March 27, 2026: All Newsclips

Lead Stories

Occidental's Hollub, US oil's most powerful woman, prepares to hand over reins, sources say

Vicki Hollub is preparing to retire as chief executive of Occidental Petroleum after her decade-long stewardship of the U.S. oil and gas ?company that made her one of the most powerful women in a male-dominated industry, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.Hollub, 66, plans to make a formal ?announcement later this year, according to four people with knowledge of the matter. Richard Jackson, who was elevated to chief operating officer in October, is primed to become CEO upon Hollub's departure, three of the people added.

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Her exit would end more than four decades at the Houston-based oil producer, where she became the first woman to become the CEO of a major U.S. oil company. Prior to that, she led Oxy's Permian Basin operations, building the company into one ?of the biggest operators in the nation's largest U.S. oil region.Her tenure has been marked by the mammoth, debt-fueled 2019 acquisition of rival Anadarko Petroleum, completed in part with $10 billion ?in financing from Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway.There is no firm date set for her retirement, the sources said, who spoke on condition of anonymity to ?discuss private conversations. The ongoing conflict in the Middle East, which has delivered the biggest disruption to energy supplies in history, could reshape her plans, they added.Advertisement · Scroll to continue“We have a strong board with strong ?governance, and we do not comment on speculation,” an Oxy spokesperson said in an emailed statement. Oxy shares rose modestly after Reuters reported on the plans, and were up 4% in Thursday trading. In ?2019, Hollub beat out supermajor Chevron in a fierce bidding war for Anadarko that advanced Oxy's shale business when the fracking boom was in full swing.

AG Ken Paxton says agency won’t represent comptroller’s office in Muslim school lawsuit

Attorney General Ken Paxton informed Kelly Hancock on Thursday the attorney general’s office would no longer represent the comptroller in an ongoing federal lawsuit regarding access Muslim schools have to the state’s new education savings account system. The letter came less than two days after Hancock wrote to Paxton knocking the attorney general for how the agency allowed a Houston Muslim school into the Texas Education Freedom Accounts program. Paxton called on Gov. Greg Abbott Tuesday to remove Hancock as acting comptroller and replace him with Don Huffines, a Dallas businessman who defeated Hancock in this month’s Republican primary for comptroller. “You have single-handedly destroyed my ability to defend the Comptroller’s office in these cases,” Paxton wrote Thursday.

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The comptroller’s office and the governor’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday’s letter. Two federal lawsuits, one by a Houston parent and another by a group of schools and parents, were filed against the state over the exclusion of some Muslim schools from the TEFA program. The comptroller is overseeing the new education savings account program signed into law by Abbott last year. Those lawsuits were consolidated March 17 in the southern district of Texas. Last week, a federal court ordered the state to allow Muslim schools to enter TEFA. By law, the attorney general is the state’s lawyer and is supposed to defend challenges to state laws, state agencies and individual state employees in their official capacity. However, Paxton has refused to defend state agencies in the past. In a court filing Thursday afternoon, three attorneys with the Office of the Attorney General filed a motion to withdraw as counsel in the case, characterizing Hancock’s letter as a political attack “designed for embarrassment and shock value.”

CPAC draws conservatives to Texas amid Iran war, Republican battle for U.S. Senate nomination

Red MAGA hats, American flag themed clothing, and bedazzled Trump gear fill the Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center. Attendees snap selfies as Steve Bannon, former advisor to President Donald Trump, hosts a live broadcast of his program for the network Real America’s Voice. Behind the main stage, “Protect women’s sports” scrolls across a massive video screen. This is CPAC 2026, currently underway in Grapevine, Texas. The Conservative Political Action Conference draws thousands each year and is billed as “the world’s largest and most influential” gathering for conservatives. CPAC is also seen as an indicator of the direction the Republican party is headed.

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Among the speakers at this week’s event, which runs through Saturday, are Education Secretary Linda McMahon and former South Korean Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn, plus a host of conservative media personalities, GOP lawmakers from across the county and, of course, some notable Texas Republicans, including Gov. Greg Abbott. "It's a chance to actually see — in person — people in the news,” said John Arenz, a North Texas resident, adding he also came to CPAC “to support the conservative agenda.” The conference’s agenda includes a wide variety of issues and hot-button political topics, from the war in Iran to defeating communism to speeches from Republican political hopefuls on the ballot in November. Notably, this is the second time the event has come to North Texas this decade. Dallas County GOP Chair Allen West said CPAC’s return to the state could be seen as a call to action for Texas conservatives — specifically, a call to not let “history repeat itself” during this critical midterm election year.

