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TSA absences double during shutdown, 300 officers quit, as some airports see longer security lines

2026-03-10T18:00:00-0400 / CBS News

Washington — Unscheduled absences among airport security officers have more than doubled during the ongoing Department of Homeland Security shutdown, with more than 300 employees leaving the agency since the start of the DHS shutdown, according to internal TSA statistics obtained exclusively by CBS News.

TSA officer call-out rates have climbed into double-digit percentages at some airports, including half the officers at Houston’s Hobby Airport, straining screening operations and contributing to longer security lines.

Statistics obtained from Transportation Security Administration officials show the nationwide callout rate — unscheduled absences by frontline officers — has risen to an average of 6% during the shutdown, compared with about 2% before government funding lapsed.

Several days saw significantly higher national absence rates. The highest nationwide rate reached 9% on Feb. 23, followed by 8% on March 6 and 7% on March 9, according to the internal data.

The increase comes as roughly 50,000 TSA employees are being required to work without pay during the DHS funding lapse that began Feb. 14.

At individual airports, sick outs have climbed even more sharply. At Houston’s Hobby Airport, 53% of officers called out on March 8, with 47% calling out the following day – resulting in nearly half of scheduled officers not reporting to work during the two-day stretch.

At John F. Kennedy International Airport, TSA officers averaged a 21% absence rate during the shutdown, the highest among major airports. Other heavily affected hubs included Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (19%), William P. Hobby Airport in Houston (18%), Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (14%) and Pittsburgh International Airport (13%).

Those figures were compounded by extreme weather events. For example, 77% of officers at JFK and 53% at Newark Liberty International Airport called out on Feb. 23 during a major blizzard, according to the data.

TSA has lost more than 300 employees since shutdown began

The shutdown has also accelerated departures from the workforce. TSA recorded 305 employee separations between Feb. 14 and March 9, and it can take months to replace those officers because of the four to six months of training required before employees are able to work independently at checkpoints.

TSA officials warn that prolonged funding gaps can have lasting effects on the screening workforce because employees who are struggling to cover basic expenses may leave the job entirely.

Behind the scenes, DHS officials worry that the longer the shutdown lasts, the greater the risk that more TSA employees will leave, worsening staffing shortages beyond the immediate crisis. Officials warn that repeated shutdowns interrupting pay continue to make the job less attractive, further undermining recruitment and retention efforts by the federal government over the long term.

“It’s a huge morale hit for TSA,” former TSA Administrator John Pistole told CBS News, adding that he worries adversaries could try to exploit “a perceived vulnerability because there’s not as many people at TSA showing up for work,” particularly as airport security lines grow longer.

Pistole also warned that extended shutdowns can have permanent and lasting effects on the workforce. After the 2025 shutdown, he noted, TSA “lost nearly 1,100 security officers who resigned because they had to have income and they weren’t being paid.” If the current standoff drags on, he said, repeated shutdowns could make it harder to recruit new officers, since applicants may question taking a job where they might have to work without pay.

Dozens of “hotspots” threaten to slow checkpoint security operations nationwide

The agency has also tracked operational “hotspots” — incidents where staffing shortages threaten to slow checkpoint operations. Houston recorded 44 such incidents during the shutdown, followed by New Orleans with 35 and Atlanta with 32. Nationwide, the highest single-day count reached 87 hotspots on March 8.

Travel demand has continued to rise during the shutdown, meaning fewer officers are screening more passengers.

TSA officials say the staffing shortages have forced managers in some cities to consolidate checkpoints or reduce screening lanes, increasing wait times for travelers while remaining officers screen growing passenger volumes.

The shutdown has also disrupted some expedited traveler programs. Last month, DHS initially said it would suspend TSA PreCheck before quickly reversing course and keeping the program open, saying operations would be managed airport by airport. However, U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Global Entry program was suspended as CBP officers were reassigned to regular passenger processing.

First full missed TSA paychecks to come Friday

TSA officers are also approaching a key financial milestone in the standoff: the first full missed paycheck is expected Friday, raising concerns that more employees could call out if the shutdown drags on.

