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Transcript: NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” March 22, 2026

2026-03-22T12:32:00-0400 / CBS News

The following is the transcript of the interview with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte that aired on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” on March 22, 2026.

*

MARGARET BRENNAN: We turn now to NATO Secretary General, Mark Rutte, who joins us this morning from The Hague in the Netherlands. Welcome back to ‘Face The Nation.’

NATO SECRETARY GENERAL MARK RUTTE: Margaret, good to be back on the program. Good morning.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Good morning. We did see that Iran fired two missiles at Diego Garcia. That’s that island in the Indian Ocean, which houses a U.S. UK joint base. That was 4000 kilometers from Iranian territory, furthest Iran has ever gone. You just heard Ambassador Waltz say there might be a difference there in how Israel and the U.S. assess that capability Iran has in terms of what they fired. But Israel says these were intercontinental ballistic missiles that could hit Berlin, Paris and Rome. Does NATO share that Israeli assessment?

SECRETARY GENERAL RUTTE: We cannot confirm that at the moment, so we’re looking into that. But if this would be true, it is the more evidence that what the President is doing here, taking out the ballistic missile capability, taking out the nuclear capability from Iran, is crucial. And exactly as the ambassador just said, Ambassador Waltz, we have seen with North Korea, if we negotiate for too long, you might pass the moment where you can still get this thing done, and North Korea now has the nuclear capability. If Iran would have the nuclear capability, including, together with the missile capability, it will be a direct threat, a existential threat, to Israel, to the region, to Europe, to the stability in the world. So the president doing this is crucial, and I’ve seen the polling, but I really hope the American people will be with him, because he is doing this to make the whole world safer.

MARGARET BRENNAN: So but just to be clear at this hour, do you believe that Iran could bomb Berlin, Paris and Rome? Are they all within direct threat range?

SECRETARY GENERAL RUTTE: What we know for sure is that they are very close to having that capability, whether this case with the UK base, Diego Garcia, we are still assessing. But if it is true, it means they already have that capability. If it is not true, we know they are very close to having that capability. And that is exactly why I feel in Europe, that most politicians, it resonates with them. What the President is doing here, which is taking out- degrading Iran’s capability to be, again, an exporter of chaos, sheer chaos to the region, to the world.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, I’m sure the president appreciates your praise, but he has been very frustrated, and made that clear this week with NATO and the European allies. He called NATO quote a paper tiger without the US. He said they complain about high oil prices when they forced to pay but they don’t want to help open the Strait of Hormuz. Easy for them cowards. We will remember.

SECRETARY GENERAL RUTTE: I’ve been in several conversations this week with the president, and the good news is that, look, we had the U.S. for weeks planning for Epic Fury and for reasons of security and safety, they could not share with European allies and allies around the world and partner countries what they were doing, because that would have jeopardized the effect of the first- first attack–

MARGARET BRENNAN: –Or it would have allowed you to plan

SECRETARY GENERAL RUTTE: So it is only logical that European countries needed a couple of weeks to come together. But at this moment, the good news is this, that since Thursday, 22 countries, most of them NATO, but also Japan, Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Bahrain, the UAE, have come together to basically answer three questions, what do we need? When do we need it? And where do we need it? These three questions are now worked through to answer the president’s call, to make sure that we secure the free sailing through the Strait of Hormuz.

MARGARET BRENNAN: To be clear, the president has said four to six weeks for this war, that would put us in early April for an end to combat operations. But then he’s also sending troops. He’s also possibly asking Congress for more money. What’s the when part? When did he tell you your support from these European countries will be needed because from the sources I speak to, they are not willing to send in the midst of combat.

SECRETARY GENERAL RUTTE: Obviously, I cannot in a program which is aired around the world, and you have a lot of viewers, discuss with you what is discussed in secrecy, but I can assure you that, of course, and the UK is- is at the forefront of leading this effort of the 22 countries on the leadership of Prime Minister Starmer. I’ve been in the phone call this week with Prime Minister Starmer and President Macron, and again, this has led to 22 countries now signing up to this initiative. And indeed, one of the key questions is not only the what question and the where question, but also the when question. And this is why military planners are now working together to make sure that we are ready, to make sure that that street- that Strait of Hormuz, that we secure the free sailing there, which is crucial for the world economy.

MARGARET BRENNAN: The president seemed to say, though, that this will go beyond Iran in terms of the impact on his thinking about NATO and his willingness to help Europe. Take a listen to this.

[DONALD TRUMP SOT]

DONALD TRUMP: I think NATO is making a very foolish mistake. And I’ve long said that, you know, I wonder whether or not NATO would ever be there for us. So this is a this was a great test, because we don’t need them, but they should have been there.

[END SOT]

MARGARET BRENNAN: The president continues to frame this as sort of like a quid pro quo, and he’s also mentioned Ukraine in the same context, saying, I help Europe with Ukraine. Why aren’t they helping me? Are you worried that this is going to hurt NATO’s goals elsewhere?

