On The Deals Shaping Our Economy
Economic Fallout Hits Home
State of play: Rising energy prices are bleeding into the US economy, threatening to reignite inflation just as the Federal Reserve meets to discuss interest rates.
Investors have already trimmed bets on US monetary policy easing this year.
The US labour market also had a shaky start to 2026, shedding 92,000 jobs in February.
Friendly fire: EJ Antoni, President Trump's one-time pick to lead the Bureau of Labor Statistics, warned the US cannot absorb these energy shocks.
"I don't think this is an economy that is going to be able to handle $100 a barrel for oil…The economy is weaker than we thought it was, and inflation is worse than we thought it was."
Energy War Escalates
Missiles have struck Iran's South Pars facility, a critical part of the world's largest gasfield.
This marks the first time Iranian energy production facilities have been directly targeted since the US and Israel launched their war on February 28.
The market impact was immediate: Brent crude oil jumped over 5% to nearly $109 a barrel.
Why it matters: South Pars is the backbone of the Islamic republic's domestic energy system.
Iran vowed to retaliate against energy sites across the Gulf.
"Energy security in the region has reached the point of zero."
MAGA Fractures
The friction: Nearly three weeks into the war, deep divisions are tearing through President Trump's core political base.
Anti-interventionist Maga voices are clashing with traditional foreign-policy hawks who want to crush the Iranian regime.
The catalyst: Joe Kent, director of the National Counterterrorism Center, abruptly resigned in protest.
In his scathing resignation letter, Kent argued that Iran "posed no imminent threat" to the US.
Trump quickly fired back, saying it was a "good thing" Kent was out, while influential right-wing figures like Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene rushed to Kent's defense.
The bottom line: "When the president was campaigning, he was very happy to have a diverse political coalition," observed Justin Logan of the Cato Institute. "If you throw the car keys over to one faction... other factions may be displeased."
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