. Trump also said that Iran “must make a deal. If that doesn’t happen… bad things will happen.”The US president convened the “Board of Peace” while overseeing what The Wall Street Journal has described as the largest gathering of US airpower in the region since the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The US has sent a second aircraft carrier to the Middle East and deployed dozens of additional fighter jets there in recent days.While Trump claims Iran has the opportunity to “make a deal” with the US, it’s unclear what sort of agreement he would accept, and his administration hasn’t made a coherent case for why it needs to attack the country.In his remarks on Thursday, Trump said Iran cannot have a “nuclear weapon,” but for months, he insisted the US airstrikes “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear facilities, and there’s no sign Tehran is even capable of enriching uranium at the moment. According to The New York Times, Iran has suggested it’s willing to suspend nuclear enrichment for three to five years, and then enter a regional consortium to enrich civilian-grade uranium, an arrangement that would give Tehran no path to a nuclear weapon. The US’s real goal with Iran is likely either regime change or removing Iran’s ability to strike Israel. Israeli officials have demanded that any deal must include restrictions on Iran’s missiles, a condition Tehran would never accept since its missiles are its only form of deterrence and way to launch counterattacks if it’s bombed by the US or Israel.

Report: Starmer Blocking Trump From Using UK Bases To Attack Iran - British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is blocking President Trump from using British Royal Air Force (RAF) bases to launch an attack on Iran, The Telegraph reported on Thursday. The report said that the British government has yet to give consent for the US to use bases in the UK for bombing runs against Iran because of concerns that the attack could breach international law, the same conclusion London reached before the US bombed Iran’s nuclear facilities during the 12-Day War back in June 2025. The UK’s position is what likely led to President Trump’s post on Truth Social, in which he again flipped on Starmer’s Chagos Islands deal, under which the UK will hand control of the islands, home to the US military base at Diego Garcia, to Mauritius. Under the agreement, the US and UK will lease the base from Mauritius for 99 years. “I have been telling Prime Minister Keir Starmer, of the United Kingdom, that Leases are no good when it comes to Countries, and that he is making a big mistake by entering a 100 Year Lease with whoever it is that is ‘claiming’ Right, Title, and Interest to Diego Garcia, strategically located in the Indian Ocean,” Trump said. The US president suggested that Diego Garcia and an RAF airbase in Fairford, England, that houses US Air Force personnel, could potentially be used in a war with Iran. “Should Iran decide not to make a Deal, it may be necessary for the United States to use Diego Garcia, and the Airfield located in Fairford, in order to eradicate a potential attack by a highly unstable and dangerous Regime — An attack that would potentially be made on the United Kingdom, as well as other friendly Countries,” he added. The US is required to notify the UK of its operations involving Diego Garcia, but doesn’t need London’s permission to carry them out. The base in Fairford is another story, as the US would need the OK of the British government to launch a long-range bombing attack from the facility.

Trump Says He Is 'Considering' Limited Strike On Iran To Pressure It Into Deal - US President Donald Trump said he was considering a limited strike on Iran after ordering a major naval buildup in the Middle East aimed at heaping pressure on Tehran to cut a deal to curb its nuclear programme. The latest threat came after Iran's foreign minister said a draft proposal for an agreement with Washington would be ready in a matter of days following negotiations between the two sides in Geneva earlier this week. Trump had suggesting on Thursday that "bad things" would happen if Tehran did not strike a deal within 10 days, which he subsequently extended to 15. Asked by a reporter on Friday whether he was contemplating a limited military strike, Trump answered: "The most I can say -- I am considering it." After the talks in Geneva, Tehran said the two sides had agreed to submit drafts of a potential agreement, which Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told US media would be the "next step". "I believe that in the next two, three days, that would be ready, and after final confirmation by my superiors, that would be handed over to Steve Witkoff," he said, referring to Trump's main Middle East negotiator. Araghchi also said US negotiators had not requested that Tehran end its nuclear enrichment programme, contradicting statements from American officials. "We have not offered any suspension, and the US side has not asked for zero enrichment," he said in an interview released Friday by US TV network MS NOW. "What we are now talking about is how to make sure that Iran's nuclear programme, including enrichment, is peaceful and would remain peaceful forever," he added. His comments stand in contrast to information relayed by high-ranking US officials, including Trump, who has repeatedly said Iran must not be allowed to enrich uranium at any level. Western countries accuse the Islamic republic of seeking to acquire nuclear weapons, which Tehran denies, though it insists on its right to enrichment for civilian purposes. Iran, for its part, is seeking to negotiate an end to sanctions that have proven to be a massive drag on its economy. Economic hardships sparked protests in December that evolved into a nationwide anti-government movement last month, prompting a crackdown from authorities that left thousands dead, rights groups say. The two foes held an initial round of discussions on February 6 in Oman, the first since previous talks collapsed during the 12-day Iran-Israel war last June, which the US joined by striking Iranian nuclear facilities. Washington has pursued a major military build-up in the region in tandem with the talks, and both sides have traded threats of military action for weeks. On Thursday, Trump again suggested the US would attack Iran if it did not make a deal within the timeframe he laid out. "We have to make a meaningful deal otherwise bad things happen," Trump told the inaugural meeting of the "Board of Peace", his initiative for the post-war Gaza Strip. Iran's ambassador to the UN, Amir Saeid Iravani, warned that US bases, facilities and assets would be "legitimate targets" if the United States followed through on its threats. Araghchi, however, insisted that "there is no ultimatum". "We only talk with each other how we can have a fast deal. And a fast deal is something that both sides are interested about," he said. "We are under sanctions, (so) obviously any day that sanctions are terminated sooner it would be better for us," he said, adding Iran had "no reason to delay". Washington has repeatedly called for zero enrichment, but has also sought to address Iran's ballistic missile programme and its support for militant groups in the region -- issues which Israel has pushed to include in the talks. The Israeli army said Friday that it was on "defensive alert" regarding the situation with Iran, but that its guidelines for the public remained unchanged. Ratcheting up the pressure, Trump has deployed a significant naval force to the region. After sending the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and escort battleships to the Gulf in January, he ordered a second carrier, the Gerald Ford, to depart for the Middle East. Iranian naval forces also conducted military drills this week in the Gulf and around the strategic Strait of Hormuz in their own show of force.

Satellite images show Iran repairing and fortifying sites amid US tensions (Reuters) - Satellite images show that Iran has recently built a concrete shield over a new facility at a sensitive military site and covered it in soil, experts say, advancing work at a location reportedly bombed by Israel in 2024 amid tensions with the U.S. Images also show that Iran has buried tunnel entrances at a nuclear site bombed by the U.S. during Israel's 12-day war with Iran last year, fortified tunnel entrances near another, and has repaired missile bases struck in the conflict. They offer a glimpse of Iranian activities at some of the sites at the centre of tensions with Israel and the U.S., as Washington seeks to negotiate a deal with Tehran on its nuclear programme while threatening military action if talks fail. A combination picture of satellite images show the Parchin military complex before the Israeli strikes of October, 2024, in this image dated October 20, 2024, (top row 1st), the Parchin... Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab Read more Some 30 km (20 miles) southeast of Tehran, the Parchin complex is one of Iran's most sensitive military sites. Western intelligence has suggested Tehran carried out tests relevant to nuclear bomb detonations there more than two decades ago. Iran has always denied seeking atomic weapons. Israel reportedly struck Parchin in October 2024. Satellite imagery taken before and after that attack shows extensive damage to a rectangular building at Parchin, and apparent reconstruction in images from November 6, 2024. Imagery from October 12, 2025 shows development at the site, with the skeleton of a new structure visible and two smaller structures adjacent to it. Progress is apparent in imagery from November 14, with what appears to be a metallic roof covering the large structure. But imagery from December 13 shows the facility partly covered. By February 16, it cannot be seen at all, hidden by what experts say is a concrete structure. The Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS), in a January 22 analysis of satellite imagery, pointed to progress in the construction of a "concrete sarcophagus" around a newly built facility at the site, which it identified as Taleghan 2. ISIS reported in November that imagery showed "ongoing construction and the presence of what appears to resemble a long, cylindrical chamber, maybe a high-explosives containment vessel, likely measuring approximately 36 meters long and 12 meters in diameter placed inside a building". "High-explosive containment vessels are critical to the development of nuclear weapons," ISIS added, "but can also be used in many other conventional weapons development processes." William Goodhind, a forensic imagery analyst with Contested Ground, said the roof had a similar hue to the surrounding area, adding: "It has most likely been covered with dirt to obscure the concrete colour." ISIS founder David Albright wrote on X: "Stalling the negotiations has its benefits: Over the last two to three weeks, Iran has been busy burying the new Taleghan 2 facility ... More soil is available and the facility may soon become a fully unrecognizable bunker, providing significant protection from aerial strikes." A satellite image shows tunnel entrances covered with soil at Isfahan nuclear complex, in Isfahan, Iran, February 10, 2026. Vantor/Handout via REUTERS Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab The Isfahan complex is one of three Iranian uranium-enrichment plants bombed by the United States in June. In addition to facilities that are part of the nuclear fuel cycle, Isfahan includes an underground area where diplomats say much of Iran's enriched uranium has been stored. Satellite images taken in late January showed new efforts to bury two tunnel entrances at the complex, ISIS reported on January 29. In a February 9 update, ISIS said a third entrance had also been backfilled with soil, meaning all entrances to the tunnel complex were now "completely buried". A February 10 image shows all three tunnels buried, Goodhind said. ISIS reported on February 9 that "backfilling the tunnel entrances would help dampen any potential airstrike and also make ground access in a special forces raid to seize or destroy any highly enriched uranium that may be housed inside difficult". A satellite image shows ongoing efforts to harden and strengthen a facility's two tunnel entrances at a complex near Nantanz, Iran, February 10, 2026. Vantor/Handout via REUTERS Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab ISIS has reported that satellite images point to ongoing efforts since February 10 to "harden and defensively strengthen" two entrances to a tunnel complex under a mountain some 2 km (1.2 miles) from Natanz - the site that holds Iran's other two uranium enrichment plants. Imagery shows "ongoing activity throughout the complex related to this effort, involving the movement of numerous vehicles, including dump trucks, cement mixers, and other heavy equipment", ISIS wrote. Iran's plans for the facility, called Pickaxe Mountain, are unclear, ISIS said.

US military blows up 3 alleged drug boats, killing 11 people - The U.S. military blew up three alleged drug-trafficking boats, two in the Eastern Pacific and one in the Caribbean, on Monday, killing 11 people. The U.S. Southern Command (Southcom) said the military killed eight male “narco-terrorists” in the eastern Pacific, four in the first boat strike attack and another four in the second vessel. Three “narco-terrorists” were killed in the third boat that was transiting in the Caribbean, according to Southcom. “Intelligence confirmed the vessels were transiting along known narco-trafficking routes and were engaged in narco-trafficking operations,” Southcom said Tuesday on social media. Southcom said the boats were operated by designated terrorist organizations. It is unclear which terrorist groups the U.S. military is referring to. No U.S. military personnel were injured in the operations. Since Sept. 2, the U.S. military has conducted at least 42 strikes and has killed at least 144 people it says are “narco-terrorists” in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific. The Trump administration has argued it is neutralizing drug-trafficking vessels, thus curbing the flow of illicit narcotics in the region. Last Friday, Southcom said the U.S. military struck an alleged drug-smuggling vessel in the Caribbean, killing three “narco-terrorists,” marking the first alleged drug boat strike in the region since November.

SOUTHCOM Blows Up Three Boats in the Waters of Latin America, Killing 11 People - US Southern Command on Tuesday announced that its forces launched three separate strikes on alleged drug-running boats in the waters of Latin America the night before, blowing up three small vessels and killing at least 11 people.The command said that two of the boats were targeted in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, where eight people were killed, and one vessel was struck in the Caribbean Sea, killing three. SOUTHCOM described the dead as “narco-terrorists,” a term the Trump administration uses to justify extra-judicial executions for an alleged crime that doesn’t receive the death penalty in the US.Video of the three strikes released by SOUTHCOM.SOUTHCOM said that the strikes were launched at the direction of Gen. Francis L. Donovan, the commander of SOUTHCOM, who replaced Adm. Alvin Holsey, the former commander who stepped down after reportedly voicing concerns about the bombing campaign.As usual, SOUTHCOM offered no evidence to back up its claims that the boats it blew up were carrying drugs, something the Pentagon hasn’t done for any of the vessels since the campaign began on September 2.According to Antiwar.com’s count, the three strikes bring the total number of people killed in the boat strikes to 135 and the number of vessels that have been blown up to 43.The monitoring group Airwars has kept a tally that includes survivors who have likely died. Based on the group’s latest numbers, at least 144 people have been killed in the strikes. All of the people killed are recorded as civilians since they are non-combatants and posed no threat to the US military at the time of the attacks.

US Coast Guard Seizes $133.5 Million In Illicit Drugs - Crew of the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Cutter Seneca seized more than $133.5 million worth of cocaine and offloaded the drugs at Port Everglades, Florida, the agency said in a Feb. 13 statement. “80 percent of interdictions of U.S.-bound drugs occur at sea. This underscores the importance of maritime interdiction in combatting the flow of illegal narcotics and protecting American communities from this deadly threat,” USCG said. In total, 17,700 pounds of cocaine were seized through the interdiction of four drug-transporting vessels in international waters of the Eastern Pacific Ocean. One of the drug vessels was boarded by Seneca’s crew on Jan. 25, seizing 4,410 pounds of cocaine. On Jan. 31, crew members boarded three vessels, taking custody of 13,340 pounds of cocaine, the statement said. The detection and monitoring of illegal drug transit by air and sea are conducted by the U.S. Southern Command’s Joint Interagency Task Force-South, based in Key West. Once it is determined that the vessel must be interdicted, the USCG takes control of the operation, boards the vessel, and apprehends it. According to the agency, the Coast Guard is accelerating its crackdown on drug trafficking in the Eastern Pacific Ocean in support of Operation Pacific Viper, aiming to protect the United States from the flow of illicit narcotics from South America.Operation Pacific Viper, launched in early August last year, directs U.S. forces to the Eastern Pacific region to counter cartel and criminal groups, seeking to cut off drug and human smuggling before they hit U.S. shores.In early December 2025, USCG said in a statement that it had seized more than 150,000 pounds of cocaine from the Eastern Pacific Ocean, which it said was enough to create more than “57 million potentially lethal doses.”

Trump Boasts About Ramped Up Embargo on Cuba: 'There's No Oil, No Money, No Anything' - Speaking to reporters on Monday night, President Trump boasted of his ramped-up embargo on Cuba, which has involved cutting off Venezuelan oil shipments and pressuring Mexico to end its oil exports, causing major fuel shortages in the country. “Cuba is right now a failed nation, and they don’t even have jet fuel for airplanes to take off, clogging up their runway,” he said during a flight on Air Force One. Trump said his administration was talking with the Cuban government, though, according to a report from Drop Site News, Secretary of State Marco Rubio is blocking those talks while telling the president they are happening. A source in the administration told Drop Site that the idea is for Rubio to be able to say in a few months that diplomacy with the Cuban government is futile and push for the US to pursue regime change. “We’re talking to Cuba right now, we have Marco Rubio talking to Cuba right now,” Trump said on Monday night. “But they should absolutely make a deal because it’s really a humanitarian threat.” Even if diplomatic talks were taking place, it’s unclear what sort of agreement the US wants, as Trump has not spelled out his demands of Havana. The president told reporters that as long as a deal isn’t reached, the embargo will continue. “In the meantime, there’s an embargo. There’s no oil, there’s no money, there’s no anything,” he said.

Russia's Putin slams U.S. oil blockade on Cuba: 'We do not accept anything like this' -Russian President Vladimir Putin has sharply criticized the Trump administration's fuel blockade on Cuba, saying Moscow considers the latest restrictions unacceptable.His comments come as the island nation grapples with a worsening economic crisis, one that has been compared to its biggest test since the collapse of the Soviet Union."This is a special period, with new sanctions. You know how we feel about this. We do not accept anything like this," Putin said on Wednesday during a meeting with Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, according to Russian news agency Tass.Russia, which has been allied to Cuba for decades, has recently described Havana's fuel situation as "truly critical" and said it is actively discussing what help it can provide to the country."We have always been on Cuba's side in its struggle for independence, for the right to follow its own path of development, and we have always supported the Cuban people," Putin said."We know how difficult these past decades have been for the Cuban people as they have fought for the right to live by their own rules and defend their national interests," he added.The U.S. has effectively cut Cuba off from Venezuelan oil since launching an extraordinary military operation to depose Venezuela President Nicolás Maduro on Jan. 3. Cuba said 32 of its citizens were killed in the attack.U.S. President Donald Trump has since pledged to impose tariffs on any country that supplies Havana with oil and labeled its government as "an unusual and extraordinary threat."Cuba's dwindling oil supplies prompted the United Nations to warn of a possible humanitarian "collapse" earlier in the month. Cuba's government, which has condemned the U.S. pressure, has recently adopted measures to protect essential services and ration fuel supplies for key sectors.It also suspended an annual cigar festival which had been due to take place in Havana later this month, without providing details of a new date.Photos of daily life in Cuba have shown piles of waste building on Havana's street corners in recent days as many collection trucks have been left with empty fuel tanks.

Waste Piles Up In Cuba, Blackouts Worsen, As Lavrov Pleads To US For 'Brotherly Nation' Speaking to reporters early this week, President Trump touted his tightened embargo on Cuba, pointing to moves to choke off Venezuelan oil flows and pressure Mexico to halt crude exports to the island - steps that have triggered acute fuel shortages and near total airline stoppages at Havana's main international airport. "Cuba is right now a failed nation, and they don’t even have jet fuel for airplanes to take off, clogging up their runway," Trump said aboard Air Force One. Trash is also piling up across cities in neighborhoods, as there's literally not enough gas to power the trucks. Trump added that his administration is engaged in discussions with Cuban officials, who are feeling the pressure. However, a recent report in Drop Site News has alleged that Secretary of State Marco Rubio is blocking those contacts while telling the president they are underway. Below is the heart of what was reported last week in Drop Site: When it comes to Trump’s claims of those talks, it turns out he isn’t lying. Instead, sources tell Drop Site, he’s being lied to. “He’s saying that because that’s what Marco is telling him,” said a senior Trump official, referring to an internal effort by Secretary of State Marco Rubio to make Trump believe that the U.S. and Cuba are engaged in serious negotiations without ever doing so. The idea, the source said, is that in a few weeks or months, Rubio will be able to claim that the talks were futile because of Cuban intransigence. With diplomatic off-ramps being blocked, this would make Rubio’s vision of regime change the only path forward for an administration loath to reverse course on anything. Asked about the fact that Rubio is misleading Trump about talks that aren’t going on, the State Department’s press office stood by the claim that such negotiations are indeed happening, forwarding along comment from an administration official: “As the President stated, we are talking to Cuba, whose leaders should make a deal. Cuba is a failing nation whose rulers have had a major setback with the loss of support from Venezuela and with Mexico ceasing to send them oil.” The statement offered no evidence the talks are taking place, named no officials participating, no dates of any meetings, nor did it identify a location where the supposed talks are happening. But it's clear that Cuba is in a very tight spot, after US accomplished Maduro's overthrow nearby, and as the Pentagon's military might is now threatening Iran in similar fashion. Cuba has few allies left standing, with one big exception. Russia is urging that the United States abandon its naval blockade on the communist-run island, stressing that more room must be given for legitimate negotiations. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told his Cuban counterpart Bruno Rodriguez on Wednesday that Cuba is "a brotherly nation" - according to Reuters. The Cuban FM visited Moscow Wednesday. This as blackouts and severe fuel shortages have only been compounded by the US oil emargo. "Together with most members of the international community, we call on the United States to show common sense and responsibility and refrain from plans for a naval blockade of the Island of Freedom," said Lavrov. "We categorically reject the unfounded accusations against Russia and Cuba and our cooperation, which allegedly pose a threat to the interests of the United States or anyone else."

US intercepts another oil tanker in the Indian Ocean The U.S. intercepted another oil tanker in the Indian Ocean that had come from the Caribbean, according to the Defense Department (DOD).“We defend the Homeland forward. Distance does not protect you. Overnight, U.S. forces conducted a right-of-visit, maritime interdiction and boarding of the Veronica III without incident in the [U.S. Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM)] area of responsibility,” the DOD posted on the social platform X Sunday morning.“The vessel tried to defy President Trump’s quarantine —hoping to slip away. We tracked it from the Caribbean to the Indian Ocean, closed the distance, and shut it down,” the post continued. Video featured in the post also appeared to show U.S. forces on board the tanker.According to MarineTracker, a ship-tracking website, the Veronica III is a Panamanian crude oil tanker. The website also showed the ship in the middle of the Indian Ocean, south of Indonesia, at close to 8 a.m. EST Sunday. The Veronica III has previously been linked to Venezuela, according to The New York Times, which reported last month that it departed from the country’s main oil port. Last week, the U.S. military intercepted a different oil tanker it claimed had been operating despite Trump’s quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Indian Ocean. The military had also chased after the ship from the Caribbean.

Head of US Southern Command Visits Venezuela, Meets With Acting President Rodriguez - Gen. Francis L. Donovan, the head of US Southern Command, visited Venezuela on Wednesday and met with Venezuelan Acting President Delcy Rodriguez, a visit that came less than two months after the US attacked Venezuela and abducted President Nicolas Maduro.According to a press release from Rodriguez’s office, during the meeting, both sides “agreed to create a cooperation agenda to combat drug trafficking and migration. It was emphasized that the diplomatic path is crucial for resolving differences and addressing issues of common interest.”SOUTHCOM said that Donovan had “productive meetings with Venezuelan interim authorities” and was joined by Acting Assistant Secretary of War Joseph Humire and Laura Dogu, the top US diplomat in Venezuela, who took her post at the end of January, part of the Trump administration’s effort to reopen its embassy in Caracas.The administration is pursuing a policy aimed at controlling Venezuela’s oil trade and increasing its crude exports, and the country has seen a series of visits from US officials in recent weeks to advance this agenda, including CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Energy Secretary Chris Wright, who recently toured oil sites with Rodriguez.Rodriguez has maintained that Maduro is the rightful president of Venezuela and is calling for his release, but she has obliged the US demands regarding Venezuela’s oil, demands that were madeunder the threat of another attack. According to a report from The Grayzone, a pro-opposition Venezuelan journalist has said that the US Department of Justice has crafted an indictment against Rodriguez to “hold over her head.”

US Troops Arrive in Nigeria To Train Nigerian Military - The Nigerian military announced on Monday that about 100 US troops have arrived in Nigeria to help train Nigerian soldiers as the Trump administration continues to deepen US involvement in the country.The 100 troops are the first to arrive as part of a deployment of 200 US soldiers to Nigeria, which was announced by US military officials last week. The 200 US troops will augment a “small team” of US military advisors who deployed to the country weeks ago.The military deployment comes after the US launched its first missile strike in Nigeria on Christmas Day. US Africa Command said the attack, launched by a US warship in the Gulf of Guinea, killed ISIS-linked militants in Nigeria’s northwestern Sokoto State, but the deaths have never been confirmed.Several of the Tomahawk missiles fired into Nigeria fell short and landed on two villages far from the intended target. No civilians were killed, but in one of the villages, several homes were destroyed.The Trump administration has justified the intervention by using the pretext of helping protect Nigeria’s Christians. President Trump initially threatened intervention with or without the consent of the government over claims that Nigerian authorities were looking the other way while a Christian genocide was taking place in the country, but the two sides have since agreed to increase military cooperation.While Christians in Nigeria face significant violence from ISIS-linked groups, armed bandits, and herdsmen, the Nigerian government disputes the idea that a Christian genocide is taking place since Muslims are also frequently killed. For example, about 200 people in a Muslim-majority town in the state of Kwara in western Nigeria were massacred earlier this month.

US Launches Three More Airstrikes in Somalia - The US has launched three more airstrikes in Somalia, according to press releases put out by US Africa Command, as the Trump administration continues its record-shattering bombing campaign in the country with virtually no US media coverage.AFRICOM said one strike launched on February 14 targeted al-Shabaab about 90 miles to the south of the port city of Kismayo in southern Somalia, putting the attack near the Somali-Kenya border.A second strike was launched against al-Shabaab about 100 miles northeast of Mogadishu in the Middle Shabbelle region of Somalia on February 15, according to AFRICOM. The US military command offered no other details about the strikes as it stopped sharing information about casualties and assessments on potential civilian harm early last year.The US-backed Somali Defense Ministry said that a February 15 airstrike in Middle Shabbelle, launched in coordination with “international partners,” killed 15 al-Shabaab militants and destroyed a vehicle used to plant explosives.AFRICOM also announced an airstrike in Somalia’s northeastern Puntland region on February 14that it said targeted the ISIS affiliate in the area. The command said the attack was launched about 40 miles southeast of the Gulf of Aden port city of Bosaso, where the US is backing local Puntland forces against ISIS fighters based in caves, and offered no other information.

US Bombs Somalia for 35th Time This Year - US Africa Command on Wednesday announced that its forces launched another airstrike in Somalia on February 16 as the Trump administration continues its record-breaking bombing campaign in the country. AFRICOM said the strike targeted the ISIS affiliate in Somalia’s northeastern Puntland region, about 43 miles southeast of the Gulf of Aden port city of Bosaso, a remote mountain region where the US is backing the local government’s fighters against ISIS militants based in caves. As usual, AFRICOM provided no additional details about the strike, and there has been no statement from the US-backed Puntland Counterterrorism Operations regarding that day’s operation. “Specific details about units and assets will not be released to ensure continued operations security,” AFRICOM said. The US has also been bombing al-Shabaab in southern Somalia, launching two recent strikes against the group on February 14 and February 15. The US attack marks at least the 35th US airstrike in Somalia this year. AFRICOM launched at least 124 airstrikes in Somalia in 2025, shattering the previous annual record for US airstrikes in the country, which President Trump set at 63 during his first term in 2019. According to New America, an organization that tracks the air war, the US launched more airstrikes in Somalia in 2025 than were conducted during the administrations of Joe Biden, Barack Obama, and George W. Bush combined. Despite the massive escalation, the US air war in Somalia receives virtually no media coverage in the US.

US Launches 36th Airstrike of the Year in Somalia - US Africa Command said in a press release on Wednesday night that its forces launched another airstrike in Somalia on February 17 as the Trump administration continues its record-breaking bombing campaign in the country. The command said the strike targeted al-Shabaab in the vicinity of Harbole, a village about 46 miles northwest of the southern port city of Kismayo. As usual, AFRICOM offered no other details about the strike, and there have been no statements from the US-backed Somali government about military operations in the area that day. “Specific details about units and assets will not be released to ensure continued operations security,” AFRICOM said. A day before the February 17 strike, the US conducted an airstrike in Somalia’s northeastern Puntland region that AFRICOM said targeted the ISIS affiliate, which is based in caves in a remote mountain region.The Trump administration has overseen a major escalation in US airstrikes in Somalia, which came after President Trump loosened the rules of engagement for the US military in early 2025. AFRICOM launched at least 124 airstrikes in Somalia in 2025, shattering the previous annual record for US airstrikes in the country, which President Trump set at 63 during his first term in 2019.

US Says It Launched 10 More Strikes in Syria, Finished Transferring ISIS Detainees to Iraq - US Central Command said on Saturday that its forces launched an additional 10 strikes against ISIS in Syria from February 3 to February 12, an announcement that came after US forces withdrew from a key base in southern Syria.“US forces struck ISIS infrastructure and weapons storage targets with precision munitions delivered by fixed-wing, rotary-wing, and unmanned aircraft,” CENTCOM said in a press release.The command said the attacks were part of “Operation Haweye Strike,” a military operation it launched against ISIS following the December 13 attack in Palmyra, central Syria, which killed three Americans, though the gunman was a member of the US-backed Syrian government’s security forces.“More than 50 ISIS terrorists have been killed or captured and over 100 ISIS infrastructure targets have been struck with hundreds of precision munitions during two months of targeted operations,” the command said.On Friday, CENTCOM announced that it completed its operation to transfer more than 5,700 detained ISIS members from prison camps in Syria to Iraq. The operation began after the Syrian government, which is led by the al-Qaeda offshoot Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), took control of the camps from the Kurdish-led SDF, which was previously the US’s main ally in Syria. While the Trump administration is presenting the Syrian government as an ally against ISIS, the transfer of ISIS detainees suggests the US doesn’t actually trust the government to guard them. US officials recently acknowledged to The Wall Street Journal that the Syrian military is “riddled with jihadist sympathizers, including soldiers with ties to al-Qaeda and ISIS and others who have been involved in alleged war crimes against the Kurds and Druze.”The CENTCOM announcements about the prisoner transfer and additional strikes came after the US withdrew from the Al-Tanf Garrison, a base in southern Syria near the borders of Iraq and Jordan. Members of the Syrian military replaced US forces at the base, and the Syrian government announced on Sunday that its fighters took over another US base in northeast Syria, the al-Shaddadi military base in the Hasakah countryside.

US Says 15,000 to 20,000 Escapees Remain at Large From Syrian ISIS Camp Exodus - This time last month, the Syrian military was sweeping through Kurdish territory in the country’s northeast Hasakeh Governorate, and having seized control of the al-Hawl prison camp, there were reports of thousands of ISIS-linked detainees being freed by the Islamist government’s forces.The government downplayed this issue, blaming the escapes on Kurdish security weakness, andclaimed to have recaptured them almost immediately. US intelligence assessments, however, suggest that wasn’t the case, and that 15,000 to as many as 20,000 escapees from Camp Hawl remain at large.The camp was one of several that, after the defeat of ISIS, was being used as a more or less permanent holding facility for people with any ties for the former Caliphate. Massive numbers of non-fighters were being held on a permanent basis, including those suspected of being family members of ISIS figures. Estimates put the number of detainees at Camp Hawl as high as 70,000 at one point, and the population of the prison included many young children, some of whom were born after the camp itself was established. With the fall of autonomous Syrian Kurdistan, the US announced it was sending several thousand of the detainees to neighboring Iraq for safekeeping.There was never any sort of real resolution to this, however. The US did send thousands of detainees to Iraq, but many, many more simply went missing in the chaos of the Hasakeh offensive and prison takeover, and where they are now remains unclear.The nature of these open-ended prison camp cities means many people who didn’t really have a violent background or a substantial criminal history were likely radicalized by the camp environment and the concern is that now that they are out of custody, many will willingly join ISIS.While ISIS isn’t believed to hold a substantial amount of territory anymore, and are far removed from their Caliphate days when they held substantial parts of Syria and Iraq, the group has retained a capability to carry out attacks and with a massive influx of fighters like this could be poised for a resurgence.

Report: US Will Withdraw All of Its Forces in Syria Over the Next Two Months - The US is in the process of pulling all of its roughly 1,000 troops out of Syria, which is expected to take about two months, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday. Earlier this month, the US pulled out of the Al Tanf Garrison, a base in southern Syria near the borders of Iraq and Jordan, and the Al-Shaddadi base in northeastern Syria. Both facilities were turned over to the military of the new Syrian government, which is led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), an offshoot of al-Qaeda. News of the pullout comes as the US is building up a massive force in the region to prepare for a potential attack on Iran. US officials told the Journal that the Syria withdrawal was unrelated, though the US bases in the country are vulnerable to Iranian missile attacks. The report said that one reason the Trump administration has decided to withdraw from Syria was to “reduce friction” with the Syrian military, which US officials have previously acknowledged to the Journal is “riddled with jihadist sympathizers, including soldiers with ties to al-Qaeda and ISIS and others who have been involved in alleged war crimes against the Kurds and Druze.” The presence of jihadists in the Syrian military was demonstrated by the December 13 attack in Palmyra, Syria, which killed two members of the Iowa National Guard and an American civilian interpreter. While President Trump blamed the attack on ISIS, the gunman was a member of the Syrian military. After the Palmyra attack, the US launched a new military operation in Syria, dubbed “Operation Hawkeye Strike,” which has involved over 100 strikes on what US Central Command describes as ISIS targets. A senior Trump administration official told the Journal that the US would still have the ability to “respond” to any ISIS-related threats in the region after the withdrawal, suggesting the US may continue conducting strikes in Syria.

Pete Hegseth orders ouster of Army spokesperson: Reports - Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered Army Secretary Dan Driscoll to oust one of his top advisers, Col. David Butler, who was also a spokesperson for Gen. Mark Milley when he was the chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Hegseth directed Driscoll, who is currently in Switzerland as part of the U.S. delegation negotiating to end the war in Ukraine, to remove Butler last week at the Pentagon, according to multiple news outlets. Butler was Driscoll’s spokesperson and was in line to receive his first star. The Pentagon referred The Hill to the Army. The Army praised Butler but did not address Hegseth’s order to fire the veteran communications adviser. “After 28 years of dedicated service, Col. Dave Butler is immediately transitioning from his position as Chief of Army Public Affairs to retire,” Cynthia O. Smith, an Army spokesperson, told The Hill in a statement Tuesday. “His integral role in the Army’s transformation efforts will be missed, and we wish him tremendous success.” Driscoll is seen as a powerful figure in President Trump’s military and a potential rival to Hegseth, who has been embroiled in scandals over the past year. Butler was among more than 30 Army officers who were slated for a promotion. Hegseth has expressed concerns over some officers on the list and has held it up for some time. The officers are picked by the Army board, and the Pentagon chief can’t take them off the list. Butler removed his name from the list and submitted his retirement paperwork in hopes of allowing others to get the promotions, multiple outlets reported Tuesday. The ouster of Butler marks another shake-up among senior military officers since Hegseth’s ascent to the top of the Pentagon. Hegseth has forced out retired Gen. CQ Brown, who was chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; retired Adm. Lisa Franchetti, who was the chief of naval operations; and retired Adm. Alvin Holsey, former head of U.S. Southern Command, among others.

Tom Homan doesn't 'know' meaning behind Kristi Noem's 'right leaders' comments - White House border czar Tom Homan said Sunday he didn’t “know” what Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem’s recent comments about ensuring “we have the right people voting, electing the right leaders to lead this country” meant. “So, what does she mean when she says ‘electing the right leaders?’ That’s not really immigration enforcement or DHS responsibility,” CNN’s Jake Tapper asked Homan on “State of the Union.” “I don’t know. That’d be a question for the secretary. If I had to guess, probably that — you know — only those legally eligible to vote would vote. But I have not talked to the secretary about those statements. That’d be something she’d have to answer,” Homan replied. On Friday, Noem suggested that her department plays an expansive role in election security. The secretary alleged that she has the authority to find “vulnerabilities” in the election system and put in place “mitigation measures” to ensure local and state elections are carried out “correctly.” In a press conference in Arizona, Noem claimed that elections were under DHS’s mission of “maintaining critical infrastructure.” “I would say that many people believe that it may be one of the most important things that we need to make sure we trust, is reliable, and that when it gets to Election Day, that we’ve been proactive to make sure that we have the right people voting, electing the right leaders to lead this country through the days that we have, knowing that people can trust it,” she said. Noem also said on Friday that she was “still in charge” of DHS, even as Homan recently gained more control over President Trump’s immigration agenda.

ICE memo outlines massive $38.3 billion expansion of concentration camp network - On February 13, a memorandum issued by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) outlined the agency’s plan for a massive permanent expansion of detention facilities across the United States involving tens of billions of dollars, thousands of new federal agents and the construction of “mega-centers” to hold human beings for months at a time. The memo states that by the end of November 2026, the same month the midterm elections are scheduled to be held, the agency will be overseeing “eight large-scale detention centers and 16 processing sites, as well as the acquisition of 10 existing ‘turnkey’ facilities where ICE ERO [Enforcement and Removal Operations] already operates.” While there is “no money” for social services, public healthcare, education or housing, ICE estimates $38.3 billion will be spent on the “Detention Reengineering Initiative.” The plan makes clear that despite the ending of “Operation Metro Surge” in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the US government plans to continue mass arrests and removals of those it deems “illegal” throughout 2026 and beyond. The memo states that the “new model is designed to strategically increase bed capacity to 92,600 beds.” The increased detention space coincides with the hiring of “12,000” additional immigration Gestapo. Making clear that this is not a temporary measure in response to a made-up “border crisis” but the expansion of a police state directed against the working class, regardless of immigration status, the memo emphasizes that the facilities, “will be built to handle the immediate surge capacity and sustained long-term operations, providing a unified, scalable solution that delivers continuity, safety, compliance, and control.” It calls for “Regional Processing Centers” that will house “1,000 to 1,500” people for “3-7 days.” These centers are envisioned as “staging locations for transfers or removals.” The centerpiece of the fascist proposal are “Large-Scale Detention Facilities” capable of “housing 7,000 to 10,000 detainees for periods averaging less than 60 days. These sites will serve as the primary locations for international removals.” The internal ICE memo outlining the construction of massive, long-term detention facilities is only one component of a far broader expansion of the immigration enforcement apparatus. As reported by Wired, federal records show that alongside the buildup of detention capacity, the federal government has carried out what the outlet describes as “a secret campaign to expand ICE’s physical presence across the US.” The geographic scale of this expansion is vast. While the Wired report cites a focus on four states, California, Florida, Texas and Pennsylvania, it names a large group of cities targeted: Birmingham, Alabama; Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, Jacksonville, and Tampa, Florida; Des Moines, Iowa; Boise, Idaho; Louisville, Kentucky; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Grand Rapids, Michigan; St. Louis, Missouri; Raleigh, North Carolina; Long Island, New York; Columbus, Ohio; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Charleston and Columbia, South Carolina; Nashville, Tennessee; Richmond, Virginia; Spokane, Washington and Coeur d’Alene, Idaho; and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. According to Wired, this campaign involves “more than 150 leases and office expansions” that “have or would place new facilities in nearly every state, many of them in or just outside of the country’s largest metropolitan areas.” The report notes that “in many cases, these facilities, which are to be used by street-level agents and ICE attorneys, are located near elementary schools, medical offices, places of worship, and other sensitive locations.”

GM workers denounce ICE operation outside Factory Zero in Detroit -Detroit residents recorded masked agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) stopping and detaining motorists Monday morning outside the General Motors Factory Zero assembly plant. The factory is located on the border of Detroit and the heavily immigrant enclave of Hamtramck. In a video posted on Reddit, at least four unmarked vehicles can be seen boxing in a white van on the service drive just outside one of the main driveway exits at the GM plant. Masked agents can be seen in front of and on the side of the van. A witness posted: “I saw ICE today at 9:35am outside Factory 0 on Grand Blvd. No uniforms, vests marked ERO for Enforcement and Removal Operations.” The action by federal agents in the industrial center of Detroit, just outside a factory with more than 2,100 autoworkers, is a major provocation against the working class. It is part of the rapid expansion of ICE operations in Detroit and cities across the country, as Trump’s paramilitary squads are redeployed after “Operation Metro Surge” in Minneapolis. “I condemn the deployment of ICE agents in Detroit and surrounding communities and call on workers to prepare collective action to defend our immigrant brothers and demand the removal of ICE from Detroit and every city,” Will Lehman, a Mack Trucks worker from Pennsylvania who is running for UAW president, said in a statement issued Monday. “After the mass kidnappings of immigrant workers and children in Minneapolis and the murders of Renée Good and ICU nurse and union brother Alex Pretti, Trump is expanding the use of paramilitary forces nationwide. This assault is aimed not only at immigrants but at the entire working class.” On February 2, ICE agents arrested two Amazon Flex workers in the Detroit suburb of Hazel Park. Two Venezuelan men—Edwin Vladimir Romero Gutierrez and Angel Junior Rincon Perez—were taken by ICE agents after entering the Amazon delivery facility, where they were reporting for work. On February 8, ICE agents seized 23-year-old Alcides Caceres who came from Honduras to Detroit at the age of four, graduated from Cass Tech High School and attended Wayne State University. ICE operations in Minneapolis and around the country have provoked high school walkouts across the Detroit metro area. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has purchased a 260,000-square foot vacant commercial building in Romulus, near the Detroit Metropolitan Airport, and plans to convert it into a 500-bed detention facility. Over the last year, ICE operations in Michigan saw a 230 percent increase in arrests in 2025 compared to 2024, with nearly three-quarters of those arrested having no prior criminal history. “This is not the US I know,” a veteran GM worker told WSWS reporters, who informed him about the ICE operation just outside the plant earlier that day. “We don’t need ICE here. Trump is trying to frighten us. Look what happened in Minneapolis with the killing of two US citizens. They’re not just going after immigrants; they’re going after all of us. Now, they’re building a detention center in Romulus. “This is definitely connected to the elections. Trump is targeting the blue states. He doesn’t even want us to vote in an election. The UAW should be protecting workers at GM, Ford and Stellantis from this. All any of us are trying to do is to work and earn a living. This has to stop.”

Teachers Are Fomenting Anti-ICE Hysteria -Employees of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement have been busy lately, working to fulfill their mandate to remove undocumented immigrants.Perhaps the most controversial aspect of ICE’s activities is its alleged presence in public schools across the nation.But is ICE actually going into schools? While there are a few reports of parents being detained at bus stops near schools and images of ICE agents tackling people on school grounds, they are not actually entering the schools.Tricia McLaughlin, the Homeland Security Department’s assistant secretary for public affairs, explains that agents’ actions in and around schools are intended to protect children.“ICE is not going to schools to arrest children—we are protecting children. Criminals are no longer able to hide in America’s schools to avoid arrest. The Trump administration will not tie the hands of our brave law enforcement and instead trusts them to use common sense.”McLaughlin adds, “An arrest might be made at school if a dangerous illegal alien felon were to flee into a school or a child sex offender is working as an employee. But this has not happened.”Nonetheless, teachers are organizing their students to battle ICE.As reported by Erika Sanzi, director of communications at Defending Education, teachers in Minnesota have been coordinating student protests on social media.“There is nothing organic about these events, and despite claims to the contrary, they are almost never spontaneous expressions of student speech. They are basically field trips without the parent permission slip,”Sanzi said.In Oregon, a video shows kindergarten students participating in a protest, and numerous schools nationwide have preemptively canceled classes so students could protest.The teachers’ unions have also seized on ICE’s alleged misdeeds to indoctrinate students.According to materials obtained by Defending Education, the United Teachers Los Angeles gave a presentation last year titled “Preparing for ICE at Your School” that urged its members to engage in political activism and suggested using school resources to thwart ICE operations.The UTLA documents guide educators on how to resist the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration and urge parents and teachers to collaborate on resistance efforts. It is part of the union’s broader efforts to “build a comprehensive response to immigration enforcement.”

New Trump administration order could lead to the detention of thousands of legal refugees (AP) — The Trump administration has issued a sweeping new order that could lead to the arrest of tens of thousands of refugees who are lawfully in the United States but do not yet have permanent residency, overturning years of legal and immigration safeguards. A memo filed by the Department of Homeland Security ahead of a Thursday federal court hearing in Minnesota says refugees applying for green cards must return to federal custody one year after they were admitted to the U.S. for review of their applications. DHS “may maintain custody for the duration of the inspection and examination process,” said the memo, which was filed Wednesday. Advocacy and resettlement groups slammed the order, which will likely face legal challenges and could sow confusion and fear among the nearly 200,000 refugees who came to the United States during the Biden administration. The order is the latest in a series of immigration restrictions by the Trump administration, which has upended longstanding policies toward refugees, including dramatically reducing the number admitted into the country. A memo obtained by The Associated Press late last year said the administration was planning a review of all refugees admitted to the U.S. during the Biden administration, and immediately suspended green card approvals for refugees who arrived during those years. The administration has cited national security and economic concerns for its changed policies. Experts say refugees let into the country already undergo extensive vetting. The new order came hours before U.S. District Judge John Tunheim heard arguments Thursday on whether he should extend a temporary order that protects Minnesota refugees lawfully in the U.S. from being arrested and deported. Tunheim’s order applies only in Minnesota, but the implications of the new national policy was a major part of the discussion anyway. How many people could be arrested under the new order was unclear. Justice Department attorney Brantley Mayers said during Thursday’s hearing that the government should have the right to arrest refugees one year after entering the U.S., but indicated that would not always happen. “That’s a discretion call for DHS to make,” he said, a comment met with skepticism by attorneys for the Minnesota refugees. Tunheim did not rule Thursday, saying he’d issue a written decision on whether the temporary order would be extended.

Judge orders Trump admin to reinstate Philly slavery exhibit - In a potential blow to the Trump administration’s efforts to remove “negative” history from national parks, a federal judge has ordered the reinstatement of a slavery exhibit dismantled by the National Park Service last month at Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia. Senior Judge Cynthia Rufe of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania offered a blistering critique of President Donald Trump’s history-setting agenda Monday, comparing his effort to limit educational material at parks to the “Ignorance is Strength” motto of the repressive government in George Orwell’s dystopian classic “1984.” Rufe, a George W. Bush appointee, wrote in her opinion that the Trump administration has asked the court “to determine whether the federal government has the power it claims — to dissemble and disassemble historical truths when it has some domain over historical facts. It does not.” The Monday ruling is the first legal barrier to Trump’s history agenda, prompted by an edict the president issued last year to “restore truth and sanity” to how the nation talks about its past. The executive order slammed what the president views as a “revisionist” movement. In that version of history, “our Nation’s unparalleled legacy of advancing liberty, individual rights, and human happiness is reconstructed as inherently racist, sexist, oppressive, or otherwise irredeemably flawed,” the executive order said.

U.S. trade deficit totaled $901 billion in 2025, barely budging despite Trump’s tariffs - The U.S. trade deficit swelled in December, closing out a year in which the imbalance was essentially unchanged despite efforts by the Trump administration to close the wide gap. Closing out a tumultuous year in the global marketplace, the goods and services shortfall in December totaled $70.3 billion, the Commerce Department reported Thursday. That marked an increase of $17.3 billion from November and was well above the Dow Jones consensus estimate of $55.5 billion. For the full year, the U.S. ran a $901.5 billion deficit, down slightly from 2024 but only by 0.2%, or $2.1 billion. The total was also a bit less than the record $923.7 billion shortfall in 2022. The report follows a year in which President Donald Trump implemented a series of aggressive tariffs aimed at leveling the global playing field. In April, Trump announced an across-the-board duty of 10% on all imports as well as so-called reciprocal tariffs aimed at specific countries that had run up surpluses against the U.S. However, during the course of the year Trump softened many of those positions, and negotiations with major trading partners are ongoing. In an effort to get ahead of the tariffs, companies front-loaded imports during the first three months of the year. The trend abated following the early effort, with October registering the lowest monthly deficit since 2009. The U.S. had its largest goods deficit with the European Union, at $218.8 billion, followed by China, at $202.1 billion, and Mexico, at $196.9 billion. Exports for 2025 totaled $3.43 trillion for all of 2025, up $199.8 billion from 2024. Imports also rose, totaling $4.33 trillion, an increase of $197.8 billion.

Supreme Court strikes down Trump's 'Liberation Day' tariffs - The Supreme Court on Friday struck down the Trump administration's effort to impose sweeping tariffs in a 6-3 decision. The ruling effectively strikes down the import duties President Trump levied April 2, 2025, on scores of countries, which the president dubbed "Liberation Day."

• What's at stake: The Supreme Court struck down the White House's sweeping tariff regime that went into effect last April in a 6-3 ruling.
• Expert quote: "The Government cannot identify any statute in which the power to regulate includes the power to tax." — Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, writing for the majority.
• Forward look: The White House will likely seek alternative avenues to enact its tariff agenda, which economists have feared would drive up inflation and restrict trade, which could dampen economic growth and impact corporate borrowers' ability to repay loans.

The Supreme Court Friday issued a 6-3 ruling that held that a law granting the White House economic emergency powers does not include the power to tax imports.

Supreme Court strikes down Trump’s tariffs - The Supreme Court has struck down President Donald Trump’s tariffs on imported foreign goods, dealing a blow to the administration’s economic policy. In a Friday decision led by Chief Justice John Roberts, the justices found that the president did not have the power to issue tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). The ruling could have broad implications for a range of industries, including the energy sector, that have faced economic uncertainty from the global trade war during Trump’s first year back in office. The decision is a win for small businesses and blue states that challenged the tariffs and is an unusual example of the Supreme Court’s conservative supermajority ruling against the Trump administration. The majority applied the major questions doctrine — which says Congress must clearly authorize executive action on economically and significant matters, and which the court used to invalidate an Obama-era climate rule — to reject Trump’s tariff plan. Three members of the conservative wing, Justices Clarence Thomas, Brett Kavanaugh and Samuel Alito dissented. IEEPA gives the president the power to respond to an “unusual or extraordinary threat” that comes at least in part from outside of the United States. The statute has not previously been used to impose tariffs. Trump cited a pair of national emergencies — the flow of illicit drugs across the U.S. border and a lack of reciprocity in bilateral trade — to justify sweeping tariffs against Canada, Mexico, China and other trading partners. The Justice Department had argued that language in IEEPA about regulation of imports could be interpreted to mean the president could invoke the statute to impose tariffs. Opponents of the tariffs countered that Congress had not clearly given the president that power.

Vance criticizes Supreme Court ruling on Trump tariffs - Vice President Vance condemned the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down a majority of President Trump’s sweeping tariffs on Friday. “Today, the Supreme Court decided that Congress, despite giving the president the ability to ‘regulate imports’, didn’t actually mean it,” Vance posted on the social platform X. “This is lawlessness from the Court, plain and simple. And its only effect will be to make it harder for the president to protect American industries and supply chain resiliency.” The vice president pointed to a “wide range of other tariff powers” still available to the president. Vance’s statement echoed Trump’s remarks at the White House on Friday afternoon, when he said he was “ashamed of certain members of the court.” A majority ruled against the Trump administration’s decision to use the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose steep tariffs on countries across the globe. The emergency measure grants the U.S. president the ability to place regulations on imports in response to “unusual and extraordinary” threats. Two of the six justices in the majority opinion — Amy Coney Barrett and Neil Gorsuch — were appointed by Trump. The president criticized them in his Friday remarks to the press. “I don’t want to say whether I regret nominating them. I think their decision was terrible,” Trump said. “I think it’s an embarrassment to their families.” Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have expressed discontent with the Trump administration’s use of IEEPA to impose tariffs, pointing to Congress’ constitutional authority over federal taxation. A resolution calling for the cessation of Trump’s tariffs passed in the Senate last fall with bipartisan support. Recent polling indicated that most Americans felt similarly, with 67 percent of respondents expressing their support for the Supreme Court to overturn these policies in a February survey. A recent report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York indicated that U.S. businesses and consumers took on about 90 percent of the costs of these tariffs, despite claims from the White House that foreign countries would shoulder the majority of the financial burden. Several Republican lawmakers have come out in support of the court’s decision Friday. Kentucky’s GOP Sens. Rand Paul and Mitch McConnell — who both voted in favor of passing the Senate resolution last October — commended the ruling. Paul, who sponsored the resolution, called the ruling a “defense of our Republic” in a post on X. McConnell said in a statement that the court’s decision leaves “no room for doubt” on the issue of Congress’s constitutional authority over tariffs. “Congress’ role in trade policy, as I have warned repeatedly, is not an inconvenience to avoid,” McConnell said. “If the executive would like to enact trade policies that impact American producers and consumers, its path forward is crystal clear: convince their representatives under Article 1.

Bessent: 'No one should expect' tariff revenue to decline - Just hours after the Supreme Court's 6-3 decision Friday to strike down President Trump's "Liberation Day" tariffs, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent argued that the court did not invalidate tariffs, while also outlining alternative legal avenues to maintain tariffs now that the court had ruled.

