The briefing for Tuesday, March 24.

President Trump on Monday extended by five days his deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, citing talks with unnamed Iranian officials that Tehran immediately denied took place. Trump claimed his envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff held 'very good' discussions over the weekend, briefly driving down oil prices and boosting stocks. Iranian parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf flatly rejected the claim, posting that 'no negotiations have been held with the US' and calling it 'fakenews' used to manipulate markets.

The conflicting accounts came as Iran continued launching missiles at Israel and Gulf Arab states on Tuesday. A missile struck central Tel Aviv, blowing out windows and sending smoke into the air, though no one was killed. In Kuwait, air defense shrapnel hit power lines causing outages, while Saudi Arabia reported destroying 19 Iranian drones targeting its oil-rich Eastern Province. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel will continue strikes against Iran and Lebanon, adding 'there's more to come.'

Trump's extension offers a reprieve from threatened strikes on Iranian power plants that could have cut electricity to millions and knocked out desalination plants providing drinking water across the Gulf region. However, analysts note Trump has not yet achieved his stated war objectives, particularly preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. According to Princeton professor Robert Goldston, Iran has already completed 99% of the centrifuge work required to produce weapons-grade uranium for nine nuclear weapons. The president said any deal would require the U.S. to 'take' Iran's enriched uranium, though he provided no details on how that would happen.

Israel's military announced Monday that plans for expanded ground and air attacks against Hezbollah in Lebanon have been approved, raising fears of a large-scale ground invasion. Defense Minister Israel Katz said Israeli forces were instructed to destroy crossings over the Litani River used by Hezbollah to send reinforcements, with an air strike subsequently damaging the Qasmiye bridge near Tyre. The river sits about 30 kilometers from the Lebanon-Israel border, and the bridges are also used by civilians.

The escalation has killed more than 1,000 people in Lebanon since Israel intensified its campaign earlier this month, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry. The toll includes at least 118 children and 40 health workers, with over one million people displaced. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said the Israeli strikes were a 'prelude to a ground invasion' amounting to 'collective punishment against civilians,' warning they could be part of efforts to expand Israel's presence in Lebanese territory.

Katz also said Israeli forces were ordered to demolish homes in Lebanese villages along the border to neutralize threats, following methods used in Gaza where the military destroyed buildings and created security zones. The latest escalation began when Hezbollah fired rockets into Israel in retaliation for the killing of Iran's supreme leader and in response to near-daily Israeli attacks despite a ceasefire agreed in November 2024. Lebanon's government has vowed to disarm Hezbollah but the group has refused to discuss surrendering its weapons.

The Senate confirmed Senator Markwayne Mullin as Homeland Security secretary on Monday by a 54-45 vote, as lawmakers discussed a potential deal to fund most of the department except ICE enforcement operations. The Oklahoma Republican takes over the embattled department after President Trump removed Kristi Noem following public backlash over immigration enforcement operations. Mullin pledged during his confirmation hearing to be 'protecting everybody' and said his goal would be to get the department off the front page of news.

Senators are considering a proposal to end the monthlong budget stalemate by funding much of Homeland Security, including TSA airport workers going without pay, but excluding ICE's enforcement and removal operations that have been core to the dispute. The potential breakthrough came after Republican senators met with Trump at the White House late Monday. The deal would fund most of DHS including Customs and Border Protection, but with new guardrails positioning officers in traditional roles rather than immigration roundups in cities.

The funding impasse has left TSA understaffed during spring break travel season, causing long airport lines. Trump took the extraordinary step over the weekend of ordering ICE officers to provide airport security, drawing alarm from lawmakers that it could escalate tensions. Democrats are refusing to fund Homeland Security without restraints on Trump's immigration enforcement following the deaths of two U.S. citizens during ICE protests in Minneapolis. The proposed deal would also include changes Democrats have demanded, such as mandating officers wear body cameras and identification.

