From the desk of Rich Stephens
News for the week ending 3-21-26
Below find the expanded text from tonight’s broadcast. For corrections or additions, contact Rich directly.
Politics
Partial Government Shutdown
We begin in Washington DC, where, as of March 22, the federal government has been in a partial shutdown for 36 days. TSA, DHS, FEMA and the Coast Guard are unfunded and employees are not being paid. Callouts have caused extended waits for air travelers, with airports asking travelers to arrive as much as 3 hours early. Democrats are refusing to fund DHS without reforms to ICE. Republicans are refusing to pass partial funding that doesn’t include DHS. Democrats say that Republicans refuse to pay TSA because, in the words of Senator Hakeem Jeffries “The extremists support unleashing ICE brutality on the American people.” Republicans say that TSA remains unpaid because Democrats insist on keeping DHS shut down. Neither side has 60 votes to break the filibuster in the senate, and neither side is willing to relinquish what leverage they have, so the standoff continues.
VA Firearms Law
On Saturday, March 14, 2026, Virginia lawmakers advanced House Bill 110, creating a new misdemeanor offense for leaving a handgun in an unattended vehicle unless it is locked and out of plain view in a secured container. Criticism for the law includes the provision that exempts state legislators from adherence while parked at the state house. This is part of a larger push by Governor Spanberger and house democrats to pass strict firearms laws in the state.
Robert Mueller Death
On Saturday, March 21, Robert S. Mueller III passed away. Muller served as Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation from 2001 to 2013 and was appointed Special Counsel by the U.S. Department of Justice in May 2017. He led the federal investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 United States presidential election and submitted his report in March 2019, which did not establish a criminal conspiracy between the Trump campaign and Russia. In July 2025, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence released declassified material and a whistleblower account alleging that intelligence underlying the 2017 Russia assessment was manipulated and based in part on discredited information. The release documents internal disputes and challenges to the validity of those intelligence conclusions. Following Mueller’s death, Donald J. Trump posted on his official account, “Good, I’m glad he’s dead. He can no longer hurt innocent people.” Robert Mueller was 81.
World
Iran Conflict
In World News, Israel Defense Forces announced that on Friday, March 20, Iran launched a multi-stage ICBM at joint US/UK base Diego Garcia. This represents a 2500 mile range, meaning that Iran has the technical capability of striking any targe in Europe except for Ireland, Portugal and Iceland. It also gives them strike capability for large parts of Russia and China, all of India, and most of Thailand. This is particularly interesting because Director of the National Counterterrorism Center Joe Kent resigned this week in a public letter posted to X. He previously spoke publicly, including on the Shawn Ryan show, saying that Iran is already at war with the United States. He laid out details about Iran being an active threat actor. However, in his resignation and immediately after, while speaking to Tucker Carlson, he said that Iran posed no immediate threat. Democrats in congress have also asserted that Iran posed no imminent threat. The president had asserted during his state of the union address that Iran possessed weapons with enough range to target Europe.
Trump State of the Union Statement
Jim Himes Supports Joe Kent Resignation
Jim Himes: No Evidence Iran Is a Threat
IDF Chief Statement (Hebrew Only)
Current Events
Mike King Shooting
Moving over to current events, Tuesday, March 17, Dallas police held a press conference to speaking about the shooting death of 39 year old Diamon Maziarre Robinson who also went by Mike King. Robinson was fatally shot by officers on Wednesday, March 11 in a parking garage. He had been using fictitious information and police style uniforms to falsely identify himself as a law enforcement officer. He was wanted on multiple felony warrants as well as a parole violation. He was ALSO part of Texas Congresswoman Jasmine Crocket’s security detail for YEARS. On March 11, police say he was located and he refused to exit his vehicle. Officers negotiated with him for more than an hour before he finally exited the vehicle. However, when he did, he pulled a firearm and was then shot.
Body Cam Release Full Press Conference
Old Dominion Shooting Straw Purchase
In a follow up to one of last week’s stories, on Friday, March 13, 2026, ATF filed a criminal complaint charging Kenya McCell Chapman with federal firearms violations tied to the March 12 shooting at Old Dominion University. The affidavit states Chapman admitted in a 2021 investigation to straw purchasing multiple firearms later recovered in violent crimes, including a homicide. Federal records show Chapman continued acquiring firearms and later sold one to Mohamed Bailor Jalloh, identified as the shooter last week at Old Dominion University. Under the Biden administration, federal authorities documented serious firearms violations, obtained an admission, but ultimately did not put Chapman in prison.
