Sources say Bill Maher offered Mark Twain Prize but the White House says ‘fake news’
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Source:CNN
March 21, 2026 16:38 UTC
Trump administration lifts sanctions on millions of barrels of Iranian oil
“Today, the Department of the Treasury is issuing a narrowly tailored, short-term authorization permitting the sale of Iranian oil currently stranded at sea,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent wrote Friday night on X. “You don’t unsanction Iranian oil if you’re winding down. The word for that is desperation.”Erickson questioned whether the action will have much of an impact on oil prices. Europe still has sanctions on Iranian oil, he said, and the firms that purchase it would still be taking a considerable risk. “That’s why prices are unlikely to be impacted significantly.”Analysts who have advised the administration on sanctions and economic policy publicly defended the move.
Source:Washington Post
March 21, 2026 16:38 UTC
Politics And The Markets 03/21/26
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Source:Los Angeles Times
March 21, 2026 16:37 UTC
Commentary: A Democratic takeover of the Senate is now imaginable
That’s because this year’s Senate map would require Democrats to win numerous seats in red states. Independent journalist Chris Cillizza recently observed that for the first time ever, prediction markets like Polymarket and Kalshi showed Democrats with a narrow edge. Now, prediction markets are not scientific. The difference is that in prediction markets, people are wagering actual money, which tends to sharpen the mind in ways that answering a pollster’s call during dinner does not. In Maine, Republican Sen. Susan Collins once again finds herself in a political knife fight — her natural habitat, though perhaps not her preferred one.
Source:Los Angeles Times
March 21, 2026 16:36 UTC
From streets to murals, the erasure of Cesar Chavez is fast underway in California
In the two days after allegations emerged that the famed farmworker rights leader and Chicano figure sexually assaulted minors and fellow labor icon Dolores Huerta, Chavez is being erased at an unprecedented rate. Murals depicting Chavez in Los Angeles were unceremoniously painted over. Soon, the old street names — Kings Canyon Road, Ventura Street and California Avenue — will return to the nearly 10-mile-long corridor. The statue and murals of Cesar Chavez have been covered up amid what the National Farm Workers Assn. But statues including one in downtown Los Angeles, south of Olvera Street, were eventually taken down.
Source:Los Angeles Times
March 21, 2026 16:01 UTC
Scandal resurrects old clash over renaming beloved Brooklyn Avenue after Cesar Chavez
Zender Estrada that shows Cesar Chavez on the wall of Maravilla Meat Market on Cesar E. Chavez Avenue in East Los Angeles. Rodney Trammell waits for his turn at a barbershop on Cesar E. Chavez Avenue, in the Boyle Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles, on Wednesday. Brooklyn Avenue Pizzeria on Cesar E. Chavez Avenue in Boyle Heights. The idea to rename Brooklyn Avenue after Chavez was raised by Molina, just a week after his death in April 1993. Proposition 187 — dubbed the “Save Our State” initiative — would be introduced three months after the renaming of Brooklyn Avenue.
Source:Los Angeles Times
March 21, 2026 16:01 UTC
Waltz: Trump said ‘enough is enough’ on failed diplomacy with Iran
Bodycam shows Justin Timberlake sobriety testBodycam video released by the Sag Harbor Police Department shows Justin Timberlake struggling to perform sobriety tests when he was pulled over in 2024. "I'm a little nervous," Timberlake said to the officers as he tried to walk a straight line. The pop star had filed a petition to block the release of the arrest footage. CNN has reached out to Timberlake's attorney for comment.
Source:CNN
March 21, 2026 15:53 UTC
Inside Democratic Socialists of America’s decision on whether to endorse for L.A. mayor
Items on a table during an election night party held by the Democratic Socialists of America - LA chapter at The Greyhound on Nov. 4, in Los Angeles. The same day she announced her surprise bid for mayor, Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman called a member of the local Democratic Socialists of America chapter. Leslie Chang, co-chair for the Los Angeles chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America, at a rally at Molina Grand Park in Los Angeles on March 18. In New York, DSA member Zohran Mamdani was recently elected mayor on a platform of rent freezes and free city buses. Konstantine Anthony, a DSA member and Burbank City Council member who gathered signatures to reopen the endorsement window, is supporting Huang.