The Senate finally passed a bill to fund most of DHS — except for ICE

The Senate early on Friday agreed to fund the vast majority of the Department of Homeland Security, bringing an end to the partial government shutdown that left most of its agencies without funding for more than a month. Negotiators passed a bill to fund DHS through the end of the fiscal year after days of intense back-and-forth talks. Those discussions took on a new sense of urgency as hours-long security lines became a common occurrence at airports across the country. The bill will still need to pass the House and be signed into law. The package does not fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement — the most hotly contested portion of the spending measure — and only funds a part of Customs and Border Protection. It also does not include any of the reforms to ICE that Democrats have sought dating back to January. Spurred by the killings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minneapolis at the hands of immigration agents, Democrats said they would not vote for DHS funding without significant changes at the agency.

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“Obviously, we’ll still have some work ahead of us, but the good news is we anticipated this a year ago,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters, noting that one of the reasons why they pre-loaded the party’s reconciliation bill last summer with ICE funding is because they anticipated issues on this front. “I still think it’s unfortunate. The [Democrats] wanted reforms. We tried to work with them on reforms. They ended up getting no reforms,” he continued. “We’re going to have to fight some of those battles another day.” The announcement came in the wee hours of Friday morning as staffers worked swiftly behind closed doors to write the bill late on Thursday. The bill passed by voice vote without any senators objecting. Republicans earlier in the day declared that they had made their “last and final” offer to Democratic leaders, one that included language intended to win them over. Throughout much of the afternoon, Democrats stayed mum on the state of talks, including members who had previously been chief critics of the Republican offers. Democrats came back with a counteroffer that once again included many nonstarters on the Republican side, leading the majority to go to Plan B: the bill that finally emerged and was passed without opposition.

State Stories

Houston’s Bush Airport has had some of the worst TSA wait times. Here’s why

Increasingly agitated travelers are sacrificing countless hours and missing milestone events as a partial government shutdown spills into its 40th day and the country loses hundreds of airport security employees. Nowhere is the scene more miserable than at Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH), where predawn lines this week packed an underground tunnel and forced some travelers to miss their flights — again. “We see the families arriving early and waiting for hours. We see missed flights. We see missed moments, weddings, vacations, time with loved ones,” said Jim Szczesniak, director of aviation for the Houston Airport System. Even more sobering: “We worry conditions will only get worse at airports across the US until Congress ends this shutdown,” Szczesniak said. Houston Mayor John Whitmire called the situation at airports in his city “a total mess” and urged elected officials to find a solution so TSA officers can get paid. “It’s not rocket science stuff. Work out your dispute (and) let these people be paid,” Whitmire said. “In fact, I can’t believe what I’ve learned of how low paid they are. They’re essential workers.”

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Here’s why the situation is so dire, why some airports are faring better and why the problems could get worse. Some travelers who missed their flights at George Bush Intercontinental were forced to return to the airport the next day and spend more hours in line. They were among a sea of frustrated passengers that stretched down into a tunnel where a subway tram typically runs. As they waited, a warning blared over the speakers: “Due to the federal government shutdown, TSA wait times are currently exceeding four hours,” the announcement said. “If your flight is departing soon, you may not clear security in time. Please consider contacting your airlines now for rebooking options.” On Wednesday morning, the lines were noticeably shorter. But Wednesdays are typically low-volume days, said Houston Airport System spokesperson Casey Curry. “We are expecting a higher passenger load Thursday and Friday,” she said, in part because of conference departures and NCAA Sweet 16 events. The airport said on X late Wednesday that wait times could reach up to four hours on Thursday, and that CLEAR and TSA PreCheck would not be available. By Wednesday afternoon, the wait time at Bush Intercontinental reached two hours. Curry said she expects traffic to increase Sunday and Monday, when many business travelers fly. Other airports, including Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, said they expect traffic to pick up during peak travel days Friday through Monday.