Antifa Conviction
On Friday, March 13, a federal jury in Fort Worth, Texas convicted nine individuals for the July 4, 2025 attack on the Prairieland ICE Detention Center in Alvarado, Texas, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Eight defendants were convicted of terrorism-related charges, including conspiracy, rioting, and use of explosives. A ninth was convicted of document concealment tied to the investigation. The group were members of a North Texas Antifa cell that coordinated the attack and their potential sentences range from 10 to 60 years. Attorney General Pamela Bondi stated, “Antifa is a domestic terrorist organization that has been allowed to flourish in Democrat-led cities, not under President Trump,”
Department of Justice Statement
New York Forces Cash
Beginning March 20, 2026, retail businesses in the state of New York must accept cash. S4153-A requires that any business selling in the state must accept American dollars and coins in denominations of $20 and below. They cannot charge more for cash and penalties begin at $1000.
Chuck Norris Death
On Thursday, March 19, Carlos Ray “Chuck” Norris passed away in Hawaii. It was said he could slam a revolving door, counted to infinity, twice, and could divide by zero. Born in Ryan, Oklahoma in 1940, Norris held black belts in karate, taekwondo, Tang Soo Do, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and judo. He starred in 196 episodes of Walker, Texas Ranger from 1993 to 2001, and founded Chun-Kuk-Do, his own style of martial arts. Chuck Norris was 86 years old.
Pulse Night Club Memorial
Nearly 10 years ago 49 people were killed and another 53 injured in the shooting at Pulse night club in Orlando. This week, demolition began to prepare the site for a permanent memorial. In 2019, the state awarded a $500,000 grant to the OnePULSE Foundation for the creation of a memorial. Despite having raised somewhere around $20M, the foundation did not meet its obligations. The state recouped almost $400k of the grant money and the City of Orlando is now overseeing the project.
Pulse Orlando Memorial Details
State of Florida Press Release
Finance
Markets
Markets fell this week, continuing a 4 week slide. The Dow lost over 2%, falling 1001 points and closing at 45,557. That’s the lowest week ending since October. NASDAQ also lost 2%, losing 458 points and closing at 21,647. The S&P 500 suffered similarly. The 6,505 close was a 127 point loss, also nearly 2%. Gold dropped more than 10%. The $531 loss left futures at $4492 at close of trading Friday.
Fed Investigation Updates
Friday, March 13, US Attorney Jeanine Pirro spoke about the ongoing case involving the board of governors of the Federal Reserve system. The Fed is renovating two buildings for their headquarters and is more than $1B over budget. After repeated requests for information were ignored by the Fed, two grand jury subpoenas were issued for Jerome Powell to provide testimony so that tax payers can understand where that money has gone. District Court Judge James Boasberg stepped in and squashed both subpoenas and then sealed the documents so I can’t even read his ruling. Pirro asserted that the decision is in contradiction to Supreme Court rulings, impedes investigation and frustrates the public interest in the case. She will be appealing the ruling.
Fed Rate Updates
Wednesday, March 18, Fed Chair Jerome Powell spoke following this month’s board meeting. He said the economy is expanding, unemployment is low and inflation remains somewhat elevated. He declined to lower interest rates for the second month in a row, claiming the middle east conflict creates uncertainty. They anticipate GDP Growth of 2.4% this calendar year, a stronger projection than the December numbers. February unemployment was 4.4%, with little change since the summer. He mentioned that if his successor is not confirmed by the end of his term in May, he will continue to server as Chair pro tem until a successor is confirmed. He said he will not leave the board until the investigation is over.
Sports
World Baseball Classic
And in Sports, Tuesday night, March 17, The United States faced Venezuela in the finals of the 2026 World Baseball Classic. Down by 2 in the 8th, Bryce Harper hit a 2 run homer to center to tie the game. Venezuela retook the lead in the top of the 9th and was able to close out the game for their first ever World Baseball Classic championship. MLB Opening Night will feature the New York Yankees at the San Francisco Giants on March 25 at 8:05 Eastern on Netflix.
NASCAR
In Las Vegas last weekend, Denny Hamlin secured his 61st NASCAR win. His last win came at the same track last year. He had to overcome an early penalty, driving from 31st place to win, having led 134 laps. The win came following the death of his father last year as well as a protracted legal battle between his team and NASCAR. His team is challenging the control NASCAR has over the sport as a whole.
March Madness
Finally, it is March Madness and the 2026 NCAA basketball tournament is under way. First round upsets included an 83-82 win over Wisconsin by High Point University. Texas advanced with a 79-71 win over BYU. Texas A&M beat St. Mary’s 63-50, and VCU toppled UNC 82-78. Duke needed 35 minutes to take the lead from 16th seeded Sienna before securing a 71-65 win. Tennessee ended the run for Miami of Ohio in a 78-56 game. Saturday, 11th seeded Texas took down 3rd seed Gonzaga 74-68. Saturday, 11th seeded Texas took down 3rd seed Gonzaga 74-68. The second round continues today and the Sweet Sixteen starts March 26.
Rich Stephens
The Cold Take