The Daily Wrap Up

13 March, 2026

[Transcript edited for clarity, length and flow]

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Hi, and welcome back to Mary Trump Live. Brian Karem is sitting in for Mary today. It has been two weeks since Donald launched a war in Iran, and even now the country still has no clear explanation for what imminent threat justified the decision. With news that more than 2,000 Marines are being sent to reinforce United States defenses in the Middle East, it is increasingly clear that the conflict is not ending anytime soon. Members of Congress are already warning privately about the possibility of a long and costly war, while others fear something even more dangerous. It is a grim way to end the week.

While most Americans slept overnight, Donald was active on his social media platform posting late night messages celebrating the war effort and attacking the press. One post declared that the United States was totally destroying the terrorist regime of Iran militarily, economically, and otherwise. Donald also complained about coverage from The New York Times and claimed that the United States had unparalleled firepower, unlimited ammunition, and plenty of time. He ended by declaring that killing Iran’s leaders was a great honor for him as the forty seventh president of the United States. The tone was less like a wartime leader and more like someone narrating a video game.

The following morning, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth held a press briefing at the Pentagon alongside Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine to provide an update on the war. Hegseth used much of the briefing not to explain strategy or objectives but to criticize news coverage of the conflict, accusing journalists of emphasizing controversy rather than what he called the military’s success.

This is what he told reporters during that briefing.

Some in this crew in the press just cannot stop. People look up at the television and they see banners and headlines. I used to be in that business and everything is written intentionally. For example a headline that says Middle East war intensifies next to images of civilian targets Iran has hit. What should the banner read instead. How about Iran increasingly desperate because they are. Or another fake headline saying the Trump administration underestimated the impact of the war on the Strait of Hormuz. That is ridiculous. Iran has threatened shipping in the strait for decades. The only thing widening is our advantage.

The exchange drew sharp criticism from journalists who pointed out that the role of the press is to question government officials, not serve as a patriotic messaging arm for the regime.

Hegseth then attempted to explain the administration’s position on the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has effectively closed by targeting ships moving through the narrow waterway.

The only thing prohibiting transit in the strait right now is Iran shooting at shipping. It is open for transit should Iran not do that. We chose as one of our primary objectives to destroy Iran’s navy because they have used this choke point for decades as leverage. We are planning for every option here and working with partners across the government to make sure energy continues to flow.

Despite that assurance, shipping traffic through the strait remains severely disrupted.

At the same time the human cost of the conflict continues to rise. United States Central Command confirmed that six crew members aboard a United States Air Force KC 135 refueling tanker were killed after the aircraft crashed in western Iraq while supporting operations tied to the war. The cause of the crash remains under investigation, though officials say it was not the result of hostile fire. With that tragedy the American death toll in Operation Epic Fury has reached at least thirteen service members, including seven killed in combat. Roughly one hundred forty troops have also been injured, eight of them seriously.

The crash was the fourth United States aircraft lost since the conflict began. Last week three F 15 fighter jets were mistakenly shot down by friendly Kuwaiti fire. Meanwhile critics were stunned when the White House social media team posted propaganda style videos comparing real combat operations in Iran to scenes from video games and action movies, turning deadly strikes into internet memes.

Questions are also growing about Russia’s role in the conflict. Oil sanctions have been eased and Moscow is reportedly earning hundreds of millions of dollars a day as global energy prices surge. When Trump appeared on Fox News Radio he was asked directly whether Vladimir Putin might be helping Iran.

I think he might be helping them a little bit. He probably thinks we are helping Ukraine right. And we are helping them also. It is something everybody does.

Many analysts now believe the war is evolving into a wider proxy conflict involving several major powers.

The humanitarian consequences are also mounting rapidly. The United Nations refugee agency reports that as many as 3.2 million people have already been displaced across Iran as civilians flee Tehran and other major cities. In Lebanon the fighting has displaced an estimated 700,000 people. Demonstrations around the world have also intensified as the war enters its second week.

During a discussion hosted by Senator Bernie Sanders, Iranian journalist and analyst Negar Mortazavi criticized what she described as uneven coverage of the conflict in the United States media.

Mainstream media is not covering this objectively enough. The way Iranian children killed in an elementary school are covered is very different than if another country had done the same thing. The dehumanization of societies is what eventually leads to these wars.

Meanwhile tensions are spreading beyond the Middle East. Cuba confirmed it has held recent talks with the United States as the island struggles through a severe energy crisis caused by months without petroleum shipments. At the same time several senators have introduced a war powers resolution aimed at preventing the president from launching military action against Cuba without congressional approval after Trump publicly suggested the United States could ultimately take control of the island.

Domestic policy controversies are also intensifying. Testimony in federal court revealed that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents used a custom phone application developed with data company Palantir to identify neighborhoods for immigration raids in Oregon while working toward daily arrest quotas. A federal judge has already ruled that warrantless immigration arrests in the state violate constitutional protections.

NBC News also reported that migrant children are being held in detention far beyond the twenty day limit established under federal settlement rules. Since January more than nine hundred children have reportedly been held beyond the legal time frame, some for more than eighty days. In one case an asylum seeking family from Russia described how their five year old twins became increasingly distressed during prolonged detention in a Texas facility.

Outside the detention centers protests have continued across the country. Demonstrators in Vermont gathered again to oppose immigration enforcement policies they say are unconstitutional and harmful to families.

Environmental policy changes have also drawn concern. The Environmental Protection Agency has proposed weakening regulations on ethylene oxide emissions from medical sterilization plants, a move critics warn could increase cancer risks for communities living nearby.

The global economy is also beginning to feel the shockwaves of the war. Oil prices surged after Iran threatened to keep the Strait of Hormuz closed, triggering what analysts describe as one of the largest energy supply disruptions in decades. Shipping companies are now adding emergency surcharges of roughly three thousand dollars per container while rerouting cargo shipments thousands of kilometers around the conflict zone. Those costs are expected to raise prices for fuel, groceries, and other everyday goods.

At the same time congressional Democrats warn that Donalds tariffs could cost the average American household more than twenty five hundred dollars by next year as the administration attempts to replace lost revenue after the Supreme Court struck down several of its earlier tariff policies.

Representative Daniel Goldman summarized the criticism from Capitol Hill.

You do not send American troops into a war when you are unprepared and have no idea how the enemy will react. Americans are dying and injured and there does not appear to be any clear objective.

While the war dominates headlines, investigations connected to Jeffrey Epstein are continuing. Senator Ben Ray Luján said after reviewing unredacted documents that disturbing acts appear to have occurred at Epstein’s Zorro Ranch in New Mexico and called for a full investigation.

I am more convinced today after reviewing these files that there needs to be a thorough investigation. It has been more than one hundred days since Congress demanded the release of the Epstein documents and the Department of Justice still has not fully released them.

New Mexico lawmakers have already launched a bipartisan truth commission to examine what officials knew about Epstein’s activities at the ranch and why he avoided prosecution there for decades. The investigation will include subpoena power and is expected to release its first report later this year.

Even as the political battles continue, the week ended with another reminder of how chaotic the moment has become. A federal judge blocked Justice Department subpoenas targeting Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell over alleged misstatements about renovation costs at the Federal Reserve headquarters. Prosecutors claimed the ruling interfered with their investigation, while critics argued it was simply the judicial system enforcing due process.

Taken together the events of the past two weeks reveal a country navigating a rapidly expanding war abroad, escalating political conflict at home, and a growing list of unanswered questions about leadership, accountability, and the rule of law.

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