This Christian school won’t take Texas vouchers to ensure 'biblical rule'

One of Houston’s top-rated Christian private schools hosted a rally for Gov. Greg Abbott to promote his school vouchers plan in 2023, but administrators now say if they participated in the $1 billion program, it would amount to “government entanglement” incompatible with the school’s Christian mission. Earlier this year, a Cypress Christian school leader told families in a private video — which the Chronicle obtained after previously reporting on the school’s voucher status — that they would not join the program to retain “biblical rule.” School leaders feared joining the state-funded program could open Cypress Christian to state audits, new testing requirements, or even one day force it to comply with rules on gender or sexuality that conflicted with its religious beliefs.

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“Our school bylaws require that every part of CCS, our curriculum and missions, employment, discipline and the way we've informed students must be governed exclusively by biblical doctrine and scripture,” Kris Hogan, Cypress Christian’s culture director, said in the video. “The Texas Education Freedom Account program, while well intentioned, requires something we simply cannot accept, and that is ongoing government entanglement.” Cypress Christian did not respond to a request for comment about the video. The video presents an unusual argument about a program that has been touted as a way to expand faith-based education, particularly among Christian schools, by providing state dollars for families to use on tuition. Private Christian institutions were central to the push for Texas’ voucher program, cheering on the GOP priority as a way to make their services more accessible. The school’s opposition is also notable because Cypress Christian welcomed Abbott for a pro-voucher rally in 2023, when the governor embarked on a statewide tour of more than a dozen Christian schools.It appears to be the only school Abbott visited during his tour that has not applied to the program.

‘Empty chairs’: New Texas licensing rule hits salons, trades

The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation has formally adopted a rule requiring professional license applicants to prove legal status in the country, ending hopes among some business owners that exceptions would be made for unauthorized workers already licensed. The rule was adopted unanimously by the agency’s commission during its Tuesday meeting. The commission’s vote mandates that applicants for new licenses or license renewals show proof of legal status in the United States beginning May 1. However, the agency has already required this of applicants since late January, TDLR spokeswoman Caroline Espinosa told the American-Statesman. TDLR manages the licenses for hairdressers, barbers, electricians and HVAC professionals, among others.

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During discussion of the rule change, the commissioners appeared convinced that the rule change was necessary to comply with federal law. “I don’t think we are starting a new law. We are just merely doing what the feds are telling us to do,” Commissioner Sujeeth Draksharam said from the dais before the vote. Federal law has barred states from extending public benefits to individuals without legal status since 1996. Until this year, Texas had not enforced that law. About 18,000 TDLR licenses, or 2% of the total, are not currently attached to a Social Security number, indicating the potential number of workers who could be affected by the rule change. It is unclear how many individuals who hold one of these currently unverified licenses would be unable to meet the rule change’s requirement for proof of legal status in the United States.

Lockheed Martin to 'dramatically' ramp up missile production under new deal with feds

Defense contractor Lockheed Martin Corp. will quadruple its production of precision strike missiles to support a new agreement with the U.S. Department of Defense amid the continuing war with Iran. Lockheed, which has a major campus for its Missiles and Fire Control division in the suburb of Grand Prairie, announced March 25 the framework agreement with the department, which has been rebranded as the Department of War. This builds on a $4.94 billion contract the government awarded the company in 2025 to increase production of precision strike missiles to meet growing demand. It has a huge Tarrant County presence, assemling F-35 jets in Fort Worth, while the Grand Prairie facility works on missile defense systems, precision-strike weapons and fire control technology. These missiles are envisioned as the replacement of the Army Tactical Missile System and received production and deployment phase approval from the U.S. Army in July 2025.

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Rep. Greg Casar, Sen. Bernie Sanders file bill to limit threat of sports teams relocating

U.S. Rep. Greg Casar of Texas and Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont filed a bill Thursday that would require owners of professional sports teams such as the San Antonio Spurs to give local communities the chance to buy them before they move to another city. The progressive lawmakers’ snappily named Home Team Act is designed to shield fans from seeing their teams ripped away and to protect municipalities from being leveraged for tax dollars by owners who threaten to relocate, bill author Casar said during a D.C. press conference. “Far too many Americans know the pain of losing a team just so the owner can make a buck,” said Casar, a Democrat whose recently redrawn San Antonio-Austin district previously included the Spurs. “As a child of Houston, I still remember the loss of our Oilers. Those moves are not just a business decision. They leave behind fans who have poured their hearts and souls into teams for decades.”

