The Daily Brief - Mar. 2, 2026
The latest on Iran, the Supreme Court gun case, and more
These are today’s top stories, delivered straight to your inbox. Read below to catch up on all the news you might’ve missed.
Spreading Regional Conflict
As the US-Israeli military campaign against Iran enters its third day, the conflict is spreading across the region with no clear end in sight.
Iran has fired back with missiles and drones at US military bases in the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia, as well as at Israel. Civilian areas were also hit — the UAE said 21 drones struck civilian targets, damaging airports in Dubai and Abu Dhabi and sparking fires near landmarks including the Burj Al Arab hotel. Some damage came from debris after missiles were intercepted, but analysts say Iran’s strikes also extended to airports, ports, and residential areas.
The Gulf states are caught in the middle — furious at Iran for hitting their cities, but also frustrated with the US and Israel for starting a war that dragged them in. Gulf states collectively condemned what they called “heinous” Iranian attacks and reserved the right to respond militarily, but Qatar’s Foreign Ministry said being targeted by a neighbor “cannot be accepted under any justification or pretext,” noting it had always distanced itself from regional conflicts. The UAE recalled its ambassador to Israel. China and Russia sharply condemned the US. and Israel, with Putin calling the killing of Khamenei “a murder committed in cynical violation of all norms of human morality and international law.”
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth insisted “this is not Iraq. This is not endless,” adding: “No stupid rules of engagement, no nation building quagmire, no democracy building exercise. We fight to win.” But Trump told The New York Times the campaign could last “four to five weeks,” and no exit plan has been offered. In a private congressional briefing, administration officials acknowledged that US intelligence did not show Iran was preparing a preemptive strike — contradicting Trump’s public justification that the mission targeted “imminent threats.”
Khamenei’s death has left Iran’s leadership in disarray. A three-member council — including President Pezeshkian, the chief justice, and a senior cleric — has temporarily assumed power, but several other senior officials were also killed in the strikes, deepening the uncertainty. Trump said Iran’s new leaders want to talk, but security chief Ali Larijani rejected that: “We will not negotiate with the United States.”
Iran Protests
Violence and celebrations have erupted in several countries since news spread that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed.
In Iran, large groups of Iranians gathered to celebrate in Tehran and cities around the country, dancing, cheering and yelling “freedom, freedom!” from their windows.
Others cried and screamed, with one student saying the US and Israel will pay a “heavy price for the martyrdom of my leader.”
In Pakistan, thousands of protestors took to the streets to condemn the attacks, and at least 22 people were killed.
Some of them died when security forces fired on a crowd as it tried to storm the US Consulate in Karachi. Reuters heard people chanting “Death to America! Death to Israel!” outside, along with gunfire. Others were killed after setting a UN office on fire.
In Iraq, hundreds of protestors gathered outside the Green Zone in Baghdad — which houses the US embassy — and were fired on with tear gas.
In Lebanon and Yemen, tens of thousands gathered to mourn the death.
But in other places, like Paris, people celebrated with champagne and by waving Iran’s former flag. In Lisbon, Portugal, Iranians gathered outside the embassy, partying until 3am. And Los Angeles and New York saw similar displays, with Iranian Americans dancing in the streets, and marching together.
Lori Chavez-DeRemer
Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer is trying to hold onto her job after several employees have come forward claiming she has abused her office.
Chavez-DeRemer, a former member of Congress, is now under investigation by the Department of Labor’s inspector general. Employees have accused her of using business trips as a cover for personal travel, drinking on the job, giving grants to political operatives, and having an affair with her bodyguard.
And last week, her husband Shawn DeRemer was barred from entering the Labor Department’s headquarters after two women said he sexually assaulted them at the office. At least one of those incidents was caught on a security camera. His lawyer denies the claims, saying they were brought by “Labor Department insiders vying for the Secretary of Labor’s position.”