SECRETARY GENERAL RUTTE: What I know is that we always come together. It was under President Trump’s leadership that we had the extremely successful Summit in the Hague where we agreed to spend 5% of our GDPs on defense, and therefore equalizing for the first time since Eisenhower. So this is quite some time- some time back in history, equalizing what the Europeans are spending and what Americans are spending, not only because it is fair that we all spend the same, and this was a wish from Trump 45 and now is Trump 47 he got this done, but also because we need it, because of the Russian threat and our other adversaries. Then on Ukraine, it is again the U.S. providing critical intelligence support and weapons flow, working together with Europeans to secure Ukraine’s fight against the Russians, making sure they have what they need. And now with Iran, I’m absolutely convinced, and I understand the president’s frustration that it takes some time, but again, I also ask for some understanding, because nations had to prepare for this, not knowing and for good reasons about the initial attack on Iran, but now coming together to make sure that we can be able to secure the Strait of Hormuz.

MARGARET BRENNAN: No but to be clear, I’ve spoken to some NATO members who say this is a defensive alliance, not an offensive one. We didn’t sign up to go do what the president is asking us to do. But on the Russia point you just made, the European Council president said the U.S. decision to lift sanctions on Russian oil exports. Is very concerning as it impacts European security. This is part of what President Trump’s doing to try to stop the spike in oil prices here at home, the Treasury Secretary says this means about $2 billion is going to Russia now, President Zelenskyy says it’s more like 10 billion. Doesn’t this benefit Vladimir Putin?

SECRETARY GENERAL RUTTE: Well, this is the thing the president has to balance all these different interests. I know that he is with his team, with Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff and Marco Rubio. They are constantly working with the Ukrainians to put maximum pressure on the Russians to come to a deal. I know–

MARGARET BRENNAN: This isn’t maximum pressure.

SECRETARY GENERAL RUTTE: –I spoke an hour and a half with President Zelenskyy in London. He wants to get the deal done, and we have to make sure that we also take this to the Russians, to make sure that they are willing to play ball. It is the president putting that pressure together with the Europeans. But again, he has to balance all these different interests. So I’m not going to comment on each element of what is happening here, but his effort to bring the war in Ukraine to a successful end is crucial. He was the only one who was able to break the death lock with Putin when he made the first phone call in February last year, and he has consistently, with his team, done what is necessary to put that pressure, of course, on the Ukrainians, and they want to play ball. They show this. They want to end the war, and are also with the Russians.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, we’ll see if Vladimir Putin wants to play ball. Secretary General, thank you for your time, and we’ll be right back with a lot more ‘Face the Nation.’ Stay with us.

Transcript: Rep. Jason Crow on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” March 22, 2026

2026-03-22T12:34:00-0400 / CBS News

The following is the transcript of the interview with Rep. Jason Crow, Democrat of Colorado, that aired on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” on March 22, 2026.

*

MARGARET BRENNAN: And we’re joined now by Colorado Democratic Congressman Jason Crow. Welcome back.

REP. JASON CROW: Thanks, Margaret.

MARGARET BRENNAN: So you sit on the House Intelligence Committee. This past week, you heard the Director of National Intelligence testify about Iran’s capabilities, saying we wouldn’t see an ICBM that would, in theory, be the thing that would carry a nuclear warhead right to American shores. She said they wouldn’t have one until 2035 if they even tried at all. Is- what- are you afraid she was wrong? Because Israel is saying that what was fired was an ICBM that was aimed at this U.S., U.K. base.

REP. CROW: Yeah, she could be wrong, and we have- obviously have to dive into the intelligence. The question has never been whether or not Iran poses a threat or a series of threats to the United States, but that’s where the analysis begins, not when the analysis ends. Right? We have lots of threats. Kim Jong Un poses a threat. Putin poses a threat. We have threats around the world. The question is, what do we do about it? And right now, we’ve spent $20 billion in the first two weeks of this war alone, one and a half billion dollars a day. Americans are paying $300 million a day extra energy prices. The terror threat around the world against the United States and Americans is spreading. And there’s no off-ramp. We have no strategy and no end-game. This is a mess by any definition, and now we have to figure out what we do from here.

MARGARET BRENNAN: So no timeline beyond the four to six weeks has been briefed or shared with Congress at this point.

REP. CROW: No, no, we are not getting the information from this, this administration. They started this war without congressional authorization. There’s no imminent threat. They actually have even stopped trying to pretend there was an imminent threat, which is what is necessary for the president to take action without congressional approval. So now here we are spending tens of billions of dollars of taxpayer money, losing American lives. Congress isn’t involved. We’ve been stonewalled. The American people are not in the driver’s seat here, right? Because Congress has been sidelined in this they are the ones that need to have the voice and whether or not they’re going to send their sons and daughters to go fight this war, whether or not they’re going to finance it. It’s time for this to end.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Let’s take a break. I have more to talk to you about on the other side of it, so all of you, please stay with us. We’ll be right back.

[COMMERCIAL BREAK]

MARGARET BRENNAN: Welcome back to Face The Nation. We return now to our conversation with Colorado Congressman Jason Crow. Before we leave the topic of Iran, I do want to ask you, last Sunday on this program, the White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said the war was ahead of schedule. And while it was up to the budget office, he didn’t think the administration would need any kind of supplemental funding. But then days later, Secretary Hegseth seemed to confirm the Pentagon needed as much as $200 billion.