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Casar said the proposal would also strip negotiating power from billionaire owners who use relocation threats to pit cities against each other and wring desperately needed tax money from communities that have supported them for years. “Even when teams don’t actually move, the threat of moving sets off a race to the bottom,” he said. “Billionaire owners pit taxpayers against each other and then extort the government for billions of dollars.” The lawmakers filed their bill mere months after San Antonio voters approved using an array of complicated public financing mechanisms to help build a new $1.3 billion downtown arena for the Spurs. As Spurs Sports & Entertainment lobbied for the plan, franchise leaders declined to say whether they would relocate the team if they failed at the ballot box. SS&E officials declined comment on the bill.

Johnson County sheriff arrested again on perjury charge in ongoing sexual harassment case

Johnson County's Sheriff has been arrested for a third time in connection to an ongoing sexual harassment case. Jail records show Adam King, 58, was booked in Thursday on an aggravated perjury charge. A bond hasn't been set. King was indicted Wednesday, according to court records. It's the second time he's been indicted for aggravated perjury. In October, he was accused of lying to a grand jury about changing one of his employees' work schedules, Anna Goodloe, after she reported him for sexual harassment earlier last year. That charge was dismissed in December.

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"As you know, the previous case was dismissed as being an illegal and unlawful indictment," King said in a statement Thursday. "This is more of the same and is all laughable, petty, and unprofessional." Bill Mason, one of King's attorneys, previously told KERA News the October indictment was unlawful because it was made by the same grand jury who heard King's allegedly false testimony. According to the Texas Constitution, "if an individual is charged with aggravated perjury before a grand jury, the indictment may not be entered by the grand jury before which the false statement was alleged to have been made." KERA News reached out to the Johnson County Sheriff's Office and will update this story with any response.

Proposed Texas Medicaid rule for children with complex medical needs too ‘narrow,’ advocates say

Texas wants to make it easier for certain children to access services through one of its Medicaid programs – but parents, advocates and medical providers worry the new rule is too narrow. The Texas Health and Human Services Commission, or HHSC, published a draft rule amendment that would affect one of the ways Texas families gain access to Medicaid services through the Medically Dependent Children Program, or MDCP, which provides home- and community-based health services to children with medically complex needs. The state said during a public hearing Thursday the change would help children avoid placement in an institution – like a nursing facility. However, Dr. Glen Medellin, a board-certified pediatrician who specializes in palliative medicine, said he was worried the rule may limit providers.

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“This has been long overdue and helps our children quite significantly,” he said. “I do have some concerns though about the additional changes in the policy for criteria.” Most people access MDCP through an interest list, which keeps track of which families are waiting for services. Advocates said due to limited availability families can wait 20 years to receive services. Other pathways involve nursing facility placement. “We know through data and through our experience that once a child goes into a nursing facility it is very difficult for them to come out,” said Rona Statman, program director for the non-profit, Every Child. “The longer that they stay in the harder it is to get them out.” Under the change, said Renée Lombardo, HHSC’s long-term supports and services manager, some children would be able to access MDCP services without first going to a nursing home. The rule establishes clinical criteria to determine if a child is eligible for what’s known as a nursing facility diversion slot – which allows children who qualify to forego facility placement ahead of getting services. Lombardo said the slots can reduce the emotional and logistical burdens on families.

University Park says SMU crosswalks won't be removed, despite Gov. Abbott's directive

Dallas took action this week to remove rainbow and Black Lives Matter markings from several crosswalks, after a state directive mandated the change. However, another Dallas suburb says it determined that its decorative crosswalk can remain in place, despite the state order. University Park said in a statement that an intersection featuring the SMU mustang formed with decorative bricks does not violate the directive that prompted Dallas and other cities to remove their decorative crosswalks. Cities across the state removed decorative crosswalks after a directive by Gov. Greg Abbott issued on Oct. 8, meant to "prioritize uniformity and predictability in traffic control devices statewide,” according to the state.