• Key insight: Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the Supreme Court limited the administration's tariff authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, but that other laws could give the administration the same powers.
• Supporting data: The Penn-Wharton Budget Model has estimated that the court's rejection of the IEEPA tariffs could result in as much as $175 billion in refunds for businesses.
• Forward look: Trump announced Friday he is imposing a 10% global tariff rate while the administration mulls its options.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a public appearance in Dallas Friday that the administration will seek alternative means of enacting the White House's tariff agenda after the Supreme Court struck down the tariffs as outside the bounds of the law.

Supreme Court wields doctrine that killed Obama climate rule against Trump tariffs - A legal doctrine used by conservatives to fight Biden-era environmental policies has helped deal a decisive blow to a central plank of President Donald Trump’s economic agenda. In a 6-3 opinion Friday, the court found the president lacked authority to impose tariffs on a broad swath of foreign goods under a law meant to address national emergencies. Chief Justice John Roberts, writing for the majority in Learning Resources v. Trump, found that the federal government had violated a legal theory — known as the major questions doctrine — that says Congress must clearly allow executive action on issues of economic or political significance. Roberts, who invoked the same doctrine in 2022 to invalidate an Obama-era climate rule, on Friday rebuffed arguments by the Trump administration and some of his own colleagues in the court’s conservative supermajority that major questions does not apply in emergency situations or matters of foreign affairs. “The Government and the principal dissent attempt to avoid application of the major questions doctrine on several grounds,” Roberts wrote. “None is convincing.” Not all members of the majority thought the doctrine should apply in the tariffs case. Justice Elena Kagan, who led a concurring opinion joined by the other two members of the court’s liberal wing, wrote that while she agreed Trump’s tariffs should be struck down, there were other ways to reach that decision. She pointed back to her 2022 dissent in West Virginia v. EPA, where she criticized her conservative colleagues for inventing the major questions doctrine to undercut the federal government’s authority to regulate a massive source of climate pollution. “[S]traight-up statutory construction resolves this case for me,” she wrote on Friday. “I need no major-questions thumb on the interpretive scales.” In a separate concurring opinion, conservative Justice Neil Gorsuch also cited Kagan’s dissent in West Virginia to argue that she and the rest of the court’s liberal members should reconsider their view of the doctrine. “In the past, they have criticized the major questions doctrine for two main reasons. The doctrine, they have suggested, is a novelty without basis in law. And, they have argued, the doctrine is rooted in an ‘anti-administrative-state stance’ that prevents Congress from employing executive agency officials to ‘d[o] important work,’” Gorsuch wrote, quoting from Kagan’s 2022 dissent. “Today, the critics proceed differently.” The court found that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act did not give the president the authority to impose sweeping tariffs after declaring a pair of national emergencies. The statute allows the president to respond to an “unusual or extraordinary threat” from other nations. The 1977 law does not mention the use of tariffs and had not been used previously to impose tariffs.The Trump administration had argued that it could use IEEPA to impose tariffs because the statute included language about the regulation of imported goods. The president cited two national emergencies: the flow of illicit drugs across U.S. borders, and the “lack of reciprocity” in international trade to justify tariffs on goods from U.S. trading partners.Small businesses, led by Learning Resources and V.O.S. Selections, sued the administration, alongside a coalition of Democratic-led states. New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) hailed the Supreme Court’s decision, calling it a “critical victory for the rule of law and our economy.”A Supreme Court ruling that upheld Trump’s tariffs, Gorsuch wrote in his concurrence, could have opened the door for a future Democratic president to impose tariffs on gas-fueled vehicles to curb planet-warming emissions. “[W]ithout doctrines like major questions, our system of separated powers and checks-and-balances threatens to give way to the continual and permanent accretion of power in the hands of one man,” Gorsuch wrote.

Supreme Court Trump tariffs ruling could put U.S. on hook for $175 billion in refunds, estimate says -The U.S. government could owe more than $175 billion in refunds to importers after the Supreme Court ruled Friday in a 6-3 decision that tariffs unilaterally imposed by President Donald Trump are illegal, a new estimate says. The potential refunds to a broad range of companies would be for tariffs already collected by the government since Trump slapped on the duties without authorization from Congress.The $175 billion refund estimate from the Penn Wharton Budget Model was produced at the request of the Reuters news wire service. The model is a nonpartisan fiscal research group at the University of Pennsylvania... Multiple importers already have pending lawsuits seeking refunds of their tariffs, citing lower-court rulings that found Trump's tariffs are not legal. The Supreme Court ruling on Friday did not say that the federal government could keep the money it has already collected from those tariffs but didn't explicitly address refunds. The president had invoked the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose the tariffs. He was the first president to ever use IEEPA for that purpose. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, one of three conservative members of the high court to dissent from Friday's ruling, warned about the potential logistical difficulty of having to refund tariffs already collected. "In the meantime, however, the interim effects of the Court's decision could be substantial," Kavanaugh wrote in his dissent. "The United States may be required to refund billions of dollars to importers who paid the IEEPA tariffs, even though some importers may have already passed on costs to consumers or others," he wrote. "As was acknowledged at oral argument, the refund process is likely to be a 'mess,'" Kavanaugh wrote. "In addition, according to the Government, the IEEPA tariffs have helped facilitate trade deals worth trillions of dollars — including with foreign nations from China to the United Kingdom to Japan, and more," he wrote. "The Court's decision could generate uncertainty regarding those trade arrangements." Brian LeBlanc, senior economist at PNC Financial Services Group, in a LinkedIn post Friday said "we estimate" that the IEEPA-related tariffs that have been ruled illegal constitute "roughly 60% of the tariffs issued to date." "That's a big deal. Until President Trump replaces those tariffs with alternative authorities, the tariff rate just dropped from around 9.5% to around 5%," LeBlanc wrote. "Refunds are going to be tricky, and we expect the Trump administration to replace most (but not all) of this lost tariff revenue."

Trump announces 10% global tariff after raging over Supreme Court loss --President Donald Trump on Friday evening said he signed an executive orderimposing a new 10% "global tariff," hours after the Supreme Court struck down his sweeping "reciprocal" import duties in a major rebuke of his trade agenda.The "Section 122" tariffs will take effect "almost immediately," Trump said in aTruth Social post.They come on top of the levies that remain intact following the high court's decision, which invalidated the tariffs Trump had imposed using the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA.At a White House press briefing Friday afternoon, Trump railed against the "deeply disappointing" 6-3 ruling."I'm ashamed of certain members of the court, absolutely ashamed for not having the courage to do what's right for our country," Trump said.The ruling threw out the legal underpinning for many of the tariffs that Trump insists are essential for the U.S. economy and for rebuilding America's shrinking manufacturing base.Trump's reciprocal tariffs and his drug-trafficking-related duties both hinged on his administration's expansive interpretation of IEEPA. But the court's majority ruled Friday that IEEPA "does not authorize the President to impose tariffs." The new 10% global tariffs, which come with a 150-day time limit, will effectively replace the IEEPA duties, a White House official told CNBC later Friday. That could mean lower U.S. tariff rates for some of the countries that had either struck trade deals with the Trump administration, or were in ongoing trade talks. That's because many of those countries and regions had faced U.S. tariffs higher than 10% as part of those agreements. The European Union, for example, agreed to a 15% tariff as part of its trade deal with the U.S. Those tariffs were largely implemented under IEEPA, meaning they were invalidated as a result of the Supreme Court's ruling.The shake-up could be significant for China, which faced two sets of 10% IEEPA-based U.S. tariffs in addition to a 25% duty that remains in effect. Those IEEPA tariffs will be replaced by Trump's new global tariff, bringing China's total rate of 35%, the White House official told CNBC.Trump was adamant that he will find other ways to impose tariffs without Congress. And the White House official noted that as the administration works through additional legal tariff pathways, the rates imposed on individual countries may snap back to their higher levels.When asked at Friday's press briefing why he did not want to work with the legislative branch, Trump said, "I don't have to. I have the right to do tariffs."Trump's remarks vacillated between defiant and scathing. He even went after Justices Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett, whom he nominated, after they voted with the majority. "I think their decision was terrible," Trump said. "I think it's an embarrassment to their families, you want to know the truth. The two of them."The new tariff order invokes Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974. Tariffs created using that statute can last for only 150 days, with any extension requiring congressional approval.Asked at the press briefing about that time limit and about getting congressional buy-in, Trump said, "We have the right to do pretty much what we want to do."Trump also declared that all the tariffs active under statutes known as Section 232 and Section 301 will remain "in full force and effect."

Donald Trump outlines new tariffs following Supreme Court decision -President Trump said Friday he would raise preexisting tariffs and begin the process of imposing new ones after the Supreme Court struck down many of his import taxes on foreign trading partners. During a White House press conference, Trump announced he would impose a universal tariff of 10 percent and begin investigations that could lead to import taxes on a wide range of countries and goods. The president also affirmed that other tariffs he imposed on metals and other imports, which were not involved in the Supreme Court case, would remain in effect. “In order to protect our country, a president can actually charge more tariffs than I was charging in the past period of a year under the various tariffs authorities,” Trump told reporters Friday. “So we can use other of the statutes, other of the tariff authorities, which have also been confirmed and are fully allowed,” he added. The Supreme Court struck a major blow to Trump’s trade agenda Friday morning, striking down the tariffs the president imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). In a 6-3 ruling, the court held that a provision of IEEPA giving the president authority to “regulate” international trade under national security grounds did not include the ability to impose import taxes. Soon after taking office last year, Trump imposed tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China under IEEPA, claiming they are damaging national security by failing to control fentanyl trafficking from their nations into the U.S. The president in April also announced steep tariffs on dozens of nations under IEEPA, though he reduced their size after weeks of turmoil in financial markets. The high court held Friday that while the IEEPA gives the president broad authority to halt or limit the volume or composition of foreign trade, it did not permit for imposing tariffs. Even so, Trump still has considerable power to impose or raise import taxes on his own through other provisions of federal law and outlined his initial plans Friday afternoon. Trump said he would impose a new 10 percent universal tariff under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974. That provision allows the president to impose tariffs of up to 15 percent for 150 days to address trade deficits. He is also maintaining tariffs he imposed on foreign steel, aluminum and other goods from certain countries under Section 232 of the Trade Act, which allows him to tax imports considered dangerous to national security. The president additionally said he would begin the process of imposing tariffs under Section 301 of the Trade Act, which gives him the authority to tariff imports produced through unfair trade practices. Trump used sections 232 and 301 frequently during his first term and is expected to lean harder on those provisions in the wake of the court’s ruling. The administration has broad authority to determine which products and countries qualify for tariffs under sections 232 and 301 through the Commerce Department and an investigation process laid out in the Trade Act. “This is ridiculous, but it’s OK, because we have other ways, numerous ways,” he said Friday.

Trump to hike global tariffs to 15% from 10%, 'effective immediately' - President Donald Trump on Saturday said he would increase global tariffs to 15% from 10%, one day after the Supreme Court struck down a broad swath of the president's trade agenda.In a Truth Social post, Trump said the new tariffs will be "effective immediately." He also warned that additional levies would follow."I, as President of the United States of America, will be, effective immediately, raising the 10% Worldwide Tariff on Countries, many of which have been "ripping" the U.S. off for decades, without retribution (until I came along!), to the fully allowed, and legally tested, 15% level," he wrote."During the next short number of months, the Trump Administration will determine and issue the new and legally permissible Tariffs," he added.Trump's announcement claimed that the new tariffs will take effect without delay, but it is unclear if any official documents have been signed detailing the timing. A White House fact sheetissued Friday said the original 10% tariffs would go into effect on Tuesday, Feb. 24, at 12:01 a.m. ET.Trump, who is scheduled to deliver his State of the Union address to Congress on Tuesday, was dealt a blow Friday when the Supreme Court decided in a 6-3 tariff ruling that the president wrongfully invoked the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to implement his levies.On Friday, Trump responded hours after the ruling with a 10% global tariff that he invoked under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974. The statute allows the president to impose temporary levies for 150 days. Any extension requires congressional approval.The president was scathing in his remarks against the Supreme Court decision, calling the ruling "ridiculous, poorly written, and extraordinarily anti-American" in a social media post. He also attacked Justices Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett after they voted with the majority in the ruling.

Small furniture retailers face existential tariff threat, despite Supreme Court ruling - The Supreme Court struck down President Donald Trump's so-called "reciprocal tariffs" on Friday. Regardless of the ruling, there's little comfort to be found for the furniture industry.Furniture importers are facing steep import duties after the industry was hit withhigher tariffs on items such as couches, kitchen cabinets and vanities last fall under section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act.While Trump's country-specific "liberation day" tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and announced in April were under review by the nation's highest court, the duties specific to furniture importers, of around 25%, were not.Compounding the issue is a constant thread of uncertainty plaguing the industry, said Peter Theran, CEO of the Home Furnishings Association, the trade group representing furniture retailers.The 25% duty on certain furniture imports was supposed to rise to 50% in January, but at the end of December, that plan was pushed back to 2027. Its also become common over the past year for Trump to threaten new tariffs on various imports that never end up getting enacted.

What to know about the disastrous Potomac sewage spill -- Nearly a month after a wastewater spill into the Potomac River began, recovery efforts are ongoing. The spillage, which resulted from a section of the Potomac Interceptor sewer line collapsing last month, resulted in an overflow of roughly 243 million gallons of wastewater as of Feb. 6, according to DC Water. Although public health officials have said the spillage did not impact drinking water quality, residents are still encouraged to avoid contact with the Potomac River. President Trump weighed in on the matter in a Truth Social post Monday, blaming local and state Democratic officials in Maryland and saying he would direct federal efforts to assist in the operation.On Jan. 19, a section of the Potomac Interceptor along the Clara Barton Parkway in Montgomery County, Md., collapsed. The DC Department of Energy and Environment (DOEE) says the interceptor carries up to 60 million gallons of wastewater daily from Virginia and Maryland to Blue Plains Advanced Wastewater Treatment Plant on the banks of the Potomac in southwest Washington.The collapse resulted in a “significant quantity of untreated sewage” flowing into the Potomac, according to the DOEE.DC Water, a local water utility, said on Feb. 6 that roughly 194 million gallons overflowed from the collapse site in the first five days after the incident, with about 49 million gallons overflowing in the time since. The utility noted that the estimated peak discharge of wastewater, roughly 40 million gallons per day, accounts for about 2 percent of the Potomac’s total flow during the period.But the Potomac Riverkeeper Network (PRKN), a local environmental advocacy group, estimated on Feb. 5 that the collapse resulted in roughly 300 million gallons discharged into the Potomac to that point. Betsy Nicholas, the president of the PRKN, told The Hill on Monday that estimate was based on data from DC Water regarding how much wastewater flows through the pipe daily.Nicholas said Dean Naujoks, the Potomac riverkeeper, requested data that DC Water has from software that measures how much water flows through the pipe daily. DC Water turned down his request, though.“How do you expect us to figure this out? We don’t have the monitoring of what volume is in your pipes, so the best we can do is look at historic data,” she remarked. DC Water said on Feb. 6 that the discovery of a rock dam inside the interceptor impaired initial reconstruction efforts and estimated that a “revised construction and repair approach” is expected to take four to six weeks. That approach includes the construction of a new bypass pump location to enable the safe removal of rock at the collapse site; the creation of a new upstream access point to facilitate repairs and enhance worker safety; the development of a new downstream connection to the interceptor to improve wastewater conveyance and reduce future risk; and the installation of an upstream bulkhead to restrict as much wastewater flow to the damaged section as possible. Permanent repairs of the pipe, though, will take up to 9 months, DC Water Chief Engineer Moussa Wone said Friday.

Emergency repairs in Potomac River sewage spill could last six weeks - DC Water on Monday said it expects its emergency repairs to the Potomac Interceptor sewer line, which collapsed and flooded the river with wastewater, could take four to six weeks. The local utility company said it was close to completing an enhanced bypass system “that will allow emergency repairs to begin on a damaged section” of the sewer line. The collapse resulted in an overflow of around 243 million gallons of wastewater as of Feb. 6, the company said.“Over the weekend, a new access pit upstream of the collapse site with additional high-capacity pumps was activated, ahead of forecasted rain and snowmelt,” DC Water said in an update on the repairs. “No overflow events impacting surface waters were reported overnight. Crews are working to bring three additional bypass pumps online over the next several days.” The company added, “These pumps will provide the capacity and redundancy needed to move forward with repairs.” The next step will be to install a bulkhead gate “to isolate the damaged pipe section” before crews pump out any wastewater left at the collapse site, as well as remove the rock dam to assess the full extent of the damage. “Until that point, some challenges remain unknown — including the stability of the surrounding ground — which may impact the timeline as work progresses,” the utility company stated. DC Water added that the longer-term rehabilitation, which includes “long-lasting pipe renewal,” following the completion of the emergency repairs will take around nine to ten months. Restoration efforts are “being developed with federal, state, and local regulators and will be released to the public once approved,” it added. President Trump blasted elected Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C., leaders over the spill, telling them on Tuesday to “get to work, IMMEDIATELY.” “If they can’t do the job, they have to call me and ask, politely, to get it fixed,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “The Federal Government is not at all involved with what has taken place, but we can fix it. But remember, even in that case, with the Democrat Shutdown, we’ll have to bring in true Patriots to do the work because many are not working right now. These Democrat caused Disasters, both River and Shutdown, will only get worse. The two Governors and the Mayor of D.C. must act, IMMEDIATELY.” “This is a Radical Left caused Environmental Hazard,” Trump continued. “With all of their talk about carbon footprints and everything else, they’re allowing hundreds of tons of sewage to pour into the Mighty Potomac, making it much less mighty. ACT FAST.”

Potomac Interceptor collapse among largest municipal wastewater spills in U.S. history - A section of the Potomac Interceptor sewer line failed on January 19, 2026, in Montgomery County, Maryland, releasing more than 920 million liters (243 million gallons) of untreated wastewater into the Potomac River. By volume, the incident ranks among the largest documented municipal wastewater spills in U.S. history. Elevated bacterial concentrations prompted recreational advisories and shellfish closures while emergency bypass operations continued into mid-February.

• Public health agencies in Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia issued advisories recommending that residents avoid direct contact with river water following the spill.
• More than 920 million liters (243 million gallons) of untreated wastewater entered the Potomac River, placing the incident among the largest documented municipal wastewater spills in U.S. history.
• E. coli concentrations near the discharge point reached up to 4 880 000 MPN/100 mL during the early phase of the spill, significantly exceeding the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recreational freshwater threshold of 410 MPN/100 mL.

The Potomac Interceptor is an 87 km (54 miles) sanitary trunk line conveying approximately 227 million liters (60 million gallons) of wastewater per day. The collapsed segment is a 1.83 m (72-inch) diameter sewer constructed more than 60 years ago and undergoing phased rehabilitation since September 2025 as part of a USD 625 million infrastructure upgrade program. The failure occurred along Clara Barton Parkway near Lock 10 inside the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park.During the first days following the collapse, discharge rates were estimated at roughly 151 million liters (40 million gallons) per day before temporary containment systems were established. By early February, DC Water reported cumulative releases exceeding 920 million liters (243 million gallons).By volume, this places the Potomac Interceptor collapse among the largest documented municipal wastewater spills in U.S. history, comparable in scale to major overflow events such as the 1994 Milwaukee Deep Tunnel discharge to Lake Michigan, though smaller than certain hurricane-related combined sewer overflows. The primary hazard associated with the release is microbiological contamination of surface waters. Elevated fecal indicator bacteria concentrations increase risk during primary-contact recreation and may persist in sediments, particularly during rainfall or snowmelt events.

Bowser requests Trump’s help on Potomac sewage spill - Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser on Wednesday accepted President Donald Trump’s offer to help fix the massive sewage spill outside the city, making an unusual request for Trump to declare the area a disaster and pay for repairs.Bowser’s request came days after Trump tried to blame the spill on her and other Democrats and said that if they want federal help “they have to call me and ask, politely.” Bowser signed her letter “Respectfully” in asking for the Federal Emergency Management Agency to offset all “costs incurred” by the city and regional sewer authorities following the Jan. 19 collapse of a sewer line in Montgomery County, Maryland. FEMA usually pays 75 percent of disaster repairs unless damage is extreme. Bowser told reporters Thursday that she made the request now because Trump expressed interest in helping and to minimize costs to D.C. residents. In addition to seeking assistance, the three-term mayor — who is not seeking reelection — declared a local public emergency and asked the federal government to support several other water quality and flood protection projects in the city.. “I have had outreach from the president’s team,” Bowser said during a press conference. “That would indicate to me that they’re supportive of the request.” No president has approved a disaster declaration for a sewage spill, according to an analysis by POLITICO’s E&E News of FEMA records dating to 1953. President Barack Obama approved an emergency declaration in 2016 for water contamination in Flint, Michigan, that began in 2014. FEMA provides limited aid for emergencies. But presidents have authority to approve disasters for a wide range of events. In his first term, Trump approved disaster requests for every state to cover their costs of handling the Covid-19 pandemic. FEMA has given states roughly $140 billion for pandemic costs. Bowser’s letter contains no cost estimates — which governors routinely include in their multipage disaster requests — and acknowledges aid would help residents outside her jurisdiction, in Maryland and Virginia. Federal law says that disaster requests “shall be made by the Governor of the affected State” — or by a government leader such as a tribal chief, territorial governor or the mayor of Washington, and that a disaster request must be based on a finding that a jurisdiction cannot handle an event by itself. Bowser’s letter to Trump makes no such claim. Neither Govs. Wes Moore of Maryland nor Abigail Spanberger of Virginia, both Democrats, have requested disaster aid from Trump. DC Water, the sewer authority, operates the sewer line that extends from as far as Dulles International Airport to a treatment plant in the city and did not respond to a request for comment. “Maryland will not be seeking an emergency declaration because the responsibility for the repair and subsequent clean up does not fall to Maryland,” said Rhylan Lake, a spokesperson for Moore, in an email. “Since Maryland owns neither the infrastructure nor the land, Maryland does not anticipate needing supplemental resources at this time.” Neither the White House nor FEMA responded to questions Thursday about whether they planned to grant D.C.’s assistance request. Considered the largest raw sewage spill of its kind in U.S. history, the broken sewer line has released over 250 million gallons of raw sewage in the Potomac River. Environmentalists have been raising concerns for weeks about the spill, which could render the river unsafe for fishing and boating and undermine longstanding efforts to repair the Chesapeake Bay. Local environmentalists said they would welcome federal funding to help with the cleanup, but that the priority should be to increase water quality monitoring and better notify the public about whether it’s safe to use the river.

Trump assailed FEMA for a year. Now he’s relying on it. - President Donald Trump is turning to the Federal Emergency Management Agency — which he has assailed since taking office — for the second time in recent weeks for leadership.Trump’s vow Monday to give FEMA “a key role” in dealing with a massive sewage spill near Washington comes three weeks after he celebrated FEMA’s expansive response to a snowstorm that swept across the nation. On social media Monday, Trump assailed Democratic Maryland Gov. Wes Moore for his response to a broken sewer pipe that discharged more than 200 million gallons of untreated sewage into the Potomac River. Local officials said the spill would take roughly 10 months to fix.“The Federal government has no choice but to step in. FEMA, which is currently being defunded by the Democrats, will play a key role in coordinating the response,” Trump wrote. Trump’s reliance on FEMA illustrates its versatility — and political value — both of which have generated a surge of resistance to Trump’s vows to weaken the disaster-response agency. Trump’s Potomac focus also tracks his ongoing feud with Maryland’s governor.

Trump administration releases $127 million in overdue funds for New York-New Jersey Gateway tunnel project president called a 'future boondoggle' - The Trump administration on Wednesday released the rest of the funds it had been withholding for the construction of a major rail tunnel between Manhattan and New Jersey, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said Wednesday. The federal government freed up the remaining $98 million due for the Gateway project that is increasing passenger rail capacity into Manhattan, as well as an additional $30 million in reimbursements for work that had been completed in January, Hochul said in a statement. The frozen funds were released in tranches over nearly two weeks after a federal judge blocked the Trump administration from withholding the money for the project that began construction in 2023. In compliance with that Feb. 6 order, the administration released $30 million on Feb. 13, followed by an additional $77 million earlier this week. The funding suspension, initiated on the eve of the Oct. 1 government shutdown, this month triggered a total work stoppage that threatened nearly 1,000 employees' jobs. Contractors are now being told to prepare to resume construction next week, the Democratic governor said in Wednesday's statement. "Today's progress is significant, but we need certainty that Gateway funding will remain in place for the duration of the project," Hochul said. "The federal government has a legal obligation to fully fund Gateway, and New York will accept nothing less."

US threatens to quit International Energy Agency if it doesn’t drop green transition - U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright on Tuesday threatened to pull America out of the International Energy Agency, whose work on deploying renewables conflicts with the pro-fossil-fuel policy of the Trump administration.“If a large part of data reporting agencies devote themselves to these kinds of leftist fantasies … that can only distort their mission,” Wright told a early-evening conference at the French Institute of International Relations in Paris.Accusing the IEA of behaving like a “climate advocacy organization,” Wright urged it to focus on “energy security.”Founded in 1974 in the wake of the first oil crisis of that decade, the Paris-based IEA produces forward-looking scenarios documenting the transition to renewable fuels that set the standard for the energy world. Wright will be in Paris on Wednesday and Thursday to attend a ministerial meeting of the agency.

Europe defies Trump team over IEA climate fight - European leaders expressed growing defiance Wednesday toward the Trump administration’s efforts to stymie messaging about climate change by the world’s premier energy organization. It came a day after Energy Secretary Chris Wright threatened to quit the International Energy Agency for including “climate stuff” in its data analyses for renewables, fossil fuels and global carbon emissions. The international dispute over the benefits of shifting away from fossil fuels and the dangers of climate change — which President Donald Trump described last week as a “giant scam” — unfolded as ministers from around the world met at the IEA’s headquarters in Paris to discuss global energy. The scene punctuated the United States’ desire to expand fossil fuels at a time when many European nations have sought to balance their energy needs by investing in wind and solar power, in addition to natural gas — where its supplies increasingly come from the United States. “Investors who think in the long term all make the same choice: nuclear, renewables, storage, smart grids. This is the choice of the 21st century, because fundamentally, no one wants to live on a planet at plus 4 degrees Celsius,” French President Emmanuel Macron said Wednesday in a video address at the start of the IEA meeting. Ed Miliband, the United Kingdom’s energy secretary, said clean energy is “the most secure and affordable” way to meet rising energy demand, cut countries’ dependence on imported fuels and meet “critical climate targets.” Those comments came in the wake of Wright calling on the IEA to abandon what he described as “left-wing, big government fantasies.” The IEA’s regular analyses on oil, gas, renewables and other energy technologies can move markets and guide investment decisions. But the Trump administration has criticized the agency’s past outlooks for projecting that fossil fuel demand would peak around 2030.

House GOP targets green groups over Willow fight - House Republicans are investigating environmental groups over their efforts to stop a major oil and natural gas project in Alaska. GOP leaders on the Natural Resources Committee said Friday that they sent letters to the Center for Biological Diversity, Defenders of Wildlife, Earthjustice, Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace and the Natural Resources Defense Council, seeking a slew of internal records about their fights against the Willow Project, which President Joe Biden greenlit in 2023. “The Committee is particularly concerned with [the Center for Biological Diversity’s] extensive history of lawfare, including ethically dubious sue and settle tactics, and CBD’s coordination with other activist environmental groups to not only champion a disdain for established essential multiple use principles, but also drown out the voices of native Alaskans while simultaneously undermining American energy independence,” Chair Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.), Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chair Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) and Rep. Nick Begich (R-Alaska) wrote in their letter to CBD dated Thursday, with similar language in other letters. Each group, the lawmakers wrote, “appears determined to ignore Willow’s indispensability, undermine American energy security, and obstruct native Alaskan prosperity through its unscrupulous coordinated litigation tactics.”

Trump's EPA decides climate change doesn't endanger public health—the evidence says otherwise -- The Trump administration took a major step in its efforts to unravel America's climate policies on Feb. 12, 2026, when it moved to rescind the 2009 endangerment finding—a formal determination that six greenhouse gases that drive climate change, including carbon dioxide and methane from burning fossil fuels, endanger public health and welfare.But the administration's arguments in dismissing the health risks of climate change are not only factually wrong, they're deeply dangerous to Americans' health and safety.As physicians, epidemiologists and environmental health scientists, we've seen growing evidence of the connections between climate change and harm to people's health. Here's a look at the health risks everyone faces from climate change.Greenhouse gases from vehicles, power plants and other sources accumulate in the atmosphere, trapping heat and holding it close to Earth's surface like a blanket. Too much of it causes global temperatures to rise, leaving more people exposed to dangerous heat more often.Most people who get minor heat illnesses will recover, but more extreme exposure, especially without enough hydration and a way to cool off, can be fatal. People who work outside, are elderly or have underlying illnesses such as heart, lung or kidney diseases are often at the greatest risk.As global temperatures rise, regions are becoming more suitable for mosquitoes to transmit dengue virus. The map shows a suitability scale, with red areas already suitable for dengue transmissions and yellow areas becoming more suitable. Credit: Taishi Nakase, et al., 2022, CC BY Heat deaths have been rising globally, up 23% from the 1990s to the 2010s, when the average year saw more than half a million heat-related deaths. Here in the U.S., the 2021 Pacific Northwest heat dome killed hundreds of people. Climate scientists predict that with advancing climate change, many areas of the world, including U.S. cities such as Miami, Houston, Phoenix and Las Vegas, will confront many more days each year hot enough to threaten human survival. Warmer air holds more moisture, so climate change brings increasing rainfall and storm intensity and worsening flooding. Warmer ocean water also fuels more powerful hurricanes. Increased flooding carries health risks, including drownings, injuries and water contamination from human pathogens and toxic chemicals. People cleaning out flooded homes also face risks from mold exposure, injuries and mental distress.Climate change also worsens droughts, disrupting food supplies and causing respiratory illness from dust. Rising temperatures and aridity dry out forests and grasslands, making them a setup for wildfires. Wildfire smoke is a toxic soup of microscopic particles (known as fine particulate matter, or PM2.5) that can penetrate deep in the lungs and hazardous compounds such as lead, formaldehyde and dioxins generated when homes, cars and other materials burn at high temperatures. Smoke plumes can travel thousands of miles downwind and trigger heart attacks and elevate lung cancer risks, among other harms.Meanwhile, warmer conditions favor the formation of ground-level ozone, a heart and lung irritant. Burning of fossil fuels also generates dangerous air pollutants that cause a long list of health problems, including heart attacks, strokes, asthma flare-ups and lung cancer. insects are directly influenced by temperature. So with rising temperatures, mosquito biting rates rise as well. Warming also accelerates the development of disease agents that mosquitoes transmit. Mosquito-borne dengue fever has turned up in Florida, Texas, Hawaii, Arizona and California. New York state just saw its first locally acquired case of chikungunya virus, also transmitted by mosquitoes.And it's not just insect-borne infections. Warmer temperatures increase diarrhea and foodborne illness from Vibrio cholerae and other bacteria and heavy rainfall increases sewage-contaminated stormwater overflows into lakes and streams. At the other water extreme, drought in the desert Southwest increases the risk of coccidioidomycosis, a fungal infection known as valley fever.Climate change threatens health in numerous other ways. Longer pollen seasons increase allergen exposures. Lower crop yields reduce access to nutritious foods.Mental health also suffers, with anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress following disasters, and increased rates of violent crime and suicide tied to high-temperature days.Young children, older adults, pregnant women and people with preexisting medical conditions are among the highest-risk groups. Lower-income people also face greater risk because of higher rates of chronic disease, higher exposures to climate hazards and fewer resources for protection, medical care and recovery from disasters.The evidence linking climate change with health has grown considerably since 2009. Today, it is incontrovertible.Studies show that heat, air pollution, disease spread and food insecurity linked to climate change are worsening and costing millions of lives around the world each year. This evidence also aligns with Americans' lived experiences. Anybody who has fallen ill during a heat wave, struggled while breathing wildfire smoke or been injured cleaning up from a hurricane knows that climate change can threaten human health. Yet the Trump administration is willfully ignoring this evidence in proclaiming that climate change does not endanger health.

'Half-daylight saving time' could become permanent under new bill – While most of the daylight saving time-related bills in Congress have focused on locking the clocks an hour ahead of standard time, a newly introduced piece of legislation is taking half that approach. The Daylight Act of 2026, introduced by Rep. Greg Steube (R-FL) earlier this month, calls for our clocks to slide forward a half hour from where they are now, and for the twice-annual clock changes to end. Though losing a half-hour of sleep would be less harmful than a whole hour, setting our clocks forward at all is still less desirable for our health in the long run, experts say. “Medically, a half hour delay would be less harmful than a full hour delay of permanent daylight saving time and would have the benefit of ending the biannual change,” Dr. Karin Johnson, spokesperson for the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) and co-chair of the Coalition for Permanent Standard Time, told Nexstar via email. However, Johnson added, it would still lead to fewer morning hours of daylight, which health experts agree is better for us. Permanent standard time would also prevent “the confusion of trying to sync schedules that are offset by a half hour,” she said.Jay Pea, president of the non-profit Save Standard Time, concurred, explaining, “the design of Standard Time (when aligned properly to longitude) is to minimize misalignment between clocks and the sun to within 30 minutes or fewer.”Pea pointed to the “unintended complications for technology, transportation, and business.”That would be especially true for international services. Time zones apply to the entire globe, not just the U.S. If it’s 3 p.m. in New York City, it’s also 3 p.m. in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, and Lima, Peru.While the time zones can have different names – Eastern Time in New York and Quebec, Peru Time in Lima – they’re based on their relation to Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). That’s the world-wide, 24-hour clock known as Zulu time, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Halting vaccine innovation, younger colorectal cancer deaths, lingering flu, and good news - Katelyn Jetelina | Your Local Epidemiologist - Last week, Moderna asked the FDA to review its new mRNA flu vaccine after completing a large clinical trial. Instead of reviewing it, the agency sent something called a “Refuse to File” letter, meaning it would not even begin reviewing their application. This means this vaccine will not go onto the long pathway to licensure (and ultimately, to your arms).That might sound technical, but it matters. A lot. Flu vaccines help, but they’re far from perfect. In most years, they reduce the risk of hospitalization by roughly 40–60%. (To compare, the measles vaccine is 97% effectiveness against severe disease). Flu changes quickly, which means innovative vaccines are needed. There are two potential advantages of mRNA technology:

1. Speed: mRNA vaccines can be updated much faster than traditional flu vaccines (3 months vs. 6 months), so they could catch up to flu mutations more quickly.
2. Immune response: Early research suggested stronger immune responses, including T cell and memory B cell responses that were comparable to or stronger than those from enhanced flu vaccines used in older adults.

So, Moderna invested an estimated $500–700 million to develop a new mRNA flu vaccine candidate, called mRNA-1010, and tested it in a Phase 3 trial involving more than 40,000 adults age 50 and older. The study compared the mRNA vaccine with a standard licensed flu shot. Results showed 26% better protection in adults over 50 with the mRNA flu vaccine than with standard flu shots, a meaningful gain. Side effects such as fatigue and chills were more common (as they are with mRNA Covid-19 vaccines). FDA leadership objected to the main comparison: Moderna compared its vaccine to a standard-dose flu shot rather than a high-dose version often used for older adults (who are at greatest risk for severe flu disease). At first glance, that sounds reasonable. But Moderna did conduct a smaller trial with about 3,000 participants specifically to address this question. In adults aged 65 and older, Moderna found that the mRNA vaccine elicited stronger antibody responses than the high-dose vaccine. For decades, this has been used as a strong proxy for a robust immune response that would protect patients. Why this stands out. There are three main reasons:

1. The clinical trial design had already been cleared by the FDA in 2024. Even though political leadership changes between administrations, continuity matters because vaccine and drug development typically takes around 5-10 years. Companies rely on stable expectations when they make long-term investments in innovation. Political appointees changed the expectations in the last mile.
2. Refuse to File decisions are rare (about 4% of applications receive them) and typically happen when major information is missing. That doesn’t appear to be the case here.
3. Other regulators, like those in Europe, Canada, and Australia, have accepted the application for review.

Taken together, this hints at an increasingly partisan shift that could reshape the future of vaccine innovation. Without the U.S. market, it’s unclear whether Moderna will move forward commercially. The company has already announced it will pause new Phase 3 trials for other infectious disease vaccines, shelving programs for viruses such as Epstein-Barr, herpes, and shingles. What we don’t know yet is how other vaccine manufacturers will interpret this moment. If the regulatory environment feels unpredictable, investment could slow, not just in flu vaccines but also in future outbreak preparedness. In other words, this is how vaccine innovation is slowly destroyed.

Double-reverse: FDA now says it will review Moderna’s mRNA flu vaccine -- One week after saying it was refusing to review Moderna’s application for approval of a new flu vaccine, the US Food and Drug Administration's (FDA’s) Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER) has reversed course and will review the application for an mRNA flu vaccine for those 50 and older.Before the initial reversal, the FDA previously indicated support for the company’s phase 3 findings for the vaccine.In a news release today, Moderna explained it proposed a revised regulatory approach for its investigational seasonal influenza vaccine candidate, mRNA-1010. Moderna is now seeking full FDA approval for adults 50 to 64 years of age and accelerated approval for adults 65 and older, along with a post-marketing requirement to conduct an additional study in older adults. Moderna said the FDA has accepted the application for review, with a deadline of August 5, 2026. “We appreciate the FDA’s engagement in a constructive Type A meeting and its agreement to advance our application for review,” said Stephane Bancel, MBA, MEng, Moderna CEO. “Pending FDA approval, we look forward to making our flu vaccine available later this year so that America’s seniors have access to a new option to protect themselves against flu.”The FDA had refused to review the original application because it said Moderna’s phase 3 study was not“adequate and well-controlled.” Most in question was the use of a standard-dose flu shot in the comparator arm of the trial for those 65 and older, instead of a high-dose seasonal flu vaccine. Moderna said CBER had previously approved the study design, and Bancel told the media the FDA had not expressed any concern with the safety or efficacy of mRNA-1010.The FDA, has, under the leadership of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.,slashed $500 million in mRNA contracts as of last August. Kennedy has been a longtime opponent of mRNA vaccines, including the vaccines developed against COVID-19 during Operation Warp Speed under President Donald Trump’s first term.In addition to confusing top Moderna executives, last week’s refusal shook the confidence of the vaccine market. The New York Times said vaccine manufacturers, including Moderna, were cutting jobs and curbing research in the United States to anticipate further anti-vaccine business during this administration. It’s not clear if external economic pressures caused the FDA to backtrack, however. “We don’t have any idea why they reversed course,” infectious disease expert Michael Osterholm, PhD, MPH, said when asked about today’s announcement. “That’s part of the problem.” Osterholm said vaccine developers need consistent policy and protocol. “They need to know what is needed for approval, and how it would be supported after approval. Without that we will see a rapidly changing vaccine landscape. “This current situation demonstrates how out of control we are in the FDA’s consideration and review of currently licensed vaccines and potential new vaccines.”

Trump administration seeks to build alternative to WHO surveillance - The Trump administration is reportedly working on plans to develop an alternative to the disease-surveillance and outbreak-response programs it previously had access to as a member of the World Health Organization (WHO).According to reporting by the Washington Post,the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is seeking up to $2 billion a year to build a worldwide disease-monitoring system that would “recreate systems such as laboratories, data-sharing networks, and rapid-response systems” that the United States once helped build for the WHO. The Post notes that the price tag is roughly three times the $680 million the US government contributed annually to the WHO before it left the organization.The Trump administration formally withdrew from the WHO on January 22, saying that the agency had “abandoned its core mission and acted repeatedly against the interests of the United States.”“Although the United States was a founding member and the WHO’s largest financial contributor, the organization pursued a politicized, bureaucratic agenda driven by nations hostile to American interests,” HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a joint statement.The statement also said the United States would continue “advancing global health security through direct, bilateral, and results-driven partnerships.”What that will look like is unclear. In response to a request from CIDRAP News for confirmation and further clarification of the Post’s reporting, HHS spokesman Andrew Nixon said, “HHS is working with the White House in a deliberative, interagency process on the path forward for global health and foreign assistance that first and foremost protects Americans.”The decision to leave the WHO has been widely condemned by global health and infectious disease experts, who’ve warned that it will jeopardize disease surveillance and the ability to keep the country safe from outbreaks.

Trump order seeks to protect weedkiller at center of barrage of lawsuits - Donald Trump has signed an executive order protecting production of glyphosate-based herbicides, such as Roundup, which some bodies and studies have linked to cancer and which are the subject of widespread US litigation.The president’s move, which also seeks to provide “immunity” for makers of the herbicides, was strongly criticized by health and environmental advocates including some figures in the “Make America healthy again” (Maha) coalition.The order also protects domestic production of phosphorus, which is used in making glyphosate and other agricultural chemicals, as well as a range of other products, including some in military defense.Ensuring “robust domestic elemental phosphorus mining and United States-based production of glyphosate-based herbicides is central to American economic and national security”, the order states.The 18 February order cites authority under the Defense Production Act and instructs US Department of Agriculture secretary Brooke Rollins to issue orders and regulations as “may be necessary to implement this order”.The White House said “the threat of reduced or ceased production” of phosphorous and glyphosate herbicides “gravely endangers national security and defense, which includes food-supply security”.Neither the executive order nor the fact sheet the White House put out accompanying the order discloses that glyphosate-based herbicides have been linked to an array of cancers and other health problems in multiple independent research studies and by cancer experts of the World Health Organization (WHO).The move by the White House comes as Roundup maker Bayer is facing tens of thousands of lawsuits alleging the company’s glyphosate herbicides cause cancer and the company failed to warn farmers and other users of the risks. The company, which inherited the litigation when it bought Monsanto in 2018,has already paid out billions of dollars in settlements and jury verdicts and said this week it was proposing to pay $7.25bn in a class action settlement to try to head off future lawsuits.Bayer has said that if it cannot find relief from the litigation, it may stop making glyphosate herbicides for the US agricultural market.“This executive order reads like it was drafted in a chemical company boardroom,” said Vani Hari, a food activist, author and one of the grass roots leaders of the Maha coalition. “Calling it ‘national defense’ while expanding protections for toxic products is a dangerous misdirection. Real national security is protecting American families, farmers, and children.”Kelly Ryerson, another key actor in the Maha movement who has been lobbying US regulators and lawmakers for restrictions on glyphosate and other pesticides, said the move by Trump is an insult to those who have largely supported the administration because of promises that Maha issues would be taken seriously.“The President is making a mockery of the very voters who put his administration into office,” Ryerson said. “Expanding the production of glyphosate, a pesticide derided by the Maha movement, is a commitment to perpetuating the toxic, chemical food system that has created a sick and infertile American population.”

Kennedy defends Trump glyphosate order; MAHA erupts -- Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. defended President Donald Trump's executive order spurring the domestic production of the weed killer glyphosate, as his Make America Healthy Again movement reels from the president's embrace of the chemical they despise.Trump on Wednesday night signed an executive order invoking the Defense Production Act to compel the domestic production of elemental phosphorus and glyphosate-based herbicides. Glyphosate is the chemical inBayer-Monsanto's Roundup and is the most commonly used herbicide for a slew of U.S. crops. Trump, in the order, said shortages of both phosphorus and glyphosate would pose a risk to national security.Kennedy backed the president in a statement to CNBC Thursday morning."Donald Trump's Executive Order puts America first where it matters most — our defense readiness and our food supply," he said. "We must safeguard America's national security first, because all of our priorities depend on it. When hostile actors control critical inputs, they weaken our security. By expanding domestic production, we close that gap and protect American families." But Kennedy's MAHA coalition that supported Trump in the 2024 presidential election hates glyphosate, which has been alleged to cause cancer in myriad lawsuits. Now, the executive order threatens to unravel that coalition ahead of the 2026 midterm elections that could loosen the president's grip on Washington."Just as the large MAHA base begins to consider what to do at midterms, the President issues an EO to expand domestic glyphosate production," Kelly Ryerson, a prominent MAHA activist known as The Glyphosate Girl, said in apost on X. "The very same carcinogenic pesticide that MAHA cares about most."Ken Cook, president of the Environmental Working Group, a watchdog that has pushed back against chemicals in food for years, said in a statement that he "can't envision a bigger middle finger to every MAHA mom than this." "Elevating glyphosate to a national security priority is the exact opposite of what MAHA voters were promised," Cook said. "If Secretary Kennedy remains at HHS after this, it will be impossible to argue that his past warnings about glyphosate were anything more than campaign rhetoric designed to win trust — and votes."

FCC commissioner criticizes Paramount's decision to block Stephen Colbert-James Talarico interview - A Federal Communications Commission (FCC) member is going after Paramount over the company’s apparent decision to bar CBS late night host Stephen Colbert from airing an interview with Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico. “This is yet another troubling example of corporate capitulation in the face of this Administration’s broader campaign to censor and control speech,” said Commissioner Anna Gomez, a Democrat. “The FCC has no lawful authority to pressure broadcasters for political purposes or to create a climate that chills free expression.” Gomez added, “CBS is fully protected under the First Amendment to determine what interviews it airs, which makes its decision to yield to political pressure all the more disappointing.” Colbert made headlines overnight when he announced on his program Monday the network’s lawyers had told him “in no uncertain terms … that we could not have him on the broadcast.” “Not only could I not have him on, I could not mention me not having him on,” the comedian continued. “And because my network clearly does not want us to talk about this, let’s talk about this.” Colbert theorized that Paramount did not want to upset FCC Chair Brendan Carr, who recently floated doing away with an agency rule exempting talk shows from being required to provide equal time on air to candidates for political office. “Let’s just call this what it is: Donald Trump’s administration wants to silence anyone who says anything bad about Trump on TV, because all Trump does is watch TV,” the “Late Show” host said. Gomez said, “It is no secret that Paramount, CBS’s parent company, has regulatory matters before the government, but corporate interests cannot justify retreating from airing newsworthy content.” “The FCC is powerless to impose restrictions on protected speech, and any attempt to intimidate broadcasters into self-censorship undermines both press freedom and public trust,” she added in her statement.

Megyn Kelly accuses GOP Rep. Randy Fine of going ‘full bigot’ with post about Muslims - Conservative commentator Megyn Kelly accused Rep. Randy Fine (R-Fla.) of going “full bigot” on Tuesday following the congressman’s weekend social media post that compared Muslim people to dogs. “If they force us to choose, the choice between dogs and Muslims is not a difficult one,” Fine wrote Sunday in a post on the social platform X. His remarks drew immediate outrage online and from congressional Democrats, who are now calling for the congressman to be censured and to resign from his position. Kelly was one of the few Republicans to immediately speak out against Fine’s comment, replying “wtf is this.”Fine doubled down, replying to Kelly’s post, “figured it out yet?” “What I figured out, you pathetic sweaty man, is when an idiot Muslim says ‘no dogs in NYC,’ instead of attacking the person or the policy, you went full bigot,” Kelly wrote, before telling the congressman to “F‑‑‑ off.”The congressman also posted a picture of a dog with the words “Don’t tread on me” in response to criticism from pollster Mark Mitchell that his statement was “not a good look.” In a Tuesday statement, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) rebuked Fine’s comment, calling the congressman “an Islamophobic, disgusting bigot.” Additionally, the Democratic leader prompted his Republican counterpart, Speaker Mike Johnson (La.), to condemn the post. Other members have called for Fine to be censured. “Republican leaders must hold this so-called Member of Congress accountable,” Jeffries said. “Political violence, xenophobia and hate crimes against the Muslim community are on the rise. House Democrats will not let the racist and bigoted behavior of Randy Fine go unchecked. Accountability is coming to all of these sick extremists when the gavels change hands in November, if not sooner.”If the House votes to censure Fine, he could be stripped from his committee assignments. The Florida congressman serves on the chamber’s Foreign Affairs Committee and Education and the Workforce Committee.

LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman's emails with Jeffrey Epstein revealed in DOJ docs -- Jeffrey Epstein emails reveal LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman discussing visits to Epstein’s infamous private island, his New Mexico ranch, and his New York apartment.“Reid will spend the night at 71st,” according to one email from Hoffman’s team included in the latest Justice Department dump of Epstein files, in reference to his Upper East Side townhouse.An apparent 2014 scheduling memo lists a variety of dinners and parties, as well as the line: “Jeffrey will have Joi Ito and Reid Hoffman will go to the ranch for the weekend (JE did not give exact dates).” Ito is a Japanese venture capitalist.An email Epstein penned to his assistant Saida Sapieva under the heading “Trip to the Island” states: “Reid will take a Virgin America Flight from SFO to Fort Lauderdale, departing at 8:20 am, landing at 4:40 pm.”In 2023, Hoffman visited to Epstein’s former Caribbean private island, Little St. James, also known as “pedophile island,” The Post previously reported.In one bizarre 2016 email, Hoffman, a top Democratic fundraiser, sounded thrilled to recover an important personal item that somehow got buried in swag.“Saida, please tell reid that i have his passport. Found in the gift bag they had given me,” Epstein wrote.“Larry and me and your passport,” Epstein later wrote Hoffman dryly about an event, in a likely reference to former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers. “Excellent!’ exclaimed Hoffman. Hoffman turns up in yet another email, this one a 2014 message to Epstein from SpaceX founder Elon Musk. “Spoke to reid hoffman yesterday, are you planning to do st barth again for xmas?” Epstein asked him. “Don’t know,” was Musk’s terse reply. Musk had sounded more keen in a November 2012 email. “Do you have any parties planned?” he wrote to Epstein, the documents show. “I’ve been working to the edge of sanity this year, and so, once my kids head home after Christmas, I really want to hit the party scene in St. Barts or elsewhere and let loose,” Musk continued. “The invitation is much appreciated, but a peaceful island experience is the opposite of what I’m looking for.”

Hyatt executive chairman steps down over Epstein ties -- Billionaire Tom Pritzker announced on Monday he was retiring as executive chairman of Hyatt Hotels after his association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was revealed in the latest release of files by the US Justice Department. Pritzker, who has been executive chairman since 2004, also said he won’t stand for re-election with the company’s board.“Good stewardship also means protecting Hyatt, particularly in the context of my association with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell which I deeply regret,” Pritzker, an heir to the Hyatt fortune, said in a statement. He continued, “I exercised terrible judgment in maintaining contact with them, and there is no excuse for failing to distance myself sooner.” Pritzker is the latest powerful figure facing repercussions after the release of files showing the depth of Epstein’s network of business and cultural elites. The released files showed Pritzker in recurring contact with Epstein, even after Epstein’s controversial 2008 plea deal for procuring a minor for prostitution. For example, economist Larry Summers was earlier banned for life from the American Economic Association over his ties to the late sex offender. Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, the head of DP World, the world’s largest port operator, was also replaced over his intimate friendship with Epstein. Other global figures have also faced an outcry and a range of consequences for their relationships with Epstein.In one example of contact between Pritzker and Epstein in 2018, Epstein enlisted Pritzker’s help in reservations for a woman traveling through Asia who was reportedly a girlfriend of his. “Going to try to find a new girlfriend for Jeffrey,” the woman wrote in an email when Pritzker asked what she was going to do there. “May the Force be with you,” Pritzker replied, along with a smiley face emoji.

