---
title: "The Morning Brief — March 23, 2026"
date: 2026-03-23T01:00:02-05:00
draft: false
description: "Iran escalates as Trump's ultimatum clock ticks, CNN keeps lying about ICE, the TSA meltdown gets creative, and a $90M Medicare fraudster may have waltzed in illegally — your Monday morning briefing."
tags: ["Morning Brief", "conservative", "news", "America First"]
---

## [Iran Issues New Threat As Trump's 48-Hour Ultimatum Hits Halfway Mark](https://www.dailywire.com/news/iran-issues-new-threat-as-trumps-48-hour-ultimatum-hits-halfway-mark)

Tehran's response to Trump's ultimatum was, essentially, "nice Gulf neighbors you have there." Iran is now threatening to strike the energy and water systems of Saudi Arabia and the UAE if Trump follows through on hitting Iranian infrastructure — which is a bold move for a regime that just launched ballistic missiles at Diego Garcia and missed. The mullahs are playing a very dangerous game of chicken with a president who has demonstrated he is not running a bluff operation. Tick tock.

---

## [Iran 'Very Close' To Being Able To Strike Major European Cities, NATO Chief Warns](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/world/4499996/iran-strike-range-european-cities-nato-chief/)

NATO Secretary General Rutte says Iran is "very close" to reaching European capitals with its missiles — and I can't help but notice that Europe is the one with the most skin in this particular game. Maybe this is the moment the continent that's been free-riding on American defense spending for 80 years decides it has a dog in the fight after all. I'll believe it when I see their defense budgets.

---

## [CNN Continues Lying About Child In 'Bunny Hat' Who Was 'Detained' By ICE](https://thefederalist.com/2026/03/20/cnn-continues-lying-about-child-in-bunny-hat-who-was-detained-by-ice/)

CNN built an entire streaming special around a story they know is false, because correcting it would require them to admit that immigration law enforcement is, in fact, legal. The five-year-old Ecuadorian child in the bunny hat was *temporarily* present during a lawful enforcement action, which is categorically different from being "detained" — a distinction CNN has decided is beneath their editorial standards. At this point, calling CNN a news organization is the real misinformation.

---

## [Why ICE Agents In Airports May Be Arriving Just In Time](https://www.dailywire.com/news/why-ice-agents-in-airports-may-be-arriving-just-in-time)

TSA absences hit 11.5% this weekend — the highest since the DHS shutdown began five weeks ago — and ICE agents are stepping in at major airports starting today. The left is already melting down about immigration agents being anywhere near an airport, which tells you everything you need to know about their priorities: they'd rather you miss your flight than have ICE in the building. Meanwhile, [private airports have already solved this problem](https://www.nationalreview.com/2026/03/as-tsa-chaos-spreads-some-airports-have-solved-the-security-screening-problem/) — unsurprisingly, without a federal union in sight.

---

## [Trump Open To $5 Billion ICE Funding Cut If SAVE Act Package Passes](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/white-house/4500003/trump-5-billion-ice-funding-cut-save-act/)

Trump is willing to trade $5 billion in ICE funding for the SAVE Act — legislation that would require proof of citizenship to register to vote. Democrats are refusing, which is all the evidence you need that their objection to voter verification isn't about practicality, it's about the voters they're counting on. If non-citizen voting weren't happening, or didn't matter to them, this would be the easiest deal in Washington. It isn't.

---

## [Man Charged In $90M Medicare Fraud Scheme; DOJ Says Suspect May Have Entered US Illegally](https://www.foxnews.com/us/medicare-fraud-azerbaijan-suspect-90m-doj)

A former California resident is facing federal charges for allegedly submitting $90 million in fraudulent Medicare Advantage claims — and the DOJ notes he may have entered the country illegally. So to summarize: entered illegally, allegedly stole $90 million from a federal health program, and is only now being charged. The open-border crowd will tell you this is an isolated incident; I'd ask them to explain why we keep finding the same isolated incident in different zip codes.

---

## [Arson Attack On Jewish Community Ambulance Service Being Investigated As Hate Crime](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/4500020/arson-attack-london-jewish-community-investigated-antisemitism/)

Four ambulances belonging to a Jewish community rescue service in London were set on fire early Monday morning outside a synagogue in the city's largest Jewish neighborhood. Let's be direct: this isn't edgy protest, it's an arson attack on people who save lives, and the target was chosen because of who they are. The fact that antisemitic violence in Europe has become so routine it barely moves the news cycle is its own kind of indictment.

---

## [Fixing Government Waste And Fraud Starts With Giving Power Back To States](https://thefederalist.com/2026/03/20/fixing-government-waste-and-fraud-starts-with-giving-power-back-to-states/)

The Founders designed a federal government to handle defense, treaties, and interstate commerce — not to regulate your child's school lunch, your doctor's reimbursement rate, and your dishwasher's water pressure. DOGE has been doing the Lord's work exposing the bloat, but the long-term fix isn't just cutting spending at the federal level, it's returning the *authority* to the states where it belongs. Washington's addiction to jurisdiction is the root cause; everything else is a symptom.

---

## Bottom Line

When Iran is threatening Gulf oil infrastructure, CNN is manufacturing ICE horror stories, and an alleged illegal immigrant just bilked Medicare for $90 million, it's a good day to remember that borders, enforcement, and a strong foreign posture aren't cruelty — they're governance.