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In a letter dated Oct. 8, TxDOT told local officials that the department will enforce state and federal standards requiring uniform pavement markings. The letter cites the U.S. Department of Transportation’s SAFE ROADS Initiative, which calls for intersections and crosswalks to remain “free from distractions,” including political messages, symbols or artwork. According to the letter, cities have 30 days to remove nonstandard markings — including murals, decorative designs or colored crosswalks — unless they receive written approval from TxDOT’s Traffic Safety Division. Jurisdictions that fail to comply could face the loss of state or federal transportation funding. “Governor Abbott appreciates Texas municipalities’ compliance with his directive on roadway safety. Texans expect their tax dollars to enhance roadway safety, not advance political ideologies,” said Press Secretary Andrew Mahaleris. All the crosswalks are expected to be removed and replaced by April 28, WFAA previously reported.

Austin adopts new homeless strategy plan, but leaders aren't sure of the cost

Austin city leaders have approved a new strategic plan to address some of the issues people experiencing homelessness face. David Gray, the city’s homeless strategy officer, said it will act as a road map for addressing homelessness over the next two years. The plan was crafted with more than two dozen community partners and includes adding shelter beds to the system, opening two centers that help coordinate services and increasing collaboration with community partners. “If we want to get people out of our abandoned buildings and out of parks and greenbelts, we need more beds to put them in, and we need more spaces to bring those people inside," Gray said. “And that is exactly why our plan touches on adding more shelter beds, enhancing rapid rehousing and permanent supportive housing service delivery and boosting our navigation centers.”

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Tony Carter said those are the kinds of services that could help get him and keep him in housing. Since 2019, Carter has been in and out of homeless camps and rapid rehousing all while trying to hold down a job. Rapid rehousing provides the person with a rent subsidy and case management services as they work to become self-sufficient. “If they are going to keep kicking us out [of our camps], we need housing,” Carter said. “Because you are kicking people out that don’t have a place to go. We need the resources, we need permanent supportive housing, and we need a place where we can go get help.” Gray said some of those goals are already underway. The city is working to open a new navigation center, which would help match people with services, in South Austin. The city purchased the property back in October. And several permanent supportive housing units are already set to be opened.

Collin County roundtable highlights growing concerns over rising insurance costs in Texas

Leaders, industry experts, and residents gathered in Collin County to address what one North Texas lawmaker is calling an “insurance crisis,” as homeowners across the region face sharply rising premiums and growing concerns over claim denials. “The number one thing that I constantly hear is affordability. Can I afford the American dream?” said State Rep. Mihaela Plesa, who represents House District 70. Plesa says for many Texans, that dream is slipping out of reach. She points to a combination of rising premiums and an increase in denied claims. Texans pay the fifth-highest insurance premiums in the country. “They're paying into something that when you need it, it isn't there,” she said.

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Insurance industry leaders argue there are clear reasons behind the spike. Rich Johnson with the Insurance Council of Texas says the state faces an unusually high level of risk. “We are top five, if not, top 3 in every peril: hail, wind, hurricanes, wildfires, and tornadoes,” Johnson said. North Texas has seen its share of severe weather in recent years, contributing to higher costs. Johnson also points to rising legal expenses. Johnson calls it 'legal abuse.' “We've seen legal costs really spiral out of control with these nuclear lawsuits and the billboard attorneys up and down I-35,” he said. At the roundtable, residents shared how the increases are affecting their budgets. WFAA polled a few people who are paying significantly more each month for the same coverage — some by as much as $300. “The trajectory things have taken concerns me, makes me want to learn more, or at the very least it's going to taper off a little,” said one attendee.

Hays County wells run drier as aquifers fall to their lowest levels in more than 20 years

In Radiance, a small community in northwestern Hays County, self-sufficiency and community have been tenets of the neighborhood since its founding. It's a place where neighbors take care of their land and one another. “Back in the day, the idea was basically neighbors all working together to have a small community within the Hill Country,” Arturo Rivera said. Rivera has lived in Radiance with his wife Ryan Sage for 10 years. The neighborhood gave them the opportunity to have a barn on their property where they could work on old cars. They call themselves new-age hippies, hunting and gardening while prioritizing the environment.