Whoopi Goldberg breaks silence after being named in Epstein files - During the latest episode of The View, co-host Whoopi Golderg broke her silence after being named in the Jeffrey Epstein files. The 70-year-old television personality addressed her name being mentioned during the Tuesday, February 17 episode of the morning show. This comes after with her name was referenced 21 times in the latest email releases from the DOJ. There was never any suggestion that she was guilty of any wrongdoing, which she confirmed on the program. Displaying a screenshot of the file on the big screen, Whoopi addressed the issue head-on. She explained, "In the name of transparency, my name is in the files. Yes. And what does it say? It says 'Whoopi needs a plane to get to Monaco John Lennon's - it should say Julian Lennon's charity - is paying for it." She continued, "They don't want to charter so they're looking for private owners. Here's the info. And they give all the information and they're saying 'Do you want to offer your G2?'" To which her co-host Joy Behar then chimed in, "So in other words, anyone can be on this list." To which Whoopi confirmed, "This is my point. I'm telling you when people are trying to turn me into - I wasn't his girlfriend, I wasn't his friend, I was not only too old but it was at a time where this is just not - you used to have to have facts before you said stuff.” She went on to add, “I'm speaking about me because I'm getting dragged. People actually believe that I was with him. It's like 'honey, come on.' Every man that I've ever been with you've known about him because either the Inquirer wrote about it, people wrote about this stuff. And no I didn’t get on the plane because you know what I would have to do to get on that plane? They’re trying to get me to get on a plane to get to this thing for Julian Lennon.” This email that Whoopi referenced dated May 8 2013, read, "Whoopi Goldberg needs a plane to get to Monaco. John Lennon's charity is paying for it. They don't want to charter so they are looking for private owners. he scheduled jet fell through yesterday and they are scrambling to get Whoopi over to Monaco." The email then shares further details of the event and discusses financial benefits. The message continues, "I am sure the jet owner could attend the fete and get fuel reimbursed (otherwise, if it is to be paid for, we would love to know the costs so we can factor it in for John. Obviously the more money we keep, the more goes directly to the charity.)' Would you want to offer the GII?"

Epstein Funded UCSD Study Of 'Telepathic Autistic Savant' Through Deepak Chopra Connection Jeffrey Epstein was connected with several notable scientists - funding leading research centers, including Harvard, where he donated $9 million, and MIT's Media Lab, which he gave at least $7.5 million (and funneled another $1.2 million to investments under the control of the lab's former director, Joi Ito). He was connected to Stephen Hawking, Marvin Minsky, Steven Pinker and a host of other names. Now we learn that Epstein provided funding to a lab at UC San Diego after lifestyle guru Deepak Chopra introduced the financier to lab director Vilayanur Subramanian Ramachandran - a neuroscientist who was studying an "autistic savant who displays telepathy," according to the latest DOJ Epstein file dump. Chopra, a former UCSD family medicine and public health clinical professor, said in late October that he was just helping Epstein with insomnia by teaching him to meditate. "At my suggestion, he also visited Dr. V.S. Ramachandran's lab at [the University of California San Diego] to learn about ongoing brain research," hetold CBS News in December. Ramachandran was conducting a study on an "autistic savant who displays telepathy," according to UCSD's The Guardian, citing a Sept. 25, 2017 email with the subject "Cost to study the autistic savant who displays telepathy," in which he tells Chopra, "i don't have a problem with my lab being funded by epstein ... so long as theres no UC connection." Ramanchandran further wrote that if Chopra’s “pal [Epstein] is serious about setting in motion a lab for the study of extraordinary brain potential … something like 500,000 to 3 million would get the administrators excited.”A subsequent email from Epstein to his accountant, Richard Kahn, instructed Kahn to send $25,000 from Epstein’s private foundation, Gratitude America Ltd., to the University of California Board of Regents to fund Ramachandran’s research on savant syndrome. He asked it to be mailed to former psychology department director and current chief administrative officer, Peter Hinkley. Chopra later emailed Epstein on October 5, 2017 to provide an update on spending the day with Ramachandran to discuss the "pilot study of autistic savants."The 2017 emails weren't the first Epstein-Ramachandran mention. On April 17, 2009, Epstein emailed someone whose name was redacted, replying to a list of "smart" and "out of the box" people to have over to his Florida home sometime in the future. Epstein included Ramachandran in this list, along with others who he described as "good friends of mine for years." While there's nothing we could find on the telepathic kid (maybe they sensed danger), Ramachandran did write anarticle in December 2006 where he says telepathy is "legitimately ignored, except by crackpots" because it's difficult to replicate. He's also mentioned a few times in this piece on life after death, ESP, and other phenomenon.

Epstein would 'name drop' Trump, Les Wexner says in deposition video --Jeffrey Epstein would "name drop" President Donald Trump as one of the many high-profile people he claimed to know, billionaire retail magnate Leslie Wexner said this week in a congressional deposition about the notorious sex offender. The 88-year-old Wexner, who was one of Epstein's top clients and benefactors, said Epstein "held [Trump] out as a friend," according to a video of the deposition that House Democrats released Thursday. But Wexner, the retired founder of Victoria's Secret ex-parent L Brands, said he did not believe Trump and Epstein were actually friends. And he denied seeing or hearing anything about Trump having a sexual relationship with someone introduced to him by Epstein or his convicted accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell. He also told lawmakers that both Trump and Epstein would sometimes be at the lingerie company's fashion shows — though he suggested it was a "coincidence" and that he can't recall "something ... that would put them together." "I remember because Trump would always introduce himself to me, and I always thought it was kind of odd that he was at the fashion show because he had nothing to do with fashion," Wexner said. The White House did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment. The deposition occurred as the Department of Justice's recent release of millions of additional Epstein-related files raises new questions about the late sex criminal's ties to a growing list of prominent figures. Video of the nearly five-hour deposition, conducted Wednesday in New Albany, Ohio, where Wexner lives, was shared on the YouTube account for the House Oversight Committee's Republican majority. Democrats on the Oversight panel, who had traveled to Ohio for the deposition, said that no Republican committee members attended. They also expressed skepticism about Wexner's insistence that he had virtually no social life with Epstein, and they vowed to continue investigating. "I do not believe when Mr. Wexner says that he did not have a personal relationship or a friendly relationship" with Epstein, Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., the panel's ranking member, told reporters Wednesday. Asked if he had a relationship with Trump, Wexner laughed and said he did not. Despite their occasional exchanges at the fashion shows, "we didn't know each other," Wexner said. "I'd be shocked if he remembered me." Trump has never discussed Epstein with Wexner, he said. But when asked if Epstein ever discussed Trump with him, Wexner paused and then said, "I would describe it — he would name drop it." "So he would say things like, 'I know [former President Bill] Clinton or I know the Pope or I know God... It was that kind of name dropping, but never, I can't remember [a] specific place, but Jeffrey dropped a lot of names." Asked to clarify that Epstein specifically referenced Trump, Wexner seemed to backtrack. "No, I'm saying it could have and I don't remember," he said.

Why wasn't Wexner charged as Epstein co-conspirator? Congressman demands answer -A Kentucky congressman has criticized the U.S. Department of Justice for failing to explain why it had not prosecuted central Ohio retail billionaire Les Wexner in connection with Jeffrey Epstein, his former financial adviser and an accused child sex trafficker. In a U.S. House Judiciary Committee hearing on Feb. 11 where lawmakers grilled Attorney General Pam Bondi, Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Kentucky, stated that Wexner was listed in documents as a co-conspirator, "not to tax evasion, but to child sex trafficking." Wexner has not been charged with a crime, but the co-conspirator label was used several times to describe him in the millions of Epstein files released by the DOJ in response to a law passed in 2025. "At what point did the FBI and DOJ decide that Les Wexner is not a co-conspirator because our Epstein files transparency act requires you... to release the internal decision about whether to prosecute him or not and it's not in the files, it's not in the files for any of these other men," Massie asked Bondi. Bondi responded by calling Massie a "failed politician" and described the tense hearing as a "political joke." Representatives for Wexner have repeatedly denied the retail mogul had any knowledge of Epstein's crimes before he ended their relationship in 2007. Recently released emails show the two were still in touch the following year. “The Assistant U.S. Attorney told Mr. Wexner’s legal counsel in 2019 that Mr. Wexner was neither a co-conspirator nor target in any respect. Mr. Wexner cooperated fully by providing background information on Epstein and was never contacted again," a spokesman told The Dispatch. The congressional hearing came after Massie posted to X that Wexner's name had been erroneously redacted in a file on potential Epstein co-conspirators. That file has since been unredacted, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said Feb. 9. Bondi on Feb. 11 said Massie was acting as if "everybody's trying to cover up Wexner's name." The mistaken redaction of Wexner was corrected within 40 minutes of it being pointed out, Bondi said.Bondi also told the House Judiciary Committee that Wexner's name appears more than 4,000 times in the Epstein documents released by the DOJ in recent months. Wexner is listed as a co-conspirator at least four times in those documents, The Dispatch has previously reported. Wexner is scheduled to be deposed by the House Oversight Committee on Feb. 18. This isn't the first time Wexner's name has come up as a potential co-conspirator in the Epstein files released by the DOJ. An email released Dec. 23, 2025, that was sent by an FBI agent in New York on July 7, 2019, listed Wexner while asking for an "an update on the status of the 10 co-conspirators." An Aug. 15, 2019, FBI email released on Jan. 30 also labeled Wexner and others as "secondary co-conspirators." But the email said only that there was "limited evidence regarding his involvement," that investigators were in touch with Wexner's attorney and a subpoena had been served.Wexner also is listed in a December 19, 2019, memo written by assistant U.S. attorneys titled "Investigation into potential co-conspirators of Jeffrey Epstein." The memo details Wexner's fallout with Epstein in 2007. In each instance, Wexner has been mentioned alongside other Epstein associates, such as Ghislaine Maxwell, who is currently serving time in federal prison for her involvement in Epstein's crimes.

Epstein Ally Was Talking To Feds About Flip, Wanted $3 Million To Keep Quiet, Then Backed Off Deal --French modeling agent Jean-Luc Brunel - whose network delivered new girls from around the world to Jeffrey Epstein on a regular basis, was prepared in 2016 to tell U.S. prosecutors what he knew about Epstein’s sex-trafficking operation. According to newly released files from the DOJ, the now-deceased Brunel’s lawyer was negotiating with attorneys for Epstein’s victims about a possible meeting with federal prosecutors in New York in exchange for immunity - and Epstein knew it. And of course, Goldman Sachs (soon to be ex-) General Counsel Kathy Ruemmler is involved.According to handwritten notes taken by a federal prosecutor in February 2016 state: "One of Epstein’s bfs, Jean Luc Brunel, has helped get girls. He is wanting to cooperate." The notes add: "Brunel is afraid of being prosecuted," the Wall Street Journal reports.The discussions contemplated a date for Brunel to walk into the U.S. Attorney’s office in Manhattan. His lawyer said Brunel had recruited girls for Epstein and possessed incriminating photographs, according to the notes.The files indicate that Epstein learned negotiations were underway. On May 3, 2016, Epstein emailed Ruemmler, a top Obama administration attorney who recently announced her resignation over the friendship. Epstein warned that Brunel planned to approach the U.S. Attorney’s office the following week - noting that one of Brunel’s friends had "asked for 3 million dollars so that Jean Luc would not go in."Epstein said Brunel feared arrest if he did not appear. "I want to know more," he wrote, dismissing Brunel’s lawyer and friend as "scammers."Ruemmler replied hours later, asking Epstein to call and explain. The next day she wrote: "Awake now. Talking to Poe in 20 mins." Gregory Poe was Epstein’s lawyer in Washington, D.C.Poe claims he didn't speak with Ruemmler or Epstein about Brunel "on May 4, 2016 or at any other time," telling the Journal that he had a scheduled call that day with Ruemmler about his work on a motion to quash a subpoena directed at Epstein. "My engagement by Jeffrey Epstein was limited," Poe said, adding that he terminated work for Epstein in August 2016. It remains unclear why Brunel ultimately declined to cooperate, or whether Epstein gave him $3 million not to. What is clear from the files is that no investigation was opened at the time. A 2021 government court filing states that the prosecutor who took the February 2016 notes discussed the meeting with colleagues at the U.S. Attorney’s office and the FBI, but no probe was initiated. The notes referencing Brunel were redacted in that filing. A spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s office in New York declined to comment.Epstein remained free for another three years, until his arrest in 2019. He died in a New York jail cell later that year in what the city’s medical examiner ruled a suicide."It set us back a couple of years," said David Boies, an attorney who filed civil suits on behalf of Epstein victims, referring to Brunel’s decision not to cooperate. "We know from our lawsuits that there were more than 50 girls that were trafficked after this." Brunel occupied a central place in Epstein’s orbit. As head of a U.S.-based modeling agency, he recruited foreign girls and young women, secured work visas and provided the appearance of legitimate employment, according to the files. He traveled on Epstein’s private jet, visited his private island and exchanged hundreds of emails with him.Federal prosecutors in New York were briefed in 2016 on details of Epstein’s trafficking scheme, including allegations that Brunel, Ghislaine Maxwell and others recruited dozens of underage girls, the handwritten notes show. The Justice Department did not move on Epstein until after a Miami Herald investigation in late 2018 renewed scrutiny of his earlier plea agreement in Florida.

Bill Gates Pulls Out Of High-Profile Indian AI Summit As Epstein Fallout Accelerates -The Epstein fallout continues to spread by the day, with billionaire Les Wexner saying he was "conned" by Jeffrey Epstein and insisting he "did nothing wrong" earlier this week, and with Prince Andrew (Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor) being arrested on Thursday morning over allegations that he shared confidential government trade documents with Epstein. Now, Bill Gates has pulled out of a keynote speech at a high-profile global AI summit in India amid the accelerating Epstein fallout. "After careful consideration, and to ensure the focus remains on the AI Summit's key priorities, Mr. Gates will not be delivering his keynote address. The Gates Foundation will be represented by Ankur Vora, President of Africa and India Offices, who will speak later today at the Summit," Gates Foundation India wrote on X. The $86 billion philanthropic body's last-minute decision to yank Gates out of a keynote address follows the billionaire's involvement with Epstein for several years. The Gates Foundation CEO recently told employees during a town hall event that the Gates-Epstein relationship had deeply tarnished the nonprofit's reputation, according to a Financial Times report.

Battle over AI regulation hits the airwaves ahead of midterms Millions of dollars are flowing into advertisements seeking to move the needle on AI regulation ahead of the midterm elections amid a broader fight over who gets to determine the rules of the road for the industry. A super PAC backed by several major AI players, which boasts a multimillion-dollar war chest, is flexing its muscles with new ad buys in several congressional races. Meanwhile, several groups backing AI safeguards have launched ad campaigns calling for regulation or boosting candidates that support checks on the technology. “The stakes are very high right now for the AI sector when it comes to public policy,” said Andrew Lokay, a senior research analyst at Beacon Policy Advisors. “In the absence of congressional action on AI, there’s an emerging regulatory patchwork on the state level, which can create challenges in compliance,” he added. “And so, that creates incentives for companies to get more involved in politics.” The industry’s main super PAC, Leading the Future, said in January that it had raised more than $125 million and had $70 million in cash on hand heading into the midterm elections this fall. Its backers include OpenAI president and co-founder Greg Brockman and his wife Anna Brockman, venture capitalists Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, their firm a16z, Perplexity AI, SV Angel founder Ron Conway and Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale. One of Leading the Future’s associated super PACs, Think Big PAC, launched its first ads late last year, taking aim at Alex Bores, a New York state assemblymember running to replace retiring Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.). Bores has drawn the industry’s ire after spearheading an AI safety bill in the Empire State. The RAISE Act, which was signed into law in December, requires large AI developers to publish their safety protocols and report safety incidents. The PAC’s initial ad hit Bores over his sponsorship of the RAISE Act, which it argued “hands AI to state regulators and creates a chaotic patchwork of state rules that would crush innovation, cost New York jobs and fail to keep people safe.” This aligns with the argument made by much of the AI industry, as well as the Trump administration, that there should be a federal AI framework and that differing state regulations could hurt innovation at a time when the U.S. is competing with China to dominate AI. “We’re interested in supporting candidates who will back a pro-growth, pro-innovation AI policy. We believe that that could best be done through a national framework,” Jesse Hunt, a spokesperson for Leading the Future, told The Hill.

New OpenAI Funding Round Could Top $100 Billion, Pushing Valuation North Of $850 Billion -OpenAI's private valuation could soon top $850 billion, as the first tranche of a new funding round is expected to raise more than $100 billion, giving the ChatGPT maker fresh powder for additional infrastructure spending and faster development of its AI tools, Bloomberg reported. People familiar with the fundraising told the outlet that the ChatGPT maker's valuation could exceed $850 billion, with a reported pre-money valuation of $730 billion. The first phase of the funding round is being led by Amazon, SoftBank Group, Nvidia, and Microsoft, with allocations potentially finalized by the end of this month. A second phase of funding could include venture firms, sovereign wealth funds, and other investors, potentially pushing the total fundraising even higher. UBS analyst Aditi Samajpati told clients earlier that OpenAI's new funding round "highlights the escalating capital intensity of AI development and deepening strategic alignment between OpenAI and Big Tech." Bloomberg hedged the report by indicating the "deal is not yet finalized and the details could change." Shares of SoftBank, which held an 11% stake in OpenAI as of December, jumped as much as 4% on the news during Tokyo trading. Shares closed up 2.6% and have remained flat year-to-date after peaking in October 2025. OpenAI's potentially stunning private-market valuation comes after Anthropic was valued at about $350 billion in its latest Series G funding round led by GIC and Coatue. Markets are pricing in a world in which US AI giants capture an outsized share of global AI revenue, control the highest-margin layers of the stack, and retain pricing power as customers continue to pay up. The key risk we see is duration in the AI story, and this may be a harder narrative to maintain as the technological gap between US and Chinese AI models narrows.

Exclusive research: Big banks embrace the Fed, AI tools - American Banker - For national bankers, while trust in the Federal Reserve and the promises of artificial intelligence are on the upswing for 2026 compared to their smaller peers, growing worries around real-time payments fraud cast a shadow on hopes for the year ahead.American Banker’s 2026 Predictions report was fielded online during October and November of 2025 among 174 banking professionals who work across a variety of executive roles at banks, credit unions, neobanks and payments companies.A closer look at national banking leaders’ responses reveals what large bank leaders care about most. Top findings from the report:

• National bankers were the most trusting in the Fed board’s credibility.
• AI is a big technology spending area for national bankers in the coming months.
• Real-time payments pose the most worrisome fraud threat to national bankers.

Results from the report are highlighted below using interactive charts. Mouse over each section for more detail, click on the chart labels to show or hide sections and use the arrows to cycle between chart views.

JPMorgan says Trump's $5B suit 'fraudulently' includes Dimon - JPMorgan Chase & Co. said President Donald Trump improperly named the bank's chief executive officer, Jamie Dimon, as a defendant in his lawsuit over closure of his accounts in order to file the case in Florida state court. The relevant Florida statute does not permit President Donald Trump's allegation that JPMorganChase CEO Jamie Dimon directed the bank to put Trump and his businesses on a "blacklist," the bank said in a legal filing.

Fed's Barr outlines AI risks to finance, labor market — Federal Reserve Gov. Michael Barr on Tuesday argued artificial intelligence could provide a gradual productivity boost the labor market can absorb, though he warned policymakers must also prepare for either an AI bust that leaves Wall Street holding the bag or a rapid adoption that disrupts employment.

• Key Insight: Federal Reserve Gov. Michael Barr said the economy is currently 'closest' to a scenario in which AI gradually raises worker productivity without resulting in sweeping layoffs.
• Supporting data: Only 17% of firms currently use AI, according to a study cited by Barr.
• Forward look: Barr says policymakers must prepare for the worst, which could include a destabilized labor market or an AI bust that leaves investors with heavy losses.

In a speech Tuesday, Federal Reserve Gov. Michael Barr said it was possible that artificial intelligence will boost productivity in an undisruptive way. But he said policymakers should also be wary of a financial crash if those gains are not realized or a rapid adoption that could lead to labor displacement.

AI fuels surge in online scams, making fraud harder to detect — Artificial intelligence is opening doors in ways we never imagined. But it is also opening doors for criminals. Scammers are weaponizing AI to create faster, more convincing attacks, and experts warn it is becoming harder than ever to tell what is real and what is fake. What may have once started and ended in your email inbox now goes well beyond that. “AI can generate images which look to be real,” said Dave Meister of Check Point Software. “AI can go and generate an email that looks legitimate.” Meister is part of a global research team at Check Point Software, a cybersecurity company. According to the company’s findings, phishing attacks that begin in email remain the biggest online threat, with eight in 10 attacks starting there. Still, experts say the evolution of AI is giving schemers the upper hand. “The malicious actors are spreading out into phone calls, SMSes, Telegram messages and WhatsApp messages as a multi-channel approach to try and get information and sensitive data from people,” Meister said. He says the technology is also making scams more difficult to detect. “It's very difficult now for a person, be it in a business or at a personal level, to differentiate between what is AI and what is reality,” Meister said. “Especially when they're using voice to imitate someone you know,” 2News said. “Absolutely,” Meister responded, adding that “Be it because of your voicemail or the way that you've answered the phone, that can be recorded and then regenerated to say different things.” In addition to spoofing phone numbers to get people to answer calls, fraudsters are also using AI to turn personal information shared online into targeted attacks. “If your Facebook or Instagram profile is public, they can pull information from that to understand who you are and then simply ask it to craft an email encouraging you to take an action like click on a link, send information, respond to a phone call or respond to an SMS, and that's starting the chain to be able to get your information,” Meister said. “Would you agree that it's gotten a lot worse?” 2News asked Pete Ashdown, president and founder of XMission, a Salt Lake City-based internet service provider. “Oh, absolutely. In the early days of the internet, this was nonexistent,” Ashdown said. When it comes to protecting yourself, Ashdown offers blunt advice. “Do not trust anything on the internet. Do not trust any phone calls coming in. Do not trust any emails coming in. That's the safest thing you can do. If you feel like you need to trust it, verify,” he said. So how should consumers verify information when scammers are approaching them from all angles? Ashdown says to go directly to the source. “The end method is always to go to the web page, dial the number that's on your credit card or on their web page, and not trust anything else,” he said.

Engineers charged with stealing Google secrets, sending data to Iran - Three former engineers were charged Thursday with stealing trade secrets from Google and other tech companies and sending the information to Iran. Two sisters, 41-year-old Samaneh Ghandali and 32-year-old Soroor Ghandali, and 40-year-old Mohammadjavad Khosravi were indicted by a federal grand jury, according to the U.S. attorney for the Northern District of California.While working at Google, the Ghandali sisters allegedly transferred hundreds of files, including company trade secrets related to processor security and cryptography, to a third-party communications platform.This information was copied to their personal devices, as well as Khosravi’s work device at a separate company and Soroor Ghandali’s work device at a third company, where she and her sister later worked, according to a press release.After Google flagged her activity and restricted her access in August 2023, Samaneh Ghandali signed an affidavit saying she had not shared confidential information outside the company.She and Khosravi then allegedly began researching how to delete communications and data, in addition to manually photographing computer screens with trade secrets from Google and Khosravi’s employer.The pair traveled to Iran in December 2023, where they accessed the photographs and other confidential information from Khosravi’s employer, according to the U.S. attorney’s office.“The alleged actions outlined in this indictment reflect a calculated betrayal of trust by individuals accused of stealing trade secrets from the very tech companies that employed them,” FBI Special Agent in Charge Sanjay Virmani said in a statement Thursday.“According to the allegations, the method in which confidential data was transferred by the defendants involved deliberate steps to evade detection and conceal their identities,” he continued. “Protecting Silicon Valley innovation and defending the groundbreaking technologies that drive our economy and national security is a top priority for the FBI.”This is the second time in recent weeks that former Google employees have been charged with stealing the company’s trade secrets. In late January, an ex-Google engineer was convicted of stealing AI-related trade secrets from the tech giant for Chinese companies.

Fake Gemini AI Chatbot Used in Crypto Scam - If a chatbot claiming to be Gemini AI begins to promote a new Google cryptocurrency, it’s best to ignore it.Security researchers have uncovered a fake “Google Coin” presale site powered by a counterfeit Gemini AI chatbot. The bot delivers detailed profit projections, answers investment questions in real time, and pressures users to send irreversible cryptocurrency payments.Experts say the scam reflects a growing trend in online fraud, where criminals use AI tools to persuade, mimic trusted brands, and engage hundreds of potential victims at once with convincing sales scripts. Cybersecurity firm Malwarebytes reported that it uncovered a live “Google Coin” presale site featuring a chatbot that introduced itself as “Gemini — your AI assistant for the Google Coin platform.” The bot used Gemini-style branding, including a sparkle icon and green “Online” status indicator, to appear official. When asked about potential returns, it claimed that a $395 investment at $3.95 per token would be worth $2,755 at listing, representing “approximately 7x” growth.Malwarebytes emphasized that “Google does not have a cryptocurrency.” Still, the chatbot described itself as “the official helper for the Google Coin platform” and encouraged visitors to proceed with purchases.According to the publication, the bot refused to provide verifiable company information such as registered entity, regulator, or license number. The bot also redirected tougher questions to an unnamed “manager,” suggesting a human operator might step in to close larger payments.ConsumerAffairs noted that the chatbot functioned as a “full-fledged sales representative,” delivering specific financial projections and even inviting users to ask how to participate.This type of personalized and back-and-forth communication was once facilitated by human scammers operating through Telegram or WhatsApp chats, ConsumerAffairs explained.The fake Gemini AI chatbot even reinforces urgency through final presale stages, imminent listings, or limited-time bonuses. Digital Watch similarly explained that the scam site used staged milestones and token sales figures to pressure users into fast decisions.

Trump family says U.S. dollar needs an upgrade and they are the ones to do it -Since the dollar was created in 1792, U.S. presidents and their families have generally been content with the status quo of effectively giving the national government a monopoly on issuing currency and outlawing the use of foreign currency..When presidents have said anything about the dollar itself, it was generally to reiterate the U.S. government's "strong dollar" policy. That continued more or less uninterrupted through 46 presidencies — until last March, when a company partly owned by President Donald Trump and his family began to market an alternative to the dollar, a cryptocurrency dubbed "USD1."On Wednesday, the president's two oldest sons told CNBC on the sidelines of a daylong crypto event they hosted why they think that should change.The value of USD1, which is marketed as a stablecoin, would track the dollar, much as the dollar when it was created in 1792 was initially pegged to the value of the then-dominant Spanish silver dollar. The Trumps' company, World Liberty Financial, touts USD1 as an improvement on official U.S. currency. The firm's website brands its stablecoin as "The Dollar. Upgraded." And it calls the coin "still the US dollar, but for a new era." On Wednesday, the firm held the World Liberty Forum at Mar-a-Lago, the club owned by the president and operated as his winter White House. From a Mar-a-Lago ballroom stage beneath an enormous stylized golden eagle sculpture, the message to attendees was that the old U.S. dollar needs to be modernized, that the private sector is the place to drive that innovation, and that stablecoins will help taxpayers by creating structural demand for U.S.government debt.In fact, World Liberty backers argue, the new cryptocurrency they are building is not a threat to the dollar at all, but will help ensure the dollar remains dominant in global crypto finance — because USD1's value is pegged to it. But one big question is why, if the dollar needs modernizing, should that be done by the private sector.And why should the venture be in the private hands of the president and his family, and not in the hands of the U.S. Treasury?CNBC put those questions to the president's sons, World Liberty Financial's co-founders, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, in a small event space just off Mar-a-Lago's swimming pool."This is actually going to preserve dollar hegemony," Donald Trump Jr. replied."There's crypto companies that are the top five buyers in the world," he said. "That's going to actually stabilize the US dollar and do all the things that we need to."He argued that the federal government — and the big Wall Street banking system — simply aren't nimble or innovative enough to drive the needed changes."We're going to lead the way as Americans," Eric Trump said. "You're going to leave that to who, JPMorgan, to do? You're going to leave that to the federal government to do?"Eric Trump sees Wall Street as overly complacent — and therefore ripe for technological disruption."Do you think big banks will actually do this?" he asked. "And the reason I say this is, I mean, it's been 50 years, where bankers are working six hours a day. They have a two-hour lunch break. They're typically out of the office at four o'clock in the afternoon."Eric and Donald Trump Jr. make it clear the animating force behind their venture is not the inventor's glee at building a better mousetrap or the insider's frustration at legacy companies that can't or won't adapt to the future. Instead, what's driving them is a raw sense of retribution. The Trump brothers see the wider financial system as part of an establishment that unfairly ostracized them after their father left power in 2021, when, after the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol riot, the banking system broadly declined to do business with the Trump family."You know, we didn't get into crypto because we were on the leading edge," Donald Trump Jr. said in an interview Wednesday with CNBC's Sara Eisen. "We got into it out of necessity. They basically forced us into it."Eric Trump told Eisen, "We were the most cancelled people in the world in 2020, 2021, and it's really great to almost have this retribution where all of a sudden we start pushing an agenda." "Our agenda was to modernize finance, to allow that to never ever, ever happen to anybody again," Eric Trump said. Donald Trump Jr. said he concluded that the traditional banking system is a "Ponzi scheme." "They created this monster," Trump Jr. said, pointing to the moment when he claimed "when you had every big bank in the world, for doing nothing wrong," "debank" Trump accounts and those of other conservatives, "just based on the fact that we all wore a hat that said 'Make America Great Again.'"Eric Trump recalled his father's time out of the White House between presidential terms as a traumatizing period for the family."These are commercial buildings, residential buildings, golf courses around the world. These aren't political entities, and they were pulling these accounts from us like we were absolute dogs," Eric Trump said."We couldn't pay our vendors, we couldn't pay our employees. And so we said, listen, there has to be a better way." To Eric Trump, the message is that the Trump family will always counterpunch: When social media companies kicked his father off their platforms, President Trump created his own Truth Social media platform. And when the banking industry declined Trump family business, the family took matters into their own hands. And that's why a president's family, for the first time since 1792, is creating an upgraded American currency.

House Dems call for Treasury probe into Trump family crypto venture - Dozens of House Democrats wrote to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Thursday calling for an investigation into possible conflicts of interest and national security concerns related to World Liberty Financial, the Trump family's cryptocurrency venture.The letter, led by Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y. and 40 other lawmakers, landed after Bessent testified at a contentious House Financial Services Committee hearing earlier this month. Meeks at the hearing called Bessent a "flunky" of President Donald Trump and raised questions about a $500 million stake that Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan — a royal from the United Arab Emirates also known as the "spy sheikh" — bought in World Liberty Financial last year."The Trump family's $500 million deal connected to the Emirati royal family is not only a matter of national financial instability, but it also carries serious national security implications," Meeks said in a statement accompanying the letter. "Trust that the record will reflect whether Secretary Bessent chooses to answer to the American people, or his mob boss."The request for a probe was made as World Liberty Financial is seeking anational bank charter, a distinction reviewed and issued by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, an independent arm of the Treasury Department that regulates banks. World Liberty Financial held a day-long forum Wednesday at Mar-a-Lago where presidential sons Don Jr. and Eric Trump touted the family's stablecoin and called traditional banking a "Ponzi scheme."Meeks at the hearing asked Bessent to commit to pause any pending applications from World Liberty Financial before the OCC and to complete an investigation into the "conflicts of interest and foreign influence.""The OCC is an independent entity," Bessent said then, over the shouts of Meeks, without addressing the topic further.President Donald Trump and his special envoy, Steve Witkoff, are co-founders emeritus of the company, which is run by members of the Trump and Witkoff families. "This is no longer just a debate about crypto chartering theory. It is about foreign ownership, national security, regulatory integrity, and whether our bank-chartering process is resilient to political and geopolitical pressure," the lawmakers wrote Thursday.In the letter, Democratic members asked for information on the safeguards in place to ensure that "foreign government officials, sovereign proxies, or politically connected investors cannot use the bank-chartering process to gain leverage over the U.S. financial system or access sensitive financial or technological infrastructure."It also asks what role the White House, Office and Management and Budget and Treasury have in "reviewing, approving, or otherwise influencing national bank or trust chartering decisions made by the" OCC. It lawmakers requested a response from Treasury by Feb. 26."The credibility of America's banking regulatory framework, and of the institutions charged with protecting it, depends on transparency, independence, and a demonstrated willingness to resist undue influence," the lawmakers wrote. "Our constituents need confidence that our banking system is governed by law, not proximity to power; by prudential judgment, not political convenience."

Gold Donald Trump statue stuck in Zanesville over payment dispute – All that glitters is gold – or maybe more the opposite could be true – as a 15-foot-tall statue of President Donald Trump completed in January 2025 slumbers in an Old Coopermill Road foundry.The statue, now newly gilded with gold leaf, lies in the midst of an eight-month payment impasse and copyright infringement rift between Zanesville sculptor Alan Cottrill and an upstart cryptocurrency group heading $PATRIOT, a memecoin honoring Trump.The Patriot group still owes a little more than $90,000 for the $300,000 undertaking, Cottrill told the Times Recorder. Around $75,000 of that comes from 15 months' worth of copyright misuse after the memecoin started using the statue as its logo when it launched on Election Day 2024, and unbeknownst to Cottrill."I felt that they tried to take advantage of me and the statue that I made," Cottrill said. "That statue isn't leaving Zanesville until they pay." Once completed, the bronze statue, which was first commissioned in August 2024, was initially supposed to be on a two-year tour across the U.S. visiting Republican conventions before arriving at its final spot at either a presidential library or the Republican National Committee headquarters.For the secondary plan, Cottrill and his team were supposed to unveil the statue for the presidential inauguration parade in January 2025. Then, the Patriot group called with a message from the U.S. Secret Service, and the debut was derailed because subzero temperatures in Washington D.C. forced the procession into the Capital One Arena.From there, the statue went into limbo for close to a year, Cottrill shared. It traveled between at least two different warehouses before he pitched the gold leaf idea to Patriot in November 2025. The statue was brought back to Zanesville, out of storage from Pittsburgh, and adorned with gold through the help of Ohio artist Brenda Councill. It was completed in early January 2026.Now, the third plan, once remaining payments clear, is to install the larger-than-life statue on a nearly 4-foot base at Trump National Doral Miami, Trump's luxury golf resort. The base has already been set up.

Warren warns Fed, Treasury against crypto bailout - Senate Banking Committee ranking member Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., warned the Treasury Department and Federal Reserve in a Wednesday letter not to bail out cryptocurrency firms in the wake of sharp declines in digital asset values over the last several months.

• Key insight: Senate Banking Committee ranking member Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., warns top federal regulators against bailing out the crypto industry in the wake of sharply declining asset values.
• Supporting data: Bitcoin, the most widely-held cryptocurrency, has lost roughly half its value since October.
• Forward look: Warren is seeking a written pledge from the Treasury and the Federal Reserve that they will not offer assistance to troubled cryptocurrency firms.

Senate Banking Committee ranking member Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., Wednesday pressed the top financial policy officials in the executive branch to commit to not bailing out cryptocurrency markets following a precipitous downturn in the digital asset market. In a letter addressed to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, Warren urged the officials to avoid intervention, arguing a crypto-industry bailout would amount to a transfer of taxpayer dollars to wealthy crypto interests. Warren noted that President Trump himself is a prominent cryptocurrency stakeholder who would benefit personally from intervention through his influence over his family's World Liberty Financial firm.

Sen. Warren tells Fed and Treasury: No bailout for crypto billionaires - Sen. Elizabeth Warren asked the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve on Wednesday to confirm that they will not "use taxpayer dollars to bail out cryptocurrency billionaires and other highly leveraged cryptocurrency investors." The Massachusetts Democrat's request to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Fed Chair Jerome Powell came as bitcoin continued a slide that has seen the popular cryptocurrency drop about 50% since hitting a high in October. Warren, in a letter to Bessent and Powell about a potential bailout, warned that it not only "would be deeply unpopular to transfer wealth from American taxpayers to cryptocurrency billionaires, it could also directly enrich President[Donald] Trump and his family's cryptocurrency company, World Liberty Financial." She noted that both the Treasury Department and the Fed have authorities that empower them to give financial support to banks and other entities during a financial crisis. "Concerningly, at a recent hearing, in an exchange regarding his authority to bail out the cryptocurrency industry, Secretary Bessent was asked whether 'the money of our taxpayers … is … going to be deployed into crypto assets,'" Warren wrote, referring to the secretary's testimony on Feb. 6 to the House Financial Services Committee. "Rather than giving a simple 'no,' he deflected, stating that '[w]e are retaining seized bitcoin,'" Warren wrote. "It's deeply unclear what, if any, plans the U.S. government currently has to intervene in the current Bitcoin selloff." "Ultimately, any government intervention to stabilize Bitcoin would disproportionately benefit crypto billionaires," wrote Warren, who is the ranking Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee. "Your agencies must refrain from propping up Bitcoin and transferring wealth from taxpayers to crypto billionaires through direct purchases, guarantees, or liquidity facilities." A Fed spokesperson said Thursday, "We have received the letter and plan to respond." The Treasury Department and Fed did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The letter came on the same day that World Liberty Financial hosted its first World Liberty Forum for business leaders at Trump's Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida. In the letter, Warren said the sell-off in bitcoin "has been amplified by cascading liquidations of leveraged positions." She wrote that Trump's crypto company World Liberty Financial "has sold around 173 wrapped Bitcoin." "This transaction was made to repay $11.75 million in USDC stablecoin debt, thereby avoiding liquidation as Bitcoin's price dropped below $63,000," she wrote. "During this selloff, crypto billionaires have taken massive hits, as Bitcoin's value continues to plummet. Crypto billionaire Michael Saylor's Strategy Inc., one of the largest corporate holders of Bitcoin, has reportedly seen its shares fall nearly 20% since the beginning of the year," Warren wrote. "Other major Bitcoin investors have also seen losses, including Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, who reportedly lost nearly $30 billion, and Coinbase's Brian Armstrong, who reportedly lost $7 billion." Elsewhere in the letter, Warren said that federal financial agencies "must strengthen protections for retail crypto investors." She noted that in 2025, a record $17 billion was lost or stolen in crypto fraud.

Goldman Sachs CEO Solomon: `Very, very important' to have crypto rules --Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon said Wednesday "it is very, very important that we codify a rule-based system" for how cryptocurrency and related financial instruments will operate" in the United States."As an American, I think it is very important that as we put legislation in place, we get it right for the long term," Solomon told CNBC's Sara Eisen during an interview in front of attendees at the World Liberty Forum at the Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Fla., which was hosted by the Trump family's crypto venture World Liberty Financial."I believe that to operate markets safely and soundly, we need to have a rules-based system," said Solomon, whose firm is one of the world's premier traditional investment banks. "Our banking system is unique, and our banking system needs to coexist with this technological innovation.""If there are people who think we are going to operate in this environment without rules, they are probably wrong, and they should move to El Salvador," Solomon said.The CEO was echoing a comment that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent made during testimony on Feb. 5 to the Senate Banking Committee backing acryptocurrency market bill structure bill, the CLARITY Act.El Salvador's government has purchased bitcoin since 2022. Because of the decline in bitcoin's price, the value of El Salvador's holdings of that cryptocurrency has fallen to about $500 million, down from a high of $800 million last year.Solomon commented weeks after a Senate committee advanced the CLARITY ACT, which would create a national regulatory structure for crypto.That bill has stalled over a dispute about whether digital asset companies would be allowed to offer customers rewards, or payments on stablecoins that are held in those companies. Banks have opposed such rewards, which could compete with their interest payments on depositors' accounts."We have to get this CLARITY Act across the finish line," Bessent said during his testimony at the Banking Committee after Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., asked his opinion on the importance of having "clear rules of the road" for cryptocurrency in the U.S. Solomon said Wednesday that he is "super-interested in" crypto-related business.

'Skinny' master account likely to spur litigation -The Federal Reserve's proposed "skinny" master account for fintechs and other nontraditional financial companies may move quickly towards finalization at the central bank, but experts say implementation will very likely be stalled by legal challenges from the banking industry or the challenger institutions.

• Key Insight: The Federal Reserve's "skinny" master account proposal is moving quickly at the central bank, but experts say implementation will likely be stalled by litigation, either from challenger firms seeking master accounts or banks seeking to stop them.
• Expert Quote: "The question is who sues and why, and are they successful in getting a stay on implementation of the regulation until full review by the court." — Todd Baker, Senior Fellow, Columbia University
• What's at stake: Fed Gov. Christopher Waller set a timeline for the "skinny" master account proposal to be finalized by the end of 2026.

The Federal Reserve is moving quickly to implement its proposed "skinny" master account, giving state-chartered fintechs more access to the central bank's payment systems. But experts say a legal challenge to the rule is almost certain, regardless of where the Fed draws the line.

Stripe-owned Bridge acquires trust charter for stablecoins --Another trust charter has been granted to a stablecoin issuer in the midst of back-and-forth between regulators and trade groups over the subject and continued volatility in the cryptocurrency market. The stablecoin arm of Stripe recently announced its conditional trust charter approval from the OCC and a partnership with business payments fintech Payoneer. Bridge, a stablecoin infrastructure provider owned by payments company Stripe, received conditional approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency for a national trust bank charter on Tuesday.

• Key insight: The stablecoin arm of Stripe recently announced its conditional trust charter approval from the OCC and a partnership with business payments fintech Payoneer.
• Expert quote: "Historically, stablecoins typically benefit when higher-risk assets sell off, as they act as a liquidity buffer." —Nic Puckrin, co-founder of crypto media outlet Coin Bureau
• Forward look: Payoneer is planning to launch its stablecoin offerings within its platform in select markets in mid-2026.

Tokenized Treasuries: What happens when securities become money? --Tokenized money market funds, unlike the payment stablecoins that share the same backing, are securities. Noelle Acheson looks at what this means for our understanding of money. Visualization created with AI assistance based on original reporting.

Uniswap founder slams scam crypto ads after victim 'lost everything' —Hayden Adams, founder of the decentralized exchange Uniswap, has warned users about fraudulent ads impersonating the platform, highlighting a case in which a victim reportedly lost everything. It comes after January saw the highest amount of money stolen in crypto scams in 11 months. “Scam ads keep returning despite years of reporting,” Adams said in an X post on Friday. “There were scam Uniswap apps while we waited months for App Store approval,” he said. Scammers are increasingly buying ads on popular search engines targeting keywords like “Uniswap,” so when crypto users search for it, the top result looks official. Unsuspecting users may then connect their wallets and approve a transaction, allowing scammers to drain their entire funds. An X user named “Ika” said in an X article, titled “I lost everything, what’s next?” that his crypto wallet, valued in the mid-six-figure range, was drained despite his extreme care. “Disciplined for two years. Half-searching for a web3 job, half-hoping to make it fast enough not to need one,” he said. “I believe that getting drained isn't bad luck. It's the final consequence of a long chain of bad decisions,” Ika said. The lengthy post on X came shortly after he posted a screenshot of a top Google search result with an inauthentic Uniswap link. It isn’t the first time that Uniswap has experienced this issue. In October 2024, Cointelegraph reported that scammers recognized the website’s lack of domain authority and created a version of the site that looks exactly like the real one, except that it featured a “connect” button where “get started” should have been and a “bridge” button where “read the docs” should have been. More recently, the value of cryptocurrency stolen through exploits and scams reached $370.3 million last month, the highest monthly figure in 11 months and a nearly fourfold rise from January 2025. Crypto security company CertiK said that of the 40 exploit and scam incidents over January, the majority of the total value stolen came from one victim that lost around $284 million due to a social engineering scam.

NY AG issues alert on crypto-based pig butchering scams -- New York Attorney General Letitia James warns that scammers are coaching victims to bypass bank security and using "second act" schemes to steal more.

• Key insight: Scammers actively coach victims to lie to bank employees, making it difficult for fraud departments to intervene and protect customers.
• What's at stake: Pig butchering scams pose risks to the solvency of financial institutions, having already contributed to the failure of Heartland Tri-State Bank.
• Supporting data: Former Heartland Tri-State Bank CEO Shan Hanes initiated $47.1 million in wire transfers as part of a scheme, leading to the bank's closure.

Overview bullets generated by AI with editorial review.

Bay Area retiree ignores warnings and wires $500K life savings to fake woman in pig butcher scam - ABC7 San Francisco (KGO) -- A brutal scam known as pig butchering has stolen the life savings of yet another Bay Area resident. This time, a San Francisco retiree thought he was starting a new life with a new love. Instead, he lost more than half a million dollars. This case was especially heartwrenching because his friends and loved ones knew he was being scammed and tried for months to warn him. They alerted every law enforcement agency they could find. But nothing would stop him from sending all his money to the scammers. Adan Look of San Francisco was packed and ready to fly off to a new life. He'd be joining the young woman he met on Facebook. Together, they'd build their dream home in Hawaii. Her name was Anissa. He called her Annie. They'd been chatting on WhatsApp since last May. Annie said she was from Japan, working in microchip sales. Her family had made millions. "She started sending me pictures. One was in a robe. I said that's enough," Look said. He told her he was alone, his wife in a nursing home. "I told her there's nobody here to cook for me. It's just me, you know. She assured me, 'Well, you know, I'll be doing the cooking for you. I'll be the one that helps you get out of bed,'" Look said. Annie wrote: "Honey, you're not alone, I'm here." "I was head over heels, pretty much out of control, ready to do anything," Look said. She promised to visit and even sent flight information. Yet, she never came. "And then, she says she was into crypto," Look said. Annie told him she'd made millions investing in cryptocurrency and he could too. They'd make enough to build a life together in Hawaii. "I was very ready to fly. I was ready to go. I'm gonna start a new life with this person." Look said. Look's son Jonathan, of Hayward, saw signs of trouble. "I didn't know what had happened to my dad. It was kind of like he flipped a switch," Jonathan said. "I found some images of a woman, Asian woman, like some things about investing," Jonathan said. He saw the text messages about love and investing. He confronted his dad. "You're a married man. What is this, I don't know, 20-something-year-old woman?" Jonathan said. "I wasn't paying no attention to those (comments). Too immersed in my bubble," Look said. Then Jonathan discovered a $300,000 wire transfer -- supposedly to a kitchen remodeling company -- and a deposit into an unknown account. "Immediately, I flipped to red flags everywhere," Jonathan said. Later, he discovered his dad also wired thousands of dollars directly to banks in Malaysia and Vietnam -- first $5,000, then $100,000, then another $100,000. "He told me he was investing and that, not to worry. Essentially like, 'I've got this. I'm investing. It's my money.' Like, 'I trust her,''' Jonathan said. Look reminded Jonathan he volunteers at the Institute on Aging of San Francisco, playing piano for seniors, and ironically, manning a hotline to help them combat loneliness -- and scams. So he'd recognize a con if he saw one. But Jonathan was worried. He warned his dad that these crypto websites he was using appeared to be fake, so the $6 million in his account wasn't really there. Annie herself probably didn't exist. Jonathan texted: "Dad, your friends and I need to talk about the romance scam you are a victim of." Look replied: "No I'm good Jonathan, my choice, my life... ready to run away from everyone." "Suddenly, we were all the enemies. Like, 'No, she's not a scammer. You're being toxic. Get away from me.' It was very hurtful," Jonathan said. "Oh, I got defensive. Very defensive. I was almost ready to turn on my friends," Look said. Jonathan alerted the FBI, local police, the Secret Service, his lawyer, the banks, Adult Protective Services -- and the Institute on Aging. No one could stop Look from wiring away his money -- until last month. He tried to pull out the "$6 million" supposedly sitting in his crypto account. Annie said he'd have to pay $25,000 to unlock it. But he had no money left. "The bubble popped, right? Eventually bubbles will pop," Look said. He realized he'd been scammed.

Al Green slams crypto spending in Texas primary - Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) on Friday slammed a crypto super PAC’s plans to spend $1.5 million to oppose him, arguing that lawmakers “cannot allow the crypto industry to own Congress.” “They’re going to do whatever they can to maintain their dominance that they have with some members of Congress, but not with me,” Green said Friday in a video statement shared to Facebook, adding he was “ready to take on the crypto industry.”“Yes, they will outspend me, but they cannot buy the new 18th Congressional District. I assure you — it will not be bought, and it is not for sale,” he added. Protect Progress, a super PAC affiliated with the pro-crypto Fairshake network, announced this week that the group is planning to spend more than a million dollars to oust Green in his reelection bid in Texas’s 18th Congressional District. “As a member of the Financial Services Committee, Representative Al Green has decided to try and stop American innovation in its tracks,” the group’s spokesperson, Josh Vlasto, said in a statement. “Texas voters can no longer sit by and have representation in Congress that is actively hostile towards a growing Texas crypto community,” he continued. “We are committed to electing new members who embrace innovation, growth and wealth creation for all Americans.” Green is running against Rep. Christian Menefee (D-Texas) in the newly drawn House district. Menefee recently won a special election to fill the late Rep. Sylvester Turner’s (D-Texas) seat in the current 18th Congressional District. Polling released from the Hobby School of Public Affairs at the University of Houston on Friday showed Menefee leading in the Democratic primary with 52 percent support to Green’s 28 percent. Another super PAC affiliated with Fairshake recently announced it would spend $5 million to support Rep. Barry Moore (R-Ala.) in his Senate bid this year. Crypto spent heavily in the last cycle, primarily targeting former Rep. Katie Porter’s (D-Calif.) campaign for Senate and former Sen. Sherrod Brown’s (D-Ohio) reelection efforts. At the same time, the industry boosted Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) and Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) in their successful Senate bids, among others. Fairshake spent close to $180 million in the 2024 cycle; the group has well above that amount — more than $193 million — in the bank to start of 2026.

