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As other Asian economies race to conserve energy, China has huge reserves of oil and gas as well as alternative energy sources like wind and solarMiddle East crisis – live updatesXi Jinping has been preparing for a crisis like this for years. China must secure its energy supply “in its own hands”, its president was reported to have said during a visit to one of its vast oilfields in 2021.The US-Israel war on Iran plunged the Middle East into a deep conflict, with the strait of Hormuz – one of the most important waterways in global trade – all but closed and key energy facilities across the region under attack. Continue reading...

MS NOW host Nicolle Wallace had a frank reaction on Thursday after President Donald Trump made a jaw-dropping comment that shocked people inside the Oval Office during a White House meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.Wallace was visibly stunned after discussing Trump's attempted joke that clearly left the room uncomfortable when a reporter asked why Trump hadn't warned his allies that the U.S.-Israeli military strikes were coming. "One thing, you don't want to signal too much when we go in," Trump said. "We went in very hard and we didn't tell anyone about it because we wanted surprise. Who knows better about surprise than Japan? Why didn't you tell me about Pearl Harbor?"Wallace watched the video playback and commented on Trump, asking her panel to share their thoughts. "I struggle every minute of every day with platforming him, one, I should do it all day because it shows what a profound idiot he is," Wallace said. "But but two, we were on other sides. This is a question about why didn't you read in your allies? And he says, we didn't know what our adversary was going to do. I mean, David Frum, what do you even, how's your brain doing?"Frum, a Canadian-American commentator and former speechwriter, described why Trump's words shocked the Japanese leader and dignitaries visiting America. "So first, there's probably no society on earth where good manners count for more than Japan, a country that has been — and we're talking about 80 years since the end of World War II, that has been a staunch and loyal ally of the United States for 80 years, where the warmth of person to person ties," Frum said. "But the one big cultural difference has always been the emphasis on decorum and decency and respect in Japanese culture, whereas American culture can be a little more boisterous. For the president of the United States to insult them, and you can watch it, sort of figuring out 'No one is amused by what I just said. Maybe if I say it again, it'll get more amusing the second time. And what if I say right, right, right. And give them a little jab in the ribs? Maybe it'll be funny then.'"Frum described why it was so surprising — and why it left them silent. "And it's just horrifying. One more thing that needs to be pointed out in this analogy that he's drawing between the United States and Japan, who's doing the sneak attack?" Frum added. "Oh, yeah. He's comparing the United States to the Japanese sneak attack. He wanted to do a Pearl Harbor on Greenland. Now he wants to do a Pearl Harbor on Iran. He is comparing himself to the people whom Americans normally condemn, and then elbowing the Japanese that they don't think the whole thing is terribly amusing."

Economists cautioned whether surging oil prices and soaring tariffs amid the ongoing Iran war could tip the United States into recession and what signs could point to an economic downslide, The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday. The Journal polled 50 economists between March 16-18 from different sectors, including Wall Street banks and small consulting firms and universities, for a survey about what they expect the economic fallout might look like amid the military conflict in the Middle East. Experts did identify one important metric that could show potential signs of economic difficulty. "Economists put the probability of a recession in the next 12 months at 32%, up modestly from 27% in January," The Journal reported. "Asked how high crude oil would need to climb to tip the recession probability above 50%, economists gave a range of responses: from $90 a barrel to $200, with an average of $138. Asked how long oil prices would need to be at an elevated level, they said from four weeks to 55 weeks, with an average duration of 14 weeks. U.S. oil futures closed at $96.32 a barrel Wednesday, compared with a February average of about $65."Robert Fry of Robert Fry Economics predicted that the probability of an economic downturn was at 40 percent, explaining that "$125 oil for eight weeks is his make-or-break point.""My forecast is contingent on the assumption that the Strait of Hormuz will be fully open to tanker traffic by mid-April," Fry said. "If it isn’t, oil prices will go much higher, and I will put a recession in my forecast."

ABC has cancelled its upcoming season of "The Bachelorette" after a shocking video emerged of Taylor Frankie Paul in an explosive fight with her ex-boyfriend and child's father, TMZ reported on Thursday. The star of the show, who is also a main cast member in Hulu's "The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives," was seen in video footage from 2023 putting Dakota Mortensen in a headlock, hitting him and throwing metal chairs, one of which hit their child sitting on a sofa. Mortensen and Paul have been in an ongoing custody battle. They have been ordered to undergo a psych evaluation as domestic abuse allegations surfaced this week, just ahead of "The Bachelorette" air date on Sunday. The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives" had announced it had paused production in response to the allegations. Disney Entertainment released the following statement about the decision: “In light of the newly released video just surfaced today, we have made the decision to not move forward with the new season of 'The Bachelorette' at this time, and our focus is on supporting the family.”

