The Sunday — March 8

This is the Tangle Sunday Edition, a brief roundup of our independent politics coverage plus some extra features for your Sunday morning reading.

What the left is doodling.

What the right is doodling.

Monday, March 2.

The attack on Iran. On Saturday, February 28, the United States and Israel carried out airstrikes against Iran, killing Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other leaders. President Donald Trump said the ongoing mission, called Operation Epic Fury, will target Iran’s nuclear facilities, military capabilities and regime leaders, adding that Iranian citizens should prepare to take over the government. The attack marks the Trump administration’s second operation against Iran, following airstrikes targeting the country’s nuclear facilities in June 2025.

Our take: “Debating war becomes a lot trickier when it isn’t hypothetical. Overthrowing Iran’s regime is a worthy goal, but people across the political spectrum are leery of military involvement. Trump needs to have a good plan, but I’m not optimistic that he does.”

Reader Survey:

Tuesday, March 3.

The Anthropic–Pentagon dispute. On Friday, February 27, President Donald Trump ordered federal agencies to immediately cease their use of the artificial intelligence (AI) company Anthropic’s technology after it declined to allow the Pentagon unrestricted access to its models. Later in the day, Defense Secretary Hegseth directed the Pentagon to designate Anthropic as a “supply chain risk to national security,” which he said would bar contractors, suppliers, or partners doing business with the U.S. military from conducting commercial activity with Anthropic. Shortly after, OpenAI announced it had reached a deal to let the Pentagon use its AI models within classified systems. 

Our take: “Deciding who does, or should, have influence over advanced technologies is complicated. This story is simple: Anthropic has the right to reject a government contract, and the government is trying to punish them for it. OpenAI’s deal is rife with concerning loopholes, and the government’s AI position is now nonsensical.”

Reader Survey:

Wednesday, March 4.

The first primaries of the midterm elections. On Tuesday, March 3, voters in Arkansas, North Carolina and Texas voted in party primaries to elect candidates for federal, state, and local offices in the 2026 midterms. In the Texas Democratic Senate primary, state Rep. James Talarico defeated Rep. Jasmine Crockett, while Sen. John Cornyn and Attorney General Ken Paxton will head to a runoff in the Republican Senate primary. In North Carolina, former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley and former Gov. Roy Cooper (D) won their respective party’s Senate primaries. Meanwhile, Sen. Tom Cotton (R) won renomination for a third term in Arkansas’s Republican Senate primary and will face farmer Hallie Shoffner (D) in the general election. 

Our take: “Big picture for Republicans: The GOP establishment mostly got what it wanted. Big picture for Democrats: The party just let out a big exhale in Texas, where James Talarico won over Jasmine Crockett. If I could define a theme for Democratic victories yesterday, it’d be that economic populism beat out identity politics — that’s a relatively new phenomenon in the Democratic Party, but we’re seeing it again and again.”

Reader Survey:

Thursday, March 5.

The war in Iran. On Thursday, March 5, the conflict in Iran continued into its sixth day. Since the initial strikes on Saturday, February 28, Israel has ramped up its attacks, with heavy strikes against Hezbollah in Lebanon and Iranian military infrastructure in Tehran. As part of Operation Epic Fury, the U.S. military has struck nearly 2,000 targets in Iran and “struck or sunk” over 20 Iranian ships, according to U.S. Central Command. According to human rights group HRANA, more than 1,000 civilians — including 181 children under the age of ten — have died so far in the conflict. 

Our take: “The U.S. military is accomplishing its goals efficiently, but its goals are not clearly defined — and its efforts are costly and may be illegal. Most of the writers who are shaping public opinion about the war effort have never served. I deeply worry that too many Americans are completely disconnected from this fight.”

Reader Survey:

Friday, March 6.

In a recent study of English majors at two Kansas universities, a shockingly low number demonstrated comprehension of their assigned texts — even when they were allowed to look up unfamiliar terms. “I wish I could tell you I had been shocked at these results, or that I thought the study was a fluke,” Tangle Associate Editor Audrey Moorehead writes in this week’s Friday edition. “Instead, they only confirmed what I had already seen among my own peers in high school and college: Young Americans aren’t comprehending the things they read.”

You can read her piece here.

Special Report.

Further reading.

We’ve covered rising tensions with Iran, the debate over artificial intelligence, and midterm primaries before. Take a look at our past coverage below:

• In June 2025, we covered airstrikes against Iranian nuclear facilities.
• In September 2025, Isaac wrote about the growing tech backlash as a Friday edition (paywalled).
• In August 2022, we covered primary results in the 2022 midterm elections.
• In October 2022, we wrote about Covid-19 pandemic learning losses.

What just happened.

Here’s a rundown of the major stories that have broken since our last newsletter on Thursday.

• On Thursday, President Donald Trump announced he is nominating Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) to replace Kristi Noem as secretary of Homeland Security. Noem will be reassigned to a newly created position of special envoy for the Shield of the Americas. Trump reportedly decided to oust Noem after her testimony before the House and Senate Judiciary Committees last week. (The replacement)
• On Thursday, Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX) announced he will drop his reelection bid after admitting to an affair with an aide. Prior to the announcement, the House Ethics Committee said it was investigating Gonzales for potential sexual misconduct. (The decision)
• On Thursday, the Justice Department released documents detailing several 2019 Federal Bureau of Investigation interviews with a woman who alleged she was sexually assaulted by Donald Trump and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein in the 1980s. The Justice Department said the documents were not included in its initial release because they were “incorrectly coded as duplicative.” President Trump denies all wrongdoing. (The release)
• On Thursday, 24 states sued to challenge President Trump’s new 15% global tariff, arguing the president improperly justified the duties under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974. (The suit)
• On Friday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that nonfarm payrolls decreased by 92,000 jobs in February, and the unemployment rate rose to 4.4%. Most economists had forecast the economy would add jobs after it added 126,000 jobs in January. (The numbers)
• On Friday, President Trump said in an interview that Cuba “is going to fall pretty soon,” adding that he plans to send Secretary of State Marco Rubio to negotiate with the Cuban government. (The comments)
• On Friday, Customs and Border Protection said it will establish a system for issuing tariff refunds following the Supreme Court’s ruling striking down duties levied under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. The system is expected to be operational within 45 days. (The update)
• On Saturday, the Israeli military struck several Iranian oil facilities near Tehran. (The strikes)
• On Saturday, two possible homemade explosive devices were tossed during protests at Gracie Mansion, the New York City mayoral residence. The devices did not detonate; six people were arrested in connection with the act. (The bombs)
• On Saturday, an explosion was reported near the U.S. embassy in Oslo, Norway. Officials say no one was injured, and they are investigating the source. (The explosion)

Reader essay.

Tangle is a national politics newsletter, focusing on the biggest stories from the federal — and sometimes state — governments. But we often overlook the impact of local governments in American politics. In this week’s reader essay, Jodi Jones describes her experience with the intersection of national and local politics as a county commissioner in northeast Tennessee.