Crypto industry wades into midterms with hefty war chest -The cryptocurrency industry is ramping up its spending ahead of the midterm elections after accumulating a massive war chest in the wake of several key wins in 2024. The industry’s leading super PAC network, Fairshake, had more than $193 million in cash on hand at the start of 2026 and has already announced several of its targets this cycle — boosting Rep. Barry Moore (R-Ala.) in the Alabama Senate race and ousting Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) from the House. After spending heavily in the last election — and claiming victories in at least two high-profile races, paving the way for some early wins for the industry in Congress — the crypto world has found itself in a newly elevated position in Washington. “It’s going to be similar to the previous cycle where they will kind of flex their muscles to show the political power of the crypto industry,” said Leonard Kostovetsky, an associate professor of finance at Baruch College, who’s been more vocally skeptical of crypto use. The crypto industry made its biggest mark in 2024, when it spent tens of millions of dollars wading into a number of primaries and contested elections. The Fairshake super PAC network, which includes three different affiliated groups, spent close to $180 million in the last cycle, according to 2024 campaign filings. Some of the most prominent candidates it targeted included former Rep. Katie Porter (D-Calif.) in her California Senate bid and former Sen. Sherrod Brown’s (D-Ohio) reelection campaign against Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) — both Democrats who were defeated in their respective races. Crypto groups also waded into the Democratic primary in Arizona’s 3rd District, a stronghold for the party, where the crypto industry backed Rep. Yassamin Ansari over former state Sen. Raquel Terán. Some strategists have questioned the degree to which the crypto industry has actually moved the needle in some races. Skeptics of crypto’s impact noted Ohio had been trending Republican for a while and was expected to turn against its last Democrat elected to statewide office. Porter was also one of several Democratic contenders in a crowded California Senate election. “It’s not an unreasonable point to make that crypto spent against someone who’s going to lose anyway,” said a Democratic executive in the crypto industry who requested anonymity to speak candidly, referring to Brown. But the executive said crypto’s spending likely made a difference in several more-competitive races last cycle. “At the same time, I would note in Michigan, crypto spent $10 million for [Sen. Elissa] Slotkin,” whom the executive noted narrowly won her race. The executive also pointed out Ansari’s narrow margin in her primary win, which was 39 votes. The industry has also secured a key ally in President Trump, who embraced crypto during his 2024 campaign. Between Trump and a GOP-controlled Congress largely supportive of the industry, crypto has notched several legislative and policy successes over the past year. It marked a shift for the industry, which previously had a rocky relationship with Washington, particularly under the Biden administration. The crypto world took particular issue with former Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler, whom they accused of attempting to regulate digital assets through enforcement actions rather than rulemaking. Trump, by contrast, has placed crypto-friendly individuals in key roles in his administration, including at the SEC. He also appointed venture capitalist David Sacks as his AI and crypto czar and signed an executive order establishing a strategic bitcoin reserve and digital asset stockpile. The industry’s biggest win so far has been the passage of the GENIUS Act, a measure creating a regulatory framework for dollar-backed digital tokens known as stablecoins. However, Congress has yet to pass the crown jewel of crypto legislation — market structure — which aims to provide greater clarity for the industry by splitting oversight between two financial regulations, the SEC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). As market structure negotiations have dragged on for months in the Senate, the legislation’s prospects look increasingly murky, particularly as the midterm elections are likely to shorten the runway for policymaking efforts this year. As Congress grapples with more consequential crypto legislation, two Fairshake-affiliated super PACs have jumped into midterm races over the past week. Defend American Jobs announced Tuesday that it was spending $5 million to boost Moore’s bid for Senate. “We’re certainly pleased to have them on board,” Moore told The Hill in an interview regarding support from Defend American Jobs. “I’ve been voting for freedom and liberty for a long time, and crypto offers that,” Moore said. “It offers an avenue for financial transactions for people who the government may want to debank or come after.” Another affiliated super PAC, Protect Progress, said Thursday that it was putting up $1.5 million to oppose Green in the Democratic primary in Texas’s newly redrawn 18th Congressional District. They pointed to Green’s voting record on crypto legislation, arguing that he is trying to “stop American innovation in its tracks.” He opposed the GENIUS Act, as well as the House’s version of the market structure bill, known as the CLARITY Act. Green hit back Friday, arguing that he is “ready to take on the crypto industry.” “They’re going to do whatever they can to maintain their dominance that they have with some members of Congress, but not with me,” he said in a video statement. “I’m a liberated, unbought, unbossed, unafraid member of Congress.” The split on crypto has not fallen cleanly along partisan lines. While Republican lawmakers have largely been supportive of the industry, some of their Democratic colleagues have also backed efforts to pass legislation. The crypto industry’s intervention in elections has attracted plenty of critics, who note crypto businesses have blatantly poured money into groups like Fairshake in a way that was once considered highly unusual, which could encourage others to do the same. “When you have an outside group with a very, very specific agenda, spending literally … tens of millions of dollars, I think it, it begs questions about the whole process here,” added Ohio-based Democratic strategist Jeff Rusnak. Rusnak questioned whether crypto groups should “be able to spend basically unregulated money.” Crypto advocates, however, say they’re making the case to voters but point out their election donations helped push the industry toward regulation. What the crypto industry “wanted was a regulated marketplace, and that’s what we’re getting to. So, from a governance perspective, this has been incredibly helpful to drive towards progress as opposed to not getting something done,” said a source familiar with the Fairshake network. As the crypto industry and other key political players wade into the November elections, some of its opponents are already declaring war. “Yes, they will outspend me, but they cannot buy the new 18th Congressional District. I assure you — it will not be bought, and it is not for sale,” Green said. “We cannot allow the crypto industry to own Congress,” he added.

Fed's Bowman says Basel proposal still on track for end of Q1 - — Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman said Wednesday the central bank is on track to publish its Basel III proposal before the end of the first quarter. "I've said for a number of months now that we will be aiming to introduce that proposal before the end of the first quarter," Bowman said, speaking at an Exchequer Club luncheon. "I think we're still working on that time frame."

• Key Insight: Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman is racing ahead to publish Basel III for commentary before the end of the first quarter. She's previously highlighted that changes will be introduced to the framework to encourage bank participation in mortgages.
• Expert Quote: "I've said for a number of months now that we will be aiming to introduce that proposal before the end of the first quarter. I think we're still working on that time frame." — Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman.
• What's at stake: The Basel III proposal will shape bank capital rules, affecting lending by community banks, mortgage availability and overall financial stability.

Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman said in comments Wednesday that the central bank plans to publish its Basel III endgame capital proposal for public comment before the end of March.

OCC proposes new appeal process for banks, trusts - The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency Tuesday proposed establishing an appeals board to review challenges by banks and trusts to supervisory decisions with a new "fresh look" standard, aiming to fix a system supervised entities feel is stacked against them.

• Key insight: The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's proposed rule would let banks and trusts under its jurisdiction appeal supervisory findings with a "fresh look" standard.
• Supporting data: The OCC said that of the 12 supervisory appeals it received regarding fair lending issues between 2017 and 2024, the agency sided with examiners in all of those cases.
• Forward look: The agency will take comment on the proposal for 60 days from Tuesday, concluding on April 18.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency Tuesday issued a proposed rule that would create an independent appeals board, de novo review standard for banks and uninsured firms like trusts, OCC says it'll increase trust in the system.

Banks appeal ruling that upheld Illinois swipe fee ban - After a federal judge allowed a new state law to ban interchange fees on taxes and tips, a coalition of banks and credit unions struck back.

• Key Insight: The battle over Illinois' ban on certain "swipe" fees is not over, as a coalition of banking trade groups appeals the latest court ruling.
• Expert Quote: "The decision not to protect the payment system from this misguided state law is a serious error that will unleash chaos and confusion on Illinois consumers and businesses," wrote the American Bankers Association and its co-plaintiffs.
• Forward Look: The fate of the appeal is now up to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit.

Exclusive research: Fed shakeup, IPOs threaten credit unions - American Banker - From executive leadership shakeups at the Federal Reserve to the growing presence of nonbank firms in the U.S., both domestic and international, credit unions fear many threats to their performance this year. American Banker’s 2026 Predictions report was fielded online during October and November of 2025 among 174 banking professionals who work across a variety of executive roles at banks, credit unions, neobanks and payments companies. A closer look at credit union leaders’ responses reveals what they care about most. Top findings from the report:

• Generative AI is predicted to be a major force of change for the industry in 2026.
• More than half (52%) of credit unions see identity theft as a major threat to their business.
• Nonbank entities are gaining traction in the financial services space, taking market share away from banks and credit unions.
• A sizable share of credit unions grew distrustful that the Federal Reserve Board can act without partisanship.

Results from the report are highlighted below using interactive charts. Mouse over each section for more detail, click on the chart labels to show or hide sections and use the arrows to cycle between chart views.

White House report says CFPB raised borrowing costs - A White House Council of Economic Advisers report published Tuesday found that the CFPB cost consumers between $237 and $369 billion since its creation, an analysis that consumer advocates and some financial academics say is flawed.

• Key insight: A report from the White House Council of Economic Advisers claimed that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's rules raised consumer interest rates and reduced the availability of credit since its inception.
• Supporting data: The report says the agency's actions raised consumers' borrowing costs by between $237 to $369 billion over the 13 years between 2011 and 2024.
• Forward look: The report comes amid the Trump administration's ongoing efforts to radically downsize the agency.

The White House's Council of Economic Advisers on Tuesday issued a report arguing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has raised consumer costs by hundreds of billions of dollars since its inception following the 2008 financial crisis.

CFPB Staffer Alexis Goldstein Fired for Confronting DOGE Members, Announces Run for Congress | Democracy Now! (Interview & Transcript) The Trump administration has fired Consumer Financial Protection Bureau program manager Alexis Goldstein for documenting a meeting a year ago between the agency and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. “I have been on admin leave ever since, until I was fired last week,” says Goldstein, who says the Trump administration’s gutting of the CFPB removed key oversight of the financial industry. “So, essentially, no one is watching the biggest banks.” Goldstein is now running to represent Maryland’s 6th Congressional District. This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.

• AMY GOODMAN: This is Democracy Now!, democracynow.org. I’m Amy Goodman, with Juan González. We turn now to look at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the CFPB, the agency the Trump administration has been trying to dismantle for over a year. Last week, it fired program manager Alexis Goldstein for documenting a meeting a year ago between the agency and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. That’s according to emails obtained by Bloomberg News. For more, we’re joined now from Washington, D.C., by Alexis Goldstein, longtime financial regulatory expert, who once worked on Wall Street before becoming involved with the Occupy Wall Street movement. Alexis, welcome back to Democracy Now! Can you explain exactly what happened a year ago with these DOGE temporary workers coming into your agency?
• ALEXIS GOLDSTEIN: So, on February 7th of 2025, we had just seen the dismantling of USAID. A wrecking ball was taken to that agency. And it became clear that the second agency that was going to be attacked by this administration was the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. So, I came in like I normally do. I drop off my toddler at daycare. There isn’t stroller parking, so I wheel in my stroller, my empty stroller, to the CFPB headquarters in Washington, D.C. And I was wheeling my stroller around the basement, and I noticed a number of people who I had never seen before who were not wearing the required CFPB badges, and they were accessing what appeared to be CFPB equipment. So I wanted to take a closer look. I wanted to try and investigate. We are told over and over again that we are supposed to report suspicious activities, that we are supposed to defend the sensitive data that we hold of American people. Millions of people trust us with their vulnerable moments, if they’re scammed by their financial company, if they’re having trouble with their mortgage. The technical term we use for it is “personally identifying information.” And we have a lot of very specific training about how to handle it. And so I was very concerned that the people that I had never seen before were there, appeared to have CFPB equipment. So I tried to take a look. They moved from one conference room to the other when they saw me, into a conference room that didn’t have a window. And so I decided to go into that conference room. I ran into a co-worker of mine. I asked him if there were DOGE folks in the room. He declined to answer. So I opened the door and introduced myself. And I said, “Hi. Are you my new co-worker? What’s your name? Can I show you around? We have a nice rooftop.” And there were three individuals in the room. One I now know to be Jordan Wick. He immediately ran away, out of the room. The second was Jeremy Lewin, who was a big part of dismantling USAID. He immediately went into the corner of the room. And then the third DOGE individual was Christopher Young. I didn’t know any of this at the time. I just asked them what their name was. They refused to give me their name. They said that they were authorized to be there, but they didn’t have to tell me their name. And I said, “We have a lot of really sensitive information and data from Americans. We have personally identifying information. Do you know the trainings that we have to take in order to handle this? Have you had those trainings? Do you know what those trainings are?” And they just stared at me blankly and said that they wished that security would come and kick me out of the building. A couple minutes passed where I continued to try to ask them their name. They refused to answer. A security guard did come down, asked me to leave the room. I immediately left the room. I presented my CFPB badge, which I had. These individuals did not have CFPB badges. And I asked the security guard, “Who are these individuals? Are they authorized to be here? What are they doing? I see they appear to have a CFPB laptop.” And the security guard didn’t know what to do, so he just turned away from me and got on the phone. And so, I eventually walked away. I left of my own accord. And then, later that day, I got an email saying I was immediately being placed on administrative leave, and I was not to enter our headquarters in Washington, D.C., nor access any work systems. And I have been on admin leave ever since, until I was fired last week.

She was fired from the CFPB. Now she's running for Congress. - American Banker — Alexis Goldstein, a former program manager at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, is running for Congress after she was fired from the consumer protection agency. Goldstein, who was terminated from the agency in early February, announced that she is running for Congress in Maryland's 6th District, an area with many federal employees who have been affected by the Trump administration's efforts to radically reduce the federal workforce.

• Key insight: Alexis Goldstein is competing for a seat representing Maryland's 6th District, an area filled with federal workers that's been heavily impacted by the Trump administration's cuts to the federal workforce.
• What's at stake: Goldstein is a financial policy expert, and was fired from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau last week due to a year-old confrontation with the officials from the Department of Government Efficiency.
• Forward look: Goldstein enters a crowded primary field, but could ride a wave of anger directed toward the Trump administration and be a progressive voice on financial policy issues in Congress as Democrats are favored to take back the lower chamber.

Alexis Goldstein, who was terminated from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau last week, is running for Congress in Maryland's 6th District, which hosts a disproportionate number of federal workers.

Mortgage trade groups back call for updates to Basel III -- A consortium of mortgage and banking trade groups is voicing support for changes to a capital risk framework governing depository institutions, which if enacted could expand their participation in home lending. In a letter to regulators, the consortium of organizations recommended regulatory changes affecting a range of rules from risk weights to warehouse financing.

Fed's Bowman wants to boost banks' share of mortgage market -Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman said Monday that the central bank will soon introduce regulatory proposals aimed at encouraging banks to originate and hold more mortgages.

• Key Insight: Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman said the Fed is exploring ways to reduce banks' regulatory costs associated with mortgage lending and servicing.
• Expert Quote: "These potential changes would address legitimate concerns about mortgage market structure while maintaining appropriate prudential safeguards." — Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman.
• Forward Look: Bowman said that the central bank will propose two mortgage-related rules in the near future.

Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman said in a speech Monday morning that the central bank will introduce two capital proposals that she said are aimed at boosting banks' role in the mortgage market.

Office CMBS Delinquency Rate Spikes to Record 12.3%, Much Worse than Financial Crisis Meltdown Peak by Wolf Richter - The delinquency rate of office mortgages that have been securitized into commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) spiked by over a percentage point in January to 12.3%, once again the worst ever, and 1.6 percentage point above the worst moments of the Financial Crisis, according to data by Trepp , which tracks and analyzes CMBS. The CMBS were sold to institutional investors around the world, such as pension funds, bond funds, insurers, etc. The banks that originated the loans are off the hook. High vacancy rates in new fancy office towers allow companies to move from an old tower to a new tower when the lease expires, thereby upgrading and downsizing at the same time. This “flight to quality” is pulling the rug out from under older office buildings. Spike of defaults was triggered by two huge Manhattan office towers. One Worldwide Plaza, $1.2 billion of debt: The 49-story 2.05-million-square-foot tower on 825 Eighth Avenue in Manhattan, built in 1989, includes 1.8 million sf of office space, 30,000 sf of retail space, a five-stage off-Broadway theater, a 38,000-sf fitness center, and a 132,000-sf parking garage. The $1.2 billion in debt is composed of a $940 million senior CMBS loan and a $260 million mezzanine loan. In January, the property had insufficient cash flow to pay the January 2026 tax bill and make the note payment that was due in December and is now 30 days delinquent. The landlord – an entity of RXR, SL Green, and New York REIT (New York REIT itself is liquidating) – is already facing a UCC foreclosure auction, triggered by Extell Development which had acquired the $260 million mezzanine debt to position itself to foreclose on the property. This strategy, and the foreclosure auction originally scheduled for mid-January, got tangled up when the landlord sued to stop the foreclosure auction, calling it a “sham.” Last week, a New York judge ruled for Extell and rejected the landlord’s request to stop the foreclosure auction, and the auction can go forward. Extell is currently the only qualified bidder for the property. The vacancy rate jumped to 37% in 2025, from 10% in 2024, after the global headquarters of law firm Cravath, Swaine & Moore, with 617,135 sf, vacated the property; and after the Americas headquarters of Nomura Holdings exercised the option to downsize by 75,000 sf to 705,089 sf. The collateral had been appraised at $1.7 billion in 2017 for purposes of refinancing the building and securitizing the loan in 2017 and 2018. Last fall, Trepp reported that the collateral was re-appraised at $390 million, a 77% haircut from the 2017 appraisal, and far less than the outstanding $1.2 billion in debt (image via NYRT). Extend and pretend didn’t work. The CMBS loan was modified in March 2025, allowing it to tap into reserves to fund the property’s operating expenses and debt-service shortfalls, Trepp reported at the time. One New York Plaza, $835 million loan. The 50-story 2.6-million-sf tower in Manhattan’s Financial District, completed in 1970 and renovated in 1994, went into maturity default in January, when the balloon payment of the loan, due in December, was not made. Until December, the property was current on the interest. The loan backs the single-asset ONYP 2020-1NYP deal. Extend and pretend didn’t solve anything. But Brookfield Properties, the landlord, with no further extension options remaining, is still seeking an additional extension, according to CoStar. The vacancy rate rose to 35% most recently, according to CoStar. The largest tenant is Morgan Stanley (44% of the space), which is trying to sublease a 46,913-sf portion. Its lease runs through 2034. The second largest tenant is the law firm Fried Frank (16%), with the lease running to 2039. Several smaller loans were “cured” and came off the delinquency list in January. The largest one was the $211 million loan backed by an office property in Plainsboro, NJ, leased by Novo Nordisk US headquarters. The 770,000-sf location made the news in October with the NJ labor department’s WARN Act disclosures that Novo Nordisk, the Danish pharma giant, would cut 811 jobs at its Plainsboro office by the end of 2025, more than tripling the 265 layoffs Novo Nordisk had publicly announced a month earlier as part of 9,000 job cuts globally. The loan had become delinquent for the November and December payments amid borrower disputes over force-placed insurance (FPI), according to special servicer commentary in December, cited by Trepp. The special servicer has advanced funds for the canceled FPI, with over $1.68 million outstanding. A settlement to resolve the insurance dispute has been circulated, and a resolution is expected, according to Trepp. Who is on the hook for office mortgages? A big part is spread across investors around the world via office CMBS (see above), mezzanine loans (see above), CLOs, and mortgages that are held by bond funds, insurers, private or publicly traded office REITs and mortgage REITS, and by PE firms, private credit firms, and other investment vehicles. Banks hold only a portion of office CRE loans and have been disclosing write-downs and losses for three years, and have been busy selling their bad office loans to investors at big discounts to get them off their books. All this dented their earnings, and some of these banks were big foreign banks that had been pursuing the glories of US office CRE in trophy cities.

Mortgage rates hit lowest level since 2022, inching closer to sub-6 percent — Mortgage rates fell again this week, dropping to their lowest level since September 2022.The average 30-year fixed rate slid to 6.01 percent this week, down from 6.09 percent a week earlier, according to Freddie Mac. A year ago, the 30-year fixed averaged 6.85 percent.“This lower rate environment is not only improving affordability for prospective homebuyers, it’s also strengthening the financial position of homeowners,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist.Khater noted that refinance application activity has more than doubled over the past year, allowing recent buyers to reduce their annual mortgage payments by thousands of dollars.Borrowing costs on 15-year mortgages, which are popular with homeowners refinancing, fell to 5.35 percent — the lowest since October 2024.The latest rate relief follows a recent pullback in the 10-year Treasury yield, which mortgage rates closely track.After spending the first part of 2025 hovering around 7 percent, long-term mortgage rates began trending lower in July as markets priced in the Federal Reserve’s upcoming rate cuts.That decline has helped homebuyers regain some purchasing power, but it hasn’t been enough to bring them off the sidelines in a meaningful way.Sales of previously occupied homes plunged 8.4 percent in January from the month prior — the biggest monthly decline in nearly four years, according to data from the National Association of Realtors (NAR).Harsh winter weather likely contributed to the slowdown, but prices also played a role, rising to a January record of $396,800 amid tight supply. The increase in the median-home price marked the 31st consecutive month of year-over-year price gains, according to NAR.Major housing forecasters expect the average 30-year fixed rate to hover in the low-6 percent range in 2026, suggesting further relief may be limited.But even if rates do drop further, lagging supply means any extra rate help could erase the affordability boost many are hoping for, warned Jake Krimmel, senior economist at Realtor.com.“Without a significant return of supply through the easing of the mortgage ‘lock-in effect,’ lower rates may simply reignite competition and spike prices,” Krimmel said.

Housing Starts Increased to 1.404 million Annual Rate in December - Note: The Census Bureau is still catching up. They released Start data for November and December today, but we are still missing January data. From the Census Bureau: Permits, Starts and Completions Privately-owned housing starts in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,404,000. This is 6.2 percent above the revised November estimate of 1,322,000, but is 7.3 percent below the December 2024 rate of 1,514,000. Single-family housing starts in December were at a rate of 981,000; this is 4.1 percent above the revised November figure of 942,000. The December rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 402,000. Privately-owned housing starts in November were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,322,000. This is 3.9 percent above the revised October estimate of 1,272,000. An estimated 1,358,700 housing units were started in 2025. This is 0.6 percent below the 2024 figure of 1,367,100. Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,448,000. This is 4.3 percent above the revised November rate of 1,388,000, but is 2.2 percent below the December 2024 rate of 1,480,000. Single-family authorizations in December were at a rate of 881,000; this is 1.7 percent below the revised November figure of 896,000. Authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 515,000 in December. Privately-owned housing units authorized by building permits in November were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,388,000. This is 1.6 percent below the revised October rate of 1,411,000. An estimated 1,425,200 housing units were authorized by building permits in 2025. This is 3.6 percent below the 2024 figure of 1,478,000.emphasis added The first graph shows single and multi-family housing starts since 2000 (including housing bubble). Multi-family starts (blue, 2+ units) increased month-over-month in December. Multi-family starts were down 1.0% year-over-year in December. Single-family starts (red) increased in December and were down 9.0% year-over-year. The second graph shows single and multi-family starts since 1968. Total housing starts in December were above expectations. The third graph shows the month-to-month comparison for total starts between 2024 (blue) and 2025 (red). Total starts were down 7.3% in December compared to December 2024. In 2025, starts were down 0.6% compared to 2024. Single family starts were down 6.9% and multi-family up 18.0% in 2025 compared to 2024. The fourth graph shows housing starts under construction, Seasonally Adjusted (SA).

Initial Jobless Claims Tumble Back Near Multi-Decade Lows -Despite the ongoing worsening trend in some labor market condition indicators - Payrolls revisions ugly, JOLTs are tumbling, Survey-based data showing jobs hard to get far worse than jobs plentiful - the number of Americans filing for jobless benefits for the first time fell to 206k (from 229k the prior week)... Source: Bloomberg That is back near multi-decade lows and at the lowest end of the range of the last five years. Continuing jobless claims rose modestly (from 1.852mm to 1.869mm) but remains well below the 1.9mm Maginot Line... So, should we just be ignoring surveys completely now? Or are we solidly back in the 'no hire, no fire' economy?

Teachers Are Fomenting Anti-ICE Hysteria -Employees of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement have been busy lately, working to fulfill their mandate to remove undocumented immigrants.Perhaps the most controversial aspect of ICE’s activities is its alleged presence in public schools across the nation.But is ICE actually going into schools? While there are a few reports of parents being detained at bus stops near schools and images of ICE agents tackling people on school grounds, they are not actually entering the schools.Tricia McLaughlin, the Homeland Security Department’s assistant secretary for public affairs, explains that agents’ actions in and around schools are intended to protect children.“ICE is not going to schools to arrest children—we are protecting children. Criminals are no longer able to hide in America’s schools to avoid arrest. The Trump administration will not tie the hands of our brave law enforcement and instead trusts them to use common sense.”McLaughlin adds, “An arrest might be made at school if a dangerous illegal alien felon were to flee into a school or a child sex offender is working as an employee. But this has not happened.”Nonetheless, teachers are organizing their students to battle ICE.As reported by Erika Sanzi, director of communications at Defending Education, teachers in Minnesota have been coordinating student protests on social media.“There is nothing organic about these events, and despite claims to the contrary, they are almost never spontaneous expressions of student speech. They are basically field trips without the parent permission slip,”Sanzi said.In Oregon, a video shows kindergarten students participating in a protest, and numerous schools nationwide have preemptively canceled classes so students could protest.The teachers’ unions have also seized on ICE’s alleged misdeeds to indoctrinate students.According to materials obtained by Defending Education, the United Teachers Los Angeles gave a presentation last year titled “Preparing for ICE at Your School” that urged its members to engage in political activism and suggested using school resources to thwart ICE operations.The UTLA documents guide educators on how to resist the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration and urge parents and teachers to collaborate on resistance efforts. It is part of the union’s broader efforts to “build a comprehensive response to immigration enforcement.”

Study of 65,000 college students links 16 hours a week on social media to higher loneliness - More than half of college students are lonely—and those who use social media the most are particularly likely to feel isolated, a study of tens of thousands of 18 to 24-year-olds in the US shows. Just 16 hours a week—two or so hours a day—on social media was linked with higher odds of loneliness, reports a paper in the Journal of American College Health. The study's authors said that academic institutions should educate students on the effects of social media use and encourage them to set time limits. Researcher Dr. Madelyn Hill, now an assistant professor at Ohio University, who led the study while completing her doctoral work in University of Cincinnati's School of Human Services in spring 2025, explains, "We know that people who are lonely are more likely to become depressed. We also know that those who are lonely are more likely to die early. "Young adulthood is a time of many changes, from leaving home for the first time, to starting college and forming new friendships, and it is vital that colleges and universities do all they can to help their students forge connections with others." Previous studies have found that Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat are young adults' favorite social media sites. Other work shows that excessive social media use can leave less time for face-to-face socializing. However, research on whether this leads to loneliness has produced mixed results. To address this, Dr. Hill and colleagues analyzed data from 64,988 18–24-year-olds from more than 120 colleges who took part in a national survey. Loneliness was measured by asking them how often they felt left out, lacked companionship or felt isolated. The study found that:

• 54% of the students were lonely. This is in line with other recent research from the US.
• Female and Black students particularly say they were lonely.
• Students doing hybrid courses were less lonely than those studying face to face, perhaps because they were still able to see their old friends.
• Members of fraternities and sororities were among the least likely to be lonely, maybe owing to more opportunities to attend parties and other gatherings.
• Those who lived at home were lonelier than those with accommodation on campus.

The students were also asked how many hours they spent on social media in a typical week. About 13% of them used social media excessively, i.e., for at least 16 hours a week, and the more they used it, the higher their odds of feeling lonely.

• Those who used it for 16 to 20 hours a week were 19% more likely to say they were lonely than those who didn't use it at all.
• 21 to 25 and 26 to 30 hours a week were linked with a 23% and 34% higher likelihood of loneliness, respectively.
• The heaviest social media users (at least 30 hours a week) were 38% more likely to report being lonely.

The study's authors acknowledge that they can't be sure whether excessive social media use leads to loneliness or vice versa. They suspect it is a bit of both. Some students who use social media may become lonely because they have less time to see friends in person. Meanwhile, some of those who are lonely may find valuable support online.The authors also note that some of the students may have underestimated how long they spend online.Nevertheless, they believe that tackling excessive social media use could lower levels of loneliness.

College fundraising faces scrutiny after latest batch of Epstein files - The latest batch of Epstein files is casting an unflattering light on the world of college fundraising, with multiple professors named in the records saying they were looking for donations. College fundraising, especially for individual professors, is typically done through government contracts or foundations, but multiple academics are shown to have exchanged emails or met with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein to raise money for their work. Yale professor Nicholas Christak said he arranged a meeting and corresponded with Epstein from 2013 to 2016 to get funding for his lab. “Like many other scientists who crossed his path, I was appalled by the revelations about Mr. Epstein that emerged after my very limited interactions with him in 2013 in the context of fundraising for my lab at Yale,” Christakis told Yale’s student newspaper. Efforts to get individuals to donate to labs are uncommon because government grants or foundation philanthropy typically yields more monetary benefit for the work it takes, especially in the hard sciences. “I think most faculty are more used to approaching foundations and government, as I say, also to some extent, corporations will support lab work and hard science research. I think it’s rare for faculty to go to individual donors. For one thing, they’re just harder to approach, unless some of them have established reputations as supporting that kind of work,” said Alan Abramson, professor and director of the Center on Nonprofits, Philanthropy and Social Enterprise at George Mason University. Big individual donors are more often pursued by higher-level school officials, such as deans and presidents. Leon Botstein, the president of Bard College, is under a microscope after extensive interactions with Epstein were detailed in the latest batch of files, showing a relationship that continued well after Epstein’s sex crime conviction. Botstein has defended his interactions as the typical efforts of a university president to get money for their institution. “The only reason President Botstein ever communicated with Jeffrey Epstein was in the work of fundraising for Bard and its programs, particularly in the arts. The college has been public and transparent about these fundraising contacts for years, and the public release of email records only illustrates how fundraising development takes shape,” the school said in a statement to The Hill. “The nature of President Botstein’s fundraising contact with Epstein never revealed how monstrous, cruel, and dangerous he turned out to be,” it added.

Epstein Funded UCSD Study Of 'Telepathic Autistic Savant' Through Deepak Chopra Connection Jeffrey Epstein was connected with several notable scientists - funding leading research centers, including Harvard, where he donated $9 million, and MIT's Media Lab, which he gave at least $7.5 million (and funneled another $1.2 million to investments under the control of the lab's former director, Joi Ito). He was connected to Stephen Hawking, Marvin Minsky, Steven Pinker and a host of other names. Now we learn that Epstein provided funding to a lab at UC San Diego after lifestyle guru Deepak Chopra introduced the financier to lab director Vilayanur Subramanian Ramachandran - a neuroscientist who was studying an "autistic savant who displays telepathy," according to the latest DOJ Epstein file dump. Chopra, a former UCSD family medicine and public health clinical professor, said in late October that he was just helping Epstein with insomnia by teaching him to meditate. "At my suggestion, he also visited Dr. V.S. Ramachandran's lab at [the University of California San Diego] to learn about ongoing brain research," hetold CBS News in December. Ramachandran was conducting a study on an "autistic savant who displays telepathy," according to UCSD's The Guardian, citing a Sept. 25, 2017 email with the subject "Cost to study the autistic savant who displays telepathy," in which he tells Chopra, "i don't have a problem with my lab being funded by epstein ... so long as theres no UC connection." Ramanchandran further wrote that if Chopra’s “pal [Epstein] is serious about setting in motion a lab for the study of extraordinary brain potential … something like 500,000 to 3 million would get the administrators excited.”A subsequent email from Epstein to his accountant, Richard Kahn, instructed Kahn to send $25,000 from Epstein’s private foundation, Gratitude America Ltd., to the University of California Board of Regents to fund Ramachandran’s research on savant syndrome. He asked it to be mailed to former psychology department director and current chief administrative officer, Peter Hinkley. Chopra later emailed Epstein on October 5, 2017 to provide an update on spending the day with Ramachandran to discuss the "pilot study of autistic savants."The 2017 emails weren't the first Epstein-Ramachandran mention. On April 17, 2009, Epstein emailed someone whose name was redacted, replying to a list of "smart" and "out of the box" people to have over to his Florida home sometime in the future. Epstein included Ramachandran in this list, along with others who he described as "good friends of mine for years." While there's nothing we could find on the telepathic kid (maybe they sensed danger), Ramachandran did write anarticle in December 2006 where he says telepathy is "legitimately ignored, except by crackpots" because it's difficult to replicate. He's also mentioned a few times in this piece on life after death, ESP, and other phenomenon.

Hegseth launches culture war against elite universities - Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is expanding his culture war into academia, threatening to pull service members’ tuition assistance at potentially dozens of top colleges and universities he views as biased against the armed forces. The move is setting off alarm bells in the military and academic communities, who worry about cutting off a key pipeline to the officer corps. “This is stunningly short-sighted of Hegseth, on multiple levels,” said Georgetown law professor and former Pentagon adviser Rosa Brooks. “Cutting off their access to the best universities in the country is just plain dumb, and suggests Hegseth thinks officers can’t be trusted to bring any critical thinking to their classes and academic work, distinguishing between opinion and fact.” Hegseth’s effort was first alluded to in a video message last week that announced the Pentagon’s decision to cut all academic ties with Harvard University starting in the 2026/2027 school year, claiming it is “one of the red-hot centers of hate-America activism.” The former Fox News host had a long list of criticisms for America’s oldest university. He asserted without evidence that “too many faculty members openly loathe our military,” cast the armed forces in a negative light and “squelch anyone who challenges their leftist political leanings.” “For too long, this department has sent our best and brightest officers to Harvard, hoping the university would better understand and appreciate our warrior class,” he said. “Instead, too many of our officers came back looking too much like Harvard, heads full of globalist and radical ideologies that do not improve our fighting ranks.” In the video, Hegseth threatened to explore the same option at other Ivy League schools, following up with a memo signed last week that ordered the military branches to evaluate all existing graduate programs for active-duty members at the top-tier institutions and any other civilian universities “that similarly diminish critical thinking and have significant adversary involvement,” CNN first reported. That effort is now underway, with the military branches beginning to compile lists of colleges and universities where service members could soon no longer be able to get tuition assistance from the Pentagon should they attend. A preliminary list compiled by the Army, for example, includes 34 schools where troops might enroll in law school being marked at “moderate to high risk” of being banned, CNN reported. Included in the list are schools attended by top Trump administration officials: President Trump routinely touts his degree from the University of Pennsylvania; Vice President Vance obtained his law degree from Yale University; Hegseth attended Princeton University and Harvard; Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg attended Princeton University; Army Secretary Dan Driscoll attended Yale Law School; and Navy Secretary John Phelan holds a master’s degree in business administration from Harvard.

Halting vaccine innovation, younger colorectal cancer deaths, lingering flu, and good news - Katelyn Jetelina | Your Local Epidemiologist - Last week, Moderna asked the FDA to review its new mRNA flu vaccine after completing a large clinical trial. Instead of reviewing it, the agency sent something called a “Refuse to File” letter, meaning it would not even begin reviewing their application. This means this vaccine will not go onto the long pathway to licensure (and ultimately, to your arms).That might sound technical, but it matters. A lot. Flu vaccines help, but they’re far from perfect. In most years, they reduce the risk of hospitalization by roughly 40–60%. (To compare, the measles vaccine is 97% effectiveness against severe disease). Flu changes quickly, which means innovative vaccines are needed. There are two potential advantages of mRNA technology:

1. Speed: mRNA vaccines can be updated much faster than traditional flu vaccines (3 months vs. 6 months), so they could catch up to flu mutations more quickly.
2. Immune response: Early research suggested stronger immune responses, including T cell and memory B cell responses that were comparable to or stronger than those from enhanced flu vaccines used in older adults.

So, Moderna invested an estimated $500–700 million to develop a new mRNA flu vaccine candidate, called mRNA-1010, and tested it in a Phase 3 trial involving more than 40,000 adults age 50 and older. The study compared the mRNA vaccine with a standard licensed flu shot. Results showed 26% better protection in adults over 50 with the mRNA flu vaccine than with standard flu shots, a meaningful gain. Side effects such as fatigue and chills were more common (as they are with mRNA Covid-19 vaccines). FDA leadership objected to the main comparison: Moderna compared its vaccine to a standard-dose flu shot rather than a high-dose version often used for older adults (who are at greatest risk for severe flu disease). At first glance, that sounds reasonable. But Moderna did conduct a smaller trial with about 3,000 participants specifically to address this question. In adults aged 65 and older, Moderna found that the mRNA vaccine elicited stronger antibody responses than the high-dose vaccine. For decades, this has been used as a strong proxy for a robust immune response that would protect patients. Why this stands out. There are three main reasons:

1. The clinical trial design had already been cleared by the FDA in 2024. Even though political leadership changes between administrations, continuity matters because vaccine and drug development typically takes around 5-10 years. Companies rely on stable expectations when they make long-term investments in innovation. Political appointees changed the expectations in the last mile.
2. Refuse to File decisions are rare (about 4% of applications receive them) and typically happen when major information is missing. That doesn’t appear to be the case here.
3. Other regulators, like those in Europe, Canada, and Australia, have accepted the application for review.

Taken together, this hints at an increasingly partisan shift that could reshape the future of vaccine innovation. Without the U.S. market, it’s unclear whether Moderna will move forward commercially. The company has already announced it will pause new Phase 3 trials for other infectious disease vaccines, shelving programs for viruses such as Epstein-Barr, herpes, and shingles. What we don’t know yet is how other vaccine manufacturers will interpret this moment. If the regulatory environment feels unpredictable, investment could slow, not just in flu vaccines but also in future outbreak preparedness. In other words, this is how vaccine innovation is slowly destroyed.

Another story last week hit close to home. James Van Der Beek died at age 48 after a three-year battle with colorectal cancer. As a millennial, I’ll admit stories like this land hard. The rise in younger colorectal cancer cases feels new and unsettling, and many of us are paying attention for exactly that reason. The big picture first Most colorectal cancer cases and deaths still occur in older adults, especially those over age 65. Among younger adults, the disease rates and death remains rare, but the rate is increasing. That trend is why researchers (and, honestly, many of us) are watching closely. Because of this rise, in 2021, colorectal screening guidelines changed. Getting screened at 45 instead of 50 is now the standard for average-risk adults. Source: American Cancer Society; Annotated in blue by Your Local Epidemiologist. Why is the rise happening? We don’t fully know yet. But in epidemiology, this is called a “cohort effect,” which typically points to environmental causes rather than genetics. Leading theories include:

• ◾Ultra-processed diets
• ◾Low fiber intake
• ◾Obesity & metabolic health
• ◾Sedentary lifestyles
• ◾Microbiome changes

The rise is likely due to multiple drivers rather than a single cause.

Kids with sleep apnea may face higher risks of flu, COVID - Children and adolescents with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) were twice as likely to be diagnosed as having influenza or COVID-19 in the five years following diagnosis than those without the condition, according to a large studypublished in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine.In the retrospective cohort study, researchers led by a team at The Hebrew University in Jerusalem compared data from 539,127 children ages 2 to 18 years with OSA with data from the same number of children without OSA. Children in both groups were followed up for five years.Influenza was diagnosed in 5.1% of children with OSA, compared with 2.8% in those without the condition (risk ratio [RR], 1.80), while COVID was diagnosed in 2.5% of the OSA group, versus 1% in the control group (RR, 2.50).OSA was also associated with a higher risk of severe infection. Children with OSA were over 2.5 times more likely to develop influenza-related pneumonia (RR, 2.69) and had a markedly higher risk of developing COVID pneumonia (RR, 25.96; 95% confidence interval, 16.21 to 41.57).Another new study (see our coverage yesterday) showed that adults with COVID-19 infections—no matter their severity—are at higher risk of new-onset OSA.A disorder that causes breathing pauses during sleep, OSA affects an estimated 1% to 4% of otherwise healthy children and is linked to impaired growth, behavioral and cognitive challenges, and both heart-related and metabolic risks like obesity, diabetes, and high blood pressure. Because OSA is characterized by chronic upper-airway inflammation and immune changes that may disrupt antiviral defenses, and because insufficient and poor-quality sleep (a hallmark of OSA) may increase susceptibility to infections, OSA’s association with respiratory infections is biologically plausible, the researchers say. “The dysregulation of innate and adaptive immune milieus in pediatric OSA may explain both the increased susceptibility to viral infection and the more severe symptoms that prompt medical attention,” lead author Alex Gileles-Hillel, MD, of The Hebrew University, said in a university press release. Further analysis of the data found that adenotonsillectomy (removal of the tonsils and adenoids to treat OSA) did not meaningfully reduce infection risk. Increased flu risk in those who did not have surgery was 4.9%; in those who did, risk was 5.6%. Increased COVID risk was 2.5% in untreated children and 2.6% in those who had surgery.The authors speculate that surgery did not improve outcomes because OSA-related immune changes may persist after treatment and that those changes affect the body’s response to infection. The “current findings underscore the added importance of vaccinating children diagnosed with OSA against these common viruses,” they write.

COVID survivors may be at higher risk for obstructive sleep apnea for up to 4.5 years post-infection -- Patients with both severe and nonsevere COVID-19 infections are at higher risk for both new-onset obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and related serious complications than their uninfected peers, Albert Einstein College of Medicine researchers report in a study published this week on the preprint server medRxiv. The retrospective study, which has not been peer-reviewed, involved 910,393 patients tested for COVID-19 at Montefiore Health System in the Bronx from March 2020 to August 2024. Follow-up lasted for up to 4.5 years. Of the 910,393 patients, 57,206 tested positive for COVID-19, and 853,187 tested negative. OSA is estimated to affect 10% to 30% of adults worldwide. It’s characterized by repeated upper-airway collapse during sleep, which leads to intermittent low oxygen levels, poor sleep, and sympathetic nervous system overactivation (“fight or flight mode”). The study authors noted OSA’s link to cardiovascular, metabolic, and cognitive disease. Likewise, “hospitalization due to COVID-19 often entails prolonged immobilization, corticosteroid use, and weight gain, which are known risk factors for OSA,” they wrote. “Even among non-hospitalized individuals, post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 (“long COVID”) may impair respiratory function and sleep architecture, potentially precipitating the emergence of OSA.” After weighting, hospitalized and non-hospitalized COVID-19 patients were 41% and 33%, respectively, more likely to be diagnosed as having OSA than uninfected controls within the next 4.5 years. After an OSA diagnosis, hospitalized COVID-19 patients had a statistically significant higher risk of heart failure (hazard ratio [HR], 2.33) and pulmonary hypertension (HR, 1.98) than controls, while nonhospitalized COVID patients were significantly more likely than controls to develop obesity (HR, 1.16). Vaccinated and unvaccinated hospitalized and nonhospitalized patients were at similar risk for new-onset OSA. The authors said that, among other possible mechanisms, low-grade systemic inflammation after COVID-19 infection may reduce upper-airway neuromuscular control and weaken pharyngeal muscle tone, leading to airway collapse during sleep. Likewise, higher levels of inflammatory cytokines often seen in long-COVID patients can affect respiratory drive and upper-airway stability, factors central to OSA.

HIV infection linked to increased risk of long COVID - People with HIV (PWH) had a significantly higher risk of developing long COVID across multiple organ systems than people without HIV (PWoH), according to a large cohort study published in the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome. Using linked electronic health records, researchers led by a team at the University of South Carolina Arnold School of Public Health identified 838,520 adults with confirmed COVID-19 from March 2020 to January 2022. Of those, 2,662 (0.3%) had HIV. Long COVID was defined as symptoms occurring 30 to 180 days after infection across 13 organ-system categories. Overall, 16.3% of PWH received a long-COVID diagnosis, compared with 10.6% of PWoH, for a 29% higher risk of developing any long-COVID condition. When the researchers looked at specific COVID-related symptoms, they found that PWH had more than double the risk of nervous-system disorders (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR], 2.04), including headache, nervous-system pain, and sleep disruptions. They also had elevated risks of mental, behavioral, and neurodevelopmental symptoms (aHR, 1.78) and respiratory diseases (aHR, 1.78). Increased risks were also observed for endocrine and metabolic diseases (aHR, 1.70), genitourinary disorders (aHR, 1.59), digestive system diseases (aHR, 1.47), and musculoskeletal conditions (aHR, 1.45). Circulatory system diagnoses did not differ significantly between groups. Across the 13 types of long-COVID conditions the researchers looked at, the most common problems in both PWH and PWoH were general symptoms like fatigue and abdominal pain, as well as muscle and joint issues. The authors note that chronic immune activation and inflammation associated with HIV, even among people receiving antiretroviral therapy, may increase susceptibility to long COVID. Study limitations include reliance on diagnostic codes in electronic health records, which may not have captured complete information, a lack of inflammatory marker data, and a study cohort that was predominantly Black and urban, which may limit generalizability. Still, the authors say the findings underscore the complex, multi-organ nature of long COVID and the increased risk faced by PWH, concluding that “cross-sector collaboration among healthcare providers, community organizations, and policymakers is needed to optimize resource allocation and ensure that individuals receive the necessary treatment and maintenance.”

Long COVID linked to higher risk of depression, anxiety up to 3 years after infection - Adults with long COVID face an increased risk of developing depressive and anxiety symptoms up to three years after their initial infection, according to a large population-based study published today in BMC Public Health. For the study, researchers led by a team at the College of Health Sciences at the University of Missouri analyzed data from a population-based cohort of Michigan adults with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection from March 2020 to May 2022. The analysis excluded respondents who reported depressive or anxiety symptoms at baseline, allowing researchers to examine new-onset mental illness symptoms over time. Long COVID was defined as symptoms lasting 90 days or more after initial infection. The researchers assessed symptoms 1.5 and three years after infection. By the three-year follow-up, 8.8% of respondents reported depressive symptoms, and 10.4% reported anxiety symptoms. Adults with long COVID were substantially more likely to experience mental illness symptoms than those without persistent COVID symptoms. At three years, 16.9% of adults with long COVID reported depressive symptoms, compared with 7.5% of those without long COVID. Anxiety was reported by 17.2% of those with long COVID, versus 9.3% of those without. Overall, adults with long COVID had an 86% higher risk of depressive symptoms and a 60% higher risk of anxiety symptoms at three years. Distinct symptom patterns emerged across the three-year follow-up period. Long COVID was most strongly associated with depressive symptoms emerging at the latter follow-up (adjusted risk ratio [aRRR], 2.64), while anxiety symptoms persisted across both follow-up periods (aRRR, 2.48). “The different temporal patterns observed for depressive versus anxiety symptoms may suggest subtle distinctions in how Long COVID affects mental health over time,” write the authors. “The delayed association with depressive symptoms at the later follow-up may reflect cumulative effects of prolonged symptom burden, whereas the more persistent association with anxiety symptoms across both follow-ups may indicate a more immediate and sustained stress-related response.” The study has several limitations. Because the sample included only adults with confirmed infections, it may have excluded people who relied on at-home testing, had limited access to care, or were too ill to participate. Depressive and anxiety symptoms were measured with self-report screening rather than clinical diagnoses, and long COVID was defined based on participants’ reported recovery time, raising the possibility of misclassification.

Study: SARS-CoV-2 RNA found in 39% of hospital air samples during outbreaks, despite good ventilation --COVID-19 genetic material was frequently detected in hospital air during community outbreaks, even in well-ventilated settings, according to a new study published in Respiratory Medicine. A team led by Kirby Institute researchers conducted air and surface sampling in the emergency department (ED) and intensive care unit (ICU) of a large metropolitan hospital in Sydney, Australia, during two COVID-19 waves between November 2023 and July 2024. Their testing found that 39% (20 of 51) of aerosol samples were positive for SARS-CoV-2 RNA. Detection was significantly more common in the ED than in the ICU. Of the positive samples, 80% were collected in the ED and 20% in the ICU. Hot spots within the ED included the acute-care area (9 of 13 samples positive), the public waiting room (6 of 12), and a walkway area (1 of 1). In the ICU, positive samples were detected in a staff tearoom (2 of 10), inside a negative-pressure room housing a COVID patient (1 of 1), and immediately outside that room (1 of 8). “The higher rate of detection in the ED…suggests the ED carries a higher risk than the ICU, especially the public waiting room and acute care area,” write the authors. Notably, four positive aerosol samples were collected in the ED from November 1 to November 7, 2023, which was up to a week before the hospital formally declared a multi-ward outbreak on November 8. These findings point to the potential value of using aerosol sampling to detect outbreaks before they become widespread, write the researchers.

Report underscores death toll of health care-related infections -Health care-associated infections (HAIs) are responsible for an estimated 6,774 deaths each year in Spain, according to a large study published yesterday in Eurosurveillance. That number is more than three times the number of deaths caused by car accidents in the country each year. HAIs are infections patients acquire while receiving care for other conditions in a health care setting. The analysis, based on data from 107,781 hospitalized patients in 2022 and 2023, found that roughly eight of every 100 patients acquired a HAI. Thirty-day mortality among patients with HAIs was 11.0%, compared with 5.7% among those without infections. Patients with HAIs had a 70% higher risk of death than those without infection. Overall, 41.2% of deaths among patients who had a HAI were attributable to the infection itself. Across all hospitalized patients, 3.2% of deaths were attributable to HAIs. Respiratory infections were the most common HAIs (26%), followed by surgical site infections (22%) and urinary tract infections (18%). Respiratory infections, bloodstream infections, and urinary tract infections were the most deadly; pneumonia was associated with a nearly threefold increased odds of death (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 2.92), while bacterial bloodstream infections were linked to a roughly 70% increase in mortality risk (AOR, 1.68). The authors note that at least half of HAIs could be prevented and emphasize the need for strengthened infection-prevention measures. “HAIs constitute the most important complication for inpatients in Spain and while not being an official cause of death, the number of deaths they resulted in was comparable to other relevant causes, such as road traffic accidents (1,750) or breast cancer (6,492),” write the authors. “Given that 50% of HAIs are considered preventable, it is reasonable to expect that, with full implementation and compliance with infection prevention and control measures, up to half of HAI-related deaths could be avoided.”

Flu claims 5 more US children’s lives as virus continues circulating at moderate to very high levels - Five more children died of influenza in the United States last week, for a season total of 71, as viral activity stays high across much of the nation, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported today in its weekly FluView update. The 2024-25 flu season saw a total of 289 child deaths—the most reported in a non-pandemic flu season since the CDC began tracking pediatric flu deaths in 2004. Nine states are seeing moderate flu activity, while 26 report high or very high case rates. Flu test positivity continues to climb, reaching 19.8%, up from 18.6% the week before. Related hospitalizations also trended upward to total 14,940 for the week, at a rate of 70.2 per 100,000, up from 67.0 per 100,000 the previous week. The percent of outpatient visits for respiratory illness was 4.5%, down slightly from 4.6% the week before but well above the epidemic threshold of 3.1%. The percentage has stayed relatively stable for 5 weeks now, varying from 4.4% to 4.7% (see the ride line on the CDC graph below). Emergency department (ED) visits are highest among children aged 5 to 17, while people aged 65 and older have the highest hospitalization rates. Influenza A continues to dominate, at 54.6%, but influenza B is rising (45.4%) in most areas of the country. Of 1,193 influenza A(H3N2) viruses that underwent additional genetic characterization since September 28, 2025, 92.1% were subclade K. That variant has mutations that enable it to evade immunity from this season’s flu vaccine formula. So far this season, the CDC estimates that there have been at least 24 million flu-related illnesses, 310,000 hospitalizations, and 20,000 deaths. Ninety percent of people who died weren’t fully vaccinated.

South Carolina’s measles total rises to 962 --Today in an update the South Carolina Department of Public Health (DPH) announced 12 more measles cases in an ongoing outbreak, bringing the state total to 962 cases since last October. The outbreak’s epicenter remains Spartanburg County. “Complications are not reportable to DPH, but we have learned of 20 hospitalizations, including both adults and children, for complications of the disease since the beginning of the outbreak,” DPH said. “Additional cases required medical care for measles but were not hospitalized.”Of the 962 case patients, 615 are between the ages of 5 and 17, and 253 are under the age of 5. Cases are primarily among unvaccinated residents (893), with 20 cases in people with partial vaccination, 26 in people fully vaccinated, and 23 with unknown vaccination status. In other outbreak news, Florida now has 68 measles case so far this year, and at least 57 of those are part of an ongoing outbreak at Ave Maria University. And in North Dakota, the Department of Health and Human Services said yesterday there are now six confirmed measles cases in the state this year, with multiple exposures. Pembina County has reported five measles cases.

2026 US measles total nears 1,000 as South Carolina confirms 11 new cases - Today, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed 66 new US measles infections, raising the country’s 2026 total to 982, while South Carolina’s 2025-26 outbreak grew by 11 cases, to 973 total.In its weekly update, the CDC said 976 of the US cases were in 26 states, while six are related to international travel. The agency also confirmed seven new outbreaks in 2026, compared with 49 that began in 2025. Of the 982 cases so far this year, 870 (89%) are tied to an outbreak, which the CDC defines as three or more related cases. The vast majority (92%) of those are tied to outbreaks that began in 2025 and have continued into this year. Last year, the country saw 2,281 measles cases, the most in several decades, but the United States is on track to easily surpass that later this year. On its measles tracker, CNN reported 1,030 US measles cases so far this year. It noted that the country didn’t top 1,000 cases last year till almost May.The CDC said 25% of cases have been in children under five years old, while 84% have been in children and young adults through age 19. Fully 94% of patients have been unvaccinated or have an unknown vaccine status. Thirty-eight patients (4%) have required hospitalization, compared with 11% last year. No measles-related deaths have been reported so far in 2026. South Carolina has been by far the hardest-hit state this year, with 632 CDC-confirmed cases, followed by Utah (117), Florida (64), Arizona (36), and Washington state (24).The rise in measles cases comes amid a tepid federal response to outbreaks and following lower uptake of measles-fighting vaccines. In its update today, the CDC said only 10 states and Washington, DC, have maintained at least 95% coverage of the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine among kindergartners, which is the level considered to provide “herd immunity” to protect the larger community. Idaho has the lowest reported coverage, at 78.5%.South Carolina’s 11 new cases bring the total for its outbreak—which began last fall—to 973 infections, the South Carolina Department of Public Health (SCDPH) noted today. The outbreak is centered in Spartanburg County in the Upstate region. The latest measles exposure sites include two churches, a Costco, and a community college in Spartanburg. Of the 973 infections statewide, 923 (95%) have been in Spartanburg County, with 35 (4%) in neighboring Greenville County.