[SOUND ON TAPE STARTS]

PETE HEGSETH 0:31

far as $200 billion I think that number could move. Obviously, it takes, it takes money to kill bad guys. So we’re going back to Congress and folks there to ensure that we’re properly funded for what’s been done, for what we may have to do in the future.

[SOUND ON TAPE ENDS]

MARGARET BRENNAN: I know you’re opposed to the war, but is there a way to structure this deal where you would be comfortable with additional funds?

REP. CROW: No, if they think I’m going to vote for hundreds of billions of dollars for an unauthorized war, a war they didn’t come to Congress for, a war they haven’t given an explanation to the American people for what we’re doing and not doing, how it’s going to end, how we’re protecting our service members. And on top of that, the- House Republicans gave DOD, $150 billion slush fund last summer as part of Donald Trump’s big, ugly bill, and on top of that, they say they’re going to come and ask for a one and a half trillion dollar defense budget. And the Department of Defense, to this day, can’t pass an audit. They can’t tell us where all their stuff is, where they’re spending all their money. So I’m not about to throw money at a DOD that can’t pass an audit, is sitting on money that they already haven’t accounted for and haven’t spent and to perpetuate an unauthorized war that is not in America’s interest.

MARGARET BRENNAN: I know you’re a veteran, but you know that the accusation will be made that Democrats just don’t support the troops.

REP. CROW: There is, of course, that’s what they’re going to say. But there is plenty of money within DOD for military families, for troops, for barracks. I have guaranteed that I sit on the Armed Services Committee, and I will continue to push forward and vote to make sure our troops, our military is taken care of, that we have the military that we need to protect America. What I’m not going to do is just throw money at the Iran war, which they’re now admitting is a war. This cannot continue. We spent 20 years in Iraq and Afghanistan, trillions of dollars. It ends here. It must end here.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Tell me, though, as a Democrat, because Congress is scheduled to go on vacation soon, a lot of TSA agents aren’t receiving paychecks because of this democratic-led funding shutdown, because of a demand to change immigration policy, something the White House has not made any concessions* on that I know of to date. This is in the Senate, but as a Democrat, I mean, look at Denver airport near your district. They’re asking people to donate gift cards for TSA agents to make ends meet. The airport says, you know, this is a huge generator in terms of what the airport does for the region. This is hurting your community. How do you continue to defend the shutdown?

REP. CROW: I’m going to be really clear that this is a Republican shutdown–

MARGARET BRENNAN: –The Republicans said–

REP. CROW: –Just yesterday–

MARGARET BRENNAN: –fund it all.

REP. CROW: Just yesterday, the U.S. Senate held a vote, and Senate Democrats put up an authorization to fund everything except for ice and CBP, that’s Coast Guard, that’s TSA, that’s cybersecurity. Every single Senate Republican voted against it. In the House, we actually have a bill, Rosa DeLauro and Hakeem Jeffries. We have a clean bill that would force a vote to open up everything, to fund everything except for ICE and CBP. Republicans are stopping it. They’re not even allowing a vote on that bill. So we are ready to go. They are in control of every–

MARGARET BRENNAN: But in the meantime those people are–

REP. CROW: –facet of government–

MARGARET BRENNAN: –are left stuck. We’re about to be in spring break, heavy traffic season.

REP. CROW: They are in control of every element of government. They’re in control of what we vote for and don’t vote for. We are saying, let’s open it back up. Let’s fund Coast Guard. Let’s fund FEMA. Let’s fund TSA. Let’s fund cybersecurity, which, by the way, we need because we just started a war with Iran, which has a huge cyber capability. We want to fund it. We’re ready to fund it. We will take the votes tomorrow. They’re stopping that vote. They own this shutdown.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Congressman Crow, thank you very much for your time today. We’ll be right back.

*

*Editor’s Note: The White House submitted a letter to Congress on March 17 outlining some concessions the administration is willing to make.

Crow on Iran war funding

[Democratic Rep. Jason Crow says “what I’m not going to do is just throw money at the Iran war”06:45]

Democratic Rep. Jason Crow says “what I’m not going to do is just throw money at the Iran war”

(06:45)

https://www.cbsnews.com/video/democratic-rep-jason-crow-says-what-im-not-going-to-do-is-just-throw-money-at-the-iran-war/

Transcript: U.N. Ambassador Mike Waltz on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” March 22, 2026

2026-03-22T13:32:00-0400 / CBS News

The following is the transcript of the interview with Mike Waltz, U.S. ambassador to the U.N., that aired on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” on March 22, 2026.

MARGARET BRENNAN: That’s Charlie D’Agata reporting in Arad, Israel. We’re joined now by the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Mike Waltz, and it’s good to have you here in person.

AMB. MIKE WALTZ: Thank you, Margaret.

MARGARET BRENNAN: So Ambassador, on Friday, the president tweeted, “The Hormuz Strait will have to be guarded and policed, as necessary, by other Nations who use it — The United States does not!” And then last night he threatened that if Iran doesn’t fully open the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours from the time of his post, the US will “hit and obliterate” their power plants, starting with the “biggest one first.” So which is it, is the U.S. opening Hormuz by force or having others do it.

