TODAY.html
Monday March 2nd, 2026
- "It Is Not A Question of Who Is Right Or Wrong But What Is Right Or Wrong That Counts."
- --Geoff Metcalf
- Providing an on line Triage of the news since 1998
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World & Nation
Trump won’t rule out sending US troops into Iran ‘if necessary’— tells The Post war is progressing ‘way ahead of schedule’
President Trump told The Post Monday that he’s not ruling out sending
US ground troops into Iran “if they were necessary” — adding that
Operation Epic Fury was “way ahead of schedule” by taking out dozens of
Tehran’s top officials.
“I don’t have the yips with respect to boots on the ground — like every
president says, ‘There will be no boots on the ground.’ I don’t say
it,” Trump said after launching strikes Saturday to decapitate Iran’s
military and political leadership. “I say ‘probably don’t need them,’
[or] ‘if they were necessary.'”
Trump told the Daily Mail on Sunday that he estimated the war would
last “four weeks or so,” but hinted to The Post Monday that that
timeframe could be shortened.
Iran Moves to Close Strait of Hormuz, World Faces Global Oil Shock
Iran is once again attempting to weaponize geography in the world's most critical energy chokepoint: the Strait of Hormuz.
If Iran were to effectively close the narrow channel linking the
Persian Gulf to the Indian Ocean and the rest of the world, oil prices
could skyrocket, causing global economic instability.
Over the past 72 hours, Iranian authorities have warned commercial
vessels over marine Channel 16 that the strait is "closed," even though
no internationally recognized authority has declared such a measure.
At least three vessels have reportedly been struck since March 1,
raising fears that Tehran is moving from psychological pressure to
kinetic enforcement.
Trump: I Got Khamenei First, Tried to Kill Me Twice
President Donald Trump said Sunday that he struck Iran's leadership
before Ayatollah Ali Khamenei could succeed in another attempt on his
life.
"I got him before he got me. They tried twice. Well, I got him first," Trump said in an interview with ABC News.
The president's remarks come amid escalating U.S. military action
against Iran and renewed scrutiny of Tehran's alleged efforts to target
him during the 2024 campaign.
In 2024, U.S. prosecutors charged several individuals in connection
with alleged Iran-linked assassination plots against then-presidential
candidate Trump.
Hegseth urges US troops to 'stay focused' as Operation Epic Fury devastates Iran
Israel and the U.S. launched a massive joint military operation against
Iran on Saturday, known as "Operation Epic Fury." The attacks have
already left major leaders dead, including Iranian Supreme Leader
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
President Donald Trump warned on Sunday against Iranian retaliation
over the U.S. and Israeli strikes. He said that if Iran were to "hit
very hard," they would be met with "a force that has never been seen
before."
The joint military operation is expected to carry on for days.
Officials tell Fox News that Israel is targeting Iranian leadership,
while the U.S. is targeting military targets and ballistic missile
sites that pose an "imminent threat."
The Pentagon confirmed the U.S. deployed B-2 stealth bombers armed with 2,000-pound bombs as part of the campaign
Fourth US service member dies from Iran attacks
A fourth American service member has died after coming under attack from Iran over the weekend, the US military said Monday.
Tampa, Fla.-based US Central Command (CENTCOM) said the victim
succumbed to their injuries after being initially listed as seriously
wounded in the attack targeting Kuwait.
The identities of fallen service members are withheld until 24 hours after next of kin have been notified.
“Major combat operations continue and our response effort is ongoing,” CENTCOM said.
National security expert urges DHS to raise terror threat level, warns of sleeper cell risks in US
Former DHS advisor cites sleeper cell risk tied to Iran conflict, FBI probe into deadly Texas shooting
A national security expert is urging the Department of Homeland
Security (DHS) to raise the national terror threat level following a
shooting that investigators say may be linked to terrorism, warning
that sleeper cell activity within the United States poses an escalating
danger.
"We are facing a wide variety of threats here, and the problem is,
they’re all located within our own borders right now," former DHS
advisor Charles Marino said Monday.
Marino, a former Secret Service supervisory agent, joined "Fox &
Friends First" following joint U.S.-Israeli strikes that killed several
Iranian leaders, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The unrest prompted retaliation threats along with warnings from
security officials who say sleeper cells that have infiltrated the U.S.
may be preparing to strike.
Texas mass shooter Ndiaga Diagne had Iranian flag and photos of Islamic Republic leaders in his home: report
The murderous gunman who shot up a Texas bar in a possible terrorist
attack had an Iranian flag and photos of Islamic Republic leaders in
his home, according to a report.
Senegalese national Ndiaga Diagne, 53, may have been motivated by the
joint attack by Israel and the US when he pulled up to Buford’s
Backyard Beer Garden in Austin on Sunday wearing a “Property of Allah”
shirt and started shooting, killing two people and wounding 14 others,
officials have said.
After Diagne was shot dead by Austin police officers, a search warrant
executed at his home revealed an Iranian flag and pictures of Iranian
leaders, sources with direct knowledge told CBS News.
Sanders pitches $4.4 trillion tax on billionaires, in 2028 marker
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) on Monday will unveil new legislation
that would raise $4.4 trillion in taxes from America’s roughly 1,000
billionaires.
