March 17, 2026
Illinois Primary and Oil Tankers
Good morning, everyone!
If you missed it, be sure to check out the latest edition of Last Week in History:
Today, we will look at Illinois’ statewide primary election and the ongoing war in the Middle East.
Let’s get to it.
United States
-Illinois will hold statewide primary elections today.
Ten candidates are vying for the Democratic nomination to succeed retiring Senator Dick Durbin, with Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton and Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi frequently swapping the lead in polling.
Governor JB Pritzker, a prospective 2028 Democratic presidential candidate, has endorsed Stratton.
The candidates squared off in a debate in Chicago last month.
View it here:
Durbin, who was first elected in 1996, currently holds the title of the longest-serving Democratic whip in U.S. history, holding the post since 2005.
In the state’s congressional races, Jesse Jackson Jr. is vying for his old Chicago seat.
He previously held the seat from 1995 to 2012.
Separately, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Virginia, and Wyoming will hold state and local elections.
View a full list here.
-Democrats now lead prediction markets for control of the United States Senate, overtaking Republicans on leading betting platforms Kalshi and Polymarket.
-A federal judge temporarily blocked Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy’s changes to the vaccine schedule for children.
-President Donald Trump signed an executive order establishing an anti-fraud task force, saying it would go after Democratic-controlled cities.
Following the signing, he took questions from reporters on the ongoing war in the Middle East.
View it here:
-Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr threatened to revoke broadcasters licenses over their coverage of the war with Iran.
-White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles said yesterday that she had been diagnosed with “early stage breast cancer” but she would remain in her post.
-The Eastern United States was rocked by strong winds and blizzard conditions yesterday just as record-breaking high temperatures are expected in the coming days.
-Today, Trump will host Irish Taoiseach Micheál Martin at the White House for Saint Patrick’s Day.
-On this day in 1941, the National Gallery of Art opened in Washington, D.C.
President Franklin Roosevelt presided over the dedication ceremony.
Other Links:
Jesse Jackson posthumously spurs ‘commotion’ in key Senate race - NBC
Trump’s energy chief: “No guarantees” gas prices will fall in weeks - Axios
Storms cancel more US flights as TSA remains under pressure from partial government shutdown - AP
Border Patrol’s Gregory Bovino to retire, sources say - NBC
Last protester in immigration detention after Trump’s campus crackdown has been released - AP
Afghan asylum-seeker dies after less than 24 hours in ICE custody - NBC
In Tense Meeting, Mehmet Oz Pressed Medical Societies on Trans Care for Teens - The New York Times
Mamdani establishes NYC Mayor’s Office of LGBTQIA+ Affairs under new executive order - CBS
Africa
-A South African official said that Johannesburg would not cut ties with Iran despite U.S. pressure to do so.
The comment came after the U.S. ambassador in the country suggested that South Africa’s relationship with Tehran served as an impediment to improved ties with Washington.
-Ugandan opposition leader Bobi Wine said he had fled the country on Monday, just two months after facing off against President Yoweri Museveni in a disputed presidential election.
The vote extended Museveni’s 40-year rule.
In a video statement posted to his X account, Wine said his departure would be “brief” as he pledged to “continue the push for freedom and democracy” in the East African country.
View his statement here:
-The Trump administration is weighing whether to withhold H.I.V. aid funding to Zambia unless the government expands U.S. access to its vast mineral resources.
-The death toll from major landslides in Ethiopia has risen to 125.
-On this day in 1992, South Africans voted to end apartheid in a national referendum. In the whites-only election, the measure, which was backed by President F.W. de Klerk, secured 68.73% of the vote with an 85% turnout.
The first multiracial election was held two years later, with Nelson Mandela’s African National Congress sweeping the election.
Other Links:
Russia will stop deploying Kenyan fighters to Ukraine, Musalia Mudavadi says - BBC
Observers note low turnout in Congo-Brazzaville presidential polls - Africa News
Bombs explode in northeastern Nigeria, leaving scores killed and injured, authorities say - AP
Mineral exports curbs across Africa upend Chinese supply chains - Semafor
Pope’s upcoming Africa odyssey takes him to a mosque, a prison and the site of a deadly 2021 blast - AP
Americas and the Caribbean
-President Trump said yesterday at the White House that he believes he will have the “honor” of taking Cuba. The remark came as the island nation’s power grid collapsed following weeks of a near-total U.S. oil blockade.
The failure plunged the country’s nearly 10 million people into darkness.
In recent weeks, Trump has suggested that Washington could initiate a “peaceful takeover” of the country while the blockade has brought day-to-day life for Cubans to a halt.
Over the weekend, Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel confirmed that his government was in talks with the United States amid the pressure campaign.
-Spain’s King Felipe VI acknowledged “abuse” in his country’s colonial past yesterday, although stopping short of issuing a formal apology.
At its height, the Spanish Empire’s territorial holdings spanned five continents, accounting for over 10% of the world’s land area.
-El Salvador’s government is forcibly disappearing nationals deported from the United States, according to a new report by Human Rights Watch.
-On this day in 1992, a Hezbollah suicide bomber attacked the Israeli Embassy in Buenos Aires, Argentina, killing 29 people and injuring 242 others.