Stephen Miller’s Wednesday Night Fox News appearance boast on how well the Iran war was on the receiving end of a great deal of both mockery and fact-checking moments after a clip was posted on social media.Appearing with Fox News personality Laura Ingraham, the high-ranking Trump advisor insisted, “The United States has achieved its objectives even faster than anybody thought possible,” before adding, “President Trump was aware of and has calculated through every permutation and every degree of strategy ... by far the most overwhelming victory based on the objectives.”Critics were quick to point out that one of the “permutations” that Trump did not anticipate was Israel making matters worse, which the president complained about hours after Miller’s appearance, as well as the oil stranglehold Iran has imposed at the Strait of Hormuz.That led former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) to quip on X, “He’s a genius of course.”“’Every permutation’ hahah,” contributed former White House correspondent John Harwood.Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA) called out Trump officials routinely lying to Fox News viewers, saying, “Trump officials routinely disrespect and look down on Fox viewers and Fox hosts. Trump officials routinely and blatantly lie to Fox viewers and Fox hosts,” and included a video of Trump admitting he was “shocked” at Iran’s retaliatory response. Critic Mary Jane Wallace asked, “Does he really believe we are buying that?”Campaign for New York Health Executive Director Melanie D'Arrigo pointed out, “Anyone who has ever heard Trump speak knows this is an absolute lie.”“lol yeah and im sure he war gamed the part where his own party starts backing away,” wrote the account Sugnal Observer.

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard declined to say that President Donald Trump's war in Iran was legal or constitutional.During a House Intelligence Committee hearing on Thursday, Rep. Ami Bera (D-CA) reminded Gabbard of her 2020 remarks about Trump's strikes against Iran's leadership."President Trump has committed an illegal and unconstitutional act of war, pushing our nation headlong into a war with Iran without any authorization from Congress," Gabbard said at the time. "A war that would be so costly and devastating, it would make our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan look like a picnic.""This war has already been costly and devastating," Bera said of Trump's current war. "Thirteen American service members have lost their lives, including Chief Warrant Officer Robert Marzan from my home of Sacramento, California. Approximately 200 service members have been wounded."Bera noted that the war was also costing nearly $2 billion per day."Director Gabbard, do you still believe that strikes against Iran that don't have congressional authorization constitute an illegal and unconstitutional act of war?" the lawmaker asked."The cost of war weighs very heavily upon me and my colleagues here, especially for those of us who have experienced and seen the cost of war firsthand," Gabbard replied. "My own personal and political views, as I mentioned earlier, I was asked and required by Congress and by the president in this role as the Director of National Intelligence to check those views at the door to ensure that the intelligence assessments are not colored by my personal views.""And that's exactly what I am responsible to deliver," she added."Do you still believe the war with Iran would be so costly and devastating that it would make our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan look like a picnic?" Bera pressed. "Once again, in this role, it is essential that I do not allow any of my personal views on any issues to color or bias the intelligence reporting that we deliver to you and to the president," Gabbard responded.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was forced to walk a tightrope lest he alienate the only military ally he has in the war on Iran — and he was put in that spot Thursday by a MAGA media reporter.Late Wednesday night, President Donald Trump was less than diplomatic when he criticized Israel on Truth Social over a new front in the Middle Eastern war.On Truth Social, the president wrote, “Israel, out of anger for what has taken place in the Middle East, has violently lashed out at a major facility known as South Pars Gas Field in Iran. A relatively small section of the whole has been hit. The United States knew nothing about this particular attack, and the country of Qatar was in no way, shape, or form, involved with it, nor did it have any idea that it was going to happen. "Unfortunately, Iran did not know this, or any of the pertinent facts pertaining to the South Pars attack, and unjustifiably and unfairly attacked a portion of Qatar’s LNG Gas facility.“I do not want to authorize this level of violence and destruction because of the long-term implications that it will have on the future of Iran, but if Qatar’s LNG is again attacked, I will not hesitate to do so.”With that post in mind, Jordan Conradson of the conspiracy-minded, far-right website Gateway Pundit asked Hegseth, “So with this strike yesterday on South Pars gas field, you know, if the U.S. didn't know about it or didn't approve of it, it kind of seems like a trend of Israel apparently pursuing their own objectives over U.S. objectives. I'm not sure if you agree with that, but the president has said he doesn't want to hit Iran's oil infrastructure right now.”Hegseth replied with a defensive, “We hold the cards, we have objectives. Those objectives are clear. We have allies pursuing objectives as well.”“I mean, President Trump was very clear about that,” he continued. “Iran has weaponized energy for decades; Israel clearly sent a warning and POTUS has made it clear, very clear, Iran knows when you hit Kharg Island and you hit military capabilities on Kharg Island, which is the only thing we hit, we can hold anything at issue, anything.“The United States military controls the fate of that country. Iran has the ability to make the right choices. It should not, going forward, target Arab allies, Arab countries trying to create pain, the pain that they created themselves." - YouTube youtu.be

Lemi Limbu, who has severe intellectual disabilities, remains in prison and will now face retrial for the murder of her daughterA woman with severe intellectual disabilities in Tanzania has had her conviction and death sentence quashed after spending more than a decade in prison awaiting execution.Lemi Limbu, now in her early 30s, was convicted of the murder of her daughter in 2015. On 4 March, a court in Shinyanga, northern Tanzania, declared she can appeal. She will face a retrial, but a date has yet to be set. Continue reading...