The Daily Brief — Mar. 30, 2026
The latest on Trump threatening civilian infrastructure in Iran, the BOA Epstein settlement, airport woes, and more
These are today’s top stories, delivered straight to your inbox. Catch up here on all the news.
Iran
President Trump today threatened to destroy Iran’s electricity plants, oil wells, and sea water desalination facilities if Iran does not agree to a deal to end the war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz “shortly.” Iran’s UN representative responded that deliberately targeting “civilian industrial infrastructure” to exert economic pressure or impose collective punishment could constitute “serious violations of international humanitarian law, including war crimes.”
Trump also threatened to strike Kharg Island, which exports an estimated 1.5 to 2 million barrels per day — roughly 90% of Iran’s crude oil exports.
Around 20% of the world’s crude oil passes through the Strait. Iran has been blocking it since the war began more than a month ago.
Last week, Iran fired ballistic missiles and drones at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia, injuring at least 15 US troops, with five being seriously hurt. The strike also destroyed an E-3 Sentry aircraft — a radar and command-and-control jet whose loss could affect the US military’s ability to monitor threats in the region.
Trump administration officials told The Wall Street Journal on Sunday that the president is considering ordering US troops into Iran to extract nearly 1,000 pounds of stored enriched uranium. Trump has said eliminating the country’s nuclear weapons capability is a key objective of his military campaign against Iran. He has not made a final decision on the troop order.
Iran’s parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, warned that Iranian forces were “waiting for the arrival of American troops on the ground to set them on fire and punish their regional partners forever,” according to state-run IRNA.
Bank of America Epstein Settlement
Bank of America has agreed to pay $72.5 million to hundreds of survivors of Jeffrey Epstein to settle a lawsuit filed last year alleging the bank provided financial services to Epstein’s sex-trafficking operation. The bank did not admit wrongdoing in connection with the settlement. A US district judge will hold a hearing next month to decide whether to approve the settlement.
Epstein, a convicted sex offender and financier, pleaded guilty in 2008 to Florida state charges of procuring a minor for prostitution. He was also federally indicted on sex trafficking charges in July 2019 and pleaded not guilty. He was found dead in a Manhattan federal detention facility in August 2019 while awaiting trial.
This is the third bank settlement tied to Epstein. JPMorgan Chase previously agreed to pay $290 million and Deutsche Bank agreed to pay $75 million to victims.
The lawsuits allege the banks processed millions of dollars in transactions that had hallmarks of sex trafficking — including large, structured cash withdrawals — and that bank employees raised internal concerns that went unaddressed. The suits don’t accuse the banks of directly participating in the trafficking, but rather that they knowingly or negligently enabled it by continuing to service Epstein’s accounts.
DHS Shutdown
The Transportation Security Administration said today it is sending the first paychecks to its officers in over a month, and long lines at airports have begun to ease. Some airports had seen security screening wait times of four to six hours after large numbers of TSA agents quit or called out from work.
After Congress failed to reach a deal to end the Department of Homeland Security shutdown, President Trump last week signed an executive order requiring DHS to redirect funds appropriated for other purposes to pay TSA workers.
No agreement on DHS funding has been reached, and Congress is now in recess.
Newsbreak
I just finished recording the audiobook for We Are Mighty, and I’m so excited for these stories to reach readers in a whole new way. The book tells the true stories of twelve ordinary Americans from our past who saw what needed doing and did it — and getting to read those stories aloud was such an honor.
If there is a child in your life who loves listening, learning, and hearing true stories of courage, hope, and everyday bravery, I’d be so honored for you to share We Are Mighty with them.
Cuba Oil
A Russian oil tanker carrying an estimated 730,000 barrels of crude oil arrived in Cuba on Monday, completing its passage unimpeded by the US Coast Guard despite the American fuel blockade on the island. In January, after the US removed Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro from power, President Trump signed an executive order restricting the flow of oil into the country. Cuba depends on oil for electricity, and relied on Venezuelan oil to keep its power grid functional.
The blockade has contributed to Cuba’s humanitarian and economic crisis. With oil imports sharply curtailed, the government has imposed rolling blackouts and limited public transportation. Hospitals, water systems and food distribution networks have also been disrupted as diesel supplies run low.