In a statement to CBS News, a DHS spokesperson wrote that TSA employees were being forced to work without pay “for the THIRD time in nearly six months,” adding, “the longer this shutdown drags on, the more financial hardship our patriotic officers and their families face, leading to more staffing issues and longer wait times for travelers.”

“It’s time for Democrats to end these political games, pay our TSA officers, and re-open DHS,” the spokesperson added.

The staffing strain at TSA checkpoints has coincided with increasing airport delays and long security lines at some airports across the country. TSA officers have been working without pay since the shutdown began on Feb. 14, and continued absences among screeners have strained checkpoint staffing.

At Houston’s William P. Hobby Airport, security wait times stretched to more than three hours on March 8, prompting travelers to be advised to arrive four to five hours before flights, CBS News previously reported.

Meanwhile in New Orleans, airport officials warned passengers to arrive at least three hours early after some travelers missed flights due to long TSA lines, while officials at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport also cautioned that extended waits were possible as staffing shortages persist.

Leah Turney, who was traveling out of New Orleans, said she and her family missed their flights because of the long lines.

“We were waiting in TSA just to get to security for four hours,” she said.

Traveler Ellen Caldwell told CBS News, “I was here three weeks ago for Mardi gras, and it was no problem,” adding, “This is insane.”

With spring break approaching, no funding deal in sight

Airline industry officials have warned that heavy spring break travel could worsen delays unless Congress reaches a deal to restore Department of Homeland Security funding.

During the 2018–2019 government shutdown — the longest in U.S. history — CBS News reported that unscheduled absences climbed to nearly 8% by mid-January, eventually peaking to around 10% of officers on some days as workers went without pay, raising concerns about whether checkpoint staffing could keep up with travel demand.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday that President Trump “wants the Department of Homeland Security … to be fully funded and fully reopened,” and she urged Americans affected by the shutdown to “call your Democrat member of Congress and tell them to fund the Department of Homeland Security.”

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Brian Schatz said Tuesday that negotiations over funding the Department of Homeland Security have stalled because the Trump administration has not engaged in substantive talks over reforms to immigration enforcement agencies.

Speaking at their weekly press conference, Schumer said Democrats had offered Republicans a chance to fund several DHS agencies — including the TSA, FEMA, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, and the United States Coast Guard — by separating them from disputed funding for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Schumer said Republicans blocked that effort.

“Last week, Thursday, we gave them a chance to fund TSA and other DHS agencies,” Schumer said. “Senate Republicans led by Senator Britt blocked Senator Murray’s attempt to pass the bill through.”

“We are in a deep disagreement, but an ongoing negotiation about ICE and CBP,” Schatz said. “So let’s narrow it to just that and fund the rest of the government.”

He added that Democrats would throw their support behind a bill funding those agencies if it excluded immigration enforcement.

“They should walk onto the floor and offer unanimous consent to open the Coast Guard, to open TSA, to fund FEMA, to fund CISA,” Schatz said. “I guarantee you there will not be a Democratic objector.”

Seiji Yamashita, Kris Van Cleave and Sarah Ploss contributed to this report.

白宫：美舰未护送任何油轮过霍尔木兹海峡

2026年3月11日 07:24 / 联合早报

白宫新闻秘书莱维特3月10日说，为船只护航“当然是一种选择”，如有必要，“总统绝对会这么做”。 （路透社）

美国白宫确认，美国海军未护送任何油轮或船只通过霍尔木兹海峡。美国能源部长此前在社交媒体上发文称，“美国海军成功护送一艘油轮通过霍尔木兹海峡”。

法新社报道，美国白宫新闻秘书莱维特在星期二（3月10日）的新闻发布会上说：“我可以确认，美国海军没有为任何油轮或船只护航。”