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The neighborhood's founding principles led Radiance to dig its own community well in the '80s. Contaminated surface water led to a second well in 2003. But in 2025, the second well went dry, forcing residents to use the original well with an order to boil all their water for more than six months. Across Hays County, wells are running drier, forcing them to be dug deeper and pushing residents to confront the increasing severity of depreciating aquifer levels. The Hays Trinity Groundwater Conservation District said aquifer and river conditions have not been this poor in the more than 20-year history of the district — including the 2011 drought. Jared Thompson is the owner of The Well Doctor, a well servicing company. He’s watched the impacts of dwindling aquifer levels play out across the region. He said he is especially wary of the well levels in Wimberley and Dripping Springs. “The water level used to come all the way back up to about 500 feet when we had heavy rains. But now we're seeing it staying very low at around 660 to 690,” Thompson said. “That's very concerning.”

Elon Musk’s Boring Co. explores building a tunnel for a San Antonio theme park

Elon Musk’s Boring Co. wants to build a tunnel for a San Antonio theme park in what would be the first project by the company in Bexar County after the failed bid to build a tunnel to connect the airport with downtown. The company, which is headquartered in Bastrop, said it’s taking on a project proposed by Morgan’s Wonderland, the nonprofit park that’s accessible to people with special needs. The “Morgan’s Wonderland Tunnel” is one of five projects, including one in Dallas, the company said it was pursuing as the result of a recent contest that sought pitches from entities around the country. When it announced the contest in January, it said it would build the winning submission for no charge. It ended up naming three winners, including the Dallas project.

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While not one of the three projects designated as winners, the Boring Co. said the Morgan’s Wonderland project and another in Hendersonville, Tenn., “were so compelling” that it is “going to continue to work with the entrants and try to get them built.” Morgan’s Wonderland referred questions about its proposal to the Boring Co., which has not responded to requests for information. The park’s founder Gordon Hartman, a philanthropist and former homebuilder, hasn’t responded to a separate request for comment. The Boring Co. said the next steps include meetings with elected officials, regulators and community and business leaders about the winning sites. It also will begin investigating the soil and subsurface of the potential sites for feasibility. If the projects are deemed to be feasible, the company said it will fund and build them. So far, neither the city’s Public Works nor Capital Delivery departments are involved in the project at the North Side theme park. It would be the first in Bexar County for the Boring Co., but not the first time it’s pitched doing a project in the city. In 2022, the Alamo Regional Mobility Authority voted to negotiate with the Boring Co. on a tunnel to shuttle visitors between San Antonio International Airport and downtown.

National Stories

State savings weaken as budget pressures increase, analysis warns

State rainy day funds — money reserved to cover unexpected expenses and patch short-term budget holes — are declining nationally as states face increased costs, lower tax revenue and federal budget cuts, a new analysis found. The decline follows a period of strong reserves bolstered by federal pandemic aid and higher-than-expected tax collections, the report said. Researchers at The Pew Charitable Trusts found that the number of days that state reserves could cover state operations fell in fiscal year 2025 — the first decline since the Great Recession. State reserve funds will play a critical role in stabilizing state finances as they confront the most widespread budgetary pressures since at least 2020, the researchers said.

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Like household savings accounts, state reserves help fund major one-time investments or provide a cushion in times of disrupted tax revenues, including economic downturns. Lower reserves means states could be quicker to cut state services or raise taxes in times of tight budgets. Examining data from a survey conducted by the National Association of State Budget Officers, Pew researchers concluded that the median state in 2025 could fund its operations on reserve funds for 47.8 days — down from a record 54.5 days in fiscal 2024. States last fiscal year held a collective $174 billion in savings, though reserves varied widely. Wyoming, for example, held enough cash on hand to operate for 320 days. But New Jersey’s reserve didn’t hold enough to cover a single day of state operations. The other states with the smallest share of rainy day reserves were Washington, Illinois, Delaware and Rhode Island.

Middle East conflict drags Nasdaq into a correction

Investors are losing faith in a quick end to the war in Iran. Major U.S. stock indexes slumped on Thursday and oil prices surged past $100 a barrel again as efforts to end the conflict showed few signs of significant progress. As the war drags on, pain in financial markets is mounting: The Dow industrials are on pace for their largest one-month percentage decline since 2022, and the Nasdaq composite is now in correction territory, dropping more than 10% from its last high. The Dow dropped 469 points, or 1%. The S&P 500 fell 1.7%, while the Nasdaq slid 2.4%. Both the S&P and Nasdaq suffered their biggest one-day declines since the war began and closed at their lowest levels since September. Earlier this week, stocks advanced and investors cheered a social-media post from the president saying that the U.S. military would postpone strikes on Iranian power plants. But on Thursday, the mood shifted.