Utah’s measles outbreak reaches 300 cases -Utah has confirmed 300 measles cases in an ongoing outbreak, with the virus now spreading in Salt Lake County and new exposures at high schools in that county, according to an update yesterday from the Salt Lake County Health Department (SLCoHD).“The first measles symptoms are often cold- or flu-like, with cough, runny nose, red/watery eyes, and fever, so you may think you have a common respiratory illness and can continue engaging in normal activities,” said Dorothy Adams, executive director of SLCoHD. “But please stay home if you have any signs of illness, especially now that we know measles is actively circulating in our community.”Salt Lake County has had 32 cases in the current outbreak, while Utah County has 41 and Southwest Utah health district has 194. Of the 300 measles cases, 58 have been identified in the past 3 weeks, and 255 occurred in patients who are unvaccinated.In other measles news, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) announced earlier this week that the state has had 22 measles cases since late December.“The rise in measles cases is concerning, especially since most infections are affecting unvaccinated children,” said Zack Moore, MD, MPH, NCDHHS state epidemiologist. NCDHHS said most of the cases are related to known outbreaks, including the large ongoing outbreak in South Carolina.

Oregon tracks decline in newborn hepatitis B vaccination -Over the past four years, health officials at the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) have tracked a small but significant drop in newborn hepatitis B vaccination, at the same time they’ve documented a drop in prenatal screening.“It’s very concerning to see the number of babies getting a dose of hepatitis B vaccine after birth going down while the number of birth parents screened for hepatitis B is also decreasing,” said Dean Sidelinger, MD, MSEd, state health officer and state epidemiologist at OHA’s Public Health Division, in a statement. “The hepatitis B vaccine has been extremely successful at almost eliminating these illnesses, and with decreasing vaccination rates, we will see more children get sick.”Up to 90% of infants infected with hepatitis B at birth develop chronic liver infections. Of those, about 25% of infected children will eventually die from cirrhosis or liver cancer if hepatitis is left untreated.In December of last year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) stopped recommendingroutine newborn hepatitis B vaccination, a move criticized widely and ignored by guidelines from the American Academy of Pediatrics.The CDC now recommends the vaccine at birth only to babies born to mothers with hepatitis B and for babies two months or older after consultation with a health care provider.

Resistant foodborne bacteria widespread in Europe, report finds - New data from European health and food safety agencies show that resistance to commonly used antibiotics continues to rise in foodborne bacteria, threatening treatments for foodborne illness.Published in a joint report from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), the data show that a high proportion of Salmonella andCampylobacter isolates collected from humans and food-producing animals (cows, pigs, chickens, and turkeys) in 2023-24 were resistant to commonly used antibiotics, including ampicillin, tetracycline, and sulfonamides. Salmonella and Campylobacter are two leading causes of foodborne illness.More concerning was that a high proportion of Salmonella and Campylobacter from humans and poultry showed increasing resistance to ciprofloxacin, which is considered a critically important antibiotic for human medicine. Because of the resistance levels, ciprofloxacin and other fluoroquinolone antibiotics can no longer be used for Campylobacter infections in people.The report also noted that increasing detection of carbapenemase-producing Escherichia coli in food-producing animals and meat in several countries warrants close attention. Carbapenemase enzymes confer resistance to carbapenems, a class of antibiotics that aren’t authorized for use in veterinary medicine but are a last-resort option for severe infections in people.

FDA issues new guidance on antibiotic use in food-producing animals - The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has released new guidance for veterinary drug makers to define how long medically important antibiotics should be used in livestock. The document, published February 12 by the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM), provides recommendations to animal drug sponsors on how to add duration limits to medically important antibiotics used in food-producing animals for indications (ie, approved treatment uses) that currently have no set limits. Nearly 30% of all medically important antibiotics used in cows, pigs, and poultry on US farms have at least one indication without a defined duration of use, meaning farmers can use those antibiotics in animal feed for extended periods of time. Guidance for Industry (GFI) #273 says labeling for those products “should be revised to include appropriate criteria regarding when to begin and end feeding of the antimicrobial drug.” The revisions should include an approximate duration range that veterinarians should consider when treating an animal, as well as a maximum duration limit that should not be exceeded. The guidance, which is nonbinding, also suggests sponsors avoid instructions like “feed until market weight” to define the duration of use. “This guidance provides specific recommendations on how sponsors may facilitate changes to the approved conditions of use of affected products in support of ongoing efforts to mitigate the development of antimicrobial resistance,” the FDA said. The FDA frames the document as part of its ongoing efforts to promote judicious use of medically important antibiotics, which are also used to treat human infections, in food-producing animals. More than two-thirds of all medically important antibiotics globally are sold to treat, control, and prevent bacterial infections in livestock and poultry. While antibiotics are necessary for treating farm animals with bacterial infections, antibiotic stewardship advocates have long warned overuse and misuse of antibiotics in food-animal production threatens both animal and human health by promoting the emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), which reduces antibiotic effectiveness. AMR is estimated to cause more than 1.2 million deaths annually. Previous guidance issued by the FDA limited medically important antibiotic use on farms to disease treatment, control, and prevention and required a prescription and veterinary oversight for all antibiotic use. Prior to these changes, which were implemented in 2017, US farmers could use medically important antibiotics for growth promotion and could buy them over the counter. In 2018, CVM called for all antibiotics used in the feed and drinking water of food -producing animals to have “an appropriately targeted duration of use” in its five-year action plan for supporting antimicrobial stewardship in veterinary settings.But critics say the guidance falls short of what is needed to adequately address the rise and spread of AMR.

Bacterial strain from 5,000-year-old cave ice shows resistance against 10 modern antibiotics -Bacteria have evolved to adapt to all of Earth's most extreme conditions, from scorching heat to temperatures well below zero. Ice caves are just one of the environments hosting a variety of microorganisms that represent a source of genetic diversity that has not yet been studied extensively. Now, researchers in Romania tested antibiotic resistance profiles of a bacterial strain that until recently was hidden in a 5,000-year-old layer of ice of an underground ice cave—and found it could be an opportunity for developing new strategies to prevent the rise of antibiotic resistance and study how resistance naturally evolves and spreads. They reported their discovery in Frontiers in Microbiology."The Psychrobacter SC65A.3 bacterial strain isolated from Scarisoara Ice Cave, despite its ancient origin, shows resistance to multiple modern antibiotics and carries over 100 resistance-related genes," said author Dr. Cristina Purcarea, a senior scientist at the Institute of Biology Bucharest of the Romanian Academy. "But it can also inhibit the growth of several major antibiotic-resistant 'superbugs' and showed important enzymatic activities with important biotechnological potential." Psychrobacter SC65A.3 is a strain of the genus Psychrobacter, which are bacteria adapted to cold environments. Some species can cause infections in humans or animals. Psychrobacter bacteria have biotechnological potential, but the antibiotic resistance profiles of these bacteria are largely unknown. "Studying microbes such as Psychrobacter SC65A.3 retrieved from millennia-old cave ice deposits reveals how antibiotic resistance evolved naturally in the environment, long before modern antibiotics were ever used," said Purcarea. "The 10 antibiotics we found resistance to are widely used in oral and injectable therapies used to treat a range of serious bacterial infections in clinical practice," Purcarea pointed out. Diseases such as tuberculosis, colitis, and UTIs can be treated with some of the antibiotics that the researchers found resistance to, including rifampicin, vancomycin, and ciprofloxacin.In the Psychrobacter SC65A.3 genome, the researchers found almost 600 genes with unknown functions, suggesting a yet untapped source for discovering novel biological mechanisms. Analysis of the genome also revealed 11 genes that are potentially able to kill or stop the growth of other bacteria, fungi, and viruses.

Avian flu continues spread in Pennsylvania egg, turkey facilities -The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has confirmed more H5N1 avian flu outbreaks in Pennsylvania poultry facilities this week, including six detections in Lancaster County, which has seen a dramatic uptick in H5N1 activity in the past several weeks. The largest outbreaks are in commercial egg-layer sites, with 2.6 million birds affected in one Lancaster County location, and 1.4 million birds affected in another. Almost 30,000 commercial turkey birds in two Lancaster County facilities were also affected, as were 179,000 commercial broiler birds. In the past 30 days, 51 US flocks have been confirmed to have avian flu, including 23 commercial flocks and 28 backyard flocks. A total of 8.97 million birds nationwide have been affected. Pennsylvania is the epicenter of activity, with 11 affected commercial flocks, six affected backyard flocks, and 7,165,500 birds affected in this outbreak.

'All hands on deck' response to bird flu spike in Pennsylvania - Pennsylvania agriculture officials are trying to stem a spike in bird flu cases among Pennsylvania poultry flocks. The state this week announced an effort with experts from Penn State Extension, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and other agencies to expand testing and mitigate the spread of avian flu. Pennsylvania has lost around 14 million birds to the virus since 2022. Half of those, more than 7 million, have died in recent weeks. The Allegheny Front’s Julie Grant asked Pa. Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding about the scope of the problem. Russell Redding: It’s unprecedented, the type of devastation that we’re witnessing right now. The number of flocks, the number of birds, the frequency, the pace at which they’re coming several overnights, it just keeps growing. And we’re trying to keep our arms around this, but obviously, until we have the epidemiology reports that sort of confirm or direct us how this virus is spreading, right now, you just run from wreck to wreck trying to keep ahead of this. Julie Grant: Your office reports that a dozen states have seen avian flu outbreaks already this year, but that Pennsylvania has the highest number. Do you know why this is happening? Where did this outbreak start? Russell Redding: I think at this point, we’re probably 50% of the positives in the country. There are 12 states. The state of Indiana, I would say, is probably close to us. At this point, it’s a lot of speculation because we’ve got an early migration of geese that’s occurring. We had the very extreme sub-zero temperatures that froze over some of the water bodies that maybe these geese would have wintered over, and now they’re moving more. That’s speculation on our part, but it clearly came in from some wild geese. Just a question now, is it lateral transmission? Is it wind and weather related? That’s not going to be determined until we have the [epidemiology] report.

Bird flu ravaging Antarctic wildlife, scientist warns -- Scientists are sounding the alarm over the spread of bird flu across Antarctica, with a leading Chilean researcher telling AFP Tuesday of an observed strain "capable of killing 100% of infected fauna." Researchers have been warning in recent years of bird flu's spread on the icy continent, which hosts temporary teams of scientists but no permanent residents.But a particularly dangerous strain of the disease was detected in April 2024 by Chilean researcher Victor Neira and his team in five skuas, a type of polar seabird.Since then, the virus has spread to other species, with cases detected along 900 kilometers (560 miles) of coastline studied by scientists.In a recent expedition to Antarctica, new cases were discovered in Antarctic cormorants, kelp gulls, Adelie and gentoo penguins, and Antarctic fur seals, Neira told AFP."The virus has completely spread throughout the Antarctic region where we have the capacity to go and study," said Neira, a scientist at the University of Chile and the Chilean Antarctic Institute (INACH)."This disease is capable of killing 100% of the birds in short periods of time," he said."For example, in one or two days it can kill 90% or 100% of the animals in a given area." Antarctic species are often small in total population, underscoring the risk of outbreaks. Animals such as Antarctic cormorants and skuas number around 20,000 in total. A global wave of bird flu has affected birds and mammals around the world since 2021, spread via bird migration. In 2023, it killed thousands of Humboldt penguins in Chile.

Dirty Air Linked to Higher Alzheimer’s Risk in Massive US Study - Breathing polluted air may do more than irritate your lungs — it could also raise your risk of Alzheimer’s disease. Older adults who are exposed to higher levels of air pollution appear more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease, according to new research led by Yanling Deng of Emory University. The study was published today (February 17th) in the open-access journal PLOS Medicine. Alzheimer’s disease is the leading cause of dementia, affecting an estimated 57 million people worldwide. Air pollution has already been identified as a risk factor not only for Alzheimer’s, but also for several chronic conditions, including hypertension, stroke, and depression. These same health problems are also associated with dementia. Until now, however, scientists were unsure whether polluted air increases dementia risk by first contributing to these chronic illnesses, or whether those illnesses simply make the brain more vulnerable to pollution’s effects. Massive Medicare Study Examines 27.8 Million Older AdultsTo investigate, researchers analyzed data from more than 27.8 million U.S. Medicare beneficiaries age 65 and older between 2000 and 2018. They compared long term exposure to air pollution with new diagnoses of Alzheimer’s disease, while also examining whether conditions such as stroke, hypertension, and depression influenced the relationship. The results showed a clear pattern. Higher exposure to air pollution was linked to a greater risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. The association was somewhat stronger among individuals who had previously experienced a stroke. In contrast, hypertension and depression did not appear to significantly intensify the pollution-related risk. Overall, the findings indicate that air pollution may contribute to Alzheimer’s primarily through direct biological effects on the brain rather than indirectly through other chronic health conditions. At the same time, people with a history of stroke may be particularly sensitive to the damaging neurological effects of polluted air. The results suggest that improving air quality could play an important role in lowering dementia risk and protecting brain health in older adults.

Nitrogen pollution is rising: What a new global map means for forest carbon -For decades, invisible nitrogen drifting from agriculture, traffic and industry has settled over the ecosystems like a fine dusting of fertilizer. At first, nitrogen can boost growth. But increasingly, in forests already saturated with it, the risk is high that the biotic communities and soil respiration will collapse. A new global study published in Nature Communications explains why and shows that this phased effect may be one of the most overlooked consequences of human pollution. Human activity has tripled nitrogen deposition since the Industrial Revolution. Fertilizers, exhaust fumes and industrial emissions release vast amounts of reactive nitrogen, much of which comes back down to Earth with rain, snow or dust. Researchers have long known that this affects forests, but they have faced a persistent puzzle: Why does nitrogen pollution increase soil respiration in some forests, but decrease it in others? Previous studies pointed in opposite directions. Some saw dramatic CO₂ increases; others saw sharp declines. No single explanation could make sense of both.To find the answer, an international research team combined data on an unprecedented scale: Using machine learning, they modeled how soil respiration responds to nitrogen in every forested region on Earth. The result: forests don't follow one pattern; they follow two.In nitrogen-limited forests, common in boreal regions and remote mountain areas, a little nitrogen acts like long-awaited nourishment. Microbes multiply, roots grow more vigorously, decomposition speeds up, and soil respiration rises. But only to a point.As nitrogen increases, the boost weakens. Toxicity builds. Easily available carbon is used up. Eventually the curve bends downward in an inverted U-shape: a rise, a plateau, and then a decline. It's the ecological version of too much fertilizer burning a plant's roots. In forests already saturated with nitrogen, the response is far more abrupt.Additional nitrogen pushes ecosystems beyond their tolerance level. Microbial communities shift. Sensitive species disappear. Fine roots shrink and die. Soil becomes more acidic. And soil respiration doesn't simply decline, it collapses. These sudden transitions are common in regions with decades of heavy nitrogen pollution, including parts of Europe, eastern China and the eastern United States. In these places, two forests receiving the same nitrogen input can respond in completely different ways: one breathing faster, another breathing significantly slower.Soil respiration is immense: 7 to 8 times larger than global human fossil fuel emissions. Even small shifts matter. Globally, the study finds that nitrogen deposition increases soil respiration by about 5%. Most forests are still nitrogen-limited enough that added nitrogen speeds up the soil's metabolism. But where forests are saturated, collapsing respiration is not a positive sign. It often reflects declines in microbial biomass and root activity; the very processes that build and stabilize soil carbon. Less CO₂ may be released in those regions, but the soil may also become less resilient.

Dirty Air Linked to Higher Alzheimer’s Risk in Massive US Study - Breathing polluted air may do more than irritate your lungs — it could also raise your risk of Alzheimer’s disease. Older adults who are exposed to higher levels of air pollution appear more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease, according to new research led by Yanling Deng of Emory University. The study was published today (February 17th) in the open-access journal PLOS Medicine. Alzheimer’s disease is the leading cause of dementia, affecting an estimated 57 million people worldwide. Air pollution has already been identified as a risk factor not only for Alzheimer’s, but also for several chronic conditions, including hypertension, stroke, and depression. These same health problems are also associated with dementia. Until now, however, scientists were unsure whether polluted air increases dementia risk by first contributing to these chronic illnesses, or whether those illnesses simply make the brain more vulnerable to pollution’s effects. Massive Medicare Study Examines 27.8 Million Older AdultsTo investigate, researchers analyzed data from more than 27.8 million U.S. Medicare beneficiaries age 65 and older between 2000 and 2018. They compared long term exposure to air pollution with new diagnoses of Alzheimer’s disease, while also examining whether conditions such as stroke, hypertension, and depression influenced the relationship. The results showed a clear pattern. Higher exposure to air pollution was linked to a greater risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. The association was somewhat stronger among individuals who had previously experienced a stroke. In contrast, hypertension and depression did not appear to significantly intensify the pollution-related risk. Air Pollution May Directly Contribute to Alzheimer’s DiseaseVisual summary of the main findings of the study. Credit: Yanling Deng (CC-BY 4.0)Evidence Points to Direct Effects on the BrainOverall, the findings indicate that air pollution may contribute to Alzheimer’s primarily through direct biological effects on the brain rather than indirectly through other chronic health conditions. At the same time, people with a history of stroke may be particularly sensitive to the damaging neurological effects of polluted air. The results suggest that improving air quality could play an important role in lowering dementia risk and protecting brain health in older adults.

‘Alarming’ levels of PFAS from Pittsburgh International Airport polluting Montour Run --Hannah Hohman and Koa Reitz stood on an old bridge on a sunny afternoon, looking down at the confluence of two streams. Hohman, environmental steward at Three Rivers Waterkeeper, a local environmental group. Reitz is an environmental scientist with the group. Since 2023, their group has been sampling streams around Pittsburgh International Airport for PFAS, a class of 14,000 compounds also known as “forever” chemicals that have contaminated the environment nationwide. The Waterkeeper’s monitoring data showed high levels of PFAS in Montour Run and its tributaries, as high as 430 parts per trillion,100 times the safety level of 4 parts per trillion established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for drinking water. “That value of 430 was an ‘Oh my gosh, what’s happening here?’ moment,” Hohman said. Hohman and Reitz decided to look at new publicly available data. Since last year, the airport has been sampling its stormwater outfalls for PFAS and reporting the results to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. The highest level the airport reported was 62,900 parts per trillion of one type of PFAS – over 15,000 times the EPA’s safety level. “It was alarming when we did pull that number because initially I think all of us were like, ‘This has to be a mistake,’” Hohman said. “That’s a number that is pretty hard to fathom.” The highest PFAS levels submitted by the airport were from a stormwater drain near the airport’s firefighting training facility. Reitz dips a clear plastic cup into the unnamed tributary to Montour Run that flows downhill of that drain, about a mile away. The water drips through a filter, which a lab will screen for 55 of the most common PFAS chemicals. “They’ll analyze what’s in the filter and then report back to us how many of each type of PFAS is in the creek,” Reitz said. A long brewing problemFor decades, the Federal Aviation Administration required airports to use Aqueous Film-Forming Foam (AFFF), also called fluorinated foams because it contains the element fluorine. “For a long time, it was mandated that those fluorinated foams be used not only in emergency response, but also in drills,” said Kimberly Garrett, assistant professor of environmental health at the City University of New York’s Graduate School of Public Health. “So [airports were] really spraying that concentrated PFAS.”

Study: Air pollution in Pittsburgh region responsible for 3,500 deaths in 2019 - A new study finds air pollution in the Pittsburgh region was responsible for up to 3,500 deaths in 2019. The study found that even air quality considered “safe” by regulators led to premature deaths. The researchers found that air pollution not only led to increased deaths, but it also had other negative impacts, from lowered IQ in children to adverse birth outcomes. “People need to recognize that this pollution is causing disease, it’s causing premature death,” said Dr. Philip Landrigan, a pediatrician and public health physician at Boston College, who is one of the study’s authors. The study calculated the impact of PM 2.5, a class of fine particles small enough to go deep inside the lungs. These particles have been linked to a wide array of health effects. “Among infants, it’s causing increased low birth weight babies, increased still births. Among adults, it is causing heart disease and stroke,” Landrigan said. The study, published in the journal Annals of Global Health last month, was funded by The Heinz Endowments, which also supports The Allegheny Front. The authors compared satellite imaging for air pollution with death records from the eight-county Pittsburgh metropolitan region. Landrigan says they then estimated how many of those deaths were linked to air pollution in 2019. “We’re saying that between 11.1 and 12.5 percent of all deaths in the Pittsburgh metropolitan area are due to air pollution,” Landrigan said. “What I cannot tell you is which particular death is due to air pollution.” The study found that 229 premature births, 177 low‑weight births, and 12 stillbirths could be attributed to pollution. Among the 24,604 children born in the Pittsburgh region in 2019, the study found that pollution was linked to the loss of 60,668 IQ points, resulting in estimated lifetime economic losses of $2.7 billion. When it comes to air pollution’s link to IQ, Landrigan says studies from the U.S. and other countries “found that higher levels of PM 2.5 air pollution are associated with lower IQ in children.”

Trump's EPA decides climate change doesn't endanger public health—the evidence says otherwise -- The Trump administration took a major step in its efforts to unravel America's climate policies on Feb. 12, 2026, when it moved to rescind the 2009 endangerment finding—a formal determination that six greenhouse gases that drive climate change, including carbon dioxide and methane from burning fossil fuels, endanger public health and welfare.But the administration's arguments in dismissing the health risks of climate change are not only factually wrong, they're deeply dangerous to Americans' health and safety.As physicians, epidemiologists and environmental health scientists, we've seen growing evidence of the connections between climate change and harm to people's health. Here's a look at the health risks everyone faces from climate change.Greenhouse gases from vehicles, power plants and other sources accumulate in the atmosphere, trapping heat and holding it close to Earth's surface like a blanket. Too much of it causes global temperatures to rise, leaving more people exposed to dangerous heat more often.Most people who get minor heat illnesses will recover, but more extreme exposure, especially without enough hydration and a way to cool off, can be fatal. People who work outside, are elderly or have underlying illnesses such as heart, lung or kidney diseases are often at the greatest risk.As global temperatures rise, regions are becoming more suitable for mosquitoes to transmit dengue virus. The map shows a suitability scale, with red areas already suitable for dengue transmissions and yellow areas becoming more suitable. Credit: Taishi Nakase, et al., 2022, CC BY Heat deaths have been rising globally, up 23% from the 1990s to the 2010s, when the average year saw more than half a million heat-related deaths. Here in the U.S., the 2021 Pacific Northwest heat dome killed hundreds of people. Climate scientists predict that with advancing climate change, many areas of the world, including U.S. cities such as Miami, Houston, Phoenix and Las Vegas, will confront many more days each year hot enough to threaten human survival. Warmer air holds more moisture, so climate change brings increasing rainfall and storm intensity and worsening flooding. Warmer ocean water also fuels more powerful hurricanes. Increased flooding carries health risks, including drownings, injuries and water contamination from human pathogens and toxic chemicals. People cleaning out flooded homes also face risks from mold exposure, injuries and mental distress.Climate change also worsens droughts, disrupting food supplies and causing respiratory illness from dust. Rising temperatures and aridity dry out forests and grasslands, making them a setup for wildfires. Wildfire smoke is a toxic soup of microscopic particles (known as fine particulate matter, or PM2.5) that can penetrate deep in the lungs and hazardous compounds such as lead, formaldehyde and dioxins generated when homes, cars and other materials burn at high temperatures. Smoke plumes can travel thousands of miles downwind and trigger heart attacks and elevate lung cancer risks, among other harms.Meanwhile, warmer conditions favor the formation of ground-level ozone, a heart and lung irritant. Burning of fossil fuels also generates dangerous air pollutants that cause a long list of health problems, including heart attacks, strokes, asthma flare-ups and lung cancer. insects are directly influenced by temperature. So with rising temperatures, mosquito biting rates rise as well. Warming also accelerates the development of disease agents that mosquitoes transmit. Mosquito-borne dengue fever has turned up in Florida, Texas, Hawaii, Arizona and California. New York state just saw its first locally acquired case of chikungunya virus, also transmitted by mosquitoes.And it's not just insect-borne infections. Warmer temperatures increase diarrhea and foodborne illness from Vibrio cholerae and other bacteria and heavy rainfall increases sewage-contaminated stormwater overflows into lakes and streams. At the other water extreme, drought in the desert Southwest increases the risk of coccidioidomycosis, a fungal infection known as valley fever.Climate change threatens health in numerous other ways. Longer pollen seasons increase allergen exposures. Lower crop yields reduce access to nutritious foods.Mental health also suffers, with anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress following disasters, and increased rates of violent crime and suicide tied to high-temperature days.Young children, older adults, pregnant women and people with preexisting medical conditions are among the highest-risk groups. Lower-income people also face greater risk because of higher rates of chronic disease, higher exposures to climate hazards and fewer resources for protection, medical care and recovery from disasters.The evidence linking climate change with health has grown considerably since 2009. Today, it is incontrovertible.Studies show that heat, air pollution, disease spread and food insecurity linked to climate change are worsening and costing millions of lives around the world each year. This evidence also aligns with Americans' lived experiences. Anybody who has fallen ill during a heat wave, struggled while breathing wildfire smoke or been injured cleaning up from a hurricane knows that climate change can threaten human health. Yet the Trump administration is willfully ignoring this evidence in proclaiming that climate change does not endanger health. When governments work to reduce the causes of climate change, they help tackle some of the world's biggest health challenges. Cleaner vehicles and cleaner electricity mean cleaner air—and less heart and lung disease. More walking and cycling on safe sidewalks and bike paths mean more physical activity and lower chronic disease risks. The list goes on. By confronting climate change, we promote good health. To really make America healthy, in our view, the nation should acknowledge the facts behind the endangerment finding and double down on our transition from fossil fuels to a healthy, clean energy future.

Trump order seeks to protect weedkiller at center of barrage of lawsuits - Donald Trump has signed an executive order protecting production of glyphosate-based herbicides, such as Roundup, which some bodies and studies have linked to cancer and which are the subject of widespread US litigation.The president’s move, which also seeks to provide “immunity” for makers of the herbicides, was strongly criticized by health and environmental advocates including some figures in the “Make America healthy again” (Maha) coalition.The order also protects domestic production of phosphorus, which is used in making glyphosate and other agricultural chemicals, as well as a range of other products, including some in military defense.Ensuring “robust domestic elemental phosphorus mining and United States-based production of glyphosate-based herbicides is central to American economic and national security”, the order states.The 18 February order cites authority under the Defense Production Act and instructs US Department of Agriculture secretary Brooke Rollins to issue orders and regulations as “may be necessary to implement this order”.The White House said “the threat of reduced or ceased production” of phosphorous and glyphosate herbicides “gravely endangers national security and defense, which includes food-supply security”.Neither the executive order nor the fact sheet the White House put out accompanying the order discloses that glyphosate-based herbicides have been linked to an array of cancers and other health problems in multiple independent research studies and by cancer experts of the World Health Organization (WHO).The move by the White House comes as Roundup maker Bayer is facing tens of thousands of lawsuits alleging the company’s glyphosate herbicides cause cancer and the company failed to warn farmers and other users of the risks. The company, which inherited the litigation when it bought Monsanto in 2018,has already paid out billions of dollars in settlements and jury verdicts and said this week it was proposing to pay $7.25bn in a class action settlement to try to head off future lawsuits.Bayer has said that if it cannot find relief from the litigation, it may stop making glyphosate herbicides for the US agricultural market.“This executive order reads like it was drafted in a chemical company boardroom,” said Vani Hari, a food activist, author and one of the grass roots leaders of the Maha coalition. “Calling it ‘national defense’ while expanding protections for toxic products is a dangerous misdirection. Real national security is protecting American families, farmers, and children.”Kelly Ryerson, another key actor in the Maha movement who has been lobbying US regulators and lawmakers for restrictions on glyphosate and other pesticides, said the move by Trump is an insult to those who have largely supported the administration because of promises that Maha issues would be taken seriously.“The President is making a mockery of the very voters who put his administration into office,” Ryerson said. “Expanding the production of glyphosate, a pesticide derided by the Maha movement, is a commitment to perpetuating the toxic, chemical food system that has created a sick and infertile American population.”

Kennedy defends Trump glyphosate order; MAHA erupts -- Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. defended President Donald Trump's executive order spurring the domestic production of the weed killer glyphosate, as his Make America Healthy Again movement reels from the president's embrace of the chemical they despise.Trump on Wednesday night signed an executive order invoking the Defense Production Act to compel the domestic production of elemental phosphorus and glyphosate-based herbicides. Glyphosate is the chemical inBayer-Monsanto's Roundup and is the most commonly used herbicide for a slew of U.S. crops. Trump, in the order, said shortages of both phosphorus and glyphosate would pose a risk to national security.Kennedy backed the president in a statement to CNBC Thursday morning."Donald Trump's Executive Order puts America first where it matters most — our defense readiness and our food supply," he said. "We must safeguard America's national security first, because all of our priorities depend on it. When hostile actors control critical inputs, they weaken our security. By expanding domestic production, we close that gap and protect American families." But Kennedy's MAHA coalition that supported Trump in the 2024 presidential election hates glyphosate, which has been alleged to cause cancer in myriad lawsuits. Now, the executive order threatens to unravel that coalition ahead of the 2026 midterm elections that could loosen the president's grip on Washington."Just as the large MAHA base begins to consider what to do at midterms, the President issues an EO to expand domestic glyphosate production," Kelly Ryerson, a prominent MAHA activist known as The Glyphosate Girl, said in apost on X. "The very same carcinogenic pesticide that MAHA cares about most."Ken Cook, president of the Environmental Working Group, a watchdog that has pushed back against chemicals in food for years, said in a statement that he "can't envision a bigger middle finger to every MAHA mom than this." "Elevating glyphosate to a national security priority is the exact opposite of what MAHA voters were promised," Cook said. "If Secretary Kennedy remains at HHS after this, it will be impossible to argue that his past warnings about glyphosate were anything more than campaign rhetoric designed to win trust — and votes."

Honey bees navigate more precisely than previously thought -- A team from the University of Freiburg led by neurobiologist and behavioral biologist Prof. Dr. Andrew Straw studied the flight behavior of honey bees. Using a drone, the researchers tracked honey bees as they flew between their hive and a food source about 120 meters away in an agricultural environment. In order to observe the bees on their respective routes, the scientists used the "Fast Lock-On (FLO) Tracking" method developed by Straw's working group. This involves attaching a small, highly reflective marker to the insect. On a drone, a computer uses image analysis of reflected light to reliably locate the bee within a few milliseconds and keep track of it. The results, published in Current Biology, show that each honey bee navigates in its own unique way and maintains these individual routes with the utmost precision on both the outward and return flights. The animals use landmarks in the landscape as orientation aids."Our tracking system makes it possible for the first time to record high-resolution 3D flight paths of honey bees in natural landscapes," explains Straw. "Our recordings show that each bee has its own preferred route and flies it very precisely. You could almost say that each bee has its own personality."The 255 flight paths analyzed were obtained near the Kaiserstuhl, Germany, in an agricultural region containing hedges, a cornfield and a tree blocking the direct route between the beehive and the food source. "We found a high degree of precision in the flight paths. Individual bees repeated their individual flight paths nearly exactly on several flights. They often fly just a few centimeters away from their previous paths," Straw emphasizes. The team identified the smallest deviation in the flights near prominent landscape features such as the tree. In contrast, the greatest variability was measured above the cornfield, an area with a very uniform visual structure. "Our results suggest that visual landmarks aid the bees' navigation and increase the precision of their flight paths," explains Straw. In contrast, the bees' uncertainty increases in visually monotonous environments. The study also provides new insights into the interpretation of the waggle dance, which honey bees use to indicate the location of food sources to their fellow bees. "It was previously known that the directional information in the waggle dance is not entirely accurate," explains Straw. For food sources approximately 100 meters away, the directional information in the waggle dance can deviate by around 30 degrees."Our research has shown that individual bees navigate much more accurately to destinations they are familiar with. Even where their flight paths vary most, they deviate from their individual route by only a few degrees. Our results allow us to conclude that the inaccuracy of the waggle dance is not due to the bees' limited navigational abilities. Rather, individual animals are spatially much more accurately oriented than their dance communication would suggest," says Straw.

Archived tree cores reveal why boreal forests are getting starved for nitrogen --Despite decades of industrial deposition, nitrogen availability in the boreal forest is steadily declining. In a new study published in Nature, researchers from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences using decades of unique, stored data have found that atmospheric CO₂ is the main driver. Studies from North America and global meta-analyses have in recent years shown declining nitrogen stable isotope values in tree rings, which serve as an indicator that nitrogen availability is decreasing over time. Why this happens is the key question. Two alternative theories have been proposed, either falling atmospheric N deposition rates since the 1990s, or rising CO₂ levels in the atmosphere. And that is what the new study from SLU by lead author Kelley Bassett, Ph.D. student at the Department of Forest Ecology and Management, has been able to answer, using 60 years' worth of archived tree cores. The unique material works like a time machine, where the nitrogen isotope values of spruce and pine can be traced back decade by decade. "This is a different way of constructing chronologies. Instead of following one tree back in time, we can pick out trees of the same age through time, which avoids many of the problems with internal nitrogen movement in trees," says Bassett. For a century, field crews of the National Forest Inventory (NFI) have visited thousands of sample plots all over Sweden, extracting pencil-thin wood cores from trees across Sweden to determine forest age and diameter growth for official national statistics of Swedish forests. The core samples are then stored in an archive, eventually amounting to more than a million tree cores. The samples could have been discarded decades ago, but have remained tucked away in the basement. "It's amazing in a way. The wise decision by colleagues more than 60 years ago to save these samples has made new and completely different kinds of research possible,"By using 1,609 of these tree cores collected between 1961 and 2018, the research group was able to construct a unique timeline of nitrogen availability across Sweden. The comprehensive archive made it possible to acquire wood from trees of the same age and forest type from different regions and decades, from which the team analyzed the isotopes. To test competing theories, Sweden's geography provided a perfect natural experiment; nitrogen deposition has varied as much as fourfold across the country from north to south, while rising atmospheric CO₂ levels are relatively uniform. "We constructed models that took into account atmospheric CO₂, nitrogen deposition, temperature, and forest density. We wanted to see what could actually explain the decline in nitrogen isotopes we are observing," says Bassett. The results were clear. Regardless of nitrogen deposition levels, the nitrogen isotope values in tree rings have been declining across all Swedish regions for both pine and spruce. And rising CO₂, rather than atmospheric nitrogen deposition, explained the observed patterns. "When we removed variables from the model, the difference with or without atmospheric CO₂ made it extremely clear. The other factors could not explain much of what was happening with the nitrogen isotope values," says Bassett. Major implications for climate modelsThe findings suggest that rising CO₂ levels are reducing nitrogen availability in boreal forests, which has important implications for climate projections. Many Earth system models already include nitrogen constraints on forest growth, but the new study provides one of the most comprehensive empirical datasets showing how widespread and persistent this limitation may be.

As a Colorado River deadline passes, reservoirs keep declining - On Feb. 13, the leaders of seven states announced, one day before a Trump administration deadline, that there is still no deal to share the diminishing waters of the Colorado River. That leaves the Southwest in a quagmire with uncertain repercussions while the river's depleted reservoirs continue to decline. Former U.S. Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt said in an interview with the Los Angeles Times that the impasse now appears so intractable that Trump administration officials should take a step back, abandon the current effort and begin all over again. Babbitt said he believes it would be a mistake for Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to "try to impose a long-term solution" by ordering major water cuts across the Southwest—which would likely set off a lengthy court battle. "We need a fresh start," Babbitt said. "I believe that in the absence of a unanimous agreement, (the Interior Department) should renew the existing agreements for five years, and then we should start all over. We should scrap the entire process and invent a new one." Officials for the seven states have tried to boost reservoir levels via voluntary water cutbacks and federal payments to farmers who agree to leave fields dry part of the year. But after more than two years of trying to hash out new long-term rules for sharing water, they remain deadlocked; the existing rules are set to expire at the end of this year.The states similarly blew past an earlier federal deadline in November. Interior Department officials have not said how they will respond. The agency is considering four options for imposing cutbacks starting next year, as well as the option of taking no action. Babbitt, who was Interior secretary under President Bill Clinton from 1993 to 2001, said he thinks the Trump administration's options are too narrow and inadequate. They would place the burden of water cuts on Arizona, California and Nevada while not requiring any for the four other upriver states—Colorado, Utah, Wyoming and New Mexico. Without a consensus, the only reasonable approach is to extend existing water-saving agreements for a few years while making a new push for solutions, Babbitt said. Federal officials have "missed the opportunity" to take a strong leadership role, he said, and it's time to reimagine the effort as a "much more inclusive, public, broad" process. The river provides for about 35 million people and 5 million acres of farmland, from the Rocky Mountains to northern Mexico. The states' positions haven't changed much in the last two years, said JB Hamby, California's lead negotiator, and moving toward an agreement will require firm commitments for cuts by all. Officials representing the four Upper Basin states said they've offered compromises and are prepared to continue negotiating. In a written statement, they stressed they are already dealing with substantial water cuts, and said their downstream neighbors are trying to secure water "that simply does not exist."

DEP: 16 More Counties Now In Drought Warning; 11 More Counties In Drought Watch --On February 19, the Department of Environmental Protection announced on social media 16 counties were now in Drought Warning and 11 counties were now on Drought Watch status, after a February 18 meeting of the Commonwealth Drought Task Force.A total of 17 counties are now in Drought Warning. These counties were added: Adams, Berks, Carbon, Chester, Cumberland, Franklin, Huntington, Juniata, Lancaster, Lehigh, Mifflin, Northampton, Northumberland, Perry, Schuylkill, Union. A total of 34 counties are in Drought Watch. These counties were added: Allegheny, Blair, Bucks, Centre, Columbia, Dauphin, Delaware, Montgomery, Montour, Philadelphia, and York.These changes reflect worsening conditions across Pennsylvania. Several areas of the Commonwealth-- particularly in the south-central and eastern parts of the Commonwealth-- continue to experience declining groundwater levels and persistent precipitation deficits.Other areas of the Commonwealth may also be experiencing localized drought issues.Residents should always pay attention to any information they receive from their local water supplier. Varying localized conditions may lead water suppliers or municipalities to ask residents to continue conservation measures.Visit DEP's Drought Information webpage for a list of public water suppliers with mandatory and voluntary water conservation restrictions.Click Here for the DEP announcement.

Sixth year of drought in Texas and Oklahoma leaves ranchers bracing for another harsh summer -Cattle auctions aren't often all-night affairs. But in Texas Lake Country in June 2022, ranchers facing dwindling water supplies and dried out pastures amid a worsening drought sold off more than 4,000 animals in an auction that lasted nearly 24 hours—about 200 cows an hour.It was the height of a drought that has gripped the Southern Plains for the past six years—a drought that is still holding on in much of the region in 2026.The drought cost the agriculture industry across Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas an estimated US$23.6 billion in lost crops, higher feed costs and selling off cattle from 2020 through 2024 alone. As rangeland dried out, it also fueled devastating wildfires.Historically, droughts of this magnitude happen in the Southern Plains about once a decade, but the severe droughts of this century have been lasting longer, leaving water supplies, native rangelands and farms with little time to recover before the next one hits.Many cattle producers and rangelands were still recovering from a severe 2010-2015 drought when a flash drought hit western Texas in spring 2020, marking the beginning of the current multibillion-dollar, multiyear and multistate drought. Ample spring rainfall in 2025 and severe flooding in central Texas that year weren't enough to end the drought, and a powerful winter storm in late January 2026 missed the driest parts of the region. In a recent study with colleagues at the Southern Regional Climate Center and the National Integrated Drought Information System, we assessed the causes and damage from the ongoing drought in the Southern Plains.We found three key reasons for the enduring drought and its damage: rising temperatures and a La Niña climate pattern; water supply shortages; and lingering economic impacts from the previous drought.The Southern Plains is known to be a hot spot for rapid drought development, and the ongoing drought that started in 2020 is no exception.Documented "flash droughts"—defined as periods of rapid drought onset or intensification of existing droughts—occurred at least five times in the region from 2020 to 2025. As global temperatures rise and climates warm, research warns that the frequency and severity of flash drought events will increase.For the southern part of the Southern Plains, winter precipitation is closely linked to the El Niño–Southern Oscillation, a climate pattern that affects weather around the world. Five of the past six years exhibited a La Niña pattern, which typically means the region sees winters that are warmer and drier than normal.La Niña was likely the primary driver—although not the only driver—of the drought for Texas and southwest Oklahoma, and one of the reasons drought conditions have continued into 2026.The Southern Plains have a long history with severe droughts. The Dust Bowl of the early 1930s may be the best-known example. But a history with drought doesn't make it any easier to manage when crops and water supplies dry up.

State of Emergency declared in Oklahoma as wildfires scorch over 72 770 ha (155 000 acres) - YouTube videos- Multiple wildfires burning across Oklahoma have scorched over 62 720 ha (155 000 acres) as of February 18, 2026, prompting Governor Kevin Stitt to declare a State of Emergency in Beaver, Texas, and Woodward counties. The Ranger Road Fire alone burned approximately 58 700 ha (145 000 acres) across Oklahoma and southern Kansas, with 0% containment reported. Multiple wildfires burning across Oklahoma have scorched more than 62 770 ha (155 000 acres) as of February 18, prompting Governor Kevin Stitt to declare a State of Emergency in Beaver, Texas, and Woodward counties. “The Woodward fires are about 20% contained, and we were very fortunate to keep most neighborhoods safe. A few homes were lost, and four firefighters were injured as they worked through the night,” Governor Stitt said. “In Beaver County, the town of Tyrone was evacuated earlier as a precaution. Conditions remain dangerous, and residents are urged to stay alert and continue taking fire warnings seriously.” According to Oklahoma Forestry Services, major active fires include the Ranger Road Fire in Beaver County, which has burned more than 58 680 ha (145 000 acres) across Oklahoma and Kansas in just one day. The Stevens Fire in Texas County has burned 2 023 ha (5 000 acres), the Side Road Fire in Texas County 1 335 ha (3 300 acres), and the 43 Road Fire in Woodward County 809 ha (2 000 acres). Drone video captured multiple homes and buildings burning in Tyrone, Oklahoma, on Tuesday as wildfires tore through the Oklahoma Panhandle. pic.twitter.com/VNP0e9dSII — AccuWeather (@accuweather) February 18, 2026 The Ranger Road Fire ignited in Beaver County in the Oklahoma Panhandle on February 17 and expanded northward into southern Kansas. As of February 18, the fire had burned approximately 58 700 ha (145 000 acres) across parts of Oklahoma and Kansas, with 0% containment reported by state forestry officials. At least 4 firefighters were injured. Mandatory evacuation orders were issued for the Kansas communities of Ashland and Englewood in Clark County as the fire advanced toward populated areas. Earlier evacuation notices were also issued in parts of Beaver County, Oklahoma.

Ranger Road Fire doubles in size in one day, reaching over 114 650 ha (283 000 acres) in Kansas-Oklahoma - (4 videos) The Ranger Road Fire nearly doubled in size from 58 700 ha (145 000 acres) to over 114 650 ha (283 000 acres) within roughly 24 hours after ignition at 11:40 LT on February 17, 2026, when it crossed the Kansas–Oklahoma border. As of February 18, containment stood at 15% following rapid expansion driven by dry fuels and high winds. Authorities closed sections of Kansas highways 283, 160, and 183.. The fire has been growing rapidly since ignition on February 17, as dry conditions and high winds fueled its expansion, reaching over 58 700 ha (145 000 acres) in just 9 hours since it was first reported at around 11:40 local time (LT). The fire also prompted the closures of sections of Kansas Highway 283, Kansas Highway 160, and Kansas Highway 183. Mandatory evacuations were issued for Ashland, Englewood, and southern Comanche counties but have since been lifted. Multiple other wildfires are also affecting Oklahoma, having prompted a State of Emergency in three counties on February 18. In Texas County, the Stevens Fire has burned 5 028 ha (12 428 acres) and is 50% contained, while the Side Road Fire has reached 1 490 ha (3 680 acres) with 60% containment. In Woodward County, the 43 Fire has burned 680 ha (1 680 acres) and is 30% contained, and the 206 Road Fire has affected 65 ha (160 acres). Authorities identified 33 fires and hotspots across 23 counties, including Atoka, Beckham, Blaine, Bryan, Carter, Coal, Custer, Garvin, Hughes, Kay, Lincoln, Logan, Love, Marshall, Mustang, Oklahoma, Okmulgee, Pontotoc, Pottawatomie, Stephens, Tillman, Woods, and Woodward, on February 18. At least 4 firefighters had been injured by the fires on February 17. While no human casualties have been reported since, hundreds of cattle have reportedly died after the blazes burned through farmlands. Texas County officials reported five structures destroyed in the Stevens / Side Road fire complex, while Beaver County noted the loss of numerous outbuildings in the Ranger Road Fire. Drone footage below shows multiple homes and buildings burning in Tyrone (Stevens Fire):

Extreme rainfall is worsening algal blooms along South Korea's coast -Extreme rainfall is reshaping coastal waters along South Korea's shoreline, flushing nutrients from land into the sea and fueling the growth of algal blooms. A new multi-year study, published in Frontiers in Marine Science, tracked water quality in and around a major river estuary and shows how intense downpours can shift where and when these blooms appear, with consequences for marine ecosystems and coastal communities.Coastal environments are highly sensitive to climate change driven by global warming, particularly through alterations in precipitation, temperature, sea-level rise, and the frequency of extreme weather events. Against this broader backdrop, this new research highlights the critical role of extreme rainfall events in driving nutrient pulses and reshaping estuarine biogeochemical processes.Researchers from the Korea Maritime & Ocean University, Busan, analyzed six years of seasonal measurements from the Nakdong River Estuary, the outlet for the longest waterway in South Korea, which empties into the sea near Busan. They compared rainfall records with changes in acidity, salinity, nutrients, and chlorophyll-a (a pigment used as a proxy for the amount of microscopic algae in the water). The findings reveal a clear pattern: when heavy rain falls, the chemistry of coastal waters changes dramatically, sometimes in opposite ways between the estuary itself and the nearby open ocean.Estuaries sit at the boundary between land and sea, and their conditions depend heavily on how much freshwater flows in from rivers. During periods of extreme rainfall, the study found that the Nakdong River discharged large volumes of freshwater into the estuary, sharply lowering salinity and carrying nutrients washed off the land. These nutrients include phosphorus, nitrogen, and silica (concentrations increasing up to 36, 70, and 740 times respectively during the wet season), which are key ingredients that algae need to grow. This process is known as eutrophication, a term describing the enrichment of water with nutrients that stimulate plant and algal growth. Algae form the base of marine food webs, but excessive growth can lead to harmful algal blooms that can deplete oxygen in the water, release toxins, and disrupt fisheries and marine life. The research shows that extreme rainfall acts as a key driver of eutrophication in coastal Korea, especially in offshore waters where flushed nutrients can accumulate and fuel blooms.Compared with dry conditions, nutrient levels increased several-fold during heavy rainfall seasons, strongly tracking precipitation. This surge is intensified by human activities, with agricultural runoff, wastewater, and urban pollution all adding nutrients to landscapes that rainfall can wash into rivers.

At least 9 tornadoes reported across Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi, five confirmed EF-1 - 3 YouTube videos -Multiple tornadoes touched down across parts of the Southern Plains and the Southeast overnight on February 14, 2026. These include at least five EF-1 tornadoes that have been confirmed in Mississippi and Texas, along with others reported in Louisiana. The twisters were the result of a storm system that brought significant rainfall, localized flash floods, and widespread wind damage to the region over the Valentine’s weekend. At least 9 tornadoes were reported in Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi on February 14, according to the Storm Prediction Center (SPC). Strong winds, along with twisters and rain, caused widespread damage across the affected areas and localized flash flooding. Three tornadoes were reported in Vernon, Evangeline, and St. Landry in Louisiana. Meanwhile, five tornadoes were reported in Mississippi’s Lincoln, Lawrence, and Covington counties. The National Weather Service (NWS) confirmed four EF-1 tornadoes in Mississippi late on February 14 and shortly after midnight on February 15 (LT). An EF-1 tornado touched down near Norfield at around 23:46 local time (LT) on February 14, with peak winds of 177 km/h (110 mph). It traveled 10.93 km (6.79 miles) before dissipating at 23:54 LT. Another EF-1 tornado was confirmed near Enterprise, touching down at 00:01 LT on February 15. It traveled 3.3 km (2.05 miles) with peak winds of 161 km/h (100 mph) and dissipated at 00:04 LT. YouTube video A third tornado touched down near Monticello at 00:18 LT and dissipated at 00:24 LT after traversing 6.5 km (4.04 miles). Peak winds reached 169 km/h (105 mph). The fourth EF-1 struck Lincoln County at 00:05 LT and travelled 11.14 km (6.92 miles), crossing Highway 84 near Fair River with peak winds of 160.9 km/h (100 mph). It dissipated at around 00:18 LT on February 15. In Texas, an EF-1 tornado touched down in northeast Shelby County at 18:03 LT on February 14. The tornado began north of James County along County Road 3156 and moved southeast for 1.7 km (1.1 miles), crossing Highway 7 and intersecting County Road 3153 before dissipating at approximately 18:05 LT. Peak winds reached 153 km/h (95 mph). Additional tornadoes were reported across parts of the Southern Plains and Southeast, but they have not yet been officially verified. The severe weather resulted from a storm system expected to continue affecting the region through February 16. Severe thunderstorms and excessive rainfall are forecast from east Texas into the lower Mississippi Valley, with marginal risk areas extending across parts of the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic.

Four dead and 29 injured in brownout-related pileup on I-25 near Pueblo, Colorado - 4 YouTube videos - At least four people were killed, and 29 were injured in a multi-vehicle pileup on Interstate 25, just south of Pueblo, Colorado, on February 17, 2026. Authorities said strong winds caused brownout conditions, reducing visibility to near zero along the route. The series of crashes on Interstate 25 south of Pueblo early Tuesday morning left at least four people dead and 29 others injured after high winds whipped dirt across the roadway, reducing visibility to near zero and contributing to a pileup involving more than 30 vehicles, officials said. The multi-vehicle collision occurred shortly after 10:00 local time on February 17, when high winds and blowing dirt produced sudden brownout conditions along the busy northbound stretch of I-25 about 40 miles (64 km) south of Colorado Springs, according to the Colorado State Patrol (CSP). CSP Major Brian Lyons said the wind-driven dust drastically reduced visibility, catching motorists off guard and triggering a catastrophic chain reaction involving semitrailers, passenger vehicles, and trucks pulling trailers. “Visibility was next to nothing,” Lyons said. All 29 injured were transported to hospitals, of whom at least seven people experienced serious injuries. Meanwhile, 10 people who were involved in the crash were unhurt and remained at the scene. School buses were brought in to take them to another location. Crashes affected both lanes of the I-25. Fatalities were reported only on the northbound lane, while only property damage occurred along the southbound lane. While the northbound lanes remained closed, the southbound lanes were reopened at around 14:30 local time (LT) on February 17. YouTube video“I-25 is currently closed northbound between mile markers 91 and 94 due to a multiple-vehicle crash. Crews are working the scene, and there is no estimated time of reopening. Traffic is using the frontage road to detour around the closure, and the southbound side is now open. Travelers should be aware of the possibility of blowing dust and high winds creating visibility issues in the area,” the Colorado State Patrol (CSP) said. One of the vehicles was a pickup hauling a trailer carrying 32 goats, four of which died, the patrol said. They had to bring in specialty vehicles to remove animals from the scene. A wind restriction is in place for I-25 from Pueblo to the New Mexico state line. During a restriction, high-profile vehicles are required to park or turn around to avoid rollovers. Winter Storm Warnings remain in effect for multiple mountain areas, while High Wind Watches are in effect east of I-25. Mountain snows will affect higher elevations, with two waves of storms continuing into February 18, with a possible weekend storm behind them for February 19.