美国总统特朗普日前说，如果需要，美国海军将为通过霍尔木兹海峡的油轮护航。莱维特表示，为船只护航“当然是一种选择”，如有必要，“总统绝对会这么做”。

莱维特还说，特朗普“不排除”在对伊朗的军事行动中采取任何选项，包括部署地面部队。

10日早些时候，美国能源部长赖特在社媒X平台贴文说，“美国海军成功护送一艘油轮通过霍尔木兹海峡”，但他在几分钟后删了帖子。

赖特发第一条帖子后，油价大幅下跌。他删帖子后，油价很快收复部分失地。

根据英国海事贸易组织、国际海事组织、伊朗当局汇编的数据，在3月1日至10日期间，在霍尔木兹海峡或这条海峡附近，有至少10艘油轮遭袭击、被锁定为目标或报告袭击事件。

Internal Pentagon memo orders military commanders to remove Anthropic AI technology from key systems

March 10, 2026 / 7:08 PM EDT / CBS News

The Defense Department has officially notified senior leadership figures throughout the U.S. military that they must remove Anthropic’s artificial intelligence products from their systems within 180 days, according to an internal memorandum obtained by CBS News.

The memo was dated March 6, a day after the Pentagon formally designated Anthropic a supply chain risk. It was distributed to senior leaders on Monday, alleging Anthropic’s AI “presents an unacceptable supply chain risk for use in all [Department of War] systems and networks.”

The document, signed by Defense Department Chief Information Officer Kirsten Davies, represents the latest salvo in an escalating feud between the Trump Administration and Anthropic. The notice sheds light on the wide-ranging steps military commanders will need to take to remove Anthropic AI from key national security systems, including those for nuclear weapons, ballistic missile defense and cyber warfare.

It also demanded that any other company doing business with the Pentagon must stop using all Anthropic products on work related to Defense Department contracts within 180 days.

In the memo, Davies warned that adversaries “can exploit vulnerabilities” of the daily operations of the Pentagon, and possible exploitation could pose “potential catastrophic risks to the warfighter.” Davies said she is the only one who can grant an exception.

“Exemptions will only be considered for mission-critical activities directly supporting national security operations where no viable alternative exists, and the requesting Component must submit a comprehensive risk mitigation plan for approval,” she wrote.

A senior Pentagon official confirmed the memo’s authenticity.

Anthropic did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Read the memo

The federal government’s action is said to be unprecedented — the first time an American company has been designated a supply chain risk. During President Trump’s first term, the government took similar action to restrict foreign-based companies like Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei.

It comes after an impasse over Anthropic’s request for two “red lines” that would explicitly prevent the U.S. military from using its Claude model to conduct mass surveillance on Americans or power fully autonomous weapons.

“We believe that crossing those lines is contrary to American values, and we wanted to stand up for American values,” Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei told CBS News.

The Pentagon previously said it wanted to be able to use Claude for “all lawful purposes,” without restrictions, arguing that the uses of AI that Anthropic is concerned about are already prohibited. Claude is currently being used by the US military in the war on Iran, according to sources familiar with the military’s use of AI.

Anthropic is currently the only AI company whose models are deployed on the Pentagon’s classified systems. After talks between the two sides broke down last month, one of Anthropic’s largest rivals — ChatGPT creator OpenAI — said it had signed a deal with the Pentagon.

On Monday, Anthropic filed two lawsuits against the federal government, alleging that Pentagon officials’ decision to deem the company a supply chain risk amounted to illegal retaliation.

“The Constitution does not allow the government to wield its enormous power to punish a company for its protected speech,” the company said in the lawsuit. “No federal statute authorizes the actions taken here.”

White House spokesperson Liz Huston responded to the lawsuit by saying President Trump “will never allow a radical left, woke company to jeopardize our national security by dictating how the greatest and most powerful military in the world operates.”

A source directly familiar with Claude’s military capabilities told CBS News the main task Claude is undertaking for the military is sifting through large amounts of intelligence reports, like synthesizing patterns, summarizing findings, and surfacing relevant information faster than a human analyst could.

“The military is now processing roughly a thousand potential targets a day and striking the majority of them, with turnaround time for the next strike potentially under four hours,” said retired Navy Admiral Mark Montgomery, now a senior director at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. “A human is still in the loop, but AI is doing the work that used to take days of analysis — and doing it at a scale no previous campaign has matched.”