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“It just has to do with the growing realization that here we are on Thursday and there’s just a lot of uncertainty about what is happening in the Gulf,” said Thomas Martin, senior portfolio manager at Globalt Investments. “The markets are trying to figure out, ‘Is there a deal in there somewhere?’” The Dow industrials were roughly flat when President Trump began speaking at a morning cabinet meeting. The president said that he expected that gas and oil prices would have gone up much higher due to the war in Iran, and added that energy prices “have not gone up as much as I thought.” Trump said that he expects prices to increase further. “Maybe it’ll go up a little bit more. It’s all going to come back down,” he said. During the meeting, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent added that the American public is prepared to endure “short-term volatility” to achieve five decades of security after the Iranian regime is defeated. Stock declines accelerated throughout the meeting. Trump had set a Friday deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial thoroughfare for oil exports.

After markets rattle, Trump once again punts on following through with threat on Iran power plants

Facing a convulsing stock market, President Donald Trump on Thursday moved to buy himself more time and hold off, once again, on carrying out a threat to obliterate Iran’s energy plants over the Islamic Republic’s effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Trump said he was delaying taking potential action because talks aimed at ending the conflict are going “very well,” despite the fact that Iran continues to publicly insist it is not negotiating with the White House on a 15-point proposal — delivered by Pakistani intermediaries — to end the war. He said Iran had asked for the grace period. “They asked for seven (days),” Trump said in an appearance on Fox News Channel’s “The Five” shortly after he announced on social media he would give Iran until April 6 to reopen the strait. “And I said, ‘I’m going to give you 10.’”

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Trump publicized his decision shortly after Wall Street closed Thursday, another rocky day with U.S. stocks recording their biggest loss since the war with Iran started. The S&P 500 dropped 1.7%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 469 points, or 1%, and the Nasdaq composite sank 2.4% to fall more than 10% below its all-time high set early this year. Trump first threatened to bombard Iranian energy facilities on Saturday — and almost immediately began vacillating. In his initial threat, he gave Tehran 48 hours to open up the strait, a chokepoint for global oil markets. But he backed off on Monday, saying he would give Iran an additional five days, after Asian markets gyrated. Then, he punted again after Thursday’s shaky markets. This was not the first time Trump has appeared to have been jostled into adjusting policy in the face of market volatility. Last April, after implementing new tariffs that triggered the worst two-day sell-off for the S&P 500 in five years, Trump announced a 90-day halt on the most severe tariffs for all countries except China.

Netflix hikes prices again, impacting all plan tiers

Netflix is hiking subscription prices across all its plans in its first major price increase in more than a year. The plans were disclosed on Netflix’s help page Thursday. The ad-supported tier will rise by $1 per month to $8.99, with the standard plan rising by $2 per month to $19.99 and the premium plan also rising by $2 per month to $26.99 per month. The company also raised the cost of its “extra member” fee by $1, to $6.99 for ad-supported plans and $9.99 for ad-free plans.

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Netflix last raised prices early last year, with similar increases. Of course, the platform has been significantly ramping up its content, not only in scripted entertainment, but in live events and sports, not to mention other areas like video podcasts and games. The company says it will spend more than $20 billion in its entertainment offering this year. Netflix executives have long said that they raise prices when they feel they are delivering enough value to justify them. The company has by far the lowest churn in the industry, underscoring its leadership in the space. But it is also, frankly, something of a bellwether for the entire streaming industry, with other services often following in its footsteps, despite the risk of higher churn. The move by Netflix also comes just weeks after it abandoned its pursuit of Warner Bros., opting not to match a higher bid from Paramount Skydance. That deal would have been transformative for the company, but in its stead it will instead pour more cash into its own business, and in its capital return program. “We will continue to do what we’ve done for more than 20 years as a public company: delight our members, profitably grow our business, and drive long-term shareholder value,” co-CEOs Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters said when announcing their Warners decision.

