I’ve Got a Feeling

Good afternoon. This is the Final NOTUS newsletter for March 13, 2026. You can get it in your inbox every day by signing up here — it’s free!

The Latest

Pete Hegseth said the U.S. has a plan for ‘dealing with’ the Strait of Hormuz. “Don’t need to worry about it,” he told reporters. “We have a plan for every option here. That’s not a strait we’re going to allow to remain contested.”

• Hegseth made his comments at a Pentagon press conference. The defense secretary used the occasion to lash out at “fake news from CNN” — a popular pastime among administration officials today. “The sooner David Ellison takes over that network, the better,” he said. The Atlantic’s Nancy Youssef and print photographers accused of taking unflattering photos of Hegseth were denied entry.
• The military confirmed that all six crewmembers died in the crash of a KC-135 in western Iraq on Thursday. The U.S. has now acknowledged the deaths of 13 Americans since Trump started the war with Iran last month.
• The leaders of Germany, France and Ukraine all condemned Donald Trump’s decision to ease restrictions on Russian oil sales. The president needs Russian oil to offset price hikes resulting from his war on Iran; his European critics say he’s helping Vladimir Putin fund his war on Ukraine.
• Trump is gearing up to invoke a Cold War-era law to allow an oil-and-gas company to resume drilling off California’s coast, an unprecedented use of emergency power that will almost certainly face legal challenges.

• The man accused of attacking a synagogue in Michigan reportedly lost two brothers and two nephews last week in an Israeli air strike on Lebanon.
• Trump told Fox’s Brian Kilmeade that the war will end “when I feel it in my bones.”

‘US forecasts blizzard, polar vortex, heat dome and atmospheric river all at once’ — that’s an actual headline from The Associated Press. Happy Friday the 13th. You’re welcome.

The Hill

Sens. Ruben Gallego, Tim Kaine and Adam Schiff introduced a war powers resolution — on Cuba, Punchbowl reports. Yes, it’s hard to keep up.

• Cuba confirmed that it’s in talks with the United States. President Miguel Díaz-Canel said the discussions are predicated on “respect for the political systems of both countries, sovereignty and our government’s self-determination.”

Congressional Republicans investigating how DHS handled contracts under Kristi Noem are looking into one of Corey Lewandowski’s advisers, NOTUS’ Anna Kramer and Reese Gorman report. That adviser has her own contract with DHS ending this week.

• CNN says search-and-rescue crews searching for tornado survivors last weekend were without the help of “a critical tornado-tracking tool typically provided by FEMA” because a contract renewal with a vendor moved too slowly through Noem’s approval process.

Sen. Bill Hagerty has created a legal defense fund, but it’s actually a legal offense fund: The Tennessee Republican said he needs the money to pay legal expenses to challenge the FBI’s “acquisition of cell phone records” as part of the Arctic Frost investigation.

The Administration

The Commerce Department said the economy was worse than it thought in the last quarter of 2025. GDP grew only 0.7%, half of the 1.4% it reported just a month ago.

Trump said he doesn’t want his Cabinet members wearing sneakers. That’s how he explained his practice of buying Florsheims for the men who work with him. “It seems to work out pretty well,” Trump told Kilmeade. “And now they look all spiffy and nice.”

Wartime President

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