Eight skiers confirmed dead, Castle Peak Avalanche is now the second deadliest in the modern U.S. - Eight skiers have been confirmed dead in the Castle Peak Avalanche, which occurred on Tuesday, February 17, 2026. This is now the deadliest avalanche on record for California and the second deadliest avalanche in the United States since modern record-keeping began in 1950.Eight skiers were confirmed dead after they went missing on Tuesday, when they were caught in an avalanche near Castle Peak in the Sierra Nevada.A total of 15 skiers were initially reported missing. Six were rescued earlier, and one remains missing.The sheriff’s office stated that it was initially believed that 16 people had gone on the trip, but that number was later revised to 15. One person withdrew from the trip at the last minute, according to the sheriff’s office. The group of 15 skiers traveled to remote huts at an altitude of 3 400 m (11 155 feet) in Tahoe National Forest, California. The group was on a three-day trek in Northern California’s Sierra Nevada. At 06:49 local time on the same day, the Sierra Avalanche Center issued an avalanche watch for the area, indicating that large avalanches were likely within the next 24–48 hours. The center upgraded the watch to a warning status as the group was returning to a trailhead two days later. Fatalities were confirmed on Wednesday, February 18.This is now the deadliest avalanche in the history of California and the second-deadliest in the United States since modern records and data collection began in 1950.The Mount Rainier Avalanche in Washington, which occurred on June 21, 1981, remains the deadliest avalanche in the United States, with 11 people killed.The deadliest avalanche in United States recorded history remains the Stevens Pass Avalanche, also known as the Wellington Avalanche, which killed 96 people on March 1, 1910.That avalanche led to changes in rail operations through the high Cascades. Afterward, the Great Northern Railroad, now known as Burlington Northern Santa Fe, built large concrete snowsheds over the tracks. A 12.6 km (7.8 miles) tunnel was later constructed through the mountains at a lower elevation. It opened in 1929 and remains in use.

Tropical Cyclone Gezani leaves at least 63 dead across Madagascar and Mozambique - YouTube video - Tropical Cyclone Gezani has left at least 63 people dead across Madagascar and Mozambique after striking eastern Madagascar on February 10, 2026, and later passing 15 km (9 miles) offshore from Mozambique’s Inhambane coast before weakening over the Mozambique Channel. Madagascar’s disaster management authority reports 59 fatalities, 15 missing persons, and 804 injured, with 423 986 people affected nationwide, while Mozambique officials confirmed four deaths and continued infrastructure disruption. Heavy rain and coastal hazards persisted into February 17 as the system looped west of southern Madagascar. Madagascar’s National Bureau for Risk and Disaster Management (BNGRC) reported on February 16 that 16 428 people had been displaced and tens of thousands of homes damaged across the country. Authorities recorded 24 699 houses destroyed, 48 041 damaged, and 25 266 flooded as assessments expanded beyond the initial impact zone. Earlier figures compiled through the European Commission’s Emergency Response Coordination Centre cited 52 fatalities; updated BNGRC data later the same day raised the confirmed toll to 59 as field verification continued.Gezani made landfall near Toamasina, eastern Madagascar, on February 10, as an intense tropical cyclone with maximum sustained winds estimated near 175 km/h (109 mph). Structural damage was widespread in Toamasina and surrounding districts, where housing, public facilities, and transport infrastructure sustained significant losses.According to the National Bureau of Risk and Disaster Management (BNGRC), around 80% of the city’s infrastructure had been damaged or destroyed. The cyclone’s aftermath displaced another 6 870 people, while a total of 250 406 were classified as disaster victims, the BNGRC said.. The cyclone crossed the island before re-emerging over the warm waters of the Mozambique Channel, where environmental conditions supported renewed strengthening. Between February 13–14, the system intensified again to around 185 km/h (115 mph) while tracking roughly 60 km (37 miles) west of Inhambane, Mozambique. According to ECHO and Mozambican authorities, the centre passed approximately 15 km (9 miles) offshore on February 14 without making a full inland landfall. Although the core circulation remained over water, strong winds and high seas affected coastal districts. Mozambique’s National Institute for Disaster Risk Management and Reduction reports four fatalities, five injuries, and 2 734 people affected, with 306 displaced in six accommodation centres. A total of 1 468 houses were damaged or destroyed, primarily in Inhambane Province. Approximately 132 000 electricity customers initially lost power in the province, and about 17 000 remained without supply as of February 16. Local authorities reported wind gusts in Inhambane city reaching around 215 km/h (135 mph), resulting in roof damage, fallen trees, and interruptions to water services. The cyclone struck Mozambique at a time of elevated hydrological stress. Earlier in February, national authorities reported more than 700 000 people affected by flooding following consecutive weeks of heavy rainfall, increasing vulnerability to renewed runoff and river flooding even without a direct landfall. Humanitarian operations have expanded in both countries. In Madagascar, the government requested assistance through the European Union Civil Protection Mechanism on February 12. Water purification and telecommunications modules were deployed by France and Luxembourg, while Belgium, Germany, and France offered shelter and WASH support. The Copernicus Emergency Management Service activated rapid mapping (EMSR 867) on February 11 to support damage assessment, and two ECHO field experts are being deployed for coordination. In Mozambique, anticipatory measures were activated before the cyclone’s closest approach, including the pre-positioning of 254 metric tons of food. A government declaration triggered the release of USD 4.5 million from the Central Emergency Response Fund for United Nations agencies. UNICEF, the Mozambican Red Cross, and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies initiated anticipatory action protocols ahead of impact. Additional funding of EUR 288 000 was mobilised through DG ECHO crisis modifiers, and EUR 718 000 was activated through Start Ready for multi-sector interventions related to cyclones Fytia and Gezani. As of 06:00 UTC on February 16, the system’s center was located over the sea approximately 270 km (170 miles) west of the Atsimo-Andrefana region of Madagascar as a Category 1 tropical cyclone. Forecasts indicated gradual weakening, though additional rainfall and coastal surge were expected over southern Madagascar, with heavy rainfall also forecast over parts of Mozambique.

La Niña continues as NOAA forecasts transition to ENSO-neutral in February-April 2026 - La Niña persisted across the equatorial Pacific in January 2026, with below-average sea surface temperatures and atmospheric patterns remaining consistent with the phase, according to the Climate Prediction Center Diagnostic Discussion issued on February 12, 2026. A transition to ENSO-neutral is expected during February–April 2026 with a 60% probability, while ENSO-neutral conditions are likely to continue through the Northern Hemisphere summer. The latest weekly Niño-3.4 index was −0.9°C (30.4°F). The Niño-4 index measured −0.4°C (31.3°F), while the Niño-1+2 index registered 0°C (32°F). These values reflect continued cooling in the central Pacific, consistent with La Niña thresholds. Subsurface ocean conditions shifted during January. The equatorial subsurface temperature index, averaged from 180° to 100°W, increased significantly as above-average temperatures strengthened and expanded beneath the surface across much of the Pacific basin. CPC reported that this subsurface warming signals weakening La Niña conditions. Atmospheric indicators remained broadly consistent with La Niña, though anomalies weakened due to subseasonal variability. Low-level westerly wind anomalies were present over the western equatorial Pacific, and upper-level westerly wind anomalies persisted across the east-central equatorial Pacific. Model guidance favors a transition to ENSO-neutral during February–April 2026. The North American Multi-Model Ensemble (NMME), including the NCEP Climate Forecast System version 2 (CFSv2), supports this outlook. CPC assigns a 60% probability of ENSO-neutral development during this period. ENSO-neutral conditions are likely to persist through the Northern Hemisphere summer, with a 56% probability during June–August 2026. Forecasters indicate a 50–60% chance of El Niño developing in late summer or later, though CPC notes that forecasts issued at this time of year typically have lower accuracy.

Greenland's west coast posts warmest January on record - Greenland's capital Nuuk registered its warmest ever January—beating a record that stood for 109 years—as temperatures soared across the Arctic island's west coast, the Danish Meteorological Institute said Monday. While Europe and North America experienced a cold snap in January, Nuuk registered an average monthly temperature of 0.1C (32 Fahrenheit), a whopping 7.8C above the average for the month of January over the last three decades. That is 1.4 degrees above the previous record for Nuuk from 1917. On the warmest day in Nuuk in January, the mercury rose to a balmy 11.3C. From the southern tip of Greenland up the west coast—a distance of over 2,000 kilometers (1,243 miles)—the temperature in January set monthly records, DMI said. In Ilulissat in Disko Bay, the January average was -1.6C, 1.3 degrees warmer than the previous record from 1929 and 11 degrees warmer than normal for January, DMI said. Warmer air occasionally sweeps over Greenland, bringing milder temperatures for a day or two, but such an extended heat record across such a large area is "a clear indication that something is changing," DMI climate researcher Martin Olesen said. "We know and can clearly see that global warming is well underway, which, as expected, leads to more records at the warm end of the temperature scale and gradually fewer records at the low end," he said. The Arctic region is on the frontline of global warming, heating up four times faster than the rest of the planet since 1979, according to a 2022 study in the scientific journal Nature.

Amazon rainforest flipped to carbon source during 2023 extreme drought, study shows -The Amazon rainforest is of crucial importance to the Earth's ecosystem, given its capacity to store substantial amounts of carbon in its vegetation. In 2023, the region experienced unusually high temperatures, reaching 1.5°C above the 1991–2020 average, accompanied by unusual levels of atmospheric dryness from September to November. These conditions were caused by warmer water temperatures in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans that resulted in diminished moisture transport from the Atlantic to South America, and led to drought in the second half of 2023. An international research team, led by Santiago Botia at the Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry, studied how these extreme conditions affected the Amazon rainforest's ability to absorb and store carbon.To analyze the rainforest's carbon cycle, the researchers combined several complementary data streams: various CO₂ measurement techniques at the local Amazon Tall Tower Observatory (ATTO), remotely-sensed data on vegetation status and activity from satellites, and computer simulations with vegetation models."As a result, we calculated that the Amazon became a source of carbon emissions in 2023; it released between 10 and 170 million tons of carbon, rather than absorbing it," says group leader Dr. Botia and first author of the study published in the journal AGU Advances.Hot and dry conditions are often associated with elevated levels of fire activity, which in turn releases carbon into the atmosphere. However, based on the analysis of fire inventories derived from remote sensing, the occurrence of fires was within normal levels measured over the last two decades (2003–2023). "We therefore attribute the anomalous carbon release in 2023 mostly to a weakened vegetation uptake, rather than increased losses from fires," says Professor Susan Trumbore, head of the ATTO project in Germany.It is important to note that the vegetation absorbed more carbon than usual from January to April, which helped to reduce the total carbon loss by the end of the year. However, the researchers reported a shift from sink to source in May and a peak in October due to high temperatures and low humidity, when the rainforest began releasing more carbon. The team's findings suggest that the Amazon's reduced carbon absorption accounted for 30% of the net carbon source across all tropical lands in 2023.

Episode 42 shows high-intensity magma discharge and dual-vent activity at Kīlauea volcano - Kīlauea volcano’s Halemaʻumaʻu crater produced one of its most intense eruptive episodes in months on February 15, 2026, when dual vents discharged lava at rates up to 780 m³/s (1 000 yd³/s) and fountains rose 400 m (1 300 feet) high before the activity paused at 23:38 HST. The episode released an estimated 11.4 million m³ (15 million yd³) of lava and covered about half of the crater floor. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) reported that Episode 42 of the ongoing Halemaʻumaʻu eruption at Kīlauea volcano ended at 23:38 HST on February 15. The eruption lasted 9 hours and 48 minutes, producing sustained lava fountains from both north and south vents within the summit crater before activity paused. The episode began at 13:50 HST (23:50 UTC) on February 15 with a sharp increase in tremor and a deflationary tilt recorded by the Uēkahuna tiltmeter (UWD). Ad ends in 13 Fountain heights peaked between 14:00 and 15:00 HST, with the south vent reaching approximately 400 m (1 300 feet) and the north vent about 300 m (1 000 feet). Maximum instantaneous effusion rates approached 780 m³ s⁻¹ (1 000 yd³ s⁻¹) near 15:00 HST, while the average rate for the episode was about 330 m³ s⁻¹ (430 yd³ s⁻¹). During the period of highest activity, a volcanic ash plume rose to an altitude of 10 600 m (35 000 feet) above sea level, according to the National Weather Service. Cloudy and rainy conditions during the afternoon limited direct observations, but the USGS estimated that the south vent fountains fluctuated between 330 and 400 m (1 100–1 300 feet) for much of the day. Episode 42 produced an estimated 11.4 million m³ (15 million yd³) of lava, covering about 50 percent of the Halemaʻumaʻu crater floor. Tilt measurements indicated 33.7 microradians of deflationary change during the episode, consistent with magma withdrawal beneath the summit. Light tephra fall, consisting mainly of fine ash and Pele’s hair, was reported in Pāhala, Punaluʻu, and Nāʻālehu to the southwest of the crater. USGS noted in their latest bulletin that tephra dispersal was less extensive than during Episode 41 due to strong northeast trade winds, which confined ash fallout near the summit.

Trump & Zeldin Cut Obama Climate Rule, Save Americans $3,800 Each - Marcellus Drilling News - President Donald Trump and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced the “largest deregulatory action in American history” yesterday by officially revoking the Obama EPA’s 2009 “endangerment finding.” This move eliminates the legal mandate for the federal government to regulate greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide. The administration claims the rollback will save taxpayers over $1.3 trillion and reduce vehicle prices by approximately $2,400 by stripping away emission standards for cars and trucks. More importantly, it takes away the left’s ability to block coal- and natural gas-fired power plants. While Trump hailed the decision as a victory for consumer choice and the economy, anti-fossil fuel fanatics vowed to challenge the repeal in court.

Anti-Fossil Fuel Cabal Sues EPA for Dumping Endangerment Finding -- Marcellus Drilling News - Yeah, well, you knew this was coming. Last week, President Trump and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced the “largest deregulatory action in American history” by officially revoking the Obama EPA’s 2009 “endangerment finding” (see Trump & Zeldin Cut Obama Climate Rule, Save Americans $3,800 Each). Trump’s move eliminates the legal mandate for the federal government to regulate greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide. Right on cue, a colluding cabal of THE WORST of the worst tax-exempt, anti-American “environmental” (and other) groups in existence has filed a lawsuit to try and block the EPA from changing its own regulations. It’s OK to create regulations, but once created (by the left), they can never be modified or eliminated.

IEA Chief Warns Fracturing Global Order Is Splintering Energy Policy - A fracturing in the “global order” is threatening the harmony in energy policies, the head of the International Energy Agency has warned. “We see a fracturing in the global political order in general, and there are, of course, reflections of that on the energy scene. Different countries are choosing different paths in terms of energy and climate change,” Birol told the Financial Times in an interview. The warning follows the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s removal of the so-called endangerment finding, which served as the basis for climate change-focused policies passed in significant numbers during the Biden administration. The finding stipulated that carbon dioxide, methane, and four other gases were harmful to people’s health and well-being. This was the latest move by the Trump administration to dismantle Biden’s climate regulations and legislation as itprioritizes energy security—and energy dominance—over emission reduction. Yet even the European Union, which consistently states emission reduction is still priority number-one, has been walking back some of its new regulations and commitments, under pressure from the business world, which has been bearing the cost of those commitments, alongside consumers. The 2035 ban on internal combustion engine cars, for instance, has been renegotiated and is no longer a done deal, and now the authorities in Brussels are mulling over ways to reduce energy costs for industrial consumers in a bid to prevent the complete deindustrialization of the bloc. A revision of emission permit trading is also on the agenda, with the chemicals industry calling for an urgent revamp of the system and a cancellation of the planned phaseout of free carbon permits.

US threatens to quit International Energy Agency if it doesn’t drop green transition - U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright on Tuesday threatened to pull America out of the International Energy Agency, whose work on deploying renewables conflicts with the pro-fossil-fuel policy of the Trump administration.“If a large part of data reporting agencies devote themselves to these kinds of leftist fantasies … that can only distort their mission,” Wright told a early-evening conference at the French Institute of International Relations in Paris.Accusing the IEA of behaving like a “climate advocacy organization,” Wright urged it to focus on “energy security.”Founded in 1974 in the wake of the first oil crisis of that decade, the Paris-based IEA produces forward-looking scenarios documenting the transition to renewable fuels that set the standard for the energy world. Wright will be in Paris on Wednesday and Thursday to attend a ministerial meeting of the agency.

Europe defies Trump team over IEA climate fight - European leaders expressed growing defiance Wednesday toward the Trump administration’s efforts to stymie messaging about climate change by the world’s premier energy organization. It came a day after Energy Secretary Chris Wright threatened to quit the International Energy Agency for including “climate stuff” in its data analyses for renewables, fossil fuels and global carbon emissions. The international dispute over the benefits of shifting away from fossil fuels and the dangers of climate change — which President Donald Trump described last week as a “giant scam” — unfolded as ministers from around the world met at the IEA’s headquarters in Paris to discuss global energy. The scene punctuated the United States’ desire to expand fossil fuels at a time when many European nations have sought to balance their energy needs by investing in wind and solar power, in addition to natural gas — where its supplies increasingly come from the United States. “Investors who think in the long term all make the same choice: nuclear, renewables, storage, smart grids. This is the choice of the 21st century, because fundamentally, no one wants to live on a planet at plus 4 degrees Celsius,” French President Emmanuel Macron said Wednesday in a video address at the start of the IEA meeting. Ed Miliband, the United Kingdom’s energy secretary, said clean energy is “the most secure and affordable” way to meet rising energy demand, cut countries’ dependence on imported fuels and meet “critical climate targets.” Those comments came in the wake of Wright calling on the IEA to abandon what he described as “left-wing, big government fantasies.” The IEA’s regular analyses on oil, gas, renewables and other energy technologies can move markets and guide investment decisions. But the Trump administration has criticized the agency’s past outlooks for projecting that fossil fuel demand would peak around 2030.

Trump slams Newsom over ‘inappropriate’ California-UK energy agreement -- President Trump on Monday slammed California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) for signing a memorandum of understanding with the United Kingdom to address climate change.“The U.K.’s got enough trouble without getting involved with Gavin Newscum,” Trump told Politico, referring to the California governor. “Gavin is a loser. Everything he’s touched turns to garbage. His state has gone to hell, and his environmental work is a disaster,” he added. Trump worked to repeal clean energy measures during his first year back in office and has often clashed with Newsom amid his attempts to declare himself as a leader on a global stage. The California governor is a likely contender for the 2028 presidential election and has made appearances at major international events including the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, and the 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30) in Brazil. His Monday deal with the United Kingdom garnered a $1 billion investment from the British-based Octopus Energy company. The funds will be used to back two Californian carbon removal companies in grassland restoration and reforestation projects to transform degraded land into CO2-absorbing assets, per a press release. Newsom’s office said the president’s comments regarding the foreign agreement are based upon his loyalty to nonrenewable energy sourcing. “Donald Trump is on his knees for coal and Big Oil, selling out America’s future to China. Governor Newsom will continue to lead in his absence,” a spokesperson told The Hill.

Blue states tee up fight over water permitting rule - Democratic states are preparing to challenge a Trump administration plan that would limit their oversight of water pollution from major energy projects.The administration’s proposal to prevent states from blocking or imposing environmental conditions on pipelines, dams and other infrastructure violates the Clean Water Act and runs afoul of Supreme Court precedent, attorneys general from 16 blue states and Washington said Tuesday.The states called on EPA to abandon its draft rule curtailing states’ role in energy permitting and signaled they will sue if it is finalized. Under the first Trump administration, the agency issued a similar policy, prompting a lawsuit from a similar group of states. “EPA’s last attempt to accomplish this improper goal in 2020 was a failure,” the states said in a comment letter to EPA, signed by Washington state Attorney General Nicholas Brown, New York Attorney General Letitia James and others. “EPA now backtracks and repeats its most significant mistakes.”

Water advisory board revisits regionalization — A county commissioner noted that a study for efforts to regionalize the Mahoning Valley’s water systems would require the backing of city governments, as local officials reintroduced the topic Monday afternoon. The 12-person Water Advisory Panel had a special hour-long meeting at the Trumbull County Sanitary Engineer’s Office, with state Rep. David Thomas, R-Jefferson, and Trumbull County Commissioner Tony Bernard sitting in and providing feedback. A staffer from Rep. Nick Santucci’s office also joined the meeting via Zoom. The panel is only able to bring recommendations before the county commissioners for their approval, but it couldn’t vote to bring any before them at the meeting because it was short one representative to have a quorum. Matt Blair, an attorney and chairman of the Youngstown / Warren Regional Chamber, looked at Ohio Revised Code 6115, the statute that formed the Mahoning Valley Sanitary District — a regional water district that was formed between the cities of Niles and Youngstown. “There are no other entities under 6115 in the state of Ohio — this is the only one. Because McDonald had McDonald Steel at the time, they did not become a member city,” Blair said. “They did become the only contract recipient of MVSD water directly, so McDonald gets pretty much the same rate that Niles and Youngstown gets.” Blair said regionalization also was discussed when Tom Humphries headed the chamber. He said the MVSD sells water to Youngstown, McDonald and Niles at “far discounted rates” compared to what the townships pay. The townships then sell the water to other entities. “With Youngstown, it’s not quite as bad because Youngstown pretty much has all the transmission lines all through Mahoning County,” Blair said. “They sell what we call ‘surplus water’ directly to Canfield and these other communities — so there’s only one markup.” With Trumbull County, however, Blair said Niles sells water to Girard, who sells it to Liberty, with a “substantial markup,” something he said has been going on for years. “It impedes economic development; if you’re going to do a project in Liberty, it’s very difficult because the cost of the water is like the highest in the whole state of Ohio,” Blair said. “Not because the water costs that much — it’s the same exact water that went to Niles at the discount rates.” Blair said he’s looked into Ohio Revised Code 6119, the statute implemented in Toledo and Columbus that deals with the regionalization of water, which he thinks the water board would be seeking. Blair said it’s a five- to six-year process from the time it begins to have the organization in place. “We talk about it in the chamber all the time — it really does impact this Valley. It does not make us competitive,” Blair said. “We can’t compete with areas who have addressed this issue and have regionalized and done what they needed to do to correct it.”

The energy boom is coming for Great Lakes water --A six-decade history in the Great Lakes region of ecosystem and water protection is being put to the test as a dynamic era of energy investment, rising electricity demand, aging assets, and political intervention dawns across the basin.The energy story emerging today is one of tumultuous change in energy supply and demand coupled with conflicting state and federal objectives that are colliding with a buzzy economic narrative centered around AI and data centers. Electricity consumption in the basin’s eight states and two provinces is climbing for the first time in at least a decade. Forecasts show electricity demand in the region growing 2 to 3 percent annually over the next 10 years. The Trump administration, meanwhile, is injecting carbon-promoting policies into energy markets, requiring coal power plants in Michigan and Indiana to continue operating beyond their announced closure dates while also slowing the solar and wind projects, two energy sources that emit no climate-altering carbon and use little to no water. Along with coal, another water-intensive energy source is being revived or reimagined to satisfy projected electricity demands. With nearly $3 billion in federal and state financing, the 55-year-old Palisades Nuclear Generating Station is preparing to restart after a four-year shutdown. When it does, the old reactor will draw 98,000 gallons a minute, 141 million gallons a day from Lake Michigan. In addition to these legacy energy sources, new gas-fired power plants, battery storage, transmission lines, and a planned new nuclear plant north of Benton Harbor, Michigan, are being added to keep pace with demand. Agriculture, the region’s biggest water consumer and water polluter, is playing a larger role in energy production – by converting corn into biofuel and producing methane from manure in industrial-scale biodigesters. Liquid fuels also remain in the spotlight due to the lingering question of Line 5, an oil pipeline that crosses the Straits of Mackinac. The future of the 73-year-old pipeline is the subject of several lawsuits, with key legal and permitting decisions expected in 2026. This is the first article in our “Shockwave” project, a series of reports that will investigate the rapid evolution of the energy landscape in the Great Lakes region and the consequences the new era will have for one of the world’s largest reserves of fresh water. Produced by the five partners of the Great Lakes News Collaborative — Bridge Michigan, Circle of Blue, Great Lakes Now, Michigan Public, and The Narwhal — Shockwave will document the depth and breadth of the region’s energy transformation and its influence on water use and pollution.“As electricity demand is soaring, in part due to data centers, we’re seeing changes in water use, we’re seeing changes in electricity consumption,” said Mike Shriberg, director of the University of Michigan Water Center. “And how our region responds to that over the long term will have a massive impact for the Great Lakes and for our energy future.”Altogether, these changes amount to an inflection point in the region’s energy policy, one with as many questions as answers. Will data center demand and the White House’s lifeline to fossil fuel units jeopardize state clean energy targets? Will the numerous binational, regional, and state-level consultative bodies enable collaboration that reduces harm to waterways? Can local officials, researchers, and lawmakers assemble the data to inform their responses? Will a decade-long decline in the energy sector’s water use continue or stall? Will the projected data center demand for electricity materialize or will the energy buildout result in stranded assets?What is certain is that the energy playing field today is set up for a different game than just a few years ago. These are still early days, but the region, its $9.3 trillion economy, its border-crossing energy infrastructure, and its world-class environmental riches stand at the threshold of a profound shift in some of its basic economic inputs and assumptions.

PJM Board Approves $11.8BN Transmission Expansion Plan - The PJM Interconnection’s board last week approved $11.8 billion in baseline transmission projects, with Dominion Energy’s Virginia utility landing roughly $4.8 billion in those projects. The projects are part of PJM’s 2025 Regional Transmission Expansion Plan Window 1, which is designed to bolster grid reliability that is strained by accelerated load growth in multiple areas across its Mid-Atlantic and Midwest footprint. The projects are also needed to handle new generation in southern Virginia, future generation in western PJM, delays to New Jersey offshore wind projects and increased regional flows toward the eastern parts of PJM’s footprint, the grid operator said Friday. PJM will monitor load and generation in its footprint to make sure needed transmission development is progressing in a timely manner, the grid operator said in its board-approved plan. “PJM also clarified that siting, routing and regulatory processes, as well as construction, take a long time, and PJM needs the plan to be ready and advanced for the forecasted conditions proactively rather than bringing needed development late, which introduces impediments to development and reliability risks to stakeholders,” the grid operator said. Meanwhile, transmission costs are making up a growing share of the price of wholesale electricity in PJM. In 2024, transmission contributed $17.71/MWh to the cost of wholesale power in PJM, up 23%, or 5.8% a year, from $14.40/MWh in 2022, according to reports from Monitoring Analytics, PJM’s market monitor. Transmission costs totaled $13.9 billion, or 32% of total wholesale costs of $43.6 billion, in 2024, the last full year of Monitoring Analytics’ reporting. Energy costs made up nearly 59% of the cost of wholesale power that year and capacity accounted for 6.6% of the total. As part of PJM’s transmission expansion plan, Dominion Energy Virginia intends to build a $2.3-billion, 525-kV underground “backbone” transmission line in Virginia. The project, set to be online by June 2032, also calls for building two high-voltage direct current converter stations at each end of the 185-mile line for about $1.5 billion. The project is designed to deliver 3,000 MW into Loudoun County in northern Virginia, the area with the most data center capacity in the world.

House proposal would expand landowner damage claims from pipeline construction • Iowa Capital Dispatch -A House subcommittee advanced a bill Thursday that would allow landowners to renegotiate damage claims and file complaints with the Iowa Utilities Commission, or court, for damages and yield losses due to pipeline construction. Rep. David Young, R-Van Meter, sponsored the bill and said it was really about “the premise of you want to leave what you found … in the same condition if not better.” Young specified that House Study Bill 691 was not related to any particular pipeline, but would provide “predictability” and “consistency” in the standards protecting landowners. The bill was supported by agricultural commodity groups including Iowa Corn Growers Association, Iowa Cattlemen’s Association, Iowa Soybean Association and the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation. Summit Carbon Solutions, a company seeking to build a carbon sequestration pipeline through Iowa, along with the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association, also registered in support of the bill.Doug Struyk said some members of the Iowa Soybean Association, which he represented at the subcommittee meeting, are still dealing with yield losses from pipelines built close to a decade ago. “We believe provisions in the bill provide a floor for landowners so that they have some baseline protections to negotiate from,” Struyk said. The bill allows landowners to renegotiate damage claims for compensation with pipeline companies even if damages were apparent at the time of settlement, or it has been more than five years since a settlement was reached. HSB 691 also allows landowners, rather than just county supervisors, to file complaints directly with the Iowa Utilities Commission. Landowners can also file claims in small claims or district courts for “violations of damage payment provisions” with the pipeline company.Onnalee Gettler, a lobbyist for MidAmerican Energy Company, opposed the bill but offered an amendment to lawmakers that would “avoid unintended” legal outcomes of the bill text.Gettler said the ability for landowners to renegotiate claims past five years could lead to them reopening damage claims “in perpetuity,” and MidAmerican would like to see that language changed.

TC Energy Sets Growth Sights on U.S. Data Center Boom -Pipeline and power company TC Energy Corp. is looking to capitalize on the insatiable electricity demand from U.S. data centers, but it’s focused on tweaking its existing system to meet those needs instead of building from scratch. “Our strategy has been very intentional to capture this growth without increasing our risk exposure,” CEO François Poirier told analysts on a recent conference call. “Our primary focus is on brownfield in-corridor expansions that leverage our existing footprint to primarily serve investment-grade utility customers, particularly in regions where we hold long-standing incumbent positions.” TC’s infrastructure is located near 60 per cent of projected U.S. data center growth, Poirier said. TC has pitched an expansion to its Columbia Gas Transmission system to serve an area of Ohio that’s seeing significant development of data centers — the enormous facilities that house the computing firepower for artificial intelligence and other applications. Such operations require massive amounts of energy to run the machinery and keep them cool. The Calgary-based company offered customers a total of 500,000 MMBtu per day of capacity during an open season that wrapped up last month. It garnered bids representing triple that amount. TC is also looking to expand its Crossroads Pipeline system by up to 1.5 million MMBtu a day, serving markets in northern Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, and South Dakota, where significant anticipated data center growth is also expected. ANR Pipeline Company, founded in 1945 as the Michigan-Wisconsin Pipe Line Company and now part of TC Energy, operates one of the largest interstate natural gas systems in the U.S., moving gas from Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana to the Midwest and Great Lakes region and connecting to major storage facilities in Michigan. Image: TC Energy For potential power generation investments, TC is more interested in plants that would serve the overall grid instead of linking up exclusively with a data center customer. “We really are focusing in front of the meter with our utility customers,” Poirier said. “To the extent a data center wants to get service directly for gas and is willing to provide a long-term contract that is consistent with what we get from the utility customers, we will, of course, contemplate those. We’re not looking at any power project development and ownership behind the meter at this time.”

TC Energy's Data Centre Play: Old Pipelines, New Profits -The artificial intelligence revolution has created an insatiable appetite for electricity at U.S. data centres—and one Canadian energy giant sees an opportunity. But rather than building new power plants or pipelines from scratch, TC Energy Corp. (TRP) is betting on a different approach: upgrading what it already owns. The Calgary-based pipeline company plans to leverage its vast natural gas network to help fuel America’s rapidly expanding data centres. Speaking on a recent investor call, CEO François Poirier laid out the company’s disciplined growth strategy. “Our strategy is very clear: capture this growth without increasing our risk exposure,” Poirier said. He noted that 60 per cent of projected U.S. data centre growth sits near TC Energy’s existing infrastructure, making “brownfield in-corridor expansions”—essentially building out from current assets—the primary focus, with an emphasis on serving investment-grade utility customers. Concrete projects are already taking shape. TC Energy has proposed expanding its Columbia Gas Transmission system to serve a data centre hotbed in Ohio. During a recently concluded open season, the company offered 500,000 mmbtu per day of capacity—and received bids for three times that amount, underscoring the market’s urgency. Further expansion is planned for the Crossroads Pipeline system, targeting northern Indiana, Illinois, Iowa and South Dakota, regions poised for significant data centre development. TC Energy aims to add up to 1.5 million mmbtu of daily capacity there. When it comes to power generation investments, the company prefers plants that serve the broader electrical grid rather than “behind-the-meter” facilities tied exclusively to a single data centre customer. Poirier indicated TC Energy would consider direct gas service contracts with data centres if they match the terms and duration of utility agreements, but said the company isn’t pursuing behind-the-meter power project development or ownership at this time. Competitors circle the same prize TC Energy isn’t alone in chasing the data centre opportunity. Fellow Canadian pipeline giant Enbridge Inc. is also positioning itself aggressively. CEO Greg Ebel revealed on his company’s quarterly call that Enbridge is advancing more than 50 potential data centre projects, which could require up to 10 million mmbtu of natural gas daily. Approvals are expected to begin rolling out in 2026 and continue through 2027. Enbridge has also been directing parts of its renewable energy portfolio toward the U.S. data centre market, striking offtake agreements with tech heavyweights including Meta Platforms Inc. The financial case for TC Energy’s approach is becoming clearer. The company forecasts $6 billion in annual net capital expenditures through 2030 and projects North American natural gas demand will grow by 45 million mmbtu per day by 2035. Fourth-quarter results released Friday showed revenue climbing to $4.17 billion, up from $3.58 billion a year earlier. Net income came in at $959 million—a dip from $1.07 billion in the same period last year, but still ahead of analyst expectations.

Missouri approves new Ameren gas plant and battery site in Jefferson County - Missouri regulators approved a plan to build a new natural gas plant and battery storage facility in Jefferson County on the site of the retired Rush Island coal plant. On Wednesday, the Missouri Public Service Commission formally approved an agreement allowing for construction of a simple cycle combustion turbine generator (CTG) and battery energy storage system (BESS), together to form the Big Hollow Energy Center. The Big Hollow property site, is currently owned by Ameren and was formerly the site of the Rush Island Energy Center, a coal plant that shut down in late 2024 after multiple violations of federal clean air regulations. Current plans call for a 400-megawatt lithium-ion battery storage and installation facility, along with an 800-megawatt, multi-unit simple cycle natural gas electric generation facility, all connected to Ameren’s electric transmission system, according to Ameren and the Missouri PSC.

Heavy industry competes with AI for grid access - Efforts to bring manufacturing back to the United States and to also win the AI race have left some of the country’s biggest companies competing for the same resource: cheap electricity. The recent sale of an idled aluminum smelter in Kentucky to a data center developer shows how tricky that competition can be in middle America — particularly in coal country. Century Aluminum closed the Hawesville smelter along the Ohio River in 2022. It had been operating since 1969. The company cited the rising price of natural gas in the aftermath of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Century never restarted the Kentucky plant, even as the domestic aluminum supply dwindled. Instead, it secured a grant of up to $500 million from the Biden administration to build a new aluminum smelter that would be more efficient. In 2024, Century CEO Jesse Gary said he was eyeing northern Kentucky for the new plant, and it was welcome news to the state economy. In a shocking turnabout for Kentucky, Century last month announced it would build its new plant in Oklahoma instead, in partnership with a company based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The company then announced the sale of the Hawesville smelter to TeraWulf, a data center developer looking for a site with a power contract and electricity infrastructure. Deep-pocketed tech companies backed by investor enthusiasm for AI development have shown they’re willing to pay the cost of pricey power contracts. Some are looking to build their own power plants to fuel their data centers. On the other hand, aluminum companies operate on thin margins. They need predictable and low electricity costs to thrive. Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear and other Kentucky officials had hoped that Century’s new smelter would replace lost jobs and be part of a broader manufacturing revival. Instead, the data center is expected to produce just a fraction of the jobs and eat up more demand on the electric grid. “The news from Century Aluminum is disappointing,” said Beshear spokesperson Scottie Ellis. “The governor helped the company secure a significant grant based on an application saying the project would come to Kentucky.” Making aluminum — a metal crucial for everything from cars to solar panels and power lines — requires a huge amount of near-constant electricity. That makes smelters particularly sensitive to energy price shocks. According to a 2025 report by Grid Strategies, the industrial and manufacturing sector represent 30 gigawatts of the grid’s projected growth through 2030, about 20 percent. Data centers, however, are projected to add three times that demand, about 90 GW. “It’s starting to look like the only industries that are able to access the large power contracts are the hyperscalers to build data centers,” said Annie Sartor, aluminum campaign director for Industrious Labs, an advocacy group focused on decarbonizing heavy industry. “There seems to be bipartisan interest in reshoring and revitalizing the aluminum industry,” Sartor said. “But unless action is taken to support electricity for heavy industry, it’s not going to be able to compete.”

FirstEnergy Announces 1,200-MW Gas-Fired Plant for Mon County, WV - Marcellus Drilling News - Another new gas-fired power plant is on the way in West Virginia! FirstEnergy subsidiaries Mon Power and Potomac Edison have selected a 35-acre site in Maidsville (Monongalia County), West Virginia, for a new 1,200-megawatt natural gas power plant. Located adjacent to the existing Fort Martin Power Station, the facility is designed to provide reliable, affordable energy for approximately 500,000 homes. Pending approval from the WV Public Service Commission, construction could begin in 2027 with operations starting in 2031.

FirstEnergy eyes DOE loan to build $2.6B gas plant - FirstEnergy is anticipating a Department of Energy loan to help build a $2.6 billion gas plant in West Virginia, as part of the utility’s plans to meet growing electricity demand from data centers. On a conference call Wednesday, CEO Brian Tierney said the company expected approval of a loan this year to support the 1,200-megawatt project, which could provide power for more than a quarter of the state’s population if built. The plan “would save customers more than $200 million over the 30-year life of the loan versus traditional financing,” Tierney told investors. DOE’s loan office, now known as the Office of Energy Dominance Financing, has roughly $289 billion in loan authority. Energy Secretary Chris Wright has been advocating for gas, coal and nuclear projects, as well as emerging technologies like fusion and geothermal.

Mon Power, Potomac Edison seek PSC OK for gas-fired plant at Fort Martin - The Dominion Post – FirstEnergy sisters Mon Power and Potomac Edison want to build a new gas-fired power plant at their Fort Martin site outside Morgantown. The companies have filed with the Public Service Commission for prior consent and approval and for a certificate of need and necessity for a 1,200 megawatt combined cycle gas turbine plant along with 70 MW of solar capacity at three other sites. Pending PSC approval, the companies said construction on the gas-fired plant would begin as early as 2027 and it would go into operation by Dec. 31, 2031. The companies first mentioned the proposed plant in their 10-year Integrated Resource Plan filed with the PSC last October, then made their official announcement of the plan during an event held on Nov. 6 at Harrison Power Station. They project the total cost for the gas-fired plant to be $2.476 billion, beginning this year and running through 2033. Costs would be recovered through a surcharge applied to customer bills, which would increase until the plant goes into operation and begins generating power and revenue. “For a typical residential customer, this investment is expected to increase bills by an average of about 2.3% over the next five years while the plant is being built,” they told the PSC. “Once it begins operating, the impact of the plant on customer bills is expected to level off — and could even result in a decrease — compared to today, as the long-term costs are spread out over many decades. As large customers like data centers come online, they will pay their fair share of the plant costs, reducing residential impacts.” The companies explained the need for the plant to the PSC. Their 2024 capacity requirement was 3,507 MW while their available capacity resources were only 3,103 MW, leaving a shortfall. And they are projecting a capacity shortfall in 2029. “Thereafter, the deficit increases fairly rapidly due to customer growth, especially data center growth in the service territory. This deficit is projected to increase each year, reaching a deficit of approximately 1,083 MW by 2045.” The companies said in November that they were looking at two possible paths to build the plant: either partnering with another company to build the plant and transfer it to FirstEnergy; or to build it themselves. In their new filing, they told the PSC that the first option didn’t pan out. They found it preferable to build it themselves on their own land, and chose the Fort Martin site, which already has a coal-fired plant and a solar facility. The three proposed solar sites are at Wylie Ridge in Hancock County, Davis in Tucker County and Valley Point in Preston County. Their total projected cost to build is $182 million. “Taken as a whole,” the companies said, “the projects will remedy the companies’ capacity and energy deficiencies, support continued delivery of reliable, low-cost electricity for years to come and provide long-term customer and economic benefits. These benefits include meaningful rate stability, strengthened local and statewide economic development opportunities, and increased energy supply resilience for the companies’ service territory.” The companies reminded the PSC that they haven’t built any new power generation resources since the 1980s. The Fort Martin site has a total 183 acres of usable area, with 50 acres of contiguous buildable area. The plant footprint would be about 35 acres. A combined cycle unit uses both gas and steam combustion turbines to generate electricity. In the gas combustion turbine, air is pressurized using a compressor, injected with fuel and ignited to generate high-temperature pressurized gas that expands to drive the turbine and generate electricity. The waste heat from the gas turbine is then used to generate steam to drive a steam combustion turbine for additional electricity generation. The companies told the PSC they plan to issue an RFP – request for proposals – for a gas supplier this month. They are considering two types of plant technology: one would have a 1,200 MW gross and 1,050 MW net output. The other would have 1,350 MW gross and 1,200 MW net output. The higher-capacity plant would cost an additional $100 million.

Muhlenberg, Ohio, introduces year-long moratorium on new data centers -The Ohio township of Muhlenberg has introduced a 12-month moratorium on planning applications for new data centers after residents voiced concerns about a digital infrastructure and energy campus being planned nearby. Pacifico Energy had been seeking rezoning approval for a piece of land on London Road, Muhlenberg, so that it could be used for a data center and power plant, utilizing a natural gas line that runs through the site.However, the plan led to a groundswell of opposition from Muhlenberg residents, with a petition against the scheme garnering more than 700 signatures. At a meeting of Muhlenberg’s trustees, held earlier this month, local officials announced a 12-month moratorium on new data center developments was being imposed. This is because state-wide legislation around data centers is currently being debated by lawmakers in Ohio.In comments reported by the Circleville Herald, trustee Jeff Wippel said the move would “hold things off for a year where we can get our zoning and all that kind of stuff in line, and see what other kind of transparencies happen with the state.”He said: “They’re forming a committee to review data centers. Nothing will be able to be done in the township until February 3 of next year, when the moratorium runs out.”Ohio policy makers are apparently keen to control the spread of data center developments. House Bill 646, referenced by Wippel, would set up a data center commission to look at the impact of data centers on communities in the state.Meanwhile, electricity rates introduced last year compel operators to pay at least 85 percent of data center-related power requests, even if they don’t end up using the energy.It is unclear if Pacifico Energy will return to its plan for Muhlenberg in 12 months’ time. The company is the energy arm of investment firm Pacifico Group. Based out of San Juan, California, it has interests in both renewable and fossil fuel-based energy projects.These include a 5GW off-grid natural gas plant, known as GW Ranch, on an 8,000-acre site in Texas, and a scheme at Fort Spunky, outside Dallas, which will deliver 450MW of power from natural gas turbines, to supply data center clients.EdgeConneX and Amazon are known to be targeting developments elsewhere in Pickaway County.

Data Centers Push Great Lakes Region to the Brink - After years of steady energy consumption rates, the Great Lakes region is expected to see a 2 to 3 percent annual rise in energy demand over the next ten years as data centers pop up at a rapid clip to support the AI boom. Not only will this growth rate place extra stress on local energy grids (and therefore on consumers’ bottom lines), it could also pose a real threat to water resources in an area where freshwater is rarely thought of as scarce.“The energy story emerging today is one of tumultuous change in energy supply and demand coupled with conflicting state and federal objectives that are colliding with a buzzy economic narrative centered around AI and data centers,” states a recent reportfrom Bridge Michigan. With skyrocketing demand from data centers and shifting policy priorities under the Trump administration, local policymakers are scrambling to keep up. Due to these compounding economic and political forces, the development of coal plants, new and revitalized nuclear plants, gas-fired power plants, and battery storage is accelerating in the region. All of these industries require huge amounts of water for their daily operations, and there is question as to whether the region’s water tables can handle the pressure. “As electricity demand is soaring, in part due to data centers, we’re seeing changes in water use, we’re seeing changes in electricity consumption,” Mike Shriberg, director of the University of Michigan Water Center, was quoted by Bridge Michigan. “And how our region responds to that over the long term will have a massive impact for the Great Lakes and for our energy future.”While it’s hard to imagine the Great Lakes running out of water, it’s a real threat. Freshwater is a finite resource, and the Lakes support a huge amount of water demand for the United States. Already, without even considering the increased demand from data centers, there has been considerable concern and even conflict over water withdrawals in the Great Lakes states. Disputes over shared resources and overextraction have popped up in Southwestern Michigan, Minnesota, the Central Sands region of Wisconsin, and Indiana, according to an August 2025 report by the Alliance for the Great Lakes, a non-profit based in Chicago. Conflict has been intensifying as various industries extract more and more water from the lakes, rivers, and water table. Agriculture is a major consumer of water in the region, but the energy industry is the largest consumer, and growing larger all the time. Clean energy, while an environmental net positive, is a particularly major water consumer. “In Indiana, it’s suspected that construction activities associated with dewatering to make way for data centers and an EV battery plant have caused at least three residential wells to fail,” the Alliance reports. Plus, data centers themselves are enormously thirsty, on top of the energy sources that support them. The biggest data centers can consume more than 365 million gallons annually, a mind-blowing sum that is roughly equivalent to the annual water use of 12,000 Americans. As data center development has gone gangbusters in the last few years, water usage has skyrocketed accordingly. Water usage by data centers in the United States tripled from 5.6 billion gallons in 2014 to 17.4 billion gallons by 2023. The result will be enormous strain on regional water resources as well as on local economies, which are already struggling to keep pace with the rapid spread of data center development. Sectors like agriculture won’t just be competing with Big Tech for precious water resources, they will also be footing the bill for skyrocketing energy demand. “As we see some of these big power users wanting to come into the state of Illinois, like data centers and those types of things, there’s some concern by our membership that there’s going to be an over-demand on power,” Kevin Semlow, director of governmental affairs and commodities with the Illinois Farm Bureau, told Brownfield Ag News last year. “As you see demand go up and supply stays the same, what changes? It’s the price.”

Why Data Centers are NOT to Blame for High Electricity Rates -- Marcellus Drilling News - Despite political rhetoric scapegoating data centers for rising electricity costs, EIA data reveals that electricity price hikes began long before the data center industry’s expansion. States with high concentrations of data centers, such as Virginia and Texas, maintain residential electric rates below the national average, while Vermont has the fewest facilities but significantly higher costs. An excellent article appearing on RealClearEnergy identifies systemic issues—including aging infrastructure and regulatory inertia—as the true drivers of rising bills. Rather than blaming data centers, the article argues for modernizing the grid and aggressively increasing energy production to meet growing demand. Technology can actually create a more efficient, lower-cost electrical system.

Perry nuclear plant seeks to operate into 2060s, as Meta deal boosts output - cleveland.com — Backed by a new long-term power agreement with Meta, the Perry Nuclear Power Plant is moving to extend its operating license into the 2060s while preparing to boost its electricity output, plant officials told Geauga County commissioners this week. Additional details about the Meta deal and Perry’s related plans emerged during a Tuesday meeting, where plant officials said the agreement is shaping both a new license-extension push and a series of major equipment upgrades at the Lake County facility. The developments come as Ohio grapples with how to power a rapid expansion of data centers driven by artificial intelligence. The state now ranks fifth in the nation for data centers, with more than 200 facilities online or planned — growth fueled by tax incentives, available land and relatively low labor costs. Powering those facilities has become a central challenge. Data centers require enormous amounts of electricity around the clock, limiting the usefulness of weather-dependent renewables like wind and solar. Large technology companies are increasingly looking to nuclear power to fill the gap Under the agreement with Meta — Facebook’s parent company — Perry officials said the plant is preparing to increase its electricity output by about 15%. Terry Brown, a vice president at the plant, told commissioners that Vistra, which acquired Perry in 2024, now intends to pursue another 20-year federal license extension from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. If approved, the extension could allow Perry to operate as far as 2066. The plant, built in 1986, received its first license extension last summer, allowing it to run through 2046. Perry currently produces about 1,300 megawatts of electricity. The planned uprate would add roughly 200 megawatts, pushing output to around 1,500 megawatts. Brown said the Meta deal came as the plant’s prior power purchase agreement ended, and he described the new arrangement as providing long-term certainty for Perry’s operations at a time when demand for electricity is surging. Across Ohio, utilities and energy companies are increasingly turning to so-called uprates — upgrades that allow existing nuclear reactors to generate more power — as one of the fastest ways to increase supply. Perry was previously uprated in 2000, and the Davis-Besse nuclear plant near Toledo followed in 2008. What is changing in the AI era is who pays for those upgrades. Meta has announced plans to help fund the uprates at Perry, Davis-Besse and a third nuclear plant in Pennsylvania as part of efforts to lock in nuclear power for its expanding data center footprint.

NRC approves first-ever advanced reactor fuel factory - The Nuclear Regulatory Commission on Friday approved its first licenses for new nuclear fuel facilities in over half a century, including its first-ever factory for the specialized fuel used by many next-generation nuclear power reactors.TRISO-X, a subsidiary of Maryland startup X-energy, got the licenses for two of its facilities in Tennessee. The “TRISO” fuel they plan to make is known by the Energy Department as the “most robust nuclear fuel on Earth” and is needed for many of the extremely high temperature next-generation reactors being developed by nuclear companies.“Commercial-scale production of this fuel is key to enabling the deployment of advanced reactor designs,” NRC Chair Ho Nieh said in a statement. “This license represents an important milestone that supports the Department of Energy’s program to accelerate deployment of nuclear technologies and deliver more power to the grid.” The announcement comes as the Trump administration has called for a “wholesale revision” of the independent NRC to speed the rollout of new reactors. The White House hopes to quadruple nuclear power capacity over the next 25 years in a bid to power energy-intensive data centers, which it considers a national security priority for supporting artificial intelligence models.

US Is Rapidly Expanding Its Nuclear Supply Chain: It's Not Nearly Fast Enough - As we have repeatedly highlighted (most recently here), the much-hyped resurgence in US nuclear power is notable for one thing: the lack of actual new reactors. In fact, according to the latest Goldman Nuclear Nuggets monthly report, while China is currently building 38 new nuclear reactors - and both India and Russia have 6 reactors under construction - the US is not even on the chart. Indeed, despite splashy announcements, like November’s agreement for Japan to fund a $80 billion plan to build as many as 10 big reactors in the US, no new commercial-scale facilities are actually under construction. Meanwhile in China, work has started on 10 new sites since the beginning of 2025 (for the full list see the February Nuclear Nuggets report). And even if reactors were being built in the US right now (which they aren't) it’s unclear how they would be fueled. As Bloomberg writes, almost all of the uranium going into the current US nuclear fleet is imported, and there’s only enough enrichment capacity to supply about one-third of domestic reactors. If next-generation atomic reactors eventually get built, they’ll need a new type of more potent fuel called high-assay low-enriched uranium, or HALEU, for which there’s just a single demonstration production line in the US that makes small volumes (it belongs to Centrus Energy, one of our favorite stocks). “The core of the issue is insufficient capacity,” says Amir Vexler, the chief executive officer of enrichment company Centrus Energy Corp. “We need a lot of everything.” However, efforts are under way to expand the nation’s nuclear supply chain, at all four stages of the fuel cycle. First, several uranium miners, including Ur-Energy, are planning to boost US output. Next, when it comes to converting that uranium into gas, Solstice Advanced Materials - the only US conversion company - said last week it plans to increase capacity. The third stage, enriching the gas, will get a boost from Centrus. It hired construction giant Fluor Corp. for a multibillion-dollar facility in Ohio, and was one of three companies that each received $900 million in January from the Department of Energy to expand US enrichment capacity. The fourth and final stage in the chain, fuel fabrication, is also seeing progress. X-Energy Reactor, an advanced nuclear company backed by Amazon.com, received US approval for a new plant just last week.