朝鲜再次试射战略巡航导弹

2026年3月11日 07:26 / 联合早报

3月10日，朝鲜人民海军驱逐舰“崔贤”号在某处秘密地点进行战略巡航导弹试射。 （路透社）

朝中社星期三（3月11日）报道，朝鲜前一天试射数枚战略巡航导弹。

报道称，朝鲜人民军海军“崔贤”号驱逐舰的作战运用评估试验继续进行。崔贤号10日再次试射数枚战略巡航导弹。

朝鲜领导人金正恩以视频方式观摩试射活动。

Mike Johnson warns Sharia law ‘serious problem’ after GOP rep’s anti-Muslim post

House Speaker Johnson says Sharia law is incompatible with the US Constitution

By Elizabeth Elkind
Fox News

Published March 10, 2026 4:03pm EDT

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is sounding alarms about the threat of Sharia law in the U.S., warning that it is in direct conflict with the tenets the U.S. was founded on.

“There’s a lot of energy in the country and a lot of popular sentiment that the demand to impose Sharia law in America is a serious problem,” Johnson told reporters at a news conference at House Republicans’ annual policy retreat in Miami.

“I think that that’s a serious issue. Sharia law and the imposition of Sharia law is contrary to the U.S. Constitution.”

MAGA HARDLINER PUSHES BAN ON IMMIGRATION FROM ISLAMIC COUNTRIES, US ADVERSARIES IN WAKE OF TEXAS SHOOTING

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson speaks during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol on Oct. 10, 2025.(Alex Wroblewski/AFP via Getty Images)

He was answering a question regarding the budding backlash against Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., who posted on X, “Muslims don’t belong in American society.”

The post was immediately attacked by Democrats as racist and bigoted, with some, including Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., demanding that Johnson “speak out against this hate.”

Ogles, for his part, was unrepentant. He followed his post with another that said, “My comments wouldn’t even be a news story if I had said this about Christians. Please spare me your moral outrage. Cry harder.”

Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., arrives at the U.S. Capitol April 10, 2025.(Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc. via Getty Images)

Johnson said Ogles’ comments were “different language than I would use” but suggested he believed the Tennessee Republican was referring to immigrants who refuse to adapt to U.S. culture and values.

SHARIA LAW VICTIM WHO FLED SOMALIA ISSUES ENDORSEMENT IN CRITICAL SENATE RACE

“When you seek to come to a country and not assimilate, but to impose Sharia law — Sharia law is in conflict with the U.S. Constitution. That is the conflict that people are talking about,” Johnson said.

“It is not about people as Muslims. It’s about those who seek to impose a different belief system that is in direct conflict with the Constitution. That’s where I think that comes from.”

A view of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., Nov. 4, 2024.(Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Conservatives in Congress have grown more vocal about the threat of Sharia law in recent months, with representatives Keith Self, R-Texas, and Chip Roy, R-Texas, even moving to form a “Sharia-free America Caucus.”

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Sharia broadly refers to a code of ethics and conduct used by devout Muslims. Sharia law more specifically often refers to the criminal code used in non-secular Islamic countries, like Iran.

In its most extreme cases, such as when ISIS controlled parts of the Middle East, charges like blasphemy could carry the death penalty. But guarantees of religious freedom in the Constitution mean that Sharia law cannot be carried out on any governmental level in the U.S.

Elizabeth Elkind is a politics reporter for Fox News Digital leading coverage of the House of Representatives. Previous digital bylines seen at Daily Mail and CBS News.

Follow on Twitter at @liz_elkind and send tips to elizabeth.elkind@fox.com

Atlanta Fed board chief: looking nationally for Bostic’s replacement

March 10, 2026 8:37 PM UTC / Reuters

WASHINGTON, March 10 (Reuters) – Atlanta Federal Reserve board Chair Gregory Haile said the search to replace former Atlanta Fed ​President Raphael Bostic would be national in scope, not limited to the bank’s southeastern region, as long as candidates ‌seem willing and capable of engaging with people and businesses across the area.

