The Daily Brief — Mar. 31, 2026
The latest on Trump’s NATO complaints, the Texas school shooting, gas prices, and more
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Conversion Therapy at the Supreme Court
The US Supreme Court struck down Colorado’s ban on conversion therapy for LGBTQ+ youth, finding that the ban violated the free speech rights of a conservative Christian therapist.
Writing for the majority in the 8-1 decision, Justice Neil Gorsuch agreed with the plaintiff that the Colorado law violates her First Amendment rights to free speech, because it censors what she is allowed to say as part of talk therapy. The Court says that in this instance, speech in a therapy context is not conduct, which makes it different from other healthcare regulations that don’t implicate the First Amendment.
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson was the lone dissenter, and warned that the majority’s decision was “ushering in an era of unprofessional and unsafe medical care” by leaving some kinds of care unregulated for the sake of free speech.
More than 20 states in the US have laws banning conversion therapy, which are likely to be impacted by the decision.
Iran
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps today accused American companies operating in the Gulf region of helping the US and Israel wage war against them. “From now on the main institutions involved in such operations will be considered legitimate targets,” the IRGC said in a statement that named 18 companies, including Apple, Google, and Meta.
Meanwhile, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine said today that US B-52 bombers have been flying over Iran for the first time in the war, suggesting they had degraded military capacity. But Defense Secretary Hegseth said that Iran can still launch missiles at US targets.
US and Israeli forces struck military sites in Isfahan today, Iran’s state news agency Fars reported. Isfahan houses Iran’s main nuclear research complex and has been a repeated target since the war began. Overnight, Iran struck a Kuwaiti oil tanker off Dubai — an attack on Gulf commercial shipping — and officials said the fire was extinguished today.
According to the Associated Press, Gulf states including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait and Bahrain have privately told the Trump administration they want military operations against Iran to continue until there are significant changes in Iranian leadership or substantial degradation of its military capacity. The White House declined to comment on the story.
NATO Alliance
President Trump said today that the UK and France have not supported the US in its war against Iran. Trump has asked European allies for assistance in reopening the Strait of Hormuz, which has been blocked by Iran since the war began. So far, they have refused.
France has also refused to allow planes involved in the war use of its airspace. “France wouldn’t let planes headed to Israel, loaded up with military supplies, fly over French territory. France has been VERY UNHELPFUL,” Trump wrote on social media. In another post, he told the UK that the US will not be there to help it anymore, “just like you weren’t there for us,” and told it to “go get your own oil!” France’s refusal to grant overflight rights, a French official said, is consistent with their position of not taking part in the war. Without them, US military cargo flights must take longer routes, consuming more fuel and time.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth later declined to reaffirm the US commitment to NATO’s collective defense, saying the decision was President Trump’s to make. “You don’t have much of an alliance if you have countries that are not willing to stand with you when you need them,” he said.
Article 5 of NATO’s founding treaty establishes that an armed attack on one member is treated as an attack on all — a provision invoked once, after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States.
Texas School Shooting
A 15-year-old student shot a teacher at a Texas high school and then fatally shot himself yesterday, according to the Comal County Sheriff’s Office. Neither has been publicly identified.
The shooting occurred at Hill Country College Preparatory High School in Bulverde, a small city near San Antonio. No other injuries were reported. A student told KSAT TV the shooter fired three or four rounds.
The Comal County Sheriff’s Office said that the student used a .357 revolver that he brought from home. Authorities said they believe the student may have experienced “academic challenges,” though the motive remains under investigation. The teacher who was shot remains hospitalized.
Newsbreak
Outraged argues that liberals and conservatives are not driven by entirely different moral systems, but by the same basic instinct: protecting themselves and others from harm. Kurt Gray uses research in psychology and evolution to show that conflict often comes down to different perceptions of who is being threatened and who counts as the real victim. By exploring why humans are wired to notice danger and make moral judgments from gut feelings rather than pure reason, the book offers a new framework for understanding outrage — and for making sense of the people we disagree with.
Birthright Citizenship
The US Supreme Court will hear oral arguments tomorrow in Trump v. Barbara. The case will decide whether President Trump’s January 2025 executive order ending birthright citizenship for children born in the US to undocumented immigrants or temporarily present parents is constitutional.
The 14th Amendment states that “all persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States.” The Trump administration argues that “subject to the jurisdiction thereof” refers to political allegiance rather than physical presence — meaning children of undocumented or temporary-status parents do not qualify. The plaintiffs argue the amendment guarantees citizenship to all born on US soil, with narrow historical exceptions such as the children of foreign diplomats, and that a president cannot alter the Constitution by executive order.
Three federal district courts ruled the order unconstitutional and issued nationwide injunctions against the executive order. The plaintiffs are a class-action group led by a Honduran asylum applicant referred to as “Barbara,” with the ACLU leading the legal challenge.
Gas Prices
Gas prices nationwide surged past $4 a gallon for the first time since 2022 today, driven by the ongoing Iran war’s disruption to global fuel supply.
The national average for a gallon of regular gasoline reached $4.02, according to the American Automobile Association — up more than a dollar since last month. Drivers in California are paying nearly $6 a gallon; those in Colorado, New Mexico and the Northeast are averaging around $3.80.
Experts say affordability will be a key issue in the midterm elections in November this year and high gas prices could hurt Republicans’ prospects since they’re currently in power.
According to a Time magazine analysis, in the last three midterms when the price of oil hovered around or above $100 a barrel (adjusted for inflation) at this point in the election cycle — as it does now — the party in the White House lost 29 House seats on average.
DHS Shutdown
Airport security lines that have stretched four hours or more during the DHS shutdown are easing as TSA officers begin receiving back pay.
Wait time at the Atlanta airport had dropped to under 15 minutes today, according to posted TSA figures.
President Trump last week signed an executive order directing DHS to redirect funds to pay TSA workers. But it does not guarantee continued pay if the shutdown persists, and Congress is now in a planned two-week recess.
The shutdown, now in its 46th day, began when DHS funding lapsed in mid-February.
NPR, PBS Funding
A federal judge today ruled that Donald Trump’s executive order last year barring federal funds to NPR and PBS was unconstitutional, finding it violated the First Amendment.
The court said the government cannot deny funding based on disagreement with a news outlet’s editorial content. The ruling blocks enforcement of the order, though it does not restore funding already lost.
The decision is unlikely to have an immediate effect on public media funding. Two months after the executive order last year, Republicans in Congress voted to claw back roughly $1.1 billion in funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), which distributes federal support to NPR and PBS. Trump and Republican allies have argued that public media coverage is biased against them.
Following the funding cut, the CPB shut down.
White House Ballroom
A federal judge in Washington DC today ordered a temporary halt to construction of a $400 million White House ballroom initiated by President Trump, ruling the project cannot proceed without congressional approval. Trump had the East Wing demolished last year to make way for the ballroom.
The judge sided with the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which said Trump had no authority to construct the ballroom, saying the historic preservation group was likely to prevail on the merits of the case. The judge said that no statute gives the president the authority he claims and that only Congress can authorize such construction.
“The President of the United States is the steward of the White House for future generations of First Families. He is not, however, the owner!” wrote Judge Richard Leon. The order will not take effect for 14 days, giving the Trump administration time to appeal.