AMB. WALTZ: Well, I think it can be both. It’s not necessarily mutually exclusive. I am glad you are having NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on. I think at his urging and his leadership, we have now seen Italy, Germany, France and a number of others commit to help with this effort.

MARGARET BRENNAN: –After combat operations end.

AMB. WALTZ: Particularly since, particularly since so much energy is going to Europe out of the strait. We just had the Japanese Prime Minister commit to portions of her navy and the Japanese navy, 80% of what is coming out of the Gulf is going to Asia. So we are seeing our allies come around as they should, but at the same time, the president is not going to stand for this regime, as it has threatened and tried for five decades to hold the world’s energy supplies hostage under its, its genocidal intent.

MARGARET BRENNAN: So some allies like the United Kingdom have talked about things like surveillance, anti-mining, anti-drone support for the United States. But in that appeal from the United States, I should say in the Strait of Hormuz, but not until active combat ends. To be clear, that is what we are talking about.

AMB. WALTZ: And the president has been clear too. He’s going to continue to pound Iran’s capabilities, its missile, its naval and its drone capability. Margaret, we have to take a step back. We have seen what it’s doing now in terms of attacking ports, airports, civilian infrastructure, hotels, resorts, and what it is trying to do to global energy supplies. One can only imagine if it had a nuclear umbrella. One could only imagine if Iran achieved its aim to test. Then you have Saudi Arabia wanting a nuclear program, then perhaps the UAE, Turkey or others. And when people ask why this matters to our security here at home, it should petrify every American that you could potentially have a nuclear Middle East awash in weapons.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, they are not enriching. They weren’t enriching leading up to this. This is what U.S. officials have testified to. But just on this point about what the president–

AMB. WALTZ: Well they couldn’t enrich because of Operation Midnight Hammer that obliterated their ability to enrich. They had every intent to continue.

MARGARET BRENNAN: They do have a nuclear power plant, Bushehr. It’s actually their largest energy plant. It’s a civilian site.

AMB. WALTZ: It is actually not their largest energy plant. It is about one, about one gigawatt. They have larger ones that are gas, fired outside of Tehran. But just case in point, yeah.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Okay, but- but in this case, in that clarification, the reason I am asking you is when the president says he is going to bomb energy infrastructure, civilian energy infrastructure, is he going to bomb a nuclear power plant, or is that off the table.

AMB. WALTZ: Well, I would never take anything off the table for the president, certainly not on national television. However, there are larger plants. There is one outside of Tehran. There are others outside of other cities that are gas fired, thermal powered. I think the important point here is to understand the IRGC, a declared terrorist organization, not only by us–

MARGARET BRENNAN: Yeah, in Europe too.

AMB. WALTZ: –but in a number of European countries, controls a huge swath of Iran’s critical infrastructure, their economy and certainly many of their governing institutions. And so to the extent we are degrading their military capability and their defense industrial base, all options should be on the table, and the president has made that very clear.

MARGARET BRENNAN: How do you ensure that this doesn’t constitute a war crime, which the UN Secretary General said an attack on energy infrastructure could be. How do you make sure this is not mass punishment for innocent civilians?

AMB. WALTZ: Well, I think you know, I would encourage and will encourage the Secretary General to point out the twenty to thirty thousand Iranians that the regime massacred at scale, the civilian infrastructure that they are attacking–

[CROSS-TALK STARTS]

MARGARET BRENNAN: –No one is endorsing that but how do you make sure this doesn’t hurt–

AMB. WALTZ: — And when you, but when have a regime that has its grips on so much critical infrastructure, that is using it to further not only the repression of its own people, to attack its neighbors, and in contravention of UN sanctions, to march towards a nuclear weapon, then that makes those legitimate targets.

[CROSS-TALK ENDS]

MARGARET BRENNAN: Okay, well, you know that in many of these places, water desalination is linked into that energy infrastructure, civilian infrastructure. This is why it is a question of it being a war crime.

AMB. WALTZ: I have no doubt that the president, the Pentagon, their team will ensure that what they target is geared towards the military infrastructure of Iran. But I have to tell you, they deliberately blend, have a long history, everything from hiding weapons under schools and hospitals to using power plants and other critical infrastructure to not only power their military but their civilian, and they deliberately blend in contravention of international law.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Let me ask you about what we saw overnight with these missile attacks. The Director of National Intelligence testified last week to Congress that Iran could not develop a militarily viable ICBM, intercontinental ballistic missile, before 2035 if it attempted to pursue that capability. Yesterday, the IDF said Israel said that Iran did fire an ICBM. Has this changed the U.S. assessment?

AMB. WALTZ: I am not familiar with the IDF assessment. I can tell you–

MARGARET BRENNAN: They said what was fired at Diego Garcia and them was an ICBM.

AMB. WALTZ: I can tell you the UK just condemned the firing of an intermediate range ballistic missile at Diego Garcia, that same type of missile Iran has lied about in terms of its development, said they were not developing yet. They just lied. Yet they just did it. Not only could it hit Diego Garcia, it could hit capitals in Europe. And Margaret, the technology, the booster technology that Iran has been hiding behind its space program. I don’t think we are going to see Iranian astronauts on the moon anytime soon. That this space program has been hiding that technology. You have the re-entry technology to marry the two really does not take very much in terms of technological development. And we just have to you know, thank God the president is taking action now and stopping this march towards a fully fledged nuclear program, instead of waiting until after it’s developed, like we saw in North Korea under the Clinton administration say, surprise, we now have, a full program.