“We want the pool to be wide. We want to make sure that we embrace candidates who fit the mold to support the 6th District,” Haile said in an interview as the search process accelerates for Bostic’s replacement, with applications ​still being collected and interviews expected to begin within around 30 days.

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The district ranges from the wealthiest enclaves of the ​Florida coast to the corporate suites of Atlanta and the farms of rural Alabama.

Having existing ties to ⁠the district “is not an obligation,” Haile said. “What we did want to make sure we created room for was ‘what’s it look like to ​have someone who we can be assured will engage in understanding the district?’ … that means not hesitating to go whether it’s Miami, whether ​it’s Red Bay, Alabama, whether it’s somewhere in Tennessee, to have a willingness to engage face to face.”

Bostic, a New Jersey native and college professor in California when he was tapped for the Atlanta job, traveled widely in the region during his tenure and often highlighted rural and community development issues.

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In early ​December, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he would advocate that future reserve bank leaders have lived in their districts for three years, ​and that “we’re going to veto them” otherwise. When the search for Bostic’s replacement was announced on December 15, the notice said the hope was to “identify a ‌large pool ⁠of candidates who have meaningful ties to the Sixth Federal Reserve District.”

Haile said there have not, however, been any limits suggested on the Atlanta Fed’s search. Though hired by the regional bank’s board of directors, presidents must be ratified by members of the Washington-based Fed Board of Governors.

“We haven’t had any engagement along those lines,” said Haile. “That has actually not needed to be a consideration for us … the search ​has been going incredibly well. ​I haven’t felt the sense ⁠of any negative intrusion at all.”

The hiring comes at a sensitive juncture for the Fed.

Bostic broke ground on two fronts as the first Black and the first openly gay president of one of the ​Fed’s 12 regional reserve banks, and was vocal in discussing the need for the U.S. to ​take issues around economic ⁠equity seriously, even while acknowledging the limits of monetary policy to directly address them.

His replacement will be chosen both during a backlash against “diversity, equity and inclusion” under the Trump administration, and at a time of risk to the central bank’s independence with a new chair, Kevin Warsh, ⁠expected to ​be confirmed this spring and President Donald Trump seeking to deepen his influence over ​the central bank with other appointments.

“I don’t think there’s a scenario where we don’t view this as one of the most important jobs in America,” Haile said, “So there ​is a focus on getting the best candidate to service this district … and that is unwavering.”

Reporting by Howard Schneider; Editing by Chris Reese

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Republicans face a growing conundrum on the ‘SAVE America Act’

Analysis by Aaron Blake, 2 hr ago (Published Mar 10, 2026, 5:44 PM ET) / CNN Politics

Congressional Republicans have spent years playing into President Donald Trump’s wild claims about undocumented immigrants and illegal voting.

And while they often haven’t echoed his most controversial claims, they’ve suggested it’s a serious enough problem that it requires federal legislation — despite the fact that it’s already illegal for noncitizens to vote and there’s scant evidence that it’s happening.

As the 2026 midterm elections approach, though, it’s looking more and more like Republicans could come to regret feeding this particular beast.

The party appears stuck between a rock and a hard place when it comes to the legislation the GOP has dubbed the “SAVE America Act” to address this purported problem.

GOP Sen. Mike Lee talks with attendees of a “Only Citizens Vote Bus Tour” rally in Upper Senate Park on September 10, 2025.
Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call/AP/File

The rock is the increasingly apocalyptic demands of a base and a president who appear insistent about this legislation, and the hard place is the fact that Senate Republicans don’t appear to have any straightforward way to pass it like the House did.

And Trump is further boxing in his party with every passing day.

The problem for Republicans is that they’re already lagging far behind Democrats on enthusiasm for the 2026 election. And failure to deliver on this demand looks like it could exacerbate their political peril — especially given how much Trump and his allies are building this up.

The growing fervor on the right

Perhaps the most telling manifestation of the conservative passion behind this legislation can be found in the replies to Senate Majority Leader John Thune’s posts on X. It seems that no matter what subject the South Dakota Republican posts about these days, he’s met with a chorus of demands to pass the “SAVE America Act.”

The fervor has increasingly spread to some GOP lawmakers who are demanding a whatever-it-takes approach. They’re pushing to go as far as eliminating the filibuster and its 60-vote threshold for legislation in the Senate, which some worry would ultimately help Democrats — if they take control of the chamber — more than Republicans.

And Trump himself has ratcheted up the pressure.

House Speaker Mike Johnson speaks at a news conference on February 11, 2026, at the US Capitol.
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

In recent days, he’s gone so far as to indicate he might withhold an endorsement of Sen. John Cornyn in his primary runoff with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton — an endorsement GOP leadership would very much like to see — until the Senate passes the voting bill.

“I’m making a decision fairly shortly, but I want and then I feel very strongly that we have to have the full and complete ‘SAVE America Act,’ OK? I want the SAVE America Act. It is more important than everything else we’re working on, other than the war,” Trump told CNN’s Dana Bash on Friday.

The president has also said he wouldn’t sign any other legislation if the voting measure isn’t passed, except a bill to end the shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security. (It’s worth noting that legislation that isn’t signed still becomes law after 10 days; to stop a bill, he would have to veto them.)

And in a phone interview with NBC last week, Trump said, “I would close the government over it.”

The GOP’s (not-good) options

Republicans’ choices for passing the legislation leave plenty to be desired.

Perhaps the most oft-mentioned idea is implementing the “talking filibuster” — an idea pushed hard by GOP Sen. Mike Lee of Utah. This would basically mean that a minority that wants to halt a bill like the “SAVE America Act” would actually have to speak continuously on the Senate floor, rather than just take a vote that would table the legislation.

But this works better in theory than in practice. In reality, it could simply mean that the Senate’s efforts get gummed up for weeks or months, with no guarantee of success.

The process would also mean Democrats could offer amendments that could torpedo that whole bill.

Thune has said that he “can’t find a piece of legislation in history that’s been passed that way.”

Another option floated by Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana would be trying to pass the bill via the “budget reconciliation” process, which requires a simple majority vote.

The problem there is that provisions in such legislation must primarily be related to spending or revenue, and the Senate parliamentarian might well rule that voting laws don’t qualify.

And the final option would be to nix the filibuster entirely — the so-called “nuclear option.”

But similar to when Democrats floated this idea earlier this decade, the Senate GOP doesn’t seem to have the votes. And some more institutionally minded and centrist Republicans would surely fear what that would portend — especially if Democrats regain Senate control down the road.

But the most aggressive proponents of the “SAVE America Act” have little regard for these obstacles; they’re increasingly pushing for the GOP to stop at nothing to try and pass the legislation.

Trump, meanwhile, is asking that it include more unrelated ideas, including restrictions on transgender athletes and gender identity care for minors, as well as prohibiting mail-in voting.

He wagered Monday that some of those policies are so popular that Democrats will have to vote for the legislation, even though that appears very unlikely.

“So we added those two points,” Trump said. “We’re going for the gold, and we’re going to have to fight like hell.”

Thune’s apparent exasperation

Senate Majority Leader John Thune speaks to reporters at the US Capitol on Tuesday, March 10.
Jose Luis Magana/AP

Thune appears to be over it all.

“This process is more complicated and risky than people are assuming at the moment,” he said Monday.

“The votes aren’t there, one, to nuke the filibuster and the votes aren’t there for a talking filibuster,” he added Tuesday. “It’s just a reality, and I’m the person who has to deliver sometimes the not-so-good news that the math doesn’t add up. But those are the facts. There’s no getting around it.”

The South Dakota Republican urged Trump to decouple a Texas endorsement from the fate of the legislation, saying, “It’s probably not a linkage that is in anybody’s best interest.”

(In other words, a GOP-controlled Senate — which he thinks is more likely if Cornyn is the nominee in Texas — benefits Trump, too.)

And finally, in some particularly unvarnished comments for the normally understated Thune, he on Monday attributed the “SAVE America Act” pressure to a “paid influencer ecosystem.”

Lee fired back at that comment on Monday night.