The war in Iran sparks a global fertilizer shortage and threatens food prices

Farmers around the world are feeling the squeeze of the Iran war. Gas prices have shot up and fertilizer supplies are waning due to Tehran’s near shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for U.S. and Israeli bombing. The fertilizer shortage is putting the livelihood of farmers in developing countries — already troubled by rising temperatures and erratic weather systems — further at risk, and could lead to people everywhere paying more for food. The poorest farmers in the Northern Hemisphere rely on fertilizer imports from the Gulf, and the shortage comes just as planting season begins, said Carl Skau, deputy executive director of the World Food Program.

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“In the worst case, this means lower yields and crop failures next season. In the best case, higher input costs will be included in food prices next year.” Baldev Singh, a 55-year-old rice farmer in Punjab, India, says smallholders — the bulk of the country’s farmers — may not survive if the government cannot subsidize fertilizers when demand peaks in June. “Right now, we are waiting and hoping,” he said. Related Stories Energy fallout from Iran war signals a global wake-up call for renewable energy Iran war has US farmers worried about the cost and availability of fertilizer Energy shock fears rise as the Iran war chokes supplies to Asia. Iran is seriously limiting shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow passage that usually handles about a fifth of the world’s oil shipments and nearly a third of global fertilizer trade. Nitrogen and phosphate — two major fertilizer nutrients — are under immediate threat from the blockade. Supplies of nitrogen including urea, the most widely traded fertilizer that helps plants grow and boosts yields, are the hardest hit because of shipping delays and the soaring price of liquefied natural gas — an essential ingredient.

Trump is putting his signature on U.S. dollar bills

The Treasury Department announced on Thursday that President Donald Trump’s signature will be added to an upcoming series of hundred-dollar bills printed this summer in honor of the country’s 250th anniversary. “There is no more powerful way to recognize the historic achievements of our great country and President Donald J. ?Trump than U.S. dollar bills bearing his name, and it is only appropriate that this historic currency be issued at the Semiquincentennial,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement.

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NOTUS reported earlier this month that the Trump Organization had filed several trademarks connecting the president’s name to merchandising and promotional items honoring the country’s 250th anniversary. The president had previously attempted to release a $1 coin bearing his portrait, but the effort stalled as federal law prohibits living individuals from appearing on U.S. coins. The addition of Trump’s signature will be a first for a sitting president, as the name of the U.S. treasurer has appeared on the country’s currency since 1861 and the secretary of treasury’s signature was incorporated in 1914. No other design elements of the bill are expected to change. “The President’s mark on history as the architect of America’s Golden Age economic revival is undeniable,” U.S. Treasurer Brandon Beach said. “Printing his signature on the American currency is not only appropriate, but also well deserved.”

DHS internal watchdog launches investigation into handling of contracts under Noem, Lewandowski

The Department of Homeland Security inspector general has launched a sprawling investigation into how contracts have been solicited and handled, including the involvement of former Secretary Kristi Noem and her de facto chief of staff Corey Lewandowski, according to two sources familiar with the probe. Noem’s handling of contracts within DHS was one of the main catalysts for her ouster by President Donald Trump earlier this month. Lewandowski’s micromanagement of the department, including his involvement in contracts, was a persistent source of tension with White House officials, CNN has reported. The Office of the Inspector General previously announced an audit into DHS grants and contracts awarded “by any means other than full and open competition during fiscal year 2025,” according to its website.

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The inspector general, Joseph Cuffari, complained to Congress in early March that DHS leadership had been obstructing some of his work. One of the sources familiar with the issue said the IG investigation that includes Noem and Lewandowski is separate from the previously announced audit. The source said investigators had ordered dozens of DHS officials to preserve records as part of the new probe. In a statement to CNN, a spokesperson for the DHS OIG said its office does not confirm or deny the existence of an investigation, and noted that its audit of some DHS grants and contracts is congressionally mandated and required on a yearly basis. It is not clear which specific contracts the IG is investigating. The OIG audit, the spokesperson added, is paused because the team handling the audit was furloughed as part of the DHS shutdown. “Once funding is restored, this audit will be resumed,” the statement said.

Copyright March 27, 2026, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved