MSN

President Donald Trump's "head-spinning" reversal plan to release strategic oil reserves in response to his war against Iran could drain U.S. strategic oil reserves to levels not seen in nearly two decades, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday.

"According to the officials, U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright gave his counterparts in the Group of Seven nations the White House’s position Tuesday morning: A massive intervention in oil markets was premature because the price of oil had recently dipped below $90 a barrel," said the report. "Less than two hours later, U.S. officials reversed their earlier position and pushed their counterparts for a major release of oil, said people familiar with the matter. The 180 degree turn was entirely due to a change of heart by President Trump, said a senior administration official."

Two weeks into the war with Iran, President Donald Trump said that he had concluded that high oil prices benefit America.

"The United States is the largest Oil Producer in the World, by far, so when oil prices go up, we make a lot of money," the U.S. President wrote in a Truth Social post on Thursday. "BUT, of far greater interest and importance to me, as President, is stoping [sic] an evil Empire, Iran, from having Nuclear Weapons, and destroying the Middle East and, indeed, the World. "

President Donald Trump has worked behind the scenes to tank Republican support for a bipartisan bill in the Senate that would tackle housing affordability, Punchbowl News reported on Thursday.

The main issue, noted the report, is his insistence that his pet voter suppression bill, which just passed the House, be adopted in the Senate — something GOP leaders have said they don't have the votes for.

President Donald Trump's energy secretary stumbled over his words when CNN's Kate Bolduan challenged him on global oil disruptions caused by the war in Iran.

Oil tankers are unable to pass through the crucial Strait of Hormuz due to the threat of Iranian drones, missiles and mines, and the price of oil has surged past $100 a barrel, but Energy Secretary Chris Wright insisted on "CNN News Central" that Americans should be willing to shoulder the burden of higher gas costs.

Iran has repeatedly and methodically targeted U.S. missile defense infrastructure in response to Operation Epic Fury.

The Pentagon has confirmed an Iranian strike on a radar system at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan valued at $300 million, and Iran's response – called Operation True Promise 4 – has surgically focused on targeting the detection systems that underpin the entire U.S. defensive architecture in West Asia, reported Monthly Review Online.

Reports that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has banned outside photographers from the Pentagon because he thinks they were taking “unflattering” pictures of him led to laughter on MS NOW on Thursday morning with the only female panelist taking the lead in belittling the former Fox News personality.

After two press conferences on the war in Iran, “members of Hegseth’s staff reportedly told colleagues they did not like the way the defense secretary looked. In press briefings on March 4 and March 10, photographers were not permitted inside," the Independent reported.

Donald Trump’s sojourn to Kentucky on Wednesday, where he used his bully pulpit to attack Rep. Thomas Massie (R) in his home territory, led to questions over whether the president is his own worst enemy.

Massie, a far-right Republican, has been a thorn in Trump’s side not only on the Jeffrey Epstein files, but also with his attacks on the president for not living up to his promises to the MAGA supporters.

Newly revealed internal communications show a pair of executives at entertainment venue giant Live Nation laughing about how much they are able to gouge people for concert tickets.

"In a series of chats from 2022, Ben Baker and Jeff Weinhold, two regional directors of ticketing for Live Nation amphitheaters, boasted about their ability to raise so-called 'ancillary fees' – like parking, lawn chair rentals and VIP access – and still get concertgoers to pay for them," reported Bloomber News. "In one exchange, Weinhold gloated about raising VIP parking costs at a Virginia concert venue to $250. 'These people are so stupid. I almost feel bad taking advantage of them,' Baker wrote, adding later, 'I gouge them on ancil prices.' In another exchange, he bragged about charging '$50 to park in the grass' and '$60 for closer grass.'"

The images of two oil tankers set ablaze Thursday in Iraqi waters offered a jarring split-screen to President Donald Trump's declaration that "we won" the war against Iran.

The 79-year-old president held a campaign-style rally in Hebron, Kentucky, on Wednesday, where he insisted that joint U.S.-Israeli military operations had "virtually ⁠destroyed Iran," but that statement was quickly punctured by stepped-up attacks in the Persian Gulf, reported Reuters.