The Supreme Court's conservative majority on Monday sounded skeptical of state laws that allow counting of late-arriving mail ballots, a persistent target of President Trump. The case from Mississippi could affect voters in 14 states and the District of Columbia with grace periods for ballots cast by mail, plus 15 additional states with more forgiving deadlines for military and overseas voters. A ruling is expected by late June, early enough to govern ballot counting in the 2026 midterm elections.

Several conservative justices gave voice to Trump's complaints about mail voting. Justice Samuel Alito wondered about the appearance of fraud when 'a big stash of ballots' that arrive late 'radically flipped' an election. Defending Mississippi's law, Solicitor General Scott Stewart noted the Trump administration has yet to submit a single case of fraud due to late-arriving mail ballots. Liberal justices indicated they would uphold state laws with post-Election Day deadlines, with Justice Sonia Sotomayor saying 'the people who should decide this issue are not the courts, but Congress, the states and Congress.'

The Republican and Libertarian parties are asking justices to affirm an appellate ruling that struck down Mississippi's law allowing ballots to be counted if they arrive within five business days of the election and are postmarked by Election Day. Election officials warn that changing rules just months before November's election risks 'confusion and disenfranchisement,' especially in places with long-standing relaxed deadlines. States like Alaska, with vast distances and unpredictable weather, say grace periods are essential for rural voters. Last year, Trump signed an executive order aiming to require votes to be 'cast and received' by Election Day, though it has been blocked in pending court challenges.

The Federal Communications Commission on Monday banned all new foreign-made consumer internet routers over national security concerns, adding them to a list of equipment deemed unsafe for use in the United States. The ban applies to all consumer-grade routers made outside the U.S., putting them on par with foreign-made drones which were banned late last year. While people can continue using foreign-made routers they already own, the ban covers all 'new device models.'

The FCC said 'malicious actors have exploited security gaps in foreign-made routers to attack American households, disrupt networks, enable espionage, and facilitate intellectual property theft.' The move follows a Friday decision by government agencies working on national security that internet routers made overseas 'posed unacceptable risks' to the U.S. Those risks include potentially far-reaching impacts to the American supply chain and the possibility of cyberattacks that could disrupt infrastructure or cause harm to people.

Any new router made outside the U.S. will now need FCC approval before it can be imported, marketed, or sold in the country. To get approval, companies must disclose foreign investors or influence and provide a plan to bring manufacturing to the U.S. The FCC noted that malicious access to routers was involved in three cyberattacks between 2024 and 2025 that U.S. investigations blamed on actors within or working on behalf of the Chinese government. The vast majority of internet routers are assembled or manufactured outside the U.S., often in Taiwan or China, meaning the ban applies even if a router is designed domestically but built abroad.

An Air Canada jet landing at LaGuardia Airport collided with a fire truck on Sunday night, killing both pilots and injuring dozens of passengers and crew. The crash occurred around 11:45 p.m. when the regional jet from Montreal struck an airport fire truck traveling across the runway to respond to a separate incident aboard a United plane. According to air traffic control audio, a controller initially cleared the truck to cross the runway before repeatedly trying to pull it back, later saying 'I messed up.'

The collision came as controllers were managing a developing emergency with a United flight that had twice aborted takeoff and reported an odor causing flight attendants to feel ill. With no gate immediately available, controllers juggled finding a safe spot for the plane while managing other traffic, then dispatched fire trucks when no parking spot materialized. About 40 passengers and crew members from the Air Canada flight, along with two people from the fire truck, were taken to hospitals. Passengers described tearing open emergency exits and jumping from the plane's wings as fuel smelled in the air.

The crash puts renewed focus on pressures facing U.S. air traffic controllers, who have grappled with chronic staffing shortages, demanding schedules, and outdated equipment. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said LaGuardia is 'well-staffed' but faces a controller shortage, with 33 controllers currently assigned versus a target of 37. The FAA has been chronically short about 3,000 controllers nationwide for years. The collision occurred during a partial government shutdown affecting Homeland Security, though air traffic controllers are not directly impacted. LaGuardia reopened Monday afternoon with one runway and significant delays as investigators analyze the plane's data recorders.