MARGARET BRENNAN: So a difference there in the assessments. But let me ask you about our polling.

AMB. WALTZ: It wouldn’t be the first time you have different intelligence assessments, by the way, by different intelligence communities.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Absolutely. The administration has not convinced, we’ve seen it in our polling, the majority of Americans that this war was necessary. Sixty six percent of Americans believe conflict with Iran is a war of choice. Sixty percent disapprove of the US taking military action against Iran. Fifty seven percent of Americans think the conflict is going very or somewhat badly. How do you tell the American people they’re wrong?

AMB. WALTZ: Well, I can. I could quote a whole slew of polls that show, for example, self-described MAGA Republicans give the president a 100% percent approval rating–

MARGARET BRENNAN: –his base is in there, absolutely–

AMB. WALTZ: A majority say the number one job of the commander in chief is to keep Americans safe. I can point here to an NBC poll, 90% of Republicans, broader Republicans, support Trump’s effort to destroy Iran’s nuclear capabilities. And I have to point out, no one should be surprised here. President Trump has said Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon 2016 campaign, 2020 campaign. Since 2024 he has said it seventy four times out in the public space.

MARGARET BRENNAN: But if he is going to commit any kind of ground troops or boots on the ground. Don’t you think he needs to persuade the majority of American people, not just his base?

AMB. WALTZ: I think the president will keep all options on the table to secure these objectives. And as a veteran, as a parent, I thank God he is not kicking the can like so many administrations have for fifty years, until this is a catastrophic problem where we have very limited options to deal with, much less an entire Middle East potentially awash in nukes.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Ambassador Walz, thank you for your time this morning.

AMB. WALTZ: All right, thank you.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Face the Nation will be back in a minute, so stay with us.

Senate advances Markwayne Mullin’s nomination for DHS Secretary in procedural vote

March 22, 2026 / 1:56 PM EDT / CBS News

Washington — The Senate advanced Sen. Markwayne Mullin’s nomination for Department of Homeland Security secretary on Sunday after the president announced that the Oklahoma Republican would replace embattled DHS Secretary Kristi Noem.

In a 54 to 37 vote, two Democrats voted with all Republicans in attendance to advance Mullin’s nomination. A final confirmation vote is expected in the coming days.

Mullin, 48, has been in the Senate since 2023 after representing Oklahoma in the House for a decade. During his time in the Senate, the businessman and former MMA fighter has been a key player in coordinating between the upper and lower chambers, along with the White House. And since his nomination, he’s received widespread praise among Republicans, and a handful of Democrats, making his confirmation all-but guaranteed.

But Mullin’s smooth path to confirmation grew messy last week. During his confirmation hearing, Senate Homeland Security Committee Chairman Rand Paul called out Mullin for allegedly calling him a “freaking snake,” along with saying he understood why a neighbor attacked Paul in 2017. Paul, a Kentucky Republican questioned whether “someone who applauds violence against their political opponents is the right person to lead an agency that has struggled to accept limits to the proper use of force.”

Ultimately, the committee advanced Mullin’s nomination without support from Paul. Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania voted with the other Republicans on the panel, allowing Mullin’s nomination to move forward.

Mullin’s nomination follows Noem’s ouster as DHS secretary amid intense scrutiny of the department’s handling of immigration enforcement in recent months. Days before the president announced she would be replaced, Noem also faced criticism from Republicans at a pair of confirmation hearings on DHS’ controversial advertising spending. Mullin has outlined that his leadership style would differ from Noem’s, saying his focus is on “empowering people.”

Sunday’s vote came as the Senate gathered for a rare weekend session to continue debate on an elections bill that the president has pressured Congress to approve. Meanwhile, DHS remains shut down amid an impasse over how to reform the department’s immigration enforcement operation. A bipartisan group of senators has met twice with border czar Tom Homan in recent days as the two sides seek a resolution.

The shutdown has created chaos at airports amid staffing issues as TSA agents go without pay, and the president said he would send ICE agents to airports to assist TSA amid the stalemate.

https://www.cbsnews.com/video/markwayne-mullin-clears-senate-committee-vote-to-replace-noem-despite-rand-pauls-dissent/

Mike Waltz says “I would never take anything off the table for the president” on bombing Iran nuclear plants

March 22, 2026 / 2:55 PM EDT / CBS News

Washington — Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz said Sunday that “all options should be on the table and the president’s made that very clear” after President Trump threatened to destroy Iran’s power plants if the Strait of Hormuz is not reopened.

“I would never take anything off the table for the president,” Waltz said on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan”.

Mr. Trump posted on Truth Social late Saturday that if Iran doesn’t open the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours, the U.S. will “hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!” The post came as the key waterway responsible for transporting around 20% of the world’s oil has been effectively closed to most ship traffic by Iran’s military forces since the war began three weeks ago.