Word game in Ohio bill can't make nuclear or gas 'clean - Melinda Zemper, Save Ohio Parks - Cre­at­ing a law declar­ing something is true doesn’t mean that it is.Take what law­makers are try­ing to do with the word “clean” at the State­house.Save Ohio Parks is among the envir­on­mental organ­iz­a­tions opposed to Sen­ate Bill 294. The bill addresses energy project sit­ing decisions, but it con­tains a major flaw. It declares nuc­lear power and nat­ural gas to be “clean” ener­gies.They are not. While nuc­lear power may be emis­sions-free, the prob­lem is the same today as it was in 1951: man­aging and stor­ing its dan­ger­ous, radio­act­ive nuc­lear waste. Nuc­lear acci­dents are rare, but when they occur, res­ults are dev­ast­at­ing and unfor­giv­ing. Chernobyl, in Ukraine, has a 1,000-square-mile exclu­sion zone still in effect. It is unin­hab­it­able today because of radi­ation pois­on­ing from the plant explo­sion in 1986.Caused by an earth­quake and a tsunami in 2011, the Fukushima dis­aster man­dated dis­place­ment of 164,000 people, 41,000 who remain evacu­ees today. The costs of both acci­dents are in the hun­dreds of bil­lions of dol­lars.Radium is often present in nuc­lear waste and its decay products. Just the half-life of Radium 226, which is bone-seek­ing and cause can­cer in humans, is 1,600 years. In Ports­mouth, we wit­ness the ongo­ing effects poor fed­eral nuc­lear waste man­age­ment has had on people liv­ing near the Ports­mouth Gaseous Dif­fu­sion Plant, which pro­cessed uranium dur­ing the Cold War.Piketon’s radi­ation expos­ure levels from plant oper­a­tions con­tinue to risk the health of res­id­ents. Radi­ation has con­tam­in­ated the sur­round­ing area’s air, soils and water, caus­ing a pre­ma­ture death rate in Pike County for people 74 years and younger to be 107% higher than the U.S. aver­age.That’s 750 early deaths from can­cers and other dis­ease in a county pop­u­lated by 27,088 people. Can­cer clusters and early death rates in the area from radi­ation expos­ure have been repor­ted for years by local and regional media.Nuc­lear energy can­not be called “clean” when human expos­ure to its radio­act­ive waste clearly causes can­cer and early deaths. Nat­ural gas, which we also know as meth­ane gas, or fracked gas, is dirtier and more dan­ger­ous than nuc­lear energy. Meth­ane gas emis­sions, leaks, flares and vent­ing from nat­ural gas pro­duc­tion over the past 30 years have accel­er­ated global warm­ing and cli­mate change like a hockey stick. This is not news. Fifty years ago, Amer­ic­ans were told nat­ural gas was a less-pol­lut­ing altern­at­ive to coal and oil while the trans­ition to renew­able energy occurred. The sci­ence is clear and the world around us is embra­cing renew­able ener­gies like cheap, reli­able wind, solar to mit­ig­ate the worst effects of cli­mate warm­ing and cli­mate change. Why isn’t Ohio? To call nat­ural gas “clean” is not just laugh­able. It’s tra­gic. Nat­ural gas frack­ing is a main driver of our loom­ing envir­on­mental crisis.Law­makers should stop pre­tend­ing. Ohio needs an eth­ical, 21st-cen­tury energy policy that includes wind, solar and other truly clean, emis­sions-free, renew­able energy sources. Any­thing less harms our health; our clean air, water and arable farm­land; biod­iversity in our state parks and pub­lic lands; and our chil­dren and grand­chil­dren’s sur­vival on a liv­able planet.

Trump admin to give $175 million to six coal plants, including two in Ohio -The Trump administration announced Wednesday it would give $175 million to the owners of six coal-fired power plants, including two in Ohio, to “modernize” operations. One of those plants in Southeast Ohio is part of the Ohio Valley Electric Corporation, a Cold War-era relic. A series of regulatory actions and state laws forced Ohio to cover more than $679 million in losses incurred by the plants’ owners – investor-owned electric utilities American Electric Power, Duke Energy and AES Ohio – between about 2014 and 2025 when lawmakers ended the bailout. Another sum of the federal money will go to two of three Cardinal coal plant units near Steubenville, one of which was slated for retirement in 2028. The U.S. Department of Energy said the money will “modernize, retrofit, and extend the useful life” of the coal plants. It comes amid fears of data centers spiking the nation’s electricity grids’ thirst for electricity while market forces and environmental regulations pressure coal plants to shut down. “President Trump has ended the war on American coal and is restoring common-sense energy policy,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright. “These investments will keep America’s coal plants operating, keep costs low for Americans, and ensure we have the reliable power needed to keep the lights on and power our future.” The release doesn’t specify which plants will receive what share of the money, but it’s likely insignificant at scale. For instance, OVEC reported about $794 million in revenue last year, against more than $712 million in debt from environmental infrastructure upgrades. But the $175 million is part of a broader package of $525 million in funding to “expand and reinvigorate America’s coal industry,” according to the DOE. And it comes as the Trump administration is rolling back the “endangerment finding” that gives the federal government a legal basis to regulate the emission of greenhouse gases, and as the Department of Defense is seeking to strike deals with coal power plant owners to fuel its operations. The money was appropriated by Congress to target grid resiliency, energy efficiency and greenhouse gas reduction, according to Neil Waggoner, Midwest Beyond Coal Campaign Manager, in contrast to the dirty and pollutive nature of old coal plants. He described the money as a handout to the plant owners, while Americans are stuck paying more to keep inefficient plants online. “Let’s call this what it is: a giant bailout for the coal industry,” he said. “Trump has shown time and time again that he loves driving up our costs in order to bail out his buddies in the coal and fossil fuel industries, and this is yet another example of it.” AEP spokesperson Scott Blake said he didn’t know a final total the OVEC plants received, but said it originally asked for $33 million. “The goal is to enhance the plant’s operational efficiency, reliability, and overall power generation capacity,” he said. “Ultimately, these efforts will contribute to the affordability and security of the national power grid by improving unit reliability, reducing unplanned downtime, and increasing power generation.” Signal Ohio reached out to Buckeye Power, owner of the Cardinal plants, for comment. The federal action is something of a gut punch for those who spent years trying to get Ohio ratepayers out of the OVEC arrangement. The bailout was temporary, ordered by regulators at the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio at first, and confined to just the Ohioans whose utilities owned a stake in the OVEC plants. A 2019 state law then broadened the scope to require all Ohioans to pay up, and extended the terms of the bailout from about 2024 to 2030. An overhaul of Ohio’s energy policy enacted in 2025 ended the OVEC surcharge. It was a potent enough issue to unite Democrats with Ohio House Speaker Matt Huffman, a powerful Republican, who characterized bailouts as padding for the owners’ wallets despite the lofty rhetoric around supporting American coal. The legislation saved ratepayers more than $582 million through 2030 that otherwise would have gone to the plants’ owners, according to the Legislative Service Commission.

Tab for keeping Michigan coal plant open under Trump orders grows to $135M - Michigan’s second largest electric utility lost more than $600,000 a day keeping a sprawling coal power plant online months past its intended shutdown date in 2025 under orders from the Trump administration.Consumers Energy is now seeking approval from federal regulators to pass nearly $42 million in net costs for running the J.H. Campbell plant on Lake Michigan on to utility customers across the Midwest via their power bills.“We expect costs to operate the Campbell plant will be shared by customers across the Midwest electric grid region – not solely by Consumers Energy customers," said utility spokesperson Brian Wheeler in a statement, referencing a prior decision from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, or FERC.

Trump administration rolls back mercury rules for coal-fired power plants - The Trump administration announced it is rolling back a Biden-era rule on power plant mercury emissions, a neurotoxin that impairs cognitive development in young children. The rule mainly affects the country’s fleet of coal-fired electricity-generating stations. The Mercury and Air Toxics Standard, or MATS, was created under the Obama administration in 2012 and reduced power plant releases of mercury and other pollution by 90 percent. A 2024 Biden-era update mandated even more cuts to pollution using technology already in use. It also required plants to install monitoring equipment and report their emissions. Last year, Trump exempted 71 coal plants from having to comply with the 2024 rules. Rolling back the rule altogether would exempt the entire industry from having to comply, instead reverting the industry back to the standard set by the 2012 rules. Rolling back the rule altogether would exempt the entire industry from having to comply, instead reverting the industry back to the standard set by the 2012 rules. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in a statement: “The Trump EPA knows that we can grow the economy, enhance baseload power, and protect human health and the environment all at the same time. It is not a binary choice and never should have been.” In an emailed statement, America’s Power President and CEO Michelle Bloodworth, a coal plant trade group, called the decision “an important step toward maintaining a reliable and affordable supply of electricity and ensuring coal-based generation can continue supporting the nation’s economy and electric grid.” Bloodworth said many coal-fired plants are scheduled to retire over the next five years and warned that this could negatively affect the grid. “Repealing regulations like the 2024 MATS rule helps prevent premature retirements and strengthens grid reliability at a critical moment.” EPA calculated the rollback would save the utility industry $78 million a year from 2028 to 2037. But in its own analysis, the agency calculated the rule would have “zero percent” impact on electricity rates.

Trump loosens restrictions on toxic pollution, including mercury and lead, from coal plants - The Trump administration on Friday loosened restrictions on toxic power plant pollution, including releases of neurotoxins mercury and lead. On Friday, it revoked portions of Biden-era standards that tightened restrictions on how much mercury, lead and arsenic these plants can release. The move is one in a series of steps from the Trump administration to reduce environmental standards in order to bolster fossil fuels. The Biden-era standards in question, which President Trump is rescinding, would have upped mercury controls by 70 percent for a subset of power plants that use a type of coal known as lignite. The Trump rule, which would reinstate 2012 standards, would have these plants operating under looser mercury limits than other coal plants. The Biden-era standards also would have sought to reduce emissions from all coal plants of lead, nickel and arsenic by 67 percent. Mercury is a neurotoxin. Exposure to it can cause harm to a person’s brain, heart, kidneys, lungs and immune system. Lead is also a neurotoxin, especially in children. Arsenic exposure can cause cancer. The Trump administration argued in a Friday press release that it was getting rid of moves that hampered the coal industry. It also estimated that it would save Americans a total of $670 million. “The Biden-Harris Administration’s anti-coal regulations sought to regulate out of existence this vital sector of our energy economy. If implemented, these actions would have destroyed reliable American energy,” EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in a written statement.

Ex-ethics chief: FirstEnergy CEO blessed payment at heart of bribery trial - cleveland.com — Former FirstEnergy CEO Chuck Jones signed off on a $4.3 million payment that prosecutors say was a bribe to a man who was about to become the state’s top utility regulator, a former company official testified on Thursday.Ebony Yeboah-Amankwah, who was the company’s chief ethics officer until she was fired in 2020, also said the company’s then-top lobbyist, Mike Dowling, pushed other officials to speed up the payment.Yeboah-Amankwah’s testimony came on the seventh day of trial of Jones and Dowling, who face 11 charges centered around accusations that they bribed former Public Utilities Commission of Ohio Chairman Sam Randazzo in late 2018 and early 2019.

Trump Announces Largest-Ever U.S. Gas-Fired Plant Coming to Ohio -- Marcellus Drilling News - President Donald Trump unveiled the first projects under a $550 billion trade deal with Japan yesterday, including a $36 billion investment in U.S. energy and minerals. In exchange for a 15% reduction in tariffs on imports, Tokyo will fund initiatives in Texas, Ohio, and Georgia to revitalize the industrial base. The centerpiece is a record-breaking $33 billion natural gas power plant in Portsmouth (Scioto County), Ohio, operated by SoftBank’s SB Energy. This 9.2-gigawatt facility—the largest in U.S. history—is designed to create thousands of jobs and support the surging energy needs of data centers and artificial intelligence applications. It will produce enough electricity to power every single home in Ohio! It’s massive.

The Trump Administration says Japan will provide funds for a $33 billion natural gas plant in southeast Ohio — Southeast Ohio is set to receive an investment from Japan for a projected $33 billion natural gas plant, according to an announcement by the Trump administration Tuesday evening. The project is one of the first under a $550 billion investment commitment made by Japan as part of a trade deal last year. A crude oil export facility off the coast of Texas and a synthetic diamond manufacturing plant in Georgia were also announced as part of the investment deal. It’s not yet clear how much of the projects Japan will fund or how much the country will earn from them. SB Energy, a subsidiary of Japanese tech investor SoftBank Group, will operate the natural gas facility. It will produce up to 9.2 gigawatts of power. The Trump administration claims it will be the largest natural gas facility in the world. Phil Flynn, senior analyst at Price Futures Group, said one gigawatt of power could provide energy for about 800,000 homes.“This project, it should be powering about 7.4 million homes in that regional context … it’s equivalent to supplying electricity for the population of several states,” he said. A fact sheet from the U.S. Department of Commerce describes the project location as “in the vicinity of Portsmouth, Ohio.” WOUB could not confirm the exact location and did not hear back from the Commerce Department in time for this publication. The U.S. Department of Energy owns thousands of acres near Piketon at the site of the retired Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plant. It’s also where Centrus Energy has been operating its American Centrifuge Plant since 2023, enriching uranium for the next generation of nuclear power plants.A data center may also soon come to the site, and a Silicon Valley company plans to build two nuclear power plants there. Facebook parent Meta announced last month its plans for a multibillion dollar investment in these nuclear plants.Pike County Commissioner Tony Montgomery said he believes the project will be located in Pike County, but could not say for sure whether the site would be on the federally owned land of the Portsmouth plant or on adjacent privately owned property.Montgomery is hopeful the project will provide long-term local jobs for the community, which has not seen a major employer since the uranium enrichment plant began the decommissioning process two decades ago.“Those have always been the best jobs in the area, working at the plant,” he said. “Anything that can help replace those jobs is a bonus.”Flynn said he believes the project will be a significant source of energy as AI infrastructure like data centers continue to place unprecedented pressure on the nation’s power system. “The demand for electricity is going to grow by maybe 50% over the next 10 years,” he said. He added that he believes the project will incentivize more development in Ohio and bring more jobs to the area, because businesses and data centers want to locate where cheap energy is accessible. “If you have this … center being able to power eight million homes, hey, you know, how many data centers can you power as well?” he asked. “The longer you have to move electricity the more expensive it is, you have to put in pipelines. But if you’re closer to the action, it costs a lot less.” Reuters reported in January that a large-scale infrastructure project involving SoftBank in data center construction was among other short-listed projects considered under the trade deal.Montgomery said he welcomes the possibility of new business developments or data centers in the area, especially if the natural gas facility can prevent strain on local resources.“Hopefully it’s one of those situations where this can provide enough power that when those industries come this way that it’s not going to be a burden on the local citizens,” he said.

SB Energy Tapped for Proposed 9.2‑GW Ohio Gas Power Plant in First Tranche of $550B U.S.–Japan Deal: What We Know. - The Trump administration is touting a proposed 9.2‑GW natural gas power complex near Portsmouth, Ohio, as the centerpiece of a new U.S.–Japan trade deal that officials say could steer up to $550 billion of Japanese capital into American energy and industrial projects.According to a Feb. 17 Commerce Department fact sheet and a statement by Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, the “Portsmouth Powered Land Project” would be a 9.2‑GW, $33 billion natural gas plant in the vicinity of Portsmouth, operated by Japanese conglomerate SoftBank’s U.S. affiliate, SB Energy. Billed as one of the “largest natural gas generation projects in the world,” the facility “represents a strategic initiative to create an integrated platform capable of supplying reliable, large‑scale, dispatchable energy,” the Commerce Department said. But beyond those claims, neither the government nor the developer has released other basic details such as plant configuration, permitting path, interconnection plan, financing structure, or target in‑service date. Some politicians have suggested more details may be forthcoming in President Trump’s State of the Union speech on Feb. 24. The Ohio mega‑project is one of three deals in a first $36 billion tranche the Trump administration credits to a U.S.–Japan “strategic investment” framework first announced in July 2025 and formally implemented by executive order that September, under which the White House said Tokyo has pledged up to $550 billion for U.S. projects in return for a 15% tariff cap on most Japanese imports. In that EO, the White House noted the “investments” will be selected by the U.S. government. The second project that will benefit under the $36 billion “commitment” is a $2.1 billion deepwater crude export terminal off Brazoria County, Texas. That project, tied to the Texas GulfLink project, is expected to generate “$20–30 billion in U.S. crude exports annually” and “expand American energy dominance,” Commerce said. The third project is an approximately $600 million high‑pressure synthetic diamond grit facility in Georgia operated by Element Six, which Commerce calls “critical” to U.S. industrial manufacturing and national security because diamond grit is “vital” to the semiconductor, automotive, and oil and gas industries.SB Energy is a fully integrated U.S. digital‑infrastructure and energy platform founded in 2019 and owned by SoftBank, which describes it as a group company and AI‑infrastructure developer. SoftBank, a Japan‑based technology and investment conglomerate best known for its multitrillion‑yen Vision Funds and major stakes in AI and semiconductor companies, now treats SB Energy as one of its core “AI infrastructure” holdings.SB Energy says it has raised more than $10 billion in project capital and built a 5‑GW‑plus portfolio of utility‑scale solar, storage, and powered‑land projects that are operating or under construction in Texas and California, including the 900‑MW Orion Solar Belt complex serving Google’s Midlothian data center in Milam County, Texas; the 402‑MW Athos battery storage project in Riverside County, California; and the Pelican’s Jaw solar‑plus‑storage project in Kern County, California. In January 2026, notably, SoftBank and AI research and deployment company OpenAI each invested $500 million of equity into SB Energy and signed a 1.2‑GW data‑center lease in Milam County, Texas, as part of OpenAI’s Stargate initiative, a White House–backed plan to build “next‑generation AI data centers” in the U.S. The deal makes SB Energy OpenAI’s preferred development and execution partner for multi‑gigawatt AI data‑center campuses and their associated generation. It also brings SB Energy into a non‑exclusive “preferred partnership” with SoftBank and OpenAI to roll out a repeatable data‑center design model and builds on an earlier $800 million redeemable‑preferred investment from Ares and SB Energy’s acquisition of Studio 151, a data‑center engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) and operations firm, which has experience on roughly 20 campuses.

The expanding energy sector and what landowners need to know -Ohio has been buzzing with energy lately; no pun intended. The energy sector has changed and is growing across the entire state, from wind and solar projects to oil and gas pipelines, transmission lines, and distribution system upgrades. New forms of energy are also entering into the mix, including carbon sequestration projects, injection well infrastructure, and hydrogen production and storage. With so many energy projects emerging, understanding how to navigate these opportunities while also protecting your property is increasingly important. Dale Arnold, the director of energy, utility, and local government policy at the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation, shares his knowledge on how to make energy work for you. “In the Northeast and Northwest parts of Ohio, we are seeing a lot of refits of current transmission infrastructure, many being installed in the 60s and 70s are going through major refits, with new towers, new lines, and expanding the size of right-of-way,” Arnold said. “In Central Ohio, there is a tremendous amount of industrial development, and in Southern Ohio, there is a resurgence of oil and gas production.” As these projects reshape different corners of Ohio, Arnold said, there are a lot of things property owners need to understand. “The first step is to find out basically exactly what they are talking about here. Are we talking about electricity? Are we talking about fuel or liquid type energy? Are we talking about gaseous? Is it going to be a merchant function, which means they’re going to literally produce a form of energy as a commodity and sell it as is? Or is it part of utility infrastructure? If that’s the case, do eminent domain provisions apply,” Arnold said. “That’s the basic structure right there and that’s where the conversation starts.” Arnold and his team can help landowners understand leases, easements, and surface agreements, but he says multi-generational planning is the best place to start. “The next thing is to sit down with your family, all three generations, grandma and grandpa, dad, mom, grandchildren, if they can understand and appreciate the situation, and think long-term,” Arnold said. Arnold notes that the “short-term” window that energy developers look at is a 30-year time span. “It’s interesting because you need to think about that, because you’re talking about a very consistent revenue stream long-term,” Arnold said. “If it’s a lease, you’re talking about a one-time lump payment. If it’s an easement, you also need to take a look at it, and I have families that put together the plan long term, and sometimes that takes longer than negotiating the lease or the easement or the agreement between you and energy development.” Energy projects will continue expanding statewide, and Arnold says landowners should not navigate these agreements on their own. If landowners have questions or need something reviewed, they can contact their local county Farm Bureau office or reach out to ofbf.org.

Infinity Natural Resources Announces Increased Increased Interest in Antero Ohio Acquisition Funded with $350 Million Strategic Equity Investment -Infinity Natural Resources, Inc.today announced that it agreed to increase its interest from 51% to 60% in the transformational $1.2 billion Antero Ohio Utica Shale Acquisition pursuant to an agreement with Northern Oil and Gas, Inc., using a portion of the proceeds of a $350 million strategic equity investment (the "Investment") from leading energy-focused private capital investors Quantum Capital Group ("Quantum") and Carnelian Energy Capital Management ("Carnelian"). The Investment in Series A Convertible Preferred Stock ("Preferred Stock") significantly reduces the Company’s pro forma leverage and increases its liquidity. The Investment positions Infinity to continue to accelerate development of its extensive drilling inventory and pursue additional strategic consolidation opportunities within the Appalachian Basin.The convertible structure, including the 30% premium in the conversion price, aligns the Investment with long-term equity appreciation while enhancing balance sheet flexibility. The remainder of the proceeds from the Investment will be used for general corporate purposes, including the repayment of borrowings under the Company's senior secured revolving credit facility. INR continues to anticipate that the Antero Ohio acquisition will close by the end of the first quarter of 2026."Quantum and Carnelian bring deep energy sector expertise and a proven track record of partnering with management teams to drive operational excellence and strategic growth," said Zack Arnold, President and Chief Executive Officer of Infinity. "Their investment further validates our strategic direction while allowing us to increase our participation in the Antero Ohio acquisition and maintain a conservative capital structure. The transaction furthers our financial flexibility to pursue additional accretive growth opportunities. We are excited to have Matt Kelly from Carnelian join the Board at closing.""Infinity's strong operational execution and successful organic drilling program demonstrate management’s ability to create significant stakeholder value in the Appalachian Basin," said Rob Anderson, Managing Director at Quantum. "We are excited to partner with Infinity as a strategic investor and to support its transformational Antero Ohio acquisition and continued growth trajectory.""The combination of Infinity's operational excellence and the strategic scale provided by the Antero Ohio acquisition positions the company as a leading consolidator in one of North America's premier unconventional basins," said Matt Kelly, Managing Director at Carnelian. "This investment aligns with our focus on partnering with best-in-class management teams executing accretive growth strategies."The terms of the Preferred Stock are as follows, subject to the terms and conditions set forth in the definitive agreements:

• $350 million of Preferred Stock, with Quantum purchasing $275 million and Carnelian purchasing $75 million
• The Preferred Stock carries an 8.00% dividend per annum, paid quarterly, for the first five years, and 12.00% thereafter, with an option to pay in cash or in kind as an increase to the liquidation preference available for the first two years
• The Preferred Stock is convertible at the option of the holders into shares of Infinity’s Class A common stock at a conversion price of $21.39 per share, representing a 30% premium over the five-day volume-weighted average price preceding the signing
• After 3 years, the Company has the right to convert the Preferred Stock into Class A common stock if the closing price of the Class A common stock exceeds 140% of the conversion price for a certain period of time
• After 5 years, the Company has the option to redeem the Preferred Stock at a price that equals an internal rate of return of 15% per annum
• On an as-converted basis, the Preferred Stock represents approximately 20.5% of Infinity's voting power, and the Preferred Stock generally votes on an as-converted basis with the shares of the Company’s common stock
• The holders of the Preferred Stock have certain minority consent rights and anti-dilution protections

Ohio School Launches Oil Field Safety Training Program - A Lorain County, Ohio training provider is expanding its curriculum to address workforce requirements in the regional energy sector. Great Lakes Truck Driving School has developed an oil field safety certification program launching this month. The curriculum includes OSHA compliance training, First Aid certification, and Rigging instruction—competencies identified as critical by drilling contractors in the Marcellus and Utica Shale regions. The school reports that 10 drilling contractors have identified immediate hiring needs totaling more than 4,000 positions. Employers specifically require candidates holding CDL licenses and heavy equipment operation credentials combined with the safety certifications the program provides. The training organization recently secured accreditation from the International Association of Drilling Contractors, allowing it to issue Health, Safety, and Environmental RIG PASS Cards and SafeLandUSA Endorsements upon course completion. The program's training strategy is focused on aligning curriculum development with employer demand in sectors experiencing sustained growth. The oil and gas industry represents a long-term employment pipeline for the state's workforce. The facility offers training for professional driving, heavy equipment operation, and energy sector safety.

Mason Capital Demands to See Ascent Resources’ Books & Records -- Marcellus Drilling News - The bidding war for Ascent Resources continues to bubble. Ascent, formerly American Energy Partners, is a privately held company focused 100% on the Ohio Utica Shale. Ascent, headquartered in Oklahoma City, is Ohio’s largest natural gas producer and the 8th largest natural gas producer in the U.S. The largest shareholder in the privately owned company is the private equity firm Energy & Minerals Group (EMG), with an “over 30% stake.” EMG wants to sell that stake in one of its portfolio companies to another EMG company. That action set off a firestorm with one major investor (the Abu Dhabi Investment Council) suing to block the transfer, and several other investors, including Mason Capital Management, making offers to buy the company lock, stock, and barrel. Mason issued a press release yesterday, “demanding” answers from Ascent, accusing the board of stonewalling

43 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Feb 9 – 15 -- Marcellus Drilling News - The Marcellus/Utica region received a combined 43 new drilling permits last week, Feb. 9 – 15, up 19 from the permits issued two weeks ago. The most recent high in permits (going back at least a year) occurred during the first week of December, when 60 new permits were issued (see 60 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Dec 1 – 7). A week with 43 permits is also significant, indicating an increase in drilling activity. Pennsylvania issued 25 new permits, Ohio issued 7, and West Virginia issued 11. The drillers receiving new permits last week included: Antero Resources, Arsenal Resources, Ascent Resources, Coterra Energy, HG Energy, Infinity Natural Resources, JKLM Energy, and PennEnergy Resources. ANTERO RESOURCES | ARSENAL RESOURCES | ASCENT RESOURCES | BUTLER COUNTY | COTERRA ENERGY (CABOT O&G) | DODDRIDGE COUNTY | GUERNSEY COUNTY | HARRISON COUNTY | HARRISON COUNTY | HG ENERGY | INDIANA COUNTY | INR/INFINITY NATURAL RESOURCES | JKLM ENERGY | LEWIS COUNTY | PENNENERGY RESOURCES | RITCHIE COUNTY | SUSQUEHANNA COUNTY | TIOGA COUNTY (PA)

Marcellus Drilling News: Capital & Main Resolves Legal Challenge From CNX Resources Over Its Reporting With Editor’s Note Explaining What It Did Not Say Or Write About In An Article - On February 13, Marcellus Drilling News reported the news outlet Capital & Main resolved its legal challenge from CNX Resources over an article about its “Radical Transparency” shale gas monitoring program by adding an editor’s note saying what it did not say or write about in its September 2025 article.The article-- Pennsylvania Gas Driller: Our Operations Pose No Health Risk; You Can’t Be Serious, Activists Say-- described how “CNX Resources Corporation, a major Pennsylvania natural gas producer, has racked up air quality violations by the hundreds and three years ago pleaded no contest to criminal charges of skirting state pollution laws for years by misreporting air emissions at one of its facilities.”“Now, CNX is doing its best to resurrect itself as a white knight in the fossil fuel trade, and as proof offering up an industry-written study it says demonstrates its fracking operations pose “no public health risks.” The study was born from a partnership that CNX inked last year with its old nemesis — Shapiro.”The article reported how “A group of 40 environmental organizations, as well as state Sen. Katie Muth, have submitted a letter to the U.S. Department of Energy in which they express their opposition to the inclusion of CNX’s “Radical Transparency” on the list of projects vying for the federal funds.““The ‘Radical Transparency’ program is a cynical attempt to undermine those harmed by fracking by discrediting the thousands of peer-reviewed papers, government reports and media investigations that have demonstrated grave harms fracking poses to health, safety, the environment and climate,” the lettOn October 31, 2025, Capital & Main reported a lawsuit was filed by CNX Resources Corporation accusing the news organization of defamation for quoting sources critical of an industry-written study. Capital & Main said it stands by its reporting and vows to fight the suit. Read more here.Marcellus Drilling News first reported the settlement between CNX and Capital & Main resolved claims by CNX in the lawsuit by adding an editor’s note to the September article--“Capital & Main did not state, and did not intend to imply, that CNX fabricated any reported data in its Radical Transparency program. Further, Capital & Main did not state, and did not intend to imply, that CNX engaged in manipulation of the stock market or any improper attempts to influence its ratings or stock values. Capital & Main has no facts or basis to believe that any fabrication of data or market manipulation occurred.” Capital & Main’s article did not change.

Toby Rice: Pipeline Permitting Failure is the Expensive Option -- Marcellus Drilling News - Toby Rice is President & CEO of EQT Corporation, the second-largest natural gas producer in the U.S. and THE largest producer of Marcellus/Utica gas. He has been a tireless advocate for natural gas, pipelines, and LNG exports. In a recent op-ed, Rice makes the strong case that Winter Storm Fern’s extreme natural gas price spikes exposed the urgent need for permitting reform to ensure energy reliability. We need more pipelines (and natural gas infrastructure of all kinds), and we need it NOW. In regions like the Southeast and New England, inadequate infrastructure during Fern forced prices fifty times the national average or necessitated a shift to dirtier fuels. The failure of permitting reform, which blocked new pipelines to New England, was the expensive option. It’s time to end the renewable fantasy and get back to reality.

Elevated U.S. Propane Inventories Mask Regional Tightness as Venezuela Launches LPG Exports The EIA reported a 3.1 MMbbl draw in total U.S. propane/propylene inventories for the week ended February 13, smaller than industry expectations for a 3.4 MMbbl decline and below the average draw of 3.2 MMbbl for the week. Even with the pull, total stocks stand at 74.2 MMbbl — 18.9 MMbbl, or 34%, above the same week in 2025, 10.8 MMbbl, or 17%, above the five-year maximum, and 22.2 MMbbl, or 43%, above the five-year average. Much of the surplus remains concentrated in PADD 3. PADD 1 (East Coast) propane inventories declined by 406 Mbbl to 3.7 MMbbl and now sit just 132 Mbbl, or 4%, above the five-year minimum — a thin cushion for this point in the winter season. Stocks remain 865 Mbbl, or 19%, below the five-year average, although still 92 Mbbl, or 3%, higher than a year ago. Weekly U.S. propane exports increased by 169 Mb/d to 2.04 MMb/d, rising above the four-week average of 1.98 MMb/d, the year-to-date average of 1.95 MMb/d, and the 1.99 MMb/d reported in the year-ago week, signaling stronger export demand week over week. Imports rose by 52 Mb/d to 236 Mb/d, including volumes delivered to Providence, RI aboard the Chrysopigi Lady.

East Coast LNG Export Ambitions Fade Further as Another Project Stalls -The possibility of building a large export terminal in eastern Pennsylvania looks increasingly remote after years of effort to advance the Penn LNG project have failed to gain traction. Bar chart of global LNG capacity under development by period, showing United States, Qatar, Australia, Canada and other projects in Bcm, with 2025-2030 led by U.S. and Qatar additions. At A Glance:
No progress on Penn LNG
Developer dissolves entity
Project said still advancing

Potential Philadelphia LNG Export Facility Appears to be Dead -- Marcellus Drilling News - In early 2024, we reported that Penn America Energy CEO Franc James, the potential builder of the proposed Penn LNG export facility in the Philadelphia area, said that he “pumped the brakes” on the project but that it wasn’t dead yet (see Penn LNG CEO Says Philly Export Project on Hold, “Not Dead Yet”). Antis will be delighted to learn that all of their fussing has had an effect. It appears the project is likely now dead. The developer, Penn America Energy Holdings LLC, has reportedly been dissolved. While some individual entities may still exist, the core organization responsible for advancing the project is no longer active in its original form.

One Train Down at Atlantic LNG for Emergency Repairs - Here are three things to know about the global LNG market this week. Federal regulators have granted Cheniere Energy Inc.’s request to introduce feed gas and refrigerants to the first string of the fifth train’s cold end at its Corpus Christi LNG Stage 3 expansion project, bringing the unit one step closer to producing the super-chilled fuel.The company has asked to flow gas to the cold end of string 2 as well — the final step before LNG production.

Lake Charles LNG Could Become NGL or Crude Export Hub as ET Reconsiders Strategy -- Energy Transfer LP (ET) is considering all options for the future of its Lake Charles LNG terminal in Louisiana, including a pivot away from LNG entirely, according to management. At A Glance:

• ET open to new project partners
• Possible shift toward NGL, oil exports
• ET targets data center gas demand

Vessel Traffic Limited at Sabine Pass LNG by Heavy Fog Forecast Through Weekend - Heavy fog continued to stop vessel traffic on the Sabine-Neches waterway Friday and again limited LNG exports.

Golden Pass LNG Activity Normalizes; Permian Lateral Cleared to Proceed - A look at the global natural gas and LNG markets by the numbers

• 3,493 MMBtu: Nominations to the Golden Pass LNG facility have been revised down and returned to average levels after two days of reported spikes in flows, according to Wood Mackenzie pipeline data. Flow data indicated significant equipment testing could be underway at the facility after levels jumped to near 15% of capacity Monday and Tuesday. However, those figures have been revised to around 1.5% of capacity at the highest levels. Nominations to the terminal were reported at 3,492 MMBtu Wednesday, near the same levels reported since gas began flowing into the system last summer.
• 1.1 mile: In other development news, Golden Pass LNG has been given the green light to begin construction on a 1.1 mile, 42-inch lateral to connect the terminal to alternative feed gas supply from the Permian Basin. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission previously approved the lateral project last month. Once completed, Golden Pass would be connected to up to 1 Bcf/d of West Texas supply through the 218-mile, 42-inch and 48-inch diameter Trident Intrastate Pipeline system developed by Kinder Morgan Inc.
• 110 Bcf/d: Elevated feed gas demand at Gulf Coast LNG terminals is being offset byswelling natural gas production in the lower-48, according to Wood Mackenzie data. Nominations to export facilities was estimated at 19.3 Bcf/d over the past seven days, according to the firm. Meanwhile, production has ticked up to an average of 110 Bcf/d during the same period. Canadian imports added another 5.3 Bcf/d to U.S. markets.
• 2.47 Mt: U.S. LNG exports are expected to rebound the week of Feb. 16 on an uptick of demand from Asian buyers, according to Kpler data. Anticipated LNG exports from U.S. terminals was estimated at 2.47 million tons (Mt) for the week, up 0.25 Mt from the week prior. The majority of volumes are expected to head to Europe, but the region’s imports could fall by 5-6 cargoes. Meanwhile, Asian buyers — mostly in South Korea — are expected to receive an additional 6-7 cargoes from a week prior.

TC Energy Tops Estimates as LNG Deliveries Jump 21%, Gas Flows Hit Record - TC Energy beat fourth-quarter profit estimates as North American natural gas flows hit record levels and LNG deliveries surged 21%, underscoring growing pipeline demand from export terminals and power markets. (Reuters) — Canadian pipeline operator TC Energy beat analysts' estimates for fourth-quarter adjusted profit on Feb. 13, helped by record natural gas flows across its North American network and increased demand for natural gas and power. Major pipeline operators such as TC Energy are doubling down on expectations of surging natural gas demand as LNG export facilities expand and power-hungry AI systems, cryptocurrency miners and data centers ramp up electricity use. TC Energy operates a 58,100 mile-long network of pipelines, supplying more than 30% of the clean-burning fuel consumed daily across North America. The company placed C$8.3 billion of projects into service in 2025, and expects to place nearly C$4 billion of capital into service this year. In January, it closed a non-binding open season for 0.5 billion cubic feet per day on its Columbia Gas Transmission system near Columbus, Ohio, attracting 1.5 billion cubic feet per day of total bids, three times the proposed project capacity, as power demand from data centers surged. The company anticipates full-year capital expenditure to be between C$6.0 billion and C$6.5 billion. Canadian natural gas pipeline deliveries averaged 27.2 billion cubic feet per day during the quarter, up 5% from a year earlier, while U.S. pipeline flows rose 9.5% to 29.6 billion cubic feet per day. Deliveries to LNG facilities jumped 21% to 3.9 billion cubic feet per day. TC Energy's adjusted core profit at U.S. natural gas pipelines, its largest segment, rose to C$1.39 billion ($1.02 billion), from C$1.2 billion a year ago. Adjusted core earnings from Canadian natural gas pipelines rose nearly 13% to C$961 million during the quarter. On an adjusted basis, the Calgary-based company earned 98 Canadian cents per share, compared with analysts' average expectations of 92 Canadian cents, according to data compiled by LSEG. It raised the quarterly dividend by 3.2% to C$0.8775 per share, marking its twenty-sixth straight year of dividend growth.

Enbridge Eyes 50 Data Center Projects as Natural Gas Demand Surges - Canadian midstreamer Enbridge Inc. sees a massive data center opportunity in North America that could require up to 10 Bcf/d of incremental gas capacity. U.S. map of GW-scale data centers expected online in 2026-2027, highlighting major projects by AWS, Microsoft, Meta and others, with clusters in Texas, PJM and the Midwest totaling up to 4,500 MW capacity. At A Glance:
50 projects advance toward sanction
Texas Eastern hits 15 Bcf/d
Gulf Coast storage demand surges

ENBRIDGE INC SEC 10-K Report - Enbridge Inc. achieved several operational milestones and announced key projects aimed at enhancing its infrastructure and expanding its energy portfolio:

• Liquids Pipelines Investment: Plans to invest up to US$1.3 billion in the Mainline System through 2028, focusing on extending the service life and enhancing reliability and efficiency.
• Noncontrolling Interest Investment: On July 2, 2025, Stonlasec8 Indigenous Investments Limited Partnership invested approximately $736 million in the BC natural gas pipeline system, with Enbridge retaining an 87.53% ownership.
• Gas Transmission Rate Proceedings: Several rate cases were filed and settled, including Algonquin, Maritimes & Northeast, East Tennessee, and Vector, with new rates becoming effective in late 2024 and 2025.
• Gas Distribution and Storage Rate Applications: Enbridge Gas Ontario and Enbridge Gas Ohio filed applications for rate adjustments, with decisions impacting revenue and operational strategies through 2028.
• Mainline Optimization Phase 1: This project aims to increase capacity by 150,000 barrels per day on the Mainline System and 100,000 barrels per day on the Flanagan South Pipeline, expected to be in service by 2027.
• Texas Eastern Modernization: The modernization project is set to enhance safety and reliability, with completion expected by 2026.
• T-North Expansion (Aspen Point): This expansion will support 535 mmcf/d of additional capacity, driven by regional demand and potential LNG exports, with a target in-service date in 2026.
• Tennessee Ridgeline Expansion: Aimed at supporting TVA's transition to lower-carbon fuels, this project includes pipeline looping and a solar array, expected to be operational by 2026.
• Woodfibre LNG Project: Enbridge holds a noncontrolling interest in this project, which is expected to be in service by 2027, with updated commercial terms agreed upon in 2025.
• Sequoia Solar: An 815 MW solar farm in Texas, with the first phase completed in 2025 and the second phase expected in late 2026, underpinned by long-term PPAs.
• Clear Fork Solar: A 600 MW solar farm near San Antonio, Texas, fully contracted under a long-term offtake agreement, expected to be in service by 2027.
• Easter Wind Project: A 152 MW onshore wind project in Texas, fully contracted under a long-term offtake agreement, with completion expected in 2026 and 2027.
• Cowboy Phase 1: A 365 MW solar farm and battery energy storage system in Wyoming, expected to be fully operational by 2027.
• Courseulles Offshore Wind: Located off the coast of France, this 448 MW project is expected to be in service by 2027, with revenues underpinned by a 20-year fixed price PPA.

Enbridge Inc. has outlined several strategic initiatives and capital management activities to support its long-term growth and financial stability:

• Mainline System Investment: Plans to invest up to US$1.3 billion through 2028 to extend the service life and enhance reliability and efficiency.
• Expansion Projects: Involvement in projects like the Texas Eastern Modernization and T-North Expansion to increase capacity and support regional demand for natural gas.
• Mainline Optimization Phase 2: A project to provide additional egress from the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin, expected to enter service in 2028.
• Capital Management: Completed long-term debt issuances totaling $4.6 billion and US$4.7 billion in 2025, enhancing liquidity to fund capital projects and acquisitions. Renewed and extended approximately $22.1 billion of credit facilities with maturities ranging from 2027 to 2030.
• Dividends: Paid $8.2 billion in dividends in 2025 and announced a 3% increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.9700 per common share, effective March 1, 2026.
• Future Outlook: Plans to maintain sufficient liquidity to fund capital projects and acquisitions without accessing capital markets for the next 12 months. Strategic investments in infrastructure projects, such as the Pelican CO2 Hub and various gas transmission expansions, to support long-term growth and meet increasing demand. Aims to sustain investment-grade credit ratings and manage financial metrics to ensure ongoing access to funding on attractive terms.

Enbridge Inc. faces several challenges and risks that could impact its business operations and financial performance:

• Regulatory Risks: Involvement in multiple legal proceedings, such as the Line 5 easement dispute with the Bad River Band and the Michigan Line 5 dual pipelines case, which could result in operational disruptions or financial liabilities if adverse rulings are made.
• Operational Risks: Undertaking significant capital projects, such as the Mainline System investment and various gas transmission expansions, which carry risks related to construction delays, cost overruns, and regulatory approvals.
• Market Risks: Exposure to fluctuations in foreign exchange rates, interest rates, and commodity prices, which can affect earnings, cash flows, and the valuation of derivative financial instruments used for hedging purposes.
• Emerging Risks: Expansion of the renewable power generation portfolio introduces new operational and market risks associated with the integration of renewable energy sources and the management of related regulatory requirements.

Management is actively addressing these challenges by implementing comprehensive risk management strategies, including economic hedging programs to mitigate market risks and strategic partnerships to support project execution. Additionally, the company is engaging with regulatory bodies and stakeholders to navigate legal challenges and secure necessary approvals for ongoing and future projects.

Natural Gas Pipeline Buildout Accelerates as 18 Bcf/d LNG Wave Advances -Nearly 18 Bcf/d of new LNG export capacity is under construction or sanctioned along the Gulf Coast, but the pipelines needed to move the required feed gas remain a work in progress, with more projects likely yet to be unveiled.Table of U.S. LNG export terminal projects in development, detailing CCL Stage 3, Golden Pass, Rio Grande LNG, Port Arthur, CP2 and Woodside Louisiana, with Bcf/d capacity, trains, pipelines, lead companies. At A Glance:
Pipeline buildout trails LNG FID pace
Haynesville seen supplying two-thirds of supply
Gillis could need another 5 Bcf/d ingress

FERC Upholds Eliminating Order 871 – Pipeline Challenge Rule -- Marcellus Drilling News - One of the environmental left’s favorite tactics to defeat fossil fuel projects is to challenge every single infrastructure project (pipeline or otherwise) connected to fossil energy at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). As soon as a company files an application to build a new project and FERC approves it, Big Green will challenge it first at FERC and eventually in court. FERC had an internal rule, called Order No. 871, that states a company cannot begin construction (even though FERC has approved the certificate) until all such legal challenges are resolved, which can take YEARS. Which is the point—delay, and eventually, some of the projects will give up and won’t be built. Run out the clock. In October, FERC issued a new rule eliminating the Order No. 871 rule, meaning construction can now begin months and years sooner, even while appeals continue (see FERC Cuts Pipeline Challenge Rule; Result is Faster Construction). The enviro-left appealed the decision with FERC, and yesterday, FERC commissioners told the enviro-left to buzz off.

Natural gas tumbles to a 4-month low near $3 as mild weather slashes demand — what to watch next -- U.S. natural gas futures dropped hard on Tuesday, hitting a level not seen in about four months. Traders are looking at mild temperatures and robust supply. March’s contract wrapped up at $3.031 per million British thermal units (mmBtu), down 21.2 cents. (Natural Gas Intel)This shift is key: the market’s no longer stuck on “winter shock” mode, it’s back to tracking the weather, day in, day out. If outlooks flip warmer across the biggest U.S. population centers, heating demand can nosedive—prices tend to follow, sometimes in minutes.The timing coincides with traders shifting focus beyond the core winter stretch, eyeing storage levels. The key dynamic: gas left underground versus remaining cold ahead. That equation usually shapes the mood heading into March. NatGasWeather flagged a stretch of unusually warm weather ahead for much of the eastern and central U.S., likely holding national demand “very light” despite the West hanging onto colder conditions. The firm pointed out the latest U.S. storage data showed a 249 Bcf pull for the week ended Feb. 6, and said storage remains below both last year and the five-year norm. (NatGasWeather) Supply remained the key focus. BloombergNEF pegged Lower 48 dry gas production Tuesday at 114.4 billion cubic feet per day, versus demand at 86.2 bcfd. LNG net flows to U.S. export terminals landed at 20.0 bcfd, according to Barchart. Commodity Weather Group, meanwhile, saw above-normal temperatures sticking around the eastern half of the country through Feb. 21. (Barchart) Funds tied to natural gas tracked the fuel’s slide. The United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) dropped roughly 4.3%. BOIL, a leveraged bet, shed about 7.9%. On the flip side, KOLD, which moves inversely, climbed 7.2%, according to Barchart data. (Barchart)In its February Short-Term Energy Outlook, the Energy Information Administration reported that January’s cold snap forced well freeze-offs, knocking production lower. By early February, though, most output had returned. The EIA projects U.S. dry natural gas production will average around 110 billion cubic feet per day for this year, rising above 111 bcfd next year. (U.S. Energy Information Administration)Earlier this month, EIA Administrator Tristan Abbey pointed to the winter price surge, saying it’s likely to push up drilling and output as the year goes on, giving inventories a boost. “Ultimately, this will result in lower natural gas prices next year than we had forecast,” Abbey said. (U.S. Energy Information Administration)The downside isn’t exactly straightforward. If colder weather hits in late February, or another round of freeze-offs strikes, supply could tighten in a hurry and spark sharp short-covering rallies — particularly if LNG feedgas demand holds steady.The next data point arrives Feb. 19, when the EIA is set to publish its weekly natural gas storage numbers at 10:30 a.m. Eastern, as per the usual Thursday timetable. Traders aren’t likely to ignore the daily weather models either, scanning for any hint the current warm streak might snap before month-end. (U.S. Energy Information Administration)

Comstock to Double Western Haynesville Wells in 2026, Advances NextEra Data Center Project - Comstock Resources detailed plans to continue aggressive development of what CEO Jay Allison called "some of the most valuable gas in the world" - its 535,000 net acre position in the Western Haynesville (blue area in map below, locations of completed wells in red). On today's Q4 2025 conference call, the company announced it plans to turn 24 Western Haynesville wells to sales in 2026 compared to 12 wells in 2025, while maintaining four operated rigs in the area. As the company works to transition the Western Haynesville from an emerging play to major production region, the upcoming year will focus on cost reduction through technology improvements including rotary steerable drilling systems, insulated drill pipe, and upgraded 10,000 PSI rated rigs. Many of these technologies are already in use in other basins, but are now finding their way to the more challenging conditions of the Western Haynesville where operators must drill much deeper wells at more extreme temperatures. The company also provided an update on its previously announced partnership with NextEra Energy to develop a data center project in the Western Haynesville. The company expects to commercialize the project in 2026, with initial capacity of 2 gigawatts and potential future expansion to 8 gigawatts. CEO Jay Allison emphasized Comstock's strategic advantages for the project, noting its proximity to Dallas and Houston, as well as Comstock's unique position of owning both upstream gas resources and midstream infrastructure through Pinnacle Gas Services.

Bits and Pieces, Encore Edition – LNG Exports, Data Centers Have North American Natural Gas Poised for Rapid Growth --The next four years will reshape the future of North America’s natural gas market. LNG exports are set to surge as new terminals across the U.S., Canada and Mexico come online, causing ripple effects through global energy trade and fueling new demand from Europe and Asia. At the same time, the rise of AI and the data centers powering it are contributing to growth in electricity demand, much of which will be met by natural gas. And all of this growing demand is predicated on increasing supplies of affordable natural gas and the midstream infrastructure to get it to market. In today’s RBN blog, we preview our upcoming GasCon 2026 conference, where we’ll bring together expert analysis and leading executives from the upstream, midstream and downstream to show how all the pieces fit together.

Survey Finds Big LNG Buyers Changing Strategy to Short-Term Deals -- Marcellus Drilling News - McKinsey & Company’s 2025 LNG Buyers Survey (full copy below) reveals a strategic shift toward flexibility and risk mitigation as global markets stabilize with upcoming supply from North America and the Middle East. Faced with geopolitical uncertainty, buyers are prioritizing supply diversification and flexible contract terms, specifically regarding destination and volume. While demand is expected to rise in Asia due to price-sensitive coal-to-gas switching, European demand will likely decline as renewables expand. To manage volatility, 70% of buyers are pursuing a mix of short- and long-term contracts (instead of just long-term). Overall, the survey emphasizes that adaptive procurement strategies are essential for navigating today’s evolving energy landscape.

What's that smell? 7,700 gallons of jet fuel spill into the James River - An estimated 7,700 gallons of jet fuel spilled into the James River on Feb. 13 near Newport News Shipbuilding, according to officials. The spill happened during a refueling operation involving the aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy, which is nearing completion at the shipyard, according to a release from the city of Newport News. Residents of Newport News and Hampton complained Sunday about a strong fuel odor coming off the James. According to the Virginia Department of Health, local drinking water and tap water remain safe, and there is no impact to public water systems, the Newport News release said. But there is no broader health threat. The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality is leading the environmental response in coordination with the Coast Guard, the Virginia Department of Emergency Management, the Virginia Department of Health, and the cities of Newport News and Hampton. The responsible party—which wasn't named—activated an oil spill response company to begin oil containment and recovery operations, according to the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, including deploying a containment boom, conducting boat-based recovery, and using a vacuum truck to remove captured product. The cause of the spill remains under investigation.

7,700 gallons spill during fuel transfer at Newport News -- Approximately 7,749 gallons of JP-5 fuel spilled into the James River on Feb. 13 during a transfer operation at Huntington Ingalls Industries’ Newport News Shipbuilding division, Newport News, Va. The fuel was being transferred from a Navy barge to the future USS John F. Kennedy (CVN 79) when the spill was identified around 1 p.m. ET. In a statement, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) said early estimates significantly understated the volume. “Initial estimates placed the release at approximately 50 gallons; however, follow-up investigations and fuel tank measurements later determined the total volume discharged to be 7,749 gallons.” According to DEQ, “Odors and surface sheens were reported across portions of Newport News and Hampton, prompting coordinated on-water investigation by DEQ, the Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM), the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), and fire departments from the cities of Newport News and Hampton.” The shipyard said the transfer was secured and cleanup efforts were initiated immediately. DEQ confirmed that response operations were activated by the responsible party. “The responsible party activated an oil spill response company to begin oil containment and recovery operations, including deploying containment boom, conducting boat-based recovery, and using a vacuum truck to remove captured product. Favorable tides and winds assisted in containing the release, and a USCG drone overflight confirmed the effectiveness of response actions. Most recoverable product remains concentrated near the spill area.” The U.S. Coast Guard Sector Virginia is continuing to monitor the situation. DEQ stated, “Pollution Assessment teams from Coast Guard Sector Virginia, supported by Coast Guard Station Portsmouth boat crews and Unmanned Aircraft Systems, are blanketing the area via land, air, and water to provide real-time tracking of the sheen and ensure rapid response to any shifting conditions.” City officials in Newport News said the cause of the spill remains under investigation. The Virginia Department of Health said there is no impact to local drinking or tap water supplies. While some residents may notice a strong odor and individuals with respiratory conditions could experience headaches or nausea, officials said there is no significant health risk. Residents and boaters were advised to avoid areas of the river where a visible sheen or strong odor is present.