Source:Los Angeles Times
March 21, 2026 15:51 UTC
Gasoline price gouging in California draws a warning
California’s petroleum market watchdog is warning about price gouging at some gas stations charging over $7 or even $8 a gallon as the Iran war sends oil prices soaring. “Our team is vigilantly monitoring the retail, wholesale, and spot markets,” said Tai Milder, director of the California Energy Commission Division of Petroleum Market Oversight, in a statement. The extremely high prices at some gas stations in California “are not supported by current crude oil prices or gasoline futures,” the division said. This isolation makes California gas prices more sensitive to refinery outages and market manipulation. “We know now that their margins are closer to $1.25 per gallon,” he said, citing the group’s analysis of state and Oil Price Information Service data.
Source:Los Angeles Times
March 21, 2026 15:51 UTC
You asked: I’ve been critical of Trump. Should I worry about flying abroad?
I’ve been critical of Trump on social media. We know the government is interested in traveler social media — at least for foreigners. Last year, U.S. Customs and Border Protection floated a proposal for international travelers to disclose five years of social media history. No one has been denied entry to the U.S. because they were critical of President Trump,” a spokesperson said in an email. Your speech isn’t protected if your social media post was a credible threat of violence, for example.
Source:Washington Post
March 21, 2026 15:22 UTC
She transformed Paris for tourists — and divided the city
But despite being home to one of Europe’s busiest metro systems, they would’ve found Paris still very much ruled by la voiture. Mayor Anne Hidalgo has prioritized pedestrians and cyclists in transforming Paris. This has gone down well with many of the millions of tourists who visit Paris each year. Close to a third of Parisians have started cycling more, with 9% now commuting on two wheels, In 2025, Paris was crowned Europe’s best cycling city in one ranking. “Paris is a 1,500-year-old city, there’s no urgency to change it all, he says.
Source:CNN
March 21, 2026 15:13 UTC
Federal Court Rules RFK Jr Overstepped On Gender-Affirming Care
It also came at the same time as HHS unveiled three proposed rules that sought to prevent medical providers from receiving Medicaid and Medicare reimbursements if they provided transition care for youth. LGBTQ+ advocates celebrated the ruling that, for now, offers some relief to health care providers and families of trans youth. “Health care for transgender people is just that — health care — and that care must continue — full stop.”New York Attorney General Letitia James, one of the plaintiffs in the suit, also applauded the judge’s decision in a press release. Over the course of the six-hour hearing in Eugene, Oregon, Kasubhai agreed with the states, noting that Kennedy’s declaration “effectively eliminated” any options for health care providers to treat patients seeking gender-affirming care. Additionally, the Justice Department has issued 20 subpoenas to doctors and hospitals it said were involved in “performing transgender medical projects.”Advertisement
Source:Huffington Post
March 21, 2026 15:02 UTC
U.S. Allows 30-Day Sale Of Iran Oil At Sea In Bid To Tame Prices
AdvertisementThe U.S. has not meaningfully imported Iranian oil since Washington imposed measures after the 1979 revolution. It was unclear whether any Iranian oil would end up in the country as a result of the waiver. The move is expected to benefit China, the top buyer of Iranian oil. AdvertisementBessent had telegraphed the move in an interview with Fox Business on Thursday, saying the release of the sanctioned Iranian oil into global supplies would help keep oil prices down for 10 to 14 days. “The easing of sanctions raises concerns about the rapid depletion of Washington’s economic toolkit,” to dampen oil prices, Erickson said.
Source:Huffington Post
March 21, 2026 15:02 UTC
The US broke the all-time heat record for March. Yes, it’s climate change
An unprecedented heat wave in the West broke the record for the hottest March temperature anywhere in the United States: 108 degrees. Advertisement AdvertisementAdvertisement AdvertisementThe scorching heat wave continues through the weekend, with temperatures expected to peak near the national record in Southern California or Arizona. Advertisement AdvertisementAdvertisement AdvertisementNebraska’s capital city Lincoln could even approach its all-time March record of 91 degrees by Saturday. As for the West, the record heat will drone on and on for days well into next week. Temperatures could break record highs in parts of Arizona, California and Nevada every day through at least next Wednesday.
Source:CNN
March 21, 2026 14:37 UTC