Asked whether the president is planning to bomb a nuclear power plant, Waltz argued that “the important point here is to understand the IRGC, a declared terrorist organization, not only by us but a number of European countries, controls a huge swath of Iran’s critical infrastructure, their economy, and certainly many of their governing institutions.”

“And so to the extent we’re degrading their military capability and their defense industrial base, all options should be on the table, and the president’s made that very clear,” he said.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres told Politico last week that an attack on energy infrastructure from either side could constitute a war crime. Waltz responded on Sunday, saying “when you have a regime that has its grips in so much critical infrastructure that’s using it to further, not only the repression of its own people, to attack its neighbors and in contravention of U.N. sanctions, to march towards a nuclear weapon, then that makes those legitimate targets.”

Pressed by Margaret Brennan on water desalinization’s link to the energy infrastructure and its implications, Waltz said “I have no doubt that the president, the Pentagon, their team, will ensure that what they target is geared towards the military infrastructure of Iran.”

The president’s threat to “hit and obliterate” Iran’s power plants came a day after Mr. Trump said the Strait of Hormuz would have to be “guarded and policed, as necessary, by other Nations who use it.” Waltz said the two statements are “not necessarily mutually exclusive.”

Waltz said that Italy, Germany, France, Japan and other countries have committed to help with the effort to ensure safe passage through the waterway.

“So we are seeing our allies come around as they should, but at the same time, the president is not going to stand for this regime as it’s threatened and tried for five decades to hold the world’s energy supplies hostage under its genocidal intent,” Waltz said.

https://www.cbsnews.com/video/mike-waltz-says-i-would-never-take-anything-off-the-table-on-bombing-iran-nuclear-plants/

No English content available

Mullin’s confirmation survives key test vote as DHS remains shut down

If confirmed Monday, Mullin will replace replace the current embattled DHS Secretary Kristi Noem
By Alex MillerFox News
Published March 22, 2026 1:50pm EDT | Updated March 22, 2026 2:48pm EDT

AFGE Secretary-Treasurer and TSA agent Johnny Jones discusses concerns over the DHS shutdown, rising airport delays and the potential impact of ICE agents at security checkpoints on ‘Fox & Friends Weekend.’
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Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., survived a key test vote on Sunday on his way to becoming the next Homeland Security chief.

Mullin, who was tapped by President Donald Trump to be the next Department of Homeland Security secretary, still has one more vote to go, and likely won’t be confirmed until Monday evening.

Should he survive the final confirmation vote on Monday, he will replace DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, who Trump fired following explosive hearings on the Hill and after the deaths of Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti during immigration operations in Minnesota.

SCHUMER GAMBIT FAILS AS DHS SHUTDOWN HITS 36 DAYS AND AIRPORT LINES GROW

Sen. Markwayne Mullin speaks to reporters on the Capitol steps in Washington, D.C.(Tom Williams/Getty Images)

Sunday’s 54 to 37 test vote, which was largely party-line save for Sens. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., and John Fetterman, D-Pa., who was the key vote to move his colleague out of committee earlier in the week, comes after his explosive confirmation hearing earlier in the week.

Mullin was grilled by both Democrats and Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who Mullin once called a “snake” and charged that his 2017 assault was “justified.” During the hearing, Mullin didn’t back down from his prior remarks.

“I’m not perfect. I don’t claim to be perfect,” Mullin said. “I make mistakes just like anybody else. But mistakes, if you own them, you can learn from them and you can move ahead. And I’ll make that commitment to you.”

GOP SENATOR’S GAMBIT EXPOSES FALSE DEM CLAIMS ABOUT SUPPORTING VOTER ID

Senator Rand Paul, a Republican from Kentucky, during a Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee hearing in Washington, DC, US, on Wednesday, June 25, 2025.(Eric Lee/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

If successful on Monday, Mullin will take the reins of an agency that is currently shut down. Senate Democrats, led by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., have blocked DHS funding five times in their quest to get stringent reforms to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Mullin appeared amicable to making changes at the agency during his hearing.

Congressional Democrats have demanded, among other things, that ICE agents get judicial warrants to enter a home or business in the field rather than administrative warrants. And when asked by Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., whether he would commit to requiring judicial warrants for ICE agents to search homes and businesses, Mullin appeared to give ground to the demand.

“Judicial warrants will be used to go into houses, into place of businesses, unless we’re pursuing someone that enters in that place,” Mullin said. “I have not mixed words with that, and I haven’t changed my opinion about that.”

Meanwhile, what was a shutdown stalemate thawed over earlier this week, when Senate Democrats made a counter offer of DHS demands to the White House after over two weeks of radio silence.

MULLIN FACES DEMOCRAT GRILLING IN FIRST HURDLE TO LEAD DHS AMID SHUTDOWN FIGHT

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem appears for an oversight hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, March 3, 2026.(J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photo)

That spurred back-to-back meetings on the Hill, with Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Katie Britt, R-Ala., along with border czar Tom Homan, sitting down with a cohort of Senate Democrats. A third meeting was slated for Saturday, but was canceled at the last minute.

The shutdown is currently on its way to becoming the longest in history, unless either side can lock in a deal to fund the agency. Mullin’s nomination to lead DHS has so far not swayed Senate Democrats, either, despite their demands the Noem be booted.

Whether both sides meet again over the weekend remains in the air.