Other Links:
Brazil ex-President Bolsonaro’s kidney function improves but he remains in intensive care - AP
Chile’s new far-right president launches work on border barrier - AP
Nordic Leaders Praise Carney as They Discuss Arctic Security - The New York Times
Mexico arrests suspect who transported romantic partner of “El Mencho” to hideout before drug lord’s deadly capture - CBS
Mexico City breaks Guinness Record with giant football training session - BBC
Asia/Indo-Pacific
-President Trump said yesterday that he had requested that his planned visit to China slated for later this month be postponed for “a month or so,” citing the ongoing war in the Middle East.
-Myanmar’s parliament convened yesterday for the first time since the military seized power five years ago.
The gathering of lawmakers in Naypyitaw came after a phased election that was dominated by the army-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party.
In February 2021, the military toppled the democratically elected government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi as her Democracy League party prepared for a second term. The country then descended into civil conflict, with disparate rebel groups warring with government forces.
-North Korea’s newly-elected rubber stamp legislature will convene on March 22.
-Voters in Kazakhstan approved a new constitution in a Sunday referendum vote.
The new charter streamlines parliament and reestablishes the office of vice president, which was abolished in 1996.
-On this day in 1959, following an uprising against Chinese occupation of Tibet, the 14th Dalai Lama fled the region.
He crossed into India later that month, where he was granted political asylum and has resided ever since.
The Dalai Lama is the highest spiritual leader and head of Tibetan Buddhism and is regarded by Beijing as a separatist.
Other Links:
Takaichi weighs options as Trump pressures Japan on Hormuz - Japan Times
China warns Trump’s latest tariff moves could damage trade ties - AP
Bangladesh working with India to extradite 2 suspects in killing of prominent activist - AP
UN Afghan mission gets limited extension after US review call - Reuters
Japan’s cherry blossom season begins with first flowering confirmed in 3 cities - AP
Europe
-British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said yesterday that London would “not be drawn into the wider war” in the Middle East as President Trump has called on him to take a more active role in supporting the U.S.-Israeli military campaign against Iran.
View his full remarks here:
In remarks in the Oval Office yesterday, Trump called the decision “very disappointing.”
-In a joint statement yesterday, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, and Britain warned Israel of launching a ground offensive in Lebanon, saying it would cause “devastating humanitarian consequences.”
-A Russian general claimed that Moscow had made advances in eastern and southern Ukraine in the first two weeks of March.
-Poland has eclipsed Switzerland as the world’s 20th largest economy.
-On this day in 461, St. Patrick died at Saul, Downpatrick, Ireland.
Today, the Christian missionary bishop and apostle of Ireland is celebrated globally on the anniversary of his death.
Other Links:
Kallas says ‘no appetite’ to shift mandate of EU Hormuz naval mission - Euronews
Pakistan strikes hit drug rehabilitation hospital in Kabul, Taliban says - Reuters
Far-left and far-right gains throw French mainstream parties into a quandary - BBC
French ex-president in court for first day of appeals trial over conspiracy to finance campaign - AP
Swiss government slams 10 million population cap plan as threat to economy - Reuters
Middle East
-Several U.S. allied nations have rejected calls from President Trump to deploy warships to escort oil tankers through the strategic Strait of Hormuz, which have been targeted by Iranian attacks.
Trump scorned the pushback, saying the countries were ungrateful for decades of U.S. support.
Iran’s targeting of the vessels has caused global oil prices to soar as oil shipments are slowed and shipping insurance rates rise.
Around 20% of the world’s oil passes through the strategic waterway each day.
-On this day in 1969, Golda Meir was elected prime minister of Israel, becoming the first woman to hold the post.
She held the post for five years, resigning in 1974 amid political turmoil following the Yom Kippur War.
In 2003, President George W. Bush issued an ultimatum to Saddam Hussein, demanding he and his sons leave Iraq within 48 hours or face a U.S.-led military invasion.
View his remarks here:
Other Links:
Trump eyes “Hormuz Coalition,” seizure of Iran’s Kharg Island oil hub - Axios
Gulf states press US to neutralise Iran for good as Hormuz crisis deepens - Reuters
Israel says Lebanese displaced won’t return until its own citizens are safe - Reuters
UAE temporarily closes airspace as Middle East war forces wider flight disruptions - CNBC
Iraq is caught in the crossfire of the Iran war, with attacks by both sides on its soil - AP
Oil gains over 2% as market weighs Iran war supply risks - Reuters
That’s all for today. See you tomorrow.
Blackmail is now being applied to countries who have something they want - wow!!!
British was told we don't need you one week and now are being told we aren't doing enough to help!!! Make you're mind up!!
Not our monkey not our show - America & Israel started it and it's up to them to sort it and themselves out.
Withholding *A.I.D.S. aid to coerce minerals out Zambia. Just so disgusting. Trump is so stupid about Iran -- playing the whiney *victim by calling out Europe for not bailing him out from his war-by-impulse is as predictable as it is delusional.🤢
Irony about Saint Patrick's day: my birthday was yesterday (16mar26). As I like to quip about that date of birth: "Born the day after Caesar died and the day before Saint Patrick did. No wonder I am a gloomy dude!"😉