Since the internal investigation began, several members of Chavez-DeRemer’s team have been put on leave, including her chief of staff and deputy chief of staff. Those two are being investigated for misusing their authority by creating business reasons for the secretary to travel with her family and friends, bullying, and trying to silence their critics.
A member of her security team — the one she is accused of having a romantic relationship with — has also been put on leave.
In interviews with The New York Times, more than two dozen current and former employees said Chavez-DeRemer created a toxic work environment. People complained about her particular leadership style and the people she brought with her when joining the agency.
The New York Post said investigators found a “stash” of alcohol in her office and evidence she took “subordinates to a strip club while on an official departmental trip.”
So far President Trump has stood by her, but the investigation is ongoing. Her attorney said, “Secretary Chavez-DeRemer firmly denies any allegations of wrongdoing. Her utmost priority remains to advance President Trump’s agenda by continuing her hard and successful work for the betterment of the American people.”
Drug Users’ Second Amendment Rights
The US Supreme Court heard oral arguments today in US v. Hemani, a case in which the Court will decide if federal law can prevent drug users from owning a gun, or if such a law violates the Second Amendment.
The case arose from the 2022 search of Ali Danial Hemani’s home in Texas, where federal agents found a handgun along with marijuana and cocaine. Authorities charged Hemani under a federal law that makes it a crime for anyone who is “an unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance” to possess a gun, with a potential sentence of up to 15 years in prison. Hemani says that his conviction under the law violated his Second Amendment rights, and the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with him. Hunter Biden was convicted under the same law in June 2024, and was later pardoned by his father President Joe Biden.
In 2022, the Supreme Court ruled that courts have to evaluate restrictions on the right to bear arms by looking at the “history and tradition” of gun regulations during the founding era of the US. In this case, the Trump administration is defending the law being applied to Hemani, arguing that it’s no different than the “deeply rooted history and tradition” of law temporarily disarming “habitual drunkards” even if they aren’t actively under the influence while they have the gun.
But some of the justices seemed skeptical at oral argument. Justice Amy Coney Barrett noted that even if some uses of a particular drug are illegal, that doesn’t make the user a danger to society. “Is it the government’s position that if I unlawfully use Ambien or I unlawfully use Xanax, then I become dangerous?” she asked. “What is the government’s evidence that using marijuana a couple times a week makes someone dangerous?”
Justice Neil Gorsuch talked about the drinking habits of the Founding Fathers and suggested there was a high bar for classifying someone as a “habitual” drunkard, and asked whether Hemani would even count as a habitual drug user if he only used marijuana a few times a week.
Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito, however, seemed wary of ruling in Hemani’s favor, expressing concern that doing so would allow future defendants to challenge their prosecutions on a drug-by-drug basis, forcing courts to get into the weeds about which ones made someone a danger to society.
It appeared as though the Court favored the arguments made by Hemani, but a ruling is expected later this year.
Clintons’ Epstein Testimony
The House Oversight Committee released videos of last week’s interviews with former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton about the investigation into deceased convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. The closed-door testimony took place at the Clintons’ home in Chappaqua, New York, on Wednesday and Thursday of last week.
Still from Bill Clinton’s testimony video released by the House Oversight Committee
Both Bill and Hillary Clinton were questioned for more than four and a half hours by Democratic and Republican lawmakers on the committee. The panel asked Bill Clinton about his name appearing on the flight logs for Epstein’s plane and about photos of Clinton in a hot tub with a woman, whom he denied knowing or having sex with. Clinton also testified that now-President Donald Trump told him in the early 2000s that he was no longer friends with Epstein at that point due to a disagreement over a land deal.
During her testimony, Hillary Clinton repeatedly emphasized that she didn’t know Jeffrey Epstein and had no knowledge of his crimes.
Transcripts of the interviews will be released at a later time, after they’ve been reviewed by multiple parties, including the Clintons.
Why is marijuana still illegal if the Supreme Court thinks it’s fine to use it and possess a gun?