The GOP’s enthusiasm problem

Even if there is some truth to Thune’s theory that the campaign hasn’t been totally organic, the demands are increasingly real.

Trump and his allies are building up the voting bill as the difference between Republicans winning and losing the 2026 midterms. (Both because he claims it’s popular and because it would stop alleged Democratic cheating.)

But the potential political problem for the GOP comes if Thune is right that nothing can be done to pass it.

Recent polls from CNN, the Washington Post, Fox News and NBC News all show Democrats are significantly more likely to be passionate about voting in the 2026 midterms — in each poll, by a double-digit margin. CNN’s poll in January showed 66% of Democrat and Democratic-leaning independents said they were “extremely” motivated to vote, compared to just 50% of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents.

President Donald Trump speaks at the Republican Members Issues Conference on March 9 at Trump National Doral Miami in Doral, Florida.
Mark Schiefelbein/AP

Trump is doing a lot that appears to be testing the tolerance of some Republicans. And now he’s risking turning GOP voters off more by building up legislation that might never be signed into law.

If the president doesn’t back down and GOP leaders can’t figure something out, they could have a big problem on their hands — a largely self-inflicted one.

Jan. 6 police responders ask judge to let lawsuit over plaque in Capitol proceed

March 10, 2026 / 7:47 PM EDT / CBS News

A police officer and former police officer who sued and sought a court order to hang the plaque honoring members of law enforcement who defended the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6, 2021, riot have asked a judge to allow their civil lawsuit to proceed.

Former Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn and D.C. Police Officer Danny Hodges argue the placement of the plaque, which was unannounced and unexpected, violates the law. The plaque was hung inside a pair of doors along the west front of the U.S. Capitol Saturday morning at 4 a.m.

But the plaintiffs, who’ve fought in court for the installation of the plaque, argue that its placement in what they say is a “hidden” location is effectively no “different than the basement the plaque was kept in for years,” according to a court filing.

The officers argue the Capitol administrators are violating the law by not placing the plaque in a public location that is freely open to visitors.

“Honor is a social – that is, public – recognition,” they argue. “The potentially temporary nature of this installation does not change this analysis. Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), who fought to have the plaque installed, has suggested the plaque’s placement is not permanent.”

Democrats in the House and Senate have long complained about the delays and foot-dragging by Republican leaders in hanging the plaque. Jan. 6 police responders and their families have advocated for the placement of the marker.

The suit, which names the architect of the Capitol as a defendant, argues the law that required the plaque to be installed by March 2023 also “requires the memorial to be displayed on the Capitol’s ‘western front,’ an exterior part of the building,” rather than inside the building.

特朗普警告伊朗不得在霍尔木兹海峡布雷

2026年3月11日 07:42 / 联合早报

特朗普3月10日在社媒平台贴文，称美军在过去几小时内击中并摧毁10艘处于非作战状态的伊朗布雷舰艇，后续还将继续展开相关行动。 （彭博社）

美国总统特朗普警告伊朗不得在霍尔木兹海峡布设水雷，称美国已经摧毁10艘伊朗布雷舰艇。

特朗普星期二（3月10日）在社媒平台连续发文，他在第一条帖子说，伊朗如果在霍尔木兹海峡布雷，将面临“前所未见”的军事后果。他同时表示，美军将“彻底摧毁任何试图在霍尔木兹海峡布雷的船只”。

约13分钟后，特朗普再次发文称，美军在过去几小时内击中并摧毁10艘处于非作战状态的伊朗布雷舰艇，后续还将继续展开相关行动。

同在10日，美军中央司令部在社交媒体上发布消息称，美军当天在霍尔木兹海峡附近消灭多艘伊朗海军舰艇，包括16艘布雷舰艇。

路透社11日引述三名知情人士报道，自美国和以色列对伊朗开战以来，美国海军一直拒绝为航运业提供穿越霍尔木兹海峡的护航请求，理由是目前袭击风险过高。

白宫新闻秘书莱维特确认，美国海军未护送任何油轮或船只通过霍尔木兹海峡。

因美国和以色列对伊朗发起大规模军事行动，全球能源运输要道霍尔木兹海峡航运风险激增，全球油价剧烈震荡。

West Virginia can ban Medicaid coverage for gender-affirming surgery, US court rules

