US at fault in school strike; pivoting on oil; faulty Iran nuclear intel; guns for felons; Trump staff buying doomsday bunkers
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(Most) everything you need to know for today:
March 12 is the 71st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 294 days remain until the end of the year. As of this writing, 1,044 days remain in Trump’s term of office.
Knee-deep in the hoopla:
The latest on the Iran war from the Associated Press.
The obvious is taking its revenge on Trump. The reasons other U.S. presidents avoided war with Iran are becoming all too evident. (The Atlantic gift article)
U.S. at fault in strike on school in Iran, preliminary inquiry says. Outdated targeting data may have resulted in a mistaken missile strike, according to the ongoing military investigation, which undercuts President Trump’s assertion that Iran could be to blame. (New York Times gift article)
Trump’s head-spinning pivot on an emergency oil release. In a matter of hours, the White House changed its position and pushed allies to move forward with a massive oil market intervention. (Wall Street Journal gift article)
Nuclear experts undercut White House claims about Iran reactor at heart of case for war. The Trump administration sent negotiators without nuclear expertise to lead talks on Iran’s enrichment program. Now, its public case for war centers on a facility that experts say cannot do what officials claim. (MS NOW)
Trump gains prominent ally in killing Senate filibuster. Reversal by Cornyn boosts pressure on GOP leader Thune as Republicans push to pass SAVE America Act. (Wall Street Journal gift article)
Do they know something we don’t? Trump officials are suddenly buying doomsday bunkers. (The New Republic)
The Trump DOJ is giving guns back to felons, including one alleged fake elector. Last month, the Department of Justice quietly published a list of 22 names in the Federal Register. With little explanation or fanfare, the department announced that these individuals, convicted felons and a fake elector, had their federal gun rights restored. (NPR)
A.I. isn’t lightening workloads. It’s making them more intense. The technology is increasing the speed, density and complexity of work rather than reducing it, new analysis shows. (Wall Street Journal gift article)
Mounting claims of identity theft by Uber drivers raise passenger safety concerns. Stolen identities are being used to create fraudulent Uber driver accounts, raising questions about passenger safety and the company's driver verification process. (CBS News)
Young people are turning to old-school hobbies to get off their phones. But apparently, you aren’t. (AP)
Late Night:
Jimmy Kimmel Live: Conan O’Brien is hosting the Oscars for the second time on ABC, the FBI has warned law enforcement here in California that Iran is aspiring to launch a drone strike on the West Coast, many of Trump’s advisors are urging him to just declare victory in Iran and get out, he has been busy in Kentucky reminiscing about the way Obama went down the stairs, Jake Paul made an appearance at his rally, Pope Leo met a baby version of himself today, in New Mexico state investigators searched Jeffrey Epstein’s former property there, the friendship between Trump & Epstein has now been memorialized with a sculpture, Senator John Kennedy went after RFK Jr. during a discussion about sugary drinks, Trump is still trying to prove that he won the election that he lost, and with all the terrible things going on in the world - we get a rare visit from Upbeat Bobby to help us stay positive! (Video)
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert: Energy investors are struggling to keep up as America's war against Iran roils the markets, President Trump says higher gas prices will be worth it in the long run, and this summer our nation's capital will host an IndyCar race named "Freedom 250." (Video)
Cold open: House Hunters: Doomsday Bunkers. (Video)
Late Night with Seth Meyers: Seth takes a closer look at President Trump suggesting that he might put boots on the ground in Iran and Republicans not being able to agree on whether they support that idea. (Video)
Keep scrolling… lots of interesting stuff in Quote of the Day, Holidays, On This Day, Birthdays, and Deaths. I can pretty much guarantee you’ll learn something new.
History highlight:
2011 – A reactor at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant exploded and released radioactivity into the atmosphere a day after the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.
Quote of the day:
The beauty of things must be that they end.
--Jack Kerouac (Wikipedia link)
(More Jack Kerouac quotes from the KGB Quotations Database)
Today’s holidays:
Alloimmunization and HDFN Awareness Day, Detrans Awareness Day, Girl Scout Birthday, International School Meals Day, National Alfred Hitchcock Day, National Baked Scallops Day, National Milky Way Day, National Plant a Flower Day, National Working Moms Day, Popcorn Lovers Day, World Day Against Cyber Censorship, World Glaucoma Day, and World Kidney Day.ulture, Peace, Dialogue and Film, World Plumbing Day, and Worship of Tools Day.
On This Day:
2020 – The United States suspended travel from Europe due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
2011 – A reactor at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant exploded and released radioactivity into the atmosphere a day after the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.
2009 – Financier Bernie Madoff plead guilty to one of the largest frauds in Wall Street‘s history.
1999 – Former Warsaw Pact members the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland joined NATO.
1989 – Tim Berners-Lee submitted his proposal to CERN for an information management system, which subsequently develops into the World Wide Web.
1968 – Oil was discovered in Alaska’s Prudhoe Bay
1947 – Cold War: The Truman Doctrine was proclaimed to help stem the spread of Communism.
1933 – Great Depression: Franklin D. Roosevelt addressed the nation for the first time as President of the United States. This was the first of his “fireside chats“.
1928 – In California, the St. Francis Dam failed; the resulting floods killed 431 people.
1912 – The Girl Guides (later renamed the Girl Scouts of the USA) was founded in the United States.
1894 – Coca-Cola was sold in glass bottles for the first time
1862 – Paddle steamer Brother Jonathan docked in Fort Victoria (now Victoria, British Columbia), carrying smallpox-infected passengers from San Francisco. The ensuing epidemic killed an estimated two-thirds of First Nations in the province of British Columbia.
(For comprehensive lists of the day’s historical events, check here, here, and here.)
Some Birthdays:
1984 – Jaimie Alexander, American actress
1970 – Dave Eggers, American author and screenwriter
1969 – Jake Tapper, American journalist and author
1968 – Aaron Eckhart, American actor and producer
1968 – Tammy Duckworth, Thai-American colonel, pilot, and politician
1960 – Courtney B. Vance, American actor and painter
1948 – James Taylor, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
1947 – Mitt Romney, American businessman and politician, 70th Governor of Massachusetts
1946 – Frank Welker, American voice actor and singer
1946 – Liza Minnelli, American actress, singer and dancer
1940 – Al Jarreau, American singer (died 2017)
1938 – Ken Spears, American writer (died 2020)
1933 – Barbara Feldon, American actress
1932 – Andrew Young, American pastor and politician, 14th United States Ambassador to the United Nations
1928 – Edward Albee, American director and playwright (died 2016)
1925 – Harry Harrison, American author and illustrator (died 2012)
1923 – Wally Schirra, American captain, pilot, and astronaut (died 2007)
1922 – Jack Kerouac, American author and poet (died 1969)
1921 – Gordon MacRae, American actor and singer (died 1986)
1832 – Charles Boycott, English farmer and agent (died 1897)
(A more complete list of today’s birthdays.)
Some Deaths:
2015 – Terry Pratchett, English journalist, author, and screenwriter (born 1948)
2003 – Lynne Thigpen, American actress and singer (born 1948)
2001 – Robert Ludlum, American author (born 1927)
2001 – Morton Downey Jr., American singer-songwriter, actor, and talk show host (born 1933)
1989 – Maurice Evans, English-American actor (born 1901)
1985 – Eugene Ormandy, Hungarian-American violinist and conductor (born 1899)
(A more complete list of today’s deaths.)
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