Cleanup underway after tree fell on oil pipeline valve, causing 150-gallon oil spill in Crosby: Officials - ABC13 Houston -- Cleanup is underway after a storm-toppled tree caused an oil spill in Crosby on Saturday night, officials said. According to authorities, the leak occurred near the 16700 block of Golf Club Drive after a tree fell during severe storms and struck a pipeline valve, causing it to malfunction. "You'd think a tree branch, or like, any tree wouldn't crush a pipeline. Pipelines are typically made out of steel, so it's kind of crazy to hear that," said Cannon Stringer, who lives in the area. At about 9:15 p.m., the Harris County Sheriff's Office said deputies responded to reports of a possible gas leak, and residents in the immediate vicinity were told to shelter in place. "We definitely closed our windows, and we didn't drink out of the tap or anything like that," Stringer said. At around 10:30 p.m., the Fire Marshal's Office said its hazmat team had made entry and isolated the leak. Officials confirmed the substance was crude oil, not gas, and lifted the shelter-in-place order. Air monitoring continued as crews worked to secure the area. In a statement, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said a tree branch fell on an Energy Transfer pipeline valve during the evening's storms, causing approximately 150 gallons of crude oil to spill before the valve was shut off. County officials said the oil did not reach nearby homes or bodies of water and only extended about 10 feet from the plant's fence line. First responders placed containment booms around the site to prevent further spread. SkyEye flew over the area on Sunday morning, capturing video of the cleanup effort as crews placed materials on the ground, all welcome news for Stringer. "Hopefully they did the right thing and take that soil up and clean it up and make sure the area is safe going forward too, because the next rain event you don't want any of that washing away into that lake, so that's good to know that they took control of that," Stringer said. The Fire Marshal's Office confirmed the leak did not occur at a water treatment plant and had no impact on plant operations or systems, and said no injuries were reported.

Permian, Gulf of Mexico & Haynesville Shuffle Rigs While Total Count Remains Unchanged For Second Consecutive Week - U.S. oil and gas rig count was unchanged for the second consecutive week, holding at 551 rigs for the week ending February 20 according to Baker Hughes. Rigs were added in the Permian (+1) and All Other (+2), while the Gulf of Mexico (-2) and Haynesville (-1) both declined this week. Total rig count is up two in the last 90 days, but remains down 37 from this week a year ago. Oil-directed rigs at 409, gas-directed rigs at 133 and miscellaneous rigs at 9 were all unchanged this week as well.

Bridger’s 550 Mb/d U.S. Canada Cross-Border Crude Pipeline Play | RBN Energy -Bridger Pipeline Expansion, LLC has filed plans with the Montana Department of Environmental Quality for a new 36-inch crude oil transmission line (yellow dashed line in map below) that would move Canadian crude roughly 645 miles south to Guernsey, Wyoming. Given the proposed border origin point, the only infrastructure capable of supplying that scale of incremental volume is the partially constructed Keystone XL system (red line in map) in Alberta, which has remained idle since 2021. Segments of 36-inch pipe, along with the Hardisty-area terminal and two pump stations, are already in place. By effectively tying into that dormant footprint, Bridger’s proposal would repurpose stranded assets and create a functional cross-border outlet without reviving Keystone XL’s full southern leg. More than half of the Montana segment and all of Wyoming would parallel existing rights-of-way. That approach lowers construction costs and reduces environmental and regulatory risk in a landscape where permitting timelines can make or break project economics. Operationally, the line could interconnect with Bridger’s existing systems at Four Mile and Baker, allowing some Bakken light crude to enter the stream. Although Canadian barrels appear to be the primary target, incremental Bakken receipts would add throughput stability and commercial optionality. Guernsey, however, is not an endpoint but rather a gateway - meaning downstream integration will be critical. According to our friends at Plainview Energy, with an initial capacity of 550 Mb/d, one option for this next step would be a new-build connection to Keystone’s existing pipeline at Steele City, Nebraska, where underutilized capacity exists toward Cushing and Patoka (green line in map). From there, volumes could take advantage of Gulf Coast markets via Marketlink from Cushing or Capline from Patoka. As there isn’t an expandable pipeline with space flowing from Guernsey to Steele City, this would require a new pipeline to be built. Another option is a potential tie-in with Pony Express with additional infrastructure. The existing 20 inch Pony Express pipeline (light blue line in map) typically runs nearly full, transporting crude from Guernsey and Northern Colorado to Cushing. Although it wouldn’t be able to accommodate an additional 550 Mb/d of supply, a secondary line already extends into northern Colorado. By leveraging portions of that secondary line and constructing a new pipeline broadly paralleling the existing Pony Express route to Cushing, Bridger could establish a scalable pathway to market. While this approach would still require significant new build, it would anchor the expansion to a proven corridor and established delivery point, rather than starting from scratch.

House GOP targets green groups over Willow fight - House Republicans are investigating environmental groups over their efforts to stop a major oil and natural gas project in Alaska. GOP leaders on the Natural Resources Committee said Friday that they sent letters to the Center for Biological Diversity, Defenders of Wildlife, Earthjustice, Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace and the Natural Resources Defense Council, seeking a slew of internal records about their fights against the Willow Project, which President Joe Biden greenlit in 2023. “The Committee is particularly concerned with [the Center for Biological Diversity’s] extensive history of lawfare, including ethically dubious sue and settle tactics, and CBD’s coordination with other activist environmental groups to not only champion a disdain for established essential multiple use principles, but also drown out the voices of native Alaskans while simultaneously undermining American energy independence,” Chair Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.), Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chair Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) and Rep. Nick Begich (R-Alaska) wrote in their letter to CBD dated Thursday, with similar language in other letters. Each group, the lawmakers wrote, “appears determined to ignore Willow’s indispensability, undermine American energy security, and obstruct native Alaskan prosperity through its unscrupulous coordinated litigation tactics.”

Interior moves to open 2M acres in Alaska to drilling, mining - The Interior Department announced Friday it is revoking two public land withdrawals along a highway important to the oil and mining industries in Alaska after the state accused the Biden administration of reneging on a promise to do so two years ago. The issue involves Interior issuing a public land order that would lift restrictions on the use of federal lands covering more than 2 million acres along a significant stretch of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System and a highway used by the oil industry. The state has long sought access to those lands, which are critical to the future of its oil economy. It wants them turned over to Alaska as part of its ongoing efforts to gain title to millions of acres of land currently under federal ownership. The Bureau of Land Management was supposed to launch an analysis into lifting the restrictions but then abruptly changed course in 2024, sparking an angry response from Alaska’s elected leaders.

LNG Floods Europe, Keeping Lid on TTF Prices Despite Storage Deficit -A steady influx of LNG to Europe, combined with exceptionally weak Asian demand are keeping global natural gas prices low as the winter draws to a close. European Union gas storage chart showing inventories at 383.22 TWh, 33.5% full as of Feb. 15, 2026, down 151.3 TWh year/year and below the five-year average by 177.0 TWh. At A Glance:
European imports outpacing recent weeks
Lunar New Year weighing on Asia demand
Golden Pass LNG ramping up

Europe’s Storage Deficit Expected to Continue Pulling U.S. LNG During Strong Restocking Season -European LNG imports hit a monthly record in January, but storage inventories are on track to end the winter at their lowest point since 2018 as the continent has become more reliant on seaborne shipments of the fuel since Russia cut off most of its pipeline deliveries. Table titled “U.S. Gulf Coast LNG Netback Prices (12-Month Strip)” as of Feb 18, 2026, showing JKM, NBP and TTF futures, shipping costs, Gulf Coast netbacks and margins over Henry Hub, with April 2026 netbacks near $10/MMBtu and margins above $7/MMBtu.At A Glance:
Storage at 32.5% of capacity
10–15 Mt of demand expected
40 Mt of new LNG coming to market

China Pullback Shifts LNG Demand Focus to Southeast Asia -As the 2026 restocking season approaches, the center of gravity in the global LNG market is shifting as traditional giants like China and Japan pull back from the volatile spot market. NGI chart of prompt month natural gas statistics for previous five trading days, showing U.S., Europe, Asia fundamentals, Henry Hub futures, LNG feedgas, storage, spark spreads, global DES prices in $/MMBtu. At A Glance:
TTF, JKM hover near $10
Lower prices lure sensitive buyers
China leans on coal, hydro

EU Considers Emergency Steps to Restore Russian Oil Through Druzhba Pipeline -A European Commission spokeswoman on February 17 confirmed that Brussels was in touch with Ukraine regarding the Druzhba pipeline that has been damaged since late January, preventing Russian oil from flowing to Hungary and Slovakia."We are in contact with Ukraine on the timeline for reparation of the Druzhba oil pipeline and how quickly this might be up and running," Anna-Kaisa Itkonen told journalists in Brussels, adding the EU executive was ready to call an emergency coordination group with relevant parties to discuss alternative routes to fuel supply. Itkonen also said there were "no short-term risks to security of supply for Hungary and Slovakia" as they hold 90 days of reserve stocks.The halt of Russian oil via the pipeline has caused tensions between Ukraine and EU member states Hungary and Slovakia.While Kyiv has maintained that a Russian drone attack was responsible for the disruption starting on January 27, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said on February 15 that Ukraine had delayed the restart of the oil flow in order to pressure Hungary to drop its veto on Ukraine's future membership of the European Union.Fico said this was "political blackmail."While the European Union has imposed an import ban on Russian oil via pipelines over the Kremlin's war in Ukraine, landlocked Hungary and Slovakia secured exemptions to those sanctions.On February 16, Budapest also expressed its wish to invoke the temporary exemption to import seaborne Russian crude oil via Croatia using the Adria pipeline."We request Croatia to enable the transport of Russian oil to Hungary and Slovakia via the Adria pipeline, as our sanctions exemption provides the possibility to import Russian oil by sea if pipeline deliveries are disrupted," Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto wrote on X.Croatian Economy Minister Ante Susnjar said Zagreb should be able to help,tweeting that "Croatia will not allow Central Europe's fuel supply to be endangered. We are ready to help solve the acute disruption."He did, however, also criticize Budapest and Bratislava in the same post on X for so far not being able to diversify from Russian energy imports by adding that "the Adria pipeline is ready, so there are no technical excuses left for staying tied to Russian crude for any EU country. A barrel bought from Russia may appear cheaper to some countries, but helps fund war and attacks on Ukrainian people. It's time to stop that war profiteering."

FT Uncovers $90 Billion Russian Oil Smuggling Operation -- Nearly fifty seemingly separate companies have been involved in coordinating to mask the origin of Russian oil, moving crude worth at least $90 billion, an investigation of the Financial Times has found. FT uncovered the network due to an IT blunder—the 48 identified entities all share a single private email server. The oil smuggling network includes firms and persons linked to Russia’s top oil producer, state-controlled Rosneft, and these have been in coordination to mask the origin of Russian crude, especially of Rosneft. The profits are estimated very conservatively at $90 billion, but are likely much higher, according to FT’s investigation. The U.S. slapped sanctions on Rosneft in October 2025, effectively cutting off a major market for the Kremlin-controlled firm. The Russians and their connections were not deterred—they intensified the smuggling operations. Since October 2025, one company part of the network, Redwood Global Supply, has been the single biggest exporter of Russian crude oil, according to FT’s investigation. Redwood Global Supply was sanctioned by the UK in December 2025 together with 13 other “entities and individuals involved in supporting the Russian energy sector.” Some of the companies in the email server are already known to EU sanctions authorities for being involved in shady operations and likely helping sell Russian crude, the FT notes. But the true scale of the smuggling operation is unclear. It’s not clear how many other persons or entities are involved, either, according to FT. The uncovered sprawling smuggling network comes as no surprise for analysts, who say the oil trading business is so lucrative that there are always entities involved in selling sanctioned crude cargoes. “It’s quite obvious that Rosneft and Lukoil are using the same oil marketing networks and tankers to circumvent sanctions and keep oil flowing,” Michelle Wiese Bockmann, a maritime expert at marine intelligence company Windward, told FT.

Discovery Off Brazil Has About 8 Billion BOE in Place: BP -There are about 8 billion boe in place in BP’s Bumerangue discovery offshore Brazil, the company said in its earnings report for Q4 2025. There is a wide range of uncertainty about the estimate and plans are being made for an appraisal program that will start around the end of the year, Chief Financial Officer Kate Thomson said on the earnings call.At the time the discovery was announced in August 2025, BP said it was its biggest in 25 years and that it expected well activities to begin in 2027.BP said it started up seven new major projects and set a record for upstream plant reliability in 2025, which supported flat underlying production versus 2024, exceeding its guidance from 12 months ago. It said upstream production is expected to be slightly lower in 2026, with oil production and operations to be broadly flat and gas and low-carbon energy to be lower. Combined oil and gas output was 2,344 Mboe/d in Q4 2025. Capital expenditures for 2026 are estimated at $13 billion to $13.5 billion, about level with 2025, with the spending weighted toward Q1 2026.

Vermilion's Wandoo gas exports halted after December oil spill - Vermilion must cease petroleum export at Wandoo until the regulator is satisfied that the environmental risks have been reduced. The federal regulator has halted exports from a foreign-owned gas field after an oil spill off Western Australia's north coast in December. The National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA) said it had found "systemic failures" by Vermilion Oil and Gas Australia at its Wandoo facility, about 80 kilometres north-east of Karratha. The "recurring themes" of earlier inspections then culminated in an unplanned leak of petroleum. A spokesperson for Vermilion confirmed the December 11 incident in a statement. "The leak contained a limited amount of oil and seawater, as a pressure test and flush had just been completed," the spokesperson said. "The equipment was depressurised to reduce the amount of oil and water released from the escape point, and a plug was successfully inserted." Vermilion, which has owned the Wandoo field since 2005, said methods of containment or dispersal were not needed. The Canadian-owned producer engaged the Australian Marine Oil Spill Centre and self-reported to NOPSEMA, estimating about four cubic metres of oil and water were spilled. No impact on wildlife has been revealed thus far. NOPSEMA said the incident, combined with a failed environmental inspection in October 2025, showed "repeated non-compliance" and "inadequate implementation of inspection, maintenance, and assurance processes". The regulator has issued a general direction to Vermilion to cease all gas export from the Wandoo system until it is satisfied appropriate interim controls have been put in place. It has also required a third-party review, corrective actions and a transition to a fully replaced oil export system by the end of 2027.

Oil Prices Subdued As US, Iran Resume Talks - Oil prices were little changed on Monday as investors weighed prospects of OPEC+ supply increases and awaited upcoming U.S.-Iran talks aimed at de-escalating tensions. Benchmark Brent crude futures slipped 0.2 percent to $67.65 a barrel, while WTI crude futures were down 0.2 percent at $62.65. Due to Presidents' Day holiday in the United States, there will be no official settlement for WTI today. Both contracts posted modest losses last week after U.S. President Donald Trump said he expects a nuclear deal with Iran to materialize within the next month. The two countries will hold a second round of talks over Tehran's nuclear program this week, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urging Trump to demand Iran dismantle its nuclear infrastructure. Ahead of the talks taking place on Tuesday in Geneva, Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi told the BBC in an interview that the country is ready to consider compromises to reach a nuclear deal with the United States in return for the lifting of sanctions. Meanwhile, media reports suggest the OPEC+ alliance is considering "resuming output increases" starting in April. No decision has yet been ?made and talks will continue in the weeks ahead of the meeting on March 1, it was said.

Oil prices edge higher ahead of US–Iran nuclear talks - Oil prices rose slightly on Monday, with investors weighing the market implications of upcoming U.S.-Iran talks aimed at de-escalating tensions against a backdrop of expected OPEC+ supply increases. Brent crude futures gained 41 cents, or 0.6%, to $68.16 a barrel by 1508 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $63.32 a barrel, up 43 cents. The contract will have no settlement on Monday, the Presidents’ Day holiday in the United States. Fears of supply disruption from the U.S.-Iran tensions have helped keep oil prices stable. Trading is set to be muted also with markets in China, South Korea and Taiwan closed for Lunar New Year holidays. Last week, both benchmarks posted weekly declines with Brent settling about 0.5% lower and WTI losing 1% after comments from U.S. President Donald Trump that Washington could make a deal with Tehran over the next month. The two countries are due to hold a second round of talks in Geneva on Tuesday over Tehran’s nuclear programme. In the run-up to the talks with Washington, mediated by Oman, Iran’s foreign minister met with the U.N. nuclear watchdog chief. Iran is pursuing a nuclear agreement with the U.S. that delivers economic benefits for both sides, with energy and mining investments and aircraft purchases up for discussion, an Iranian diplomat was reported as saying. The U.S. is preparing for the possibility of a sustained military campaign if the talks do not succeed, U.S. officials have told Reuters. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have warned that in case of strikes on Iranian territory, they could retaliate against any U.S. military base. “Increased Iranian tension could drive Brent to $80 a barrel. Fading tension would drop it back to $60 a barrel,” SEB analysts said in a note. With U.S.-Iran tensions pushing up oil prices, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies - together called OPEC+ - are putting a dampener on this bullishness by leaning toward a decision to resume output increases from April at their March 1 meeting following a three-month halt, Reuters reported. Meanwhile, China’s Russian oil imports are set to climb for a third straight month to a new record in February after India slashed purchases on the back of U.S. pressure, according to traders and ship-tracking data.

Brent Oil Prices Drop on Iran Naval Drills Ahead of US Talks | Ukraine news - Brent oil price fell on Asian markets on Tuesday amid expectations of supply disruptions caused by Iran’s naval exercises near the Strait of Hormuz ahead of planned talks between the United States and Iran. According to market analysts, the market remains sensitive due to potential supply constraints and geopolitical tensions that could affect oil prices. Brent futures fell 0.47% to hit $68.33 per barrel at 04:30 GMT (06:30 Kyiv time), after rising 1.33% in the previous trading day. Meanwhile, U.S. WTI crude traded at $63.51 per barrel, up $0.62, or 0.99%. However, this uptick largely reflected Monday’s momentum, as some contracts did not settle due to the Presidents’ Day holiday in the United States. Many market platforms were closed on Tuesday due to Chinese New Year holidays, including in mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, and Singapore. On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump said he was indirectly involved in the talks in Geneva, adding that, in his view, Iran is looking to strike a deal. Over the weekend, Trump said that regime change in Iran “would be the best thing that could happen.” “Market sentiment is closely tied to the tone and pace of these talks, which supports the geopolitical risk premium in prices,” said Sugandha Sachdeva, founder of the Delhi-based research firm SS WealthStreet. OPEC+ is leaning toward resuming oil output increases from April as the group gears up for peak summer demand, with prices supported by the tension between the United States and Iran. “Our base case envisions that deals with Iran and between Russia and Ukraine will be concluded by or during the summer this year, which would help push prices down to $60-62 per barrel of Brent,” Citi said. Analysts note that the market could face further swings depending on how talks unfold and any potential deals that could affect global supply. Still, the current momentum underscores pressure on Brent and the potential price range in the coming months.

Oil Prices Fall on US-Iran Talks Progress (DTN) -- Oil and product futures mostly slid Tuesday morning after Iran's foreign minister signaled substantive progress in talks with the United States, which is attempting to shut down Tehran's nuclear program. In crude, NYMEX WTI futures for March delivery slid $0.20 to $62.69 bbl, and ICE Brent for April delivery fell $1.01 to $67.64 bbl. Downstream, front-month ULSD futures were down $0.0032 to $2.3847 gallon. RBOB for March delivery bucked the trend, rising $0.0038 to $1.9148 gallon. The U.S. Dollar Index strengthened 0.446 points to 97.265 against a basket of foreign currencies. Following indirect negotiations between U.S. and Iranian negotiators in Geneva earlier Friday, Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said the two parties had reached an "understanding on main principles," and have a "clearer path forward". Following the remarks, front-month WTI futures briefly plunged $0.85 bbl. Oil prices rose earlier on Tuesday after Iran announced it will close the Strait of Hormuz for a few hours for a military drill. Prices soon steadied, as the announced temporary closure of the vital oil chokepoint was interpreted as an Iranian show of force with negligible impact on global supply. A rising geopolitical risk premium tied to U.S.-Iran tensions has so far this year supported prices against an otherwise bearish backdrop of market fundamentals. The International Energy Agency in its latest monthly oil market report published Thursday, Feb. 12, cut demand growth expectations for 2026, forecasting a 3.7 million bpd crude oversupply this year. Meanwhile, supply constraints elsewhere prevented a deeper price plunge. Ukraine on Tuesday announced it had struck yet another refinery inside Russia, ahead of trilateral talks scheduled for today. The outcome of negotiations brokered by the U.S. in Geneva is another factor keeping oil price volatility elevated.

Oil prices slide 2% to two-week low on talk of progress in US-Iran talks (Reuters) - Oil prices fell about 2% to a two-week low on Tuesday on hopes tensions between the United States and Iran were easing after Iran's foreign minister said the countries had reached an understanding on the main "guiding principles" of their nuclear talks. Brent futures fell $1.23, or 1.8%, to settle at $67.42 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell 56 cents, or 0.9%, to settle at $62.33. Those were the lowest closes for Brent since February 3 and for WTI since February 2. Iran and the United States reached an understanding on the main "guiding principles" in a second round of indirect talks in Geneva over their nuclear dispute on Tuesday, but that does not mean a deal is imminent, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said. The talks took place amid a U.S. military buildup in the Middle East. Iran's supreme leader said on Tuesday that any U.S. attempt to depose his government would fail. Separately, Iran shut down the Strait of Hormuz for a few hours on Tuesday, Iranian state media reported, without making clear whether the waterway, one of the world's most vital oil export routes, had fully reopened. Oil prices are likely to stay volatile, with sharp two-way swings driven by diplomatic signals rather than pure demand-supply fundamentals, said Sugandha Sachdeva, founder of SS WealthStreet, a New Delhi-based research firm. Investors are closely watching U.S.-Iran relations as any escalation or conflict could lead to Iran closing the Strait of Hormuz. About a fifth of the oil consumed globally passes through the between Oman and Iran, making any disruptions in the area a major risk to global oil supplies. Iran and fellow Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) members Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Iraq export most of their crude via the Strait, mainly to Asia. In 2025, Iran was the third-biggest crude producer in OPEC behind Saudi Arabia and Iraq, according to U.S. Energy Information Administration data. Another factor weighing on prices was the gradual increase in oil production at Kazakhstan's giant Tengiz oil field after an outage in January, Russian news agency Interfax reported. Also in Geneva on Tuesday, negotiators from Ukraine and Russia concluded the first of two days of U.S.-mediated peace talks in Geneva on Tuesday, with U.S. President Donald Trump pressing Kyiv to act fast to reach a deal to end the four-year conflict. Any peace resolution could see a lifting of sanctions on Russia, bringing Russian oil back to the mainstream market. In 2025, Russia was the third-biggest crude producer in the world behind the United States and Saudi Arabia, according to data from the U.S. EIA. Ukraine, meanwhile, continued its attacks on Russian energy infrastructure. The Ukrainian military said on Tuesday it struck the Ilsky refinery, while a drone attack was also reported at the port of Taman.

Oil prices rise amidst geopolitical, geoeconomic concerns - Oil prices climbed on Wednesday as markets struggled with geopolitical balance, as a result of sustained fluctuation between supply and demand outlook. U.S policy instability has stoked pressures on geoeconnomic stressing global economic projections. Brent crude traded at $67.09 per barrel, up 0.2% from the previous close of $66.93. US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) increased 0.2 per cent to $62.32 per barrel, compared with $62.18 in the previous session. Markets focused on comments from US Vice President JD Vance, who said a second round of negotiations with Iran had been productive “in some ways,” but that Tehran was “not yet willing” to engage on certain “red lines” set by President Donald Trump. “Our primary interest here is we don’t want Iran to get a nuclear weapon,” the vice president said during an interview with Fox News. “In some ways, it went well. They agreed to meet afterwards. But in other ways, it was very clear that the president has set some red lines that the Iranians are not yet willing to actually acknowledge and work through,” Vance added. The Iranian delegation was led by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, while the US team was headed by special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. Araghchi said there had been progress in Geneva, describing the atmosphere as “more constructive.” “It was decided that both sides will work on the drafts of a potential agreement, and after exchanging the texts,” he said. “The timing of the next round of talks will be determined.” Iran’s top diplomat added that a clear path lies ahead for nuclear negotiations with the American side, which is “assessed positively” from Iran’s perspective. On February 6, Oman hosted a first round of indirect talks in Muscat, the first since Trump ordered strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities in June. Trump has since directed a US military buildup in the region as he threatens Iran to make a deal with Washington. While the comments suggested some progress, investors appeared reluctant to price in a full easing of geopolitical risk without clearer signs of a concrete agreement. Any durable deal could eventually open the door to changes in Iran’s oil supply outlook, but for now uncertainty remains. Meanwhile, US special envoy Steve Witkoff said Tuesday that Ukraine and Russia have agreed to continue negotiations following a third set of trilateral discussions in Geneva. “Today, at President (Donald) Trump’s direction, the United States moderated a third set of trilateral discussions with Ukraine and Russia,” he said on the US social media platform X. Witkoff thanked Switzerland for hosting the meetings. “Both parties agreed to update their respective leaders and continue working towards a deal,” he added. His remarks came after the first day of US-brokered peace talks between Russian and Ukrainian delegations ended without any significant developments. The US was represented by Witkoff and Kushner, who entered the negotiations after assisting with indirect discussions with Iranian officials at another location in the Swiss city earlier Tuesday. Analysts say any shift in the geopolitical balance could inject a risk premium into oil prices. Markets are also watching US inventory data, with figures from the American Petroleum Institute due later Wednesday and the Energy Information Administration’s official report expected

Oil Prices Surge 3% After Russia-Ukraine Talks Break Down -- Oil prices surged nearly 3% on Wednesday after peace talks between Ukraine and Russia in Geneva ended abruptly after only two hours. The failure to reach a breakthrough heightened market fears that sanctions and supply restrictions on Russian oil will persist longer than previously anticipated. Brent crude for April delivery was up 2.74% to trade at $69.15 per barrel at 8.20 am ET in Wednesday’s morning session while WTI crude for March delivery gained 2.79% to change hands at $64.05 per barrel.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called the talks “difficult” and said Russia was dragging its feet rather than moving seriously toward ending the war, now in its fourth year. Before the breakdown, traders had started to factor in the possibility of a “peace dividend”, in which Russian crude could flow more freely back into global markets. When the negotiations stalled, that expectation faded, and oil prices moved higher as geopolitical risk returned to the forefront.Traders are also focused on Iran. U.S.-mediated nuclear talks could eventually lead to some sanctions relief and allow more Iranian crude onto the market. At the same time, joint naval drills with Russia and renewed tension around the Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20% of global oil supply passes, are keeping supply risks in view. That balance between possible additional barrels and potential disruption is adding to price swings.Meanwhile, tensions remain high following reports that Hungary has halted diesel shipments to Ukraine until crude flows through the Druzhba pipeline are fully restored. Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó announced that the cessation is a direct response to the halt of Russian oil transit through Ukraine, which has been blocked since January 27, 2026. Hungary has called the halt in crude shipments “political blackmail” by Ukraine and insists there is no technical reason the transit cannot restart. To secure supplies, Hungary’s MOL Group has asked to tap about 250,000 tons of strategic crude reserves and is looking at moving Russian oil through Croatia via the Adriatic pipeline. Slovakia has also warned that continued disruption could affect fuel imports and force limits on exports. Adding to the strain, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovi? has voiced reservations about increasing the transit of Russian crude to Hungary through Croatia’s territory, suggesting that any expanded use of the Adriatic pipeline could face political scrutiny in Zagreb.

Oil jumps 4% after Vance says Iran ignored key U.S. demands, military strikes on the table - Oil prices rose more than 4% on Wednesday, after Vice President JD Vance said Iran did not address U.S. red lines in nuclear talks this week and President Donald Trump reserves the right to use military force. U.S. crude oil rose $2.86, or 4.59%, to close at $65.19 per barrel. Global benchmark Brent was up $2.93, or 4.35%, to settle at $70.35 per barrel. U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner held nuclear talks with Iran in Geneva on Tuesday. Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, described the discussions as "constructive," according to Iranian media. Araghchi said the talks yielded a general agreement on guiding principles. Oil prices closed lower Tuesday as traders interpreted the foreign minister's comments as a sign that the U.S. and Iran could still reach a settlement. But Vance said Tehran had failed to address core U.S. demands. "In some ways it went well, they agreed to meet afterwards," the vice president told Fox News on Tuesday evening. "But in other ways it is very clear that the president has set some red lines that the Iranians are not yet willing to actually acknowledge and work through." Trump reserves the right to use force if diplomacy does not succeed in stopping Iran's nuclear program, Vance said. "We do have a very powerful military — the president has shown a willingness to use it," the vice president told Fox News. Sources told Axios, meanwhile, that a U.S. military campaign against Iran would likely be massive, last weeks and look more like a full-fledged war than the raid that captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in January. Iran's Revolutionary Guard conducted war games this week in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital trade choke point for global oil flows. About one-third of all waterborne crude exports pass through the narrow waterway, according to data from energy consulting firm Kpler. The market is worried those oil flows would be disrupted if the U.S. and Iran go to war. Iranian state media said traffic in part of the strait was closed Tuesday due to the military exercises. Kpler did not observe any halt in traffic in the strait on Tuesday, said Matt Smith, an oil analyst at the firm. Trump has stationed the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier in the Middle East. The USS Gerald Ford is en route to the region. Trump said Friday he deployed the second aircraft carrier in case negotiations fail. "If we don't have a deal, we'll need it," the president told reporters outside the White House. The Iranian government did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment.

Brent Oil Price Tops $71 as Fears of U.S.-Iran Conflict Grow --Following a 4% surge on Wednesday, oil prices advanced by another 1.6% in European trade early on Thursday to send Brent to above $71.50, the highest level in six months, as concerns about a U.S. military campaign in Iran intensified.The international benchmark, Brent Crude, was up by 1.71% at $71.55 in morning trade in Europe, as the U.S.-Iran talks appear to make no headway, while the U.S. is amassing military forces near the Persian Gulf.The U.S. benchmark oil prices, WTI Crude, also jumped to trade at $66.37 per barrel, up by 1.83% on the day, following the 4% surge at Wednesday’s settlement.The U.S. Administration has warned Iran that it would be “very wise” to make a deal as diplomatic efforts and talks continue. On Wednesday, Axios reported that the U.S. is moving closer to a war with Iran. A campaign in Iran would be nothing like the Venezuela blitz and could involve “a massive, weeks-long campaign,” Axios reported, citing sources. U.S. President Donald Trump has not yet made a final decision about a possible military intervention, sources with knowledge of the discussions among top U.S. national security officials told CBS News. But the President has discussed options, including a strike that could be ordered as soon as this coming Saturday, according to the sources. “For oil markets, the concern is clearly what action would mean not only for Iranian oil supply, but also broader Persian Gulf oil flows, given the risk of disruption to shipments through the Strait of Hormuz,” ING strategists wrote in a Thursday note. Adding to the difficult U.S.-Iran talks, the Russia-Ukraine talks in Geneva also broke down without any breakthrough and pushed oil prices higher.Moreover, the shape of the ICE Brent futures curve suggests that the oil market is “tighter than what many analysts have been expecting, including us,” ING’s strategists said, noting that many buyers aren’t touching large volumes of sanctioned barrels, which is tightening supply.

WTI Extends Geopolitical Risk Gains After Across-The-Board Inventory Draws -Oil prices pushed higher Thursday on worries that nuclear talks between US and Iran might not avert a new conflict that could threaten supplies. "Oil is extending its gains, with Brent crude back above $70 a barrel... as fears of a military confrontation between the US and Iran rattled energy markets," "Nuclear talks between the two sides appear to be going nowhere fast, and the geopolitical premium is clearly back in play," he added. On top of that, API reported an across the board draw in energy inventories. “The failure to resolve core areas of contention continues to tip the scales in favor of another military confrontation,” “The massive buildup of US military assets in the region as well as the recent Iranian naval exercise in the Strait of Hormuz seem to suggest that the launch sequence for a second military conflict has commenced.” Will the official data confirm API's draws and build (pun intended) on the geopolitical risk premia in crude prices... API:

• Crude -609k
• Cushing -1.4mm
• Gasoline -312k
• Distillates -1.6mm

DOE:

• Crude -9.014mm - biggest draw since Sept 2025
• Cushing -1.095mm - biggest draw since Jun 2025
• Gasoline -3.21mm - biggest draw since Oct 2025
• Distillates -4.566mm

The official data confirmed API with inventory draws across the board. Crude saw its biggest destocking since September and Gasoline stocks fell for the first time since Nov 7th... Graphs Source: Bloomberg. US crude production extended its rebound from the storm slowdown... WTI is trading near $67 after the official inventory data, extending gains..."Geopolitical issues, above all Iran, are the key bullish factor in the oil market at the moment," University of Texas-Austin energy analyst Ben Cahill tells Axios via email."Otherwise there's not a whole lot of price support toward $70 [per barrel]. The slack in this market could embolden the White House," he said. Iran exports about 1.5 million barrels per day, mostly to China. But the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow sea passage next to Iran, is a choke point that handles a whopping one-fourth or so of the world's maritime oil trade. "For oil markets, the concern is clearly what action would mean not only for Iranian oil supply, but also broader Persian Gulf oil flows, given the risk of disruption to shipments through the Strait of Hormuz," ING analysts said in a note on Wednesday.

Escalating U.S.–Iran Tensions Send the Oil Market to Six-Month Highs -- The oil market rallied higher on Thursday and ended the session at its highest level in six months amid worries of escalating tensions between the U.S. and Iran. U.S. President Donald Trump warned Iran on Thursday that it must reach a deal over its nuclear program or “bad things” will happen, and appeared to set a 10-day deadline before the U.S. might take action. The U.S. has deployed aircraft carriers, warships and jets to the region, with U.S. Vice President JD Vance saying Washington was considering whether it should continue diplomatic engagement with Tehran or pursue another option. Meanwhile, according to the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, Iran issued a notice to airmen that it planned rocket launches in areas across the south of the country on Thursday. The market posted a low of $64.88 on the opening and continued to trend higher throughout the session. The market was further supported by the EIA’s weekly petroleum stocks report, which showed an unexpected draw in crude stocks of 9 million barrels in the week ending February 13th. The EIA also reported large draws in distillates and gasoline stocks amid higher demand. The oil market rallied to a high of $66.88 in afternoon trading and settled in a sideways trading range ahead of the close. The March WTI ended the session up $1.24 or 1.9% at $66.43 and the April Brent contract settled up $1.31 or 1.9% at $71.66. The product markets ended the session higher, with the heating oil market settling up 9.6 cents at $2.6147 and the RB market settling up 3.86 cents at $2.0666. The EIA reported that U.S. crude, gasoline and distillate inventories fell last week as demand increased from refineries to the fuel pump. Crude inventories fell by 9 million barrels to 419.8 million barrels in the week ended February 13th. Crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma fell by 1.1 million barrels. Total product supplied, a proxy for demand, increased by 540,000 bpd to 21.65 million bpd. U.S. product supplied of distillate fuel oil increased to 4.75 million bpd, the highest since January 2022. ​Gasoline demand increased by 449,000 bpd to 8.75 million bpd. On Thursday, U.S. President Donald Trump warned Iran that it must reach a deal over its nuclear program or “bad things” will happen, and appeared to set a 10-day deadline before the U.S. might take action. President Trump said negotiations with Iran were going well but insisted Tehran has to reach a “meaningful” agreement. He called on Tehran to join the U.S. on the “path to peace.” On Wednesday, a senior U.S. official said that Iran was expected to submit a written proposal on how to resolve its standoff with the United States after the talks in Geneva. The official said U.S. national security advisers met in the White House on Wednesday and were told all U.S. military forces deployed to the region should be in place by mid-March. The Environmental Protection Agency reported that the U.S. generated fewer renewable blending credits in January. It reported that about 1.22 billion ethanol (D6) blending credits were generated in January, compared with about 1.32 billion in December. It reported that credits generated from biodiesel (D4) blending fell to 438 million in January from 670 million in December.

Oil Prices Hover Near Six-month High On US-Iran Tensions - Oil hovered near its highest level since August on Friday amid rising geopolitical risks after U.S. President Donald Trump warned Tehran that it had a "maximum" 15 days to reach a deal with the U.S. or "bad things will happen". Benchmark Brent crude futures slipped 0.2 percent to $71.53 a barrel but were set for a 6 percent weekly gain. WTI crude futures were down 0.3 percent at $66.22 after adding about 7 percent in the prior two sessions. A stronger dollar prompted traders to book profits at higher levels as investors waited for cues from the release of U.S. GDP and PCE inflation data later in the day. After the failure of multiple rounds of U.S.-Iran nuclear talks, Trump has set a 10-15 day deadline for Iran to agree nuclear deal or face "bad things". With potential U.S. military action looming, Iran has warned that U.S. bases in the Middle East could be "legitimate targets" if Washington attacks. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has reportedly blocked a request from Trump to allow U.S. forces to use U.K. air bases during any pre-emptive attack on Iran, saying it could break international law. Elsewhere, U.S. Ambassador to India Sergio Gor said today that the United States doesn't want anyone buying Russian oil and President Trump "has been clear on this." Underlining Washington's push for India to diversify its crude imports amid the ongoing Ukraine conflict, Gor said that discussions are underway between the U.S. Department of Energy and India's Ministry of Energy over potential imports of Venezuelan crude.

Trump Says He Is 'Considering' Limited Strike On Iran To Pressure It Into Deal - US President Donald Trump said he was considering a limited strike on Iran after ordering a major naval buildup in the Middle East aimed at heaping pressure on Tehran to cut a deal to curb its nuclear programme. The latest threat came after Iran's foreign minister said a draft proposal for an agreement with Washington would be ready in a matter of days following negotiations between the two sides in Geneva earlier this week. Trump had suggesting on Thursday that "bad things" would happen if Tehran did not strike a deal within 10 days, which he subsequently extended to 15. Asked by a reporter on Friday whether he was contemplating a limited military strike, Trump answered: "The most I can say -- I am considering it." After the talks in Geneva, Tehran said the two sides had agreed to submit drafts of a potential agreement, which Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told US media would be the "next step". "I believe that in the next two, three days, that would be ready, and after final confirmation by my superiors, that would be handed over to Steve Witkoff," he said, referring to Trump's main Middle East negotiator. Araghchi also said US negotiators had not requested that Tehran end its nuclear enrichment programme, contradicting statements from American officials. "We have not offered any suspension, and the US side has not asked for zero enrichment," he said in an interview released Friday by US TV network MS NOW. "What we are now talking about is how to make sure that Iran's nuclear programme, including enrichment, is peaceful and would remain peaceful forever," he added. His comments stand in contrast to information relayed by high-ranking US officials, including Trump, who has repeatedly said Iran must not be allowed to enrich uranium at any level. Western countries accuse the Islamic republic of seeking to acquire nuclear weapons, which Tehran denies, though it insists on its right to enrichment for civilian purposes. Iran, for its part, is seeking to negotiate an end to sanctions that have proven to be a massive drag on its economy. Economic hardships sparked protests in December that evolved into a nationwide anti-government movement last month, prompting a crackdown from authorities that left thousands dead, rights groups say. The two foes held an initial round of discussions on February 6 in Oman, the first since previous talks collapsed during the 12-day Iran-Israel war last June, which the US joined by striking Iranian nuclear facilities. Washington has pursued a major military build-up in the region in tandem with the talks, and both sides have traded threats of military action for weeks. On Thursday, Trump again suggested the US would attack Iran if it did not make a deal within the timeframe he laid out. "We have to make a meaningful deal otherwise bad things happen," Trump told the inaugural meeting of the "Board of Peace", his initiative for the post-war Gaza Strip. Iran's ambassador to the UN, Amir Saeid Iravani, warned that US bases, facilities and assets would be "legitimate targets" if the United States followed through on its threats. Araghchi, however, insisted that "there is no ultimatum". "We only talk with each other how we can have a fast deal. And a fast deal is something that both sides are interested about," he said. "We are under sanctions, (so) obviously any day that sanctions are terminated sooner it would be better for us," he said, adding Iran had "no reason to delay". Washington has repeatedly called for zero enrichment, but has also sought to address Iran's ballistic missile programme and its support for militant groups in the region -- issues which Israel has pushed to include in the talks. The Israeli army said Friday that it was on "defensive alert" regarding the situation with Iran, but that its guidelines for the public remained unchanged. Ratcheting up the pressure, Trump has deployed a significant naval force to the region. After sending the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and escort battleships to the Gulf in January, he ordered a second carrier, the Gerald Ford, to depart for the Middle East. Iranian naval forces also conducted military drills this week in the Gulf and around the strategic Strait of Hormuz in their own show of force.

Oil prices stable as Trump considers limited military strike against Iran - Oil prices were stable on Friday, after President Donald Trump said he was considering a limited military strike to pressure Iran over its nuclear program."I guess I can say I am considering that," Trump said when asked by a reporter at a White House breakfast with U.S. governors.International benchmark Brent crude futures with April delivery rose 10 cents to close at $71.76 per barrel, while U.S.West Texas Intermediate futures with March delivery lost 4 cents to settle at $66.39.Both contracts notched their highest settle in six months in the previous session as energy market participants continue to monitor supply risks in the oil-rich Middle East.The U.S. and Iran have held talks in Switzerland this week to try to resolve a standoff over Tehran's nuclear program. Initial reports of progress, however, gave way to accusations from Washington that Iran had failed to address core U.S. demands.Speaking at the first meeting of his Board of Peace in Washington on Thursday, the U.S. president said "bad things will happen" if Tehran doesn't agree to a deal over its nuclear program.Trump added that the world will likely find out over the next 10 days whether the U.S. will reach a deal with Iran or take military action. He later told reporters aboard Air Force One that he wanted an agreement within "10 to 15 days." His comments come after a significant buildup of U.S. military forces in the Middle East and amid reports the White House is considering fresh military action against Tehran as soon as this weekend.Trump said Iran's nuclear potential had been "totally decimated" by U.S. strikes on its facilities in June last year, before adding "we may have to take it a step further or we may not," without providing further details.Iran reportedly said in a letter to United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday that Tehran will respond "decisively" if subjected to military aggression.The Islamic Republic has conducted military drills in the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz in recent days, as well as joint naval drills with Russia in the Gulf of Oman, also known as the Sea of Oman. "Everything is in place, or will be by Saturday night, for strikes to commence and so the window opens then," Daniel Shapiro, former U.S. ambassador to Israel, told CNBC's "Access Middle East" on Friday."Doesn't mean that's going to happen immediately. The president did indicate that he is waiting to hear from Iran whether they are prepared to make concessions on their nuclear program that he's insisting on," Shapiro said."I think it's unlikely. We have never seen Iran open to those types of concessions, so I think it is unlikely they will agree to those, which means that in the days coming, the president will have to make that decision on military strikes," he added.The Trump administration has said it still hopes to reach a diplomatic resolution over Tehran's nuclear program, with White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt saying on Wednesday that it would be "very wise" for Iran to make a deal.Martijn Rats, chief commodity strategist at Morgan Stanley, said that, while the oil market is "very well supplied" on a global basis, there are three factors propping up prices."Worries about Iran, clearly. Also, an unusually large amount of buying by China, simply for stockpiling purposes. It makes you wonder what they are going to do with all these inventories and then also we have very high freight rates," Rats told CNBC's "Europe Early Edition" on Friday.Strategists at Barclays said Friday that while equity markets have largely shrugged off the geopolitical noise so far, tensions have been rising since Vice President JD Vance accused Iran of failing to discuss so-called "red lines," alongside reports of increased U.S. military capability in the region."We believe that any strike would likely have to be time limited and with defined targets (nuclear, ballistic missiles), as they were last summer," the strategists said in a research note. “With midterm elections later this year and the administration prioritizing affordability for US consumers, we suspect their willingness to tolerate a prolonged period of significantly higher oil prices, and potentially casualties too, will be limited," they continued. "So if conflict is imminent it is likely to be short lived, in our view."

U.S.-Iran Tensions Threaten to Send Oil Tanker Rates Soaring - The ratcheting up of tensions between the United States and Iran could push an already red-hot supertanker market even higher with rates soaring to the highest level since 2019, analysts say. The daily rate for hiring a supertanker on the key Middle East-to-China route has surged threefold since the beginning of the year, to over $150,000. That’s the highest since 2020, per data from the Baltic Exchange cited by Bloomberg. The rally in freight rates for the very large crude carriers (VLCC) capable of carrying around 2 million barrels of crude began at the end of 2025 on the back of growing oil supply, longer voyages, and disruptions due to sanctions and altered shipping lanes. Following a brief respite in January, the tanker rates have rebounded this month to the highest since 2020 as the market became aware of a major vessel buying spree from South Korea’s Sinokor shipping group, which is now estimated to control about a fourth of all available non-sanctioned tankers. “VLCC rates continue to go from strength to strength,” upwards to the mid $150,000 per day for eastbound cargoes from the Middle East, shipbroker Fearnleys said in its latest weekly report to February 18. “2026 is the year of the horse – and it is galloping at full speed as far as the tanker market goes,” said Fearnleys, which sees “Very few clouds on the sky short term with Sinokor now controlling about 25% of the compliant fleet, leaving charterers with very slim pickings for alternatives.” Fears of a potential U.S. military campaignin Iran that could disrupt shipping in the Middle East are also adding upward pressure on supertanker rates, the shipbroker noted. “We have to make a meaningful deal otherwise bad things happen,” U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday, referring to Iran. “Military action in the Middle East will likely take VLCC rates to levels not seen since 2019,” Anoop Singh, global head of shipping research at Oil Brokerage Ltd, told Bloomberg on Friday.

Indonesia Prepares 1,000 Troops To Be Deployed to Gaza by April for Potential International Force - Indonesia is preparing 1,000 troops to deploy to Gaza as part of a potential peacekeeping force by April, a spokesman for the country’s military told Reuters.Indonesia has said it could potentially deploy a total of 8,000 troops to the besieged Palestinian territory, and the spokesman said the full force will be ready by June.“The departure schedule remains entirely subject to the political decisions of the state and applicable international mechanisms,” spokesman Donny Pramono told the outlet.Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto will travel to Washington this week to attend the first meeting of President Trump’s so-called “Board of Peace,” a US-led body meant to oversee the Gaza ceasefire, which Israel has constantly violated by killing more than 600 Palestinians in the Strip since the deal was signed.Under Trump’s plan for Gaza, an “International Stabilization Force” is supposed to deploy to replace Israeli troops, who currently occupy more than 50% of the Strip. The US was initially planning for the ISF to deploy to Gaza much earlier, but the force didn’t materialize over concerns from countries initially willing to participate that their troops might end up fighting Hamas on behalf of Israel. According to Middle East Eye, the Indonesian Foreign Ministry said in a statement over the weekend that its troops deploying to Gaza will have a non-combat role and will not have a mandate to disarm any group. “Indonesian troops will not be involved in combat operations or any action leading to direct confrontation with any armed group,” the ministry said. However, under the UN Security Council that endorsed Trump’s peace plan, which essentially places Gaza under US control, the ISF is mandated to ensure “the process of demilitarizing the Gaza Strip” and “the permanent decommissioning of weapons from non-state armed groups.” The Indonesian Foreign Ministry also said that its involvement in Gaza doesn’t mean it’s normalizing relations with Israel and condemned the idea of the forced displacement of Palestinians. “Indonesia consistently rejects all attempts at demographic change or the forced displacement or relocation of the Palestinian people in any form,” it said. The Indonesian government has faced pushback from its own people, with protesters in Jakarta accusing Subianto of “serving Israel’s goals” by joining the Board of Peace amid constant Israeli ceasefire violations.

Israeli Attacks Kill at Least 12 Palestinians in Gaza - Israeli forces killed at least 12 Palestinians in Gaza on Sunday, according to the enclave’s rescue agency, as the IDF continues killing Palestinians in the Strip despite the US-backed ceasefire deal.Gaza’s Civil Defense said that one Israeli strike hit a tent sheltering displaced Palestinians in Jabalia, northern Gaza, killing at least five people. Another person was killed by Israeli army gunfire in Beit Lahia, and a separate strike hit Khan Younis, southern Gaza, killing five.The heavy Israeli attacks came after the IDF on Saturday said that it killed five “armed terrorists” in northern Gaza who emerged from a tunnel as IDF forces were demolishing buildings in the area.The IDF claimed the presence of allegedly armed Palestinian militants violated the ceasefire deal, though the Palestinian side argues that the continued IDF demolitions are a violation of the deal since the agreement calls for the halt of “all military operations” in Gaza.The Israeli military has also been launching daily attacks across Gaza, killing at least 601 Palestinians and wounding 1,607 since the ceasefire deal was signed, according to the latest numbers from Gaza’s Health Ministry, which account for bodies brought to hospitals and morgues.“A number of victims are still under the rubble and in the streets, as ambulance and civil defense crews have been unable to reach them so far,” the ministry wrote on Telegram.

US Says 15,000 to 20,000 Escapees Remain at Large From Syrian ISIS Camp Exodus - This time last month, the Syrian military was sweeping through Kurdish territory in the country’s northeast Hasakeh Governorate, and having seized control of the al-Hawl prison camp, there were reports of thousands of ISIS-linked detainees being freed by the Islamist government’s forces.The government downplayed this issue, blaming the escapes on Kurdish security weakness, andclaimed to have recaptured them almost immediately. US intelligence assessments, however, suggest that wasn’t the case, and that 15,000 to as many as 20,000 escapees from Camp Hawl remain at large.The camp was one of several that, after the defeat of ISIS, was being used as a more or less permanent holding facility for people with any ties for the former Caliphate. Massive numbers of non-fighters were being held on a permanent basis, including those suspected of being family members of ISIS figures. Estimates put the number of detainees at Camp Hawl as high as 70,000 at one point, and the population of the prison included many young children, some of whom were born after the camp itself was established. With the fall of autonomous Syrian Kurdistan, the US announced it was sending several thousand of the detainees to neighboring Iraq for safekeeping.There was never any sort of real resolution to this, however. The US did send thousands of detainees to Iraq, but many, many more simply went missing in the chaos of the Hasakeh offensive and prison takeover, and where they are now remains unclear.The nature of these open-ended prison camp cities means many people who didn’t really have a violent background or a substantial criminal history were likely radicalized by the camp environment and the concern is that now that they are out of custody, many will willingly join ISIS.While ISIS isn’t believed to hold a substantial amount of territory anymore, and are far removed from their Caliphate days when they held substantial parts of Syria and Iraq, the group has retained a capability to carry out attacks and with a massive influx of fighters like this could be poised for a resurgence.

RBNZ governor sees neutral official cash rate between 2.25% to 4% -Reserve Bank of New Zealand Governor Anna Breman speaks with CNBC about the outlook for New Zealand's economic growth and inflation following the central bank’s decision to keep the official cash rate unchanged.