The plan is a nonstarter in the current Republican-controlled Congress,
but could become a litmus test for candidates in the 2028 Democratic
presidential primary, much like Sanders’s Medicare-for-all plan was
during the 2020 presidential cycle.
Sanders’s new legislation, which expands on his prior efforts to raise
taxes on billionaires, calls for an annual 5 percent wealth tax on
America’s billionaires. Revenue from the tax would be redirected to
social spending programs, including $3,000 cash payments for Americans
earning less than $150,000 per year, a $60,000 minimum salary for every
public school teacher, and an expansion of Medicare to cover dental,
vision and hearing care, among other measures.
Zohran Mamdani’s Albany pals push bill to slap 25% ‘surcharge’ on NYC corporations
Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s pals in the state Legislature are pushing a bill
to give him the power to slap a 25% tax liability “surcharge” on Big
Apple corporations.
The Democratic socialist mayor and his liberal followers have been on
an ideological crusade to hike taxes on the wealthy and corporations to
pay for their freebie-filled promises made during the 2025 campaign.
“This legislation would authorize New York City to charge a surcharge
on corporate taxes, allowing the city to increase its corporate taxes
should the mayor and City Council deem this necessary and appropriate,”
said Assemblywoman Diana Moreno and Sen. Kristen Gonzalez in a memo
summarizing their legislation.
“Revenues generated from a corporate tax could contribute to addressing
the affordability crisis and strong public services for residents of
the city,” the lawmakers said.
NYC never opened 25 planned preschools despite demand surge — and may not have even known one existed: records
Roughly 20 planned early childhood education centers in the Big Apple
mysteriously sit idle as demand surges for universal pre-K and 3K seats
close to home, The Post has learned.
More than 25 of 47 3K “initiative projects” at sites first earmarked
under former Mayor Bill de Blasio are still unlisted on the official
NYC MySchools directory — despite costly construction contracts, rent
payments to private owners and official Department of Education signage
posted outside some “phantom” schools.
The list of leased shell sites includes a converted Brooklyn warehouse
on the Columbia Street waterfront — where nearby young families face
waitlists of more than 100 students for a nearby seat, parents told The
Post.
Zelenskyy: Ukraine-Russia Talks May Shift From Abu Dhabi
U.S.-brokered talks between Russia and Ukraine expected later this week
may take place in Switzerland or Turkey if a planned meeting in Abu
Dhabi is not possible due to the war in the Middle East, Ukrainian
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Monday.
He also noted that Western countries have given no indication so far
that their delivery to Kyiv of vital air defense missiles could be
disrupted by commitments to Middle East defense.
U.S.-led diplomatic efforts to end the war that began with Russia's
invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 are continuing. But the American
and Israeli attacks on Iran, and the response of Iran and
Iranian-backed militias firing missiles at Israel and Arab states, may
divert international attention from the 4-year-old conflict in Europe.
CNN anxiety mounts as Paramount nears control: 'People think it could be the end'
When CNN anchor Jake Tapper broke into coverage on Thursday evening
with a major Warner Bros. Discovery sale update, he remarked that the
news "affects everybody I'm looking at right now in the studio."
Anxiety is high inside CNN, as staffers grapple with the growing
likelihood that Paramount's David Ellison -- who appointed Free Press
cofounder Bari Weiss to reshape CBS News and has recalled having "great
conversations" with President Donald Trump about acquiring CNN parent
Warner Bros. Discovery -- could ultimately take control of the cable
news channel.
"It's concerning," one CNN staffer told TheWrap, noting how Ellison
posed days earlier alongside Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, each
giving a thumbs up before attending the State of the Union together.
The unease comes alongside reporting that David Ellison has promised
the White House changes to CNN, while his father, Oracle co-founder
Larry Ellison, has talked about the possibility of axing specific hosts.
No more 'restraint': Europe must stand with America on Iran
What makes Europe’s current sideline
posture not merely disappointing but absurd is that Iran has been
attacking Europe for years
By Gordon Sondland
The United States and Israel are doing the heavy lifting. On February
28, joint American-Israeli strikes — Operation Epic Fury and Operation
Roaring Lion — eliminated Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, Iran’s
defense minister, the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard
Corps and the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council.
American service members and Israeli pilots are in harm’s way at this
very moment, absorbing retaliatory strikes so that the free world does
not have to live under the shadow of a nuclear-armed theocracy. And
what has Europe offered? Ursula von der Leyen called the situation
"greatly concerning." Emmanuel Macron warned of an "outbreak of war."
France, Germany and the United Kingdom rushed to clarify that their
forces did not participate.
The collective message from the continent was not solidarity but
distance. If the transatlantic alliance cannot count on Europe for even
full-throated public support while Americans and Israelis bear the
costs and the risks, then what, exactly, is the alliance for?
Public unions’ stealthy scheme will siphon $100B from NY taxpayers
Imagine one of your children or grandchildren — perhaps still too young
to be messing around online — innocently opens up an email.
“Don’t you care about our heroic public workers? Don’t you love teachers? Don’t you want fairness? Click here!”
Kids don’t know any better. They tap the link.
In an instant, schemers wire $20,000 out of your family’s savings account — gone forever.
You’ve been warned, New York, because this is basically what will
happen in Albany this month — only it’s not your kids being duped, it’s
your state lawmakers.
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