When asked about allowing the Russian ship to send oil to Cuba, President Trump told reporters he had “no problem” with any country sending oil, though it was not immediately clear whether his administration has formally reversed the blockade.
Deaths in ICE Custody
At least 13 immigrant detainees have died in ICE custody in the first three months of 2026, bringing the total since President Trump’s reelection to 46.
Emmanuel Damas, 56, had lived in Boston after emigrating from Haiti. Arrested in September 2025 on allegations of assaulting his 12-year-old son, Damas was subsequently transferred to an immigration detention center in Arizona. He died at a hospital in Scottsdale on March 2 while still in ICE custody, making him the thirteenth detainee to die in custody this year. Damas had complained of a toothache before being taken to the hospital.
The Department of Homeland Security called Damas a “criminal illegal alien,” but his brother said Damas arrived in the United States legally under a humanitarian parole program and had a pending petition for Temporary Protected Status, which allows immigrants to live and work in the country temporarily.
“They let him rot in there and die like he had no family,” said Presly Nelson, one of Damas’s brothers.
As of early February, approximately 70,000 detainees were held in ICE custody, according to TRAC Immigration at Syracuse University. According to the American Immigration Council, an immigrants’ rights organization, the high numbers have produced “horrible overcrowding” and “worsening and substandard medical care.” ICE has said it provides comprehensive medical screening and care and investigates all in-custody deaths.
The 33 deaths in ICE custody recorded in 2025 were the most in a single year since the Department of Homeland Security was established in 2003. By comparison, annual deaths averaged about seven under Biden and eight under President Obama.
The vast majority of deaths this year occurred in ICE’s network of nearly 200 detention facilities; five occurred outside a detention center.
“No Kings” Nationwide
An estimated 8 million people joined more than 3,000 No Kings protests across the country on Saturday, with a marquee event in St. Paul, Minnesota, where Bruce Springsteen performed “Streets of Minneapolis,” a new song he released in January. The song protests the killings of two Minneapolis residents, Renée Good and Alex Pretti, during federal immigration raids.
Protesters told CNN reporters they turned out to call for an end to strict federal immigration enforcement, the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda, the war with Iran, and the rising cost of living. Most demonstrations were peaceful, though arrests and clashes between police and rally-goers were reported in some cities, including Los Angeles — where police said they arrested a total of 75 for mainly disobeying orders to disperse — and Denver, where the police arrested nine, mainly for not moving when asked to do so.
The March 28 events marked the third and largest nationwide “No Kings” mobilization since 2025. The protests were organized by a broad progressive coalition including Indivisible, the 50501 movement, labor unions and civil rights organizations. Demonstrations also took place in Europe, Mexico and Canada.
NASA Moon Mission
NASA is preparing to send astronauts to the moon for the first time in more than 50 years. Weather permitting, the agency said it is targeting liftoff as soon as Wednesday. There will be no landing on the moon.
According to NASA, the mission is to test the safety of the new spacecraft, Orion, which is designed to carry the crew during the 10-day trip around the moon and back. The mission — known as Artemis II — aims to take four astronauts around the moon and back to earth, and will also test life support, communications and navigation with the astronauts on board.
The last crewed moon landing was Apollo 17 in December 1972.
White House App
The White House has launched a smartphone app it says will deliver President Trump and his administration “directly” to the American people. Available in smartphone app stores, the app will have “major announcements, executive actions, and other key priorities;” “live streams of
briefings, speeches…as they happen;” and allow people to “stay connected on the latest policy breakthroughs.”
Security researchers and privacy advocates have raised concerns about the app’s data collection practices. A Mashable report described it as a potential “privacy nightmare,” citing unclear data policies and broad permission requests. According to the report, which cited a post on X, the app requests access to users’ precise location, network connections, fingerprint and biometric data, and the ability to modify or delete contents of shared storage.
A separate user found the app was transmitting exact location data every 4.5 minutes to a third-party server run by OneSignal, a push notification company.
I cannot, for the life of me, figure any way I would put my information in jeopardy by downloading the White House App. Nor would I believe even one statement made by them.
The White House App? Tempting... but no. 😒