By Daniel Wiessner
March 10, 2026 6:20 PM UTC Updated 2 hours ago

节点运行失败

A person holds a flag as the Capitol is seen in the background during a Transgender Day of Visibility rally on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 31, 2025. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

• Summary

• Ban on specific surgeries not discriminatory, court says
• Case is part of broader battle over transgender rights
• Ruling follows US Supreme Court upholding Tennessee law

March 10 (Reuters) – A U.S. appeals court on Tuesday upheld West Virginia’s ban on Medicaid coverage for gender-affirming surgeries, the latest victory for Republican-led states seeking ​to curb the procedures amid an ongoing national battle over transgender rights.

In a unanimous ruling, opens new tab, a three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. ‌Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Virginia, overturned a judge’s decision that the 2004 statute violated anti-discrimination protections under two federal laws as well as the U.S. Constitution’s promise of equal protection under the law.

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The 4th Circuit panel wrote that the law applies to specific procedures and not to specific individuals, and so it does not unlawfully discriminate ​against transgender people.

Republican President Donald Trump’s administration has joined Republican-led states in seeking to curb gender-affirming treatment and transgender rights more broadly.

More than ​a dozen U.S. states prohibit or limit Medicaid coverage for gender-affirming care. Medicaid is the joint federal-state health insurance ⁠program for low-income people.

The 4th Circuit became the first federal appeals court to uphold such a law, and did so after the U.S. Supreme Court ​last year rejected a challenge to a Tennessee law that bans gender-affirming treatment for minors.

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The full 4th Circuit in 2024 had struck down West Virginia’s law as ​discriminatory, but the Supreme Court last year directed it to reconsider this case and a separate one involving North Carolina, in light of its decision in the Tennessee case.

The three judges on the panel that ruled on Tuesday were appointed by Republican presidents, two by Trump and one by George H.W. Bush. All three had dissented in 2024 ​when the full 4th Circuit in an 8-6 ruling declared West Virginia’s law invalid. They laid out similar reasoning on Tuesday while citing the Supreme Court ​ruling 70 times over 35 pages.

“It is not irrational for a legislature to encourage citizens to appreciate their sex and not become disdainful of their sex by refusing ‌to fund ⁠experimental procedures that may have the opposite effect,” Judge Julius Richardson, a Trump appointee, wrote for the court.

The type of surgeries at issue in the West Virginia law generally alter physical characteristics to align with a person’s gender identity, including chest reconstruction, genital alteration and facial procedures.

West Virginia Attorney General John McCuskey, a Republican, said the state should not be subsidizing “unproven, non-essential medical procedures.”

“Every dollar spent on these unproven procedures takes away funding that could be ​used to treat cancer, heart disease ​and diabetes,” McCuskey said.

Lambda Legal, an ⁠LGBT rights group that represents plaintiff Shauntae Anderson, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

U.S. District Judge Robert Chambers, an appointee of Democratic former President Bill Clinton, had ruled in favor of Anderson in 2022.

The 4th ​Circuit last year sent the case involving a similar North Carolina law back to a lower court for ​further proceedings. At ⁠least seven other states including Florida, Georgia and Arizona have faced lawsuits for banning or limiting insurance coverage for gender-affirming care.

Trump has issued a series of executive orders on transgender rights including a proclamation that there are only two sexes, male and female, and a person’s sex cannot change. Trump also banned transgender people from ⁠the U.S. ​military.

The Trump administration has proposed barring providers from receiving funds under the Medicare and Medicaid ​government insurance programs if they provide gender-affirming treatment to minors, prompting lawsuits that are pending.

The Federal Trade Commission, which enforces consumer protection laws, is investigating medical groups over their support for gender-affirming ​treatments, an action the groups call unlawful retaliation for constitutionally protected speech.

Reporting by Daniel Wiessner in Albany, New York; Editing by Will Dunham and Alexia Garamfalvi

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