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Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., accused Senate Democrats of believing that the shutdown “politically good for them.”

“It’s not politically good for anybody to have literally tens of thousands and hundreds of thousands of people out of work and important functions of our government not being carried out on a daily basis and functions that are important to our homeland security and our national security,” Thune said.

Alex Miller is a writer for Fox News Digital covering the U.S. Senate.

Schumer knocks Trump on Iran, plan to send ICE to airports: ‘Asking for trouble’

Chuck Schumer says ICE agents are ‘untrained’ and will make airport chaos ‘worse’

By Anders Hagstrom
Fox News

Published March 22, 2026 2:30pm EDT | Updated March 22, 2026 3:04pm EDT

President Donald Trump seized on Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., accidentally referring to funding ICE when he meant to say TSA on the Senate floor Saturday. (US SENATE POOL)

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Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., condemned President Donald Trump’s plan to deploy U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to U.S. airports on Sunday.

Schumer made the comments while speaking on the Senate floor Sunday, saying Trump’s decision is “impulsive” and could make the situation at airports worse.

“Today, Donald Trump and [Tom] Homan are saying they will deploy ICE agents to airports starting on Monday. This is really disturbing. ICE agents who are untrained and have caused problems everywhere they’ve gone lurking at our airports. That’s asking for trouble, and it will certainly make the chaos at the airports even worse,” Schumer said.

“No one has any faith in ICE agents. They haven’t received training. They don’t know what it is to be a TSA person and do what you need to do,” he continued. “And the real problem here is they have no plan for using these ICE agents. Trump says, send them there. They send them there. And Homan says they’re still drawing up plans with less than a day’s notice. What is this? We know what it is. It’s another impulsive action by Donald Trump.”

SCHUMER GAMBIT FAILS AS DHS SHUTDOWN HITS 36 DAYS AND AIRPORT LINES GROW

President Donald Trump and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer are clashing over funding plans for the DHS.(Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images; Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

“Some idea pops into his head and he announces it. And then the people working for him, a few of whom do have some degree of talent and ability. Not many underlings. They have to rush to try and implement what they know is an idiotic plan,” he said.

The ICE deployment is Trump’s latest move in the battle with Democrats over funding for the Department of Homeland Security.

Schumer also used his time on the Senate floor Sunday to criticize Trump’s actions in Iran.

“Donald Trump said, ‘you know, I may have a plan or I may not for a war,’” Schumer said. “There’s people’s lives are at stake. Billions are being spent on an almost daily basis. And he says, you know, ‘I may have a plan or I may not.’ These are the words of the commander in chief in the middle of a war involving one of the most dangerous regimes on Earth. ‘I have a plan, or I may not.’”

“That’s unhinged and dangerous. Lives are on the line. The president says he may not even have a plan. Tens of billions are being wasted. No plan. Troops being killed and injured, no plan. Civilians being killed and injured. No plan. Gasoline costs $3.94 a gallon on average. And Trump, ‘I have no plan’”, Schumer said.

Meanwhile, Schumer and his allies have refused to approve DHS funding without reforms to immigration enforcement.

TSA agents across the country have gone more than a month without a paycheck, with no clear end in sight.

Travelers wait in line at a TSA checkpoint at William P. Hobby Airport in Houston, Texas, on March 9, 2026.(Mark Felix/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Trump first threatened to deploy ICE to airports on Saturday, demanding that Democrats “immediately sign an agreement” to fund DHS.

DHS SHUTDOWN TRIGGERS TSA ‘EMERGENCY MEASURES’ AS LAWMAKER WARNS AIRPORTS COULD FEEL ECONOMIC PAIN

Airports across the country have reported huge numbers of employees calling out sick or not showing up for work. More than 400 TSA employees have quit their jobs.

TSA Agents scan luggage at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia.(Valerie Plesch/Getty Images)

“On Monday, ICE will be going to airports to help our wonderful TSA Agents who have stayed on the job despite the fact that the Radical Left Democrats, who are only focused on protecting hard-line criminals who have entered our Country illegally, are endangering the USA by holding back the money that was long ago agreed to with signed and sealed contracts, and all,” Trump wrote Sunday on Truth Social.

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Trump also predicted blowback from Democrats, saying they would complain “no matter how great a job ICE does.”

Anders Hagstrom is a reporter with Fox News Digital covering national politics and major breaking news events. Send tips to Anders.Hagstrom@Fox.com, or on X: @Hagstrom_Anders.

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6391393344112

Trump mocks ‘discombobulated’ Schumer over Democrats’ near gaffe on funding ICE

Schumer accidentally called for ICE funding on the Senate floor, but quickly corrected himself, saying ‘We must fund TSA now’

By Eric Mack
Fox News

Published March 22, 2026 1:46pm EDT

AFGE Secretary-Treasurer and TSA agent Johnny Jones discusses concerns over the DHS shutdown, rising airport delays and the potential impact of ICE agents at security checkpoints on ‘Fox & Friends Weekend.’

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President Donald Trump mocked Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., for a near gaffe Saturday on the Senate floor.

“Schumer got ‘discombobulated’ in the Senate yesterday, and said, ‘WE MUST FUND ICE,’ prior to correcting himself,” Trump wrote Sunday morning on Truth Social. “Thank you Chuck, I agree!”

Schumer and Senate Democrats are filibustering the SAVE America Act — an election integrity bill — but the minority leader was arguing the Republicans are responsible for the government shutdown that has left American airline passengers frustrated with long TSA wait times at airports across the country.

SENATE MAJORITY LEADER WARNS DEMS ARE PUTTING CYBER OPERATIONS AT RISK AS IRAN THREAT LOOMS

President Donald Trump mocked Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., on Sunday for mistakenly calling for urgent funding of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.(Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images; Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

Schumer did quickly correct himself by saying, “We must fund TSA now,” but the irony was not lost on Trump, who has long reminded Americans that the government shutdown of Department of Homeland Security funding does not impact Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations in real time, because ICE was fully funded in last summer’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

Schumer’s call to “fund TSA now” was related to the Senate Democrats’ failed effort to isolate a funding package solely for TSA, but Republicans blocked that effort, noting the rest of DHS funding that is on hold due to the shutdown is vital to American national security amid strikes on Iran, too.

Republicans negotiating on DHS, including Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Homeland Security Subcommittee Chair Katie Britt, R-Ala., are meeting Sunday.

“There are lots of ideas swirling right now, some of which you know my colleagues are talking about, but obviously what my sense is at least the good news, and all that is people realizing this has to get fixed,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters on his walk off the Senate floor Sunday morning.

“It has to get solved, but the best way again, to solve it is to get Democrats to support funding the entire Department of Homeland Security, you know, not picking and choosing certain aspects of it,” he said. “So we’ll see where the discussions go today.”

THUNE REVEALS REASON DEMOCRATS ARE ‘SCARED’ TO REOPEN DHS

Democrats in Congress in February agreed to fund most of the government in exchange for withholding funds from DHS following the fatal shootings of ​two anti-ICE agitators in Minnesota by immigration ​authorities.

The Senate failed to get the 60-vote supermajority needed to advance a Republican proposal to fund the entire DHS earlier in March, after Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, objected to an earlier Democratic proposal to separately fund the TSA earlier.

Moreno separately proposed a two-week DHS funding extension, but Democrats blocked that.

Absences by TSA airport officers have already disrupted travel at some major airports over the last week, raising alarm among airlines as the busy spring break travel season peaks. DHS funding lapsed Feb. 13.

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Airlines are expecting a record-breaking spring travel period, with 171 million passengers expected ‌to ⁠fly, up 4% over the same two-month period last year.

Reuters contributed to this report.

Eric Mack is a writer for Fox News Digital covering breaking news.

Officials scramble to carry out Trump’s directive to have ICE agents conduct airport security

March 22, 2026 / 3:12 PM EDT / CBS News

Officials at Immigration and Customs Enforcement have been scrambling to carry out a weekend directive from President Trump to have immigration agents provide security at airports amid the partial government shutdown, multiple sources familiar with the internal deliberations told CBS News.

On Saturday, Mr. Trump posted a message on Truth Social suggesting he would deploy ICE agents to airports to conduct security and arrest people in the U.S. illegally, if congressional Democrats did not agree on a deal to fund the Department of Homeland Security. DHS oversees immigration agencies like ICE and the Transportation Security Administration. In subsequent posts, Mr. Trump said he would dispatch ICE agents to airports on Monday.

Mr. Trump’s directive caught officials at ICE off guard and they have been scrambling to come up with a plan to enforce it, the sources familiar with the matter told CBS News, requesting anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the press.

“I have no idea what we’re doing,” one DHS source said when asked about the president’s order.

Lines at security checkpoints in airports across the country have increased in recent days, amid several hundred resignations and sick calls among TSA employees, who have been working without pay due to the partial shutdown.

White House border czar Tom Homan told CNN on Sunday that he was working on a plan to execute the president’s directive, adding that he would be discussing the matter with the heads of TSA and ICE.

Homan suggested that ICE agents could provide site security at certain airports, as opposed to screening passengers and bags. He said having ICE agents secure exit and entry points at airports could allow more TSA agents to focus on screenings. Appearing on Fox News, Homan said ICE could also help by checking IDs.

Homan did not directly say whether any ICE agents dispatched to airports would also conduct immigration arrests, but noted they routinely enforce immigration laws there.

TSA agents process people through security lines at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on March 22, 2026, in Atlanta, Georgia. Megan Varner / Getty Images

As federal immigration officers, ICE agents have the power under the Immigration and Nationality Act to arrest anyone, anywhere in the U.S., who they believe is in the country illegally or deportable on other grounds.

A former senior ICE official told CBS News that agents at the agency would probably not be equipped or trained to help with the more technical tasks of airport security, such as operating the screening machines. The former official said ICE agents could augment the security force at airports but that most other law enforcement agencies could as well.

Using Customs and Border Protection officers to bolster airport security, the former ICE official said, would make more sense, since many already operate at international airports, conducting immigration checks for incoming travelers.

CBS News reached out to representatives for DHS and the White House, requesting comment.

Congressional Democrats have declined to fully fund DHS unless the Trump administration agrees to make certain immigration enforcement reforms, including prohibiting ICE agents from wearing masks during operations.