48 Hours or 24? Iran Strat & ICE to the Rescue – Top 3 Takeaways – March 23rd, 2026
Takeaway #1: 48 Hours, or perhaps 24?
Saturday night, at just about the time CBS ordinarily would air it’s “True Crime, Real Justice” show 48 hours (it was delayed due to the NCAA tournament), President Trump offered up his own dose of 48 hours reality when he posted this to Truth Social... If Iran doesn’t FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST! Show of hands...how many people think Iran’s poised to do what President Trump has demanded they do today? So, given that reality, this brings us to what’s now analogous to an episode of 24 (minus Jack Bauer) as the countdown is on. There are times President Trump says stuff we know is hyperbole. However, there are times when President Trump says what he means. His Saturday night ultimatum is effectively one of those because if there isn’t follow through, the loss of credibility could be huge. And on that note Iran’s response indicated that whoever is currently running the country isn’t of the mind to do what Trump has demanded they do. The Iran military’s spokesperson said this: If Iran’s fuel and energy infrastructure is attacked by the enemy, all energy and information technology infrastructure and desalination plants belonging to the United States and the Israeli entity in the region will be targeted. Now it remains to be seen if they’re actually capable of successfully pulling off such a feat at this stage of the war as they Iranian military has been decimated high and low but as I mentioned in my top takeaway on Friday... blowing up energy doesn’t end well. And if the Strait of Hormuz remains in status quo mode and there’s generally less energy in the middle east because it’s being blown up – that most certainly wouldn’t result in a lower cost for energy which remains one of the top concerns in this country. 7:44 tonight is the time to watch if nothing’s materially changed in the Strait by then as that’s the conclusion of the 48-hour deadline for President Trump.
Takeaway #2: So, what’s the strategy?
In war it’s unrealistic to expect everything to go according to plan. And as we’re this deep into the Iranian conflict it’s safe to safe that if nothing else, the lack of energy flowing through the Strait of Hormuz wasn’t part of the president’s plan this far out. But let’s say for a minute President Trump said what he had to say on Saturday, with the 48-hour ultimatum because he fully expected Iran would resist and it would instead supply an opportunity for the president to have articulated his intentions giving the rest of the world the opportunity to digest what comes next and also for the slight chance that Iran would agree as potential upside. Why is it that President Trump would do such a thing? As I’ve said for much of the past decade, it’s also important to remember that what happens with Venezuela isn’t just about Venezuela. What happens with Cuba isn’t just about Cuba. What happening with Iran most certainly isn’t just about Iran. And that’s because China and Russia aren’t just China and Russia, they’ve been Iran, they’ve been North Korea (with Little Rocket Man), they’ve been Venezuela and Cuba and Nicorgoua. Aside from Iran not using nukes to bring about World War III, what Iran is about is never having to take on China or Russia militarily. The order with which President Trump has prosecuted his foreign objectives has been highly intentional. Venezuela was first because it was something President Trump could do on his own, without war, given that Maduro had an arrest warrant in New York. Taking Venezuela's oil offline to China – eliminated a key ally to China in the hemisphere, and it also provided about 4% of China’s total energy as 80% of oil produced under Maduro went to China. That’s no more. But where did most of the rest of the energy go? To Cuba. What’s happening in Cuba? No energy has led to a total collapse of what was left of the economy and is pushing the legacy Castro regime to the brink. We may soon be able to put an end to that regime and bring about freedom, peace and prosperity by simply having cut off its energy. Within Iran’s military and remaining Mullah’s seemingly dug in, the one-way President Trump may be able to snuff them out is through decimating the country’s energy. There’s a good chance that what comes next is all part of the plan. And the key in all of this is that between Iran and Venezuela, they accounted for 49% of China’s energy. China is in no position to potentially become an aggressor and at worst prosecute a war and run its country with half of its energy offline. And with Russia predisposed to their war in Ukraine they’re in no position to defend their Iranian interests either. It’s a strategic stroke of genius... Speaking of which...
Takeaway #3: ICE’s Assistance
With Democrats continuing to refuse to fund ICE and with TSA agents having gone more than a month without receiving pay on time...and also with no end in sight...President Trump has decided to do something strategic on the homeland too. Since the deaths of Rennee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, ICE has had a PR problem to say the least. They, along with Border Patrol, also happen to be the only Homeland Security agencies unimpacted by the ongoing government shutdown of Homeland Security. So, what better way to attempt to change the narrative about ICE’s impact in society, and to rub the Dems noses in their insane open borders effort to defund and disband ICE, than to send them to airports. On Monday, ICE will be going to airports to help our wonderful TSA Agents who have stayed on the job despite the fact that the Radical Left Democrats, who are only focused on protecting hard line criminals who have entered our Country illegally, are endangering the USA by holding back the money that was long ago agreed to with signed and sealed contracts, and all. But watch, no matter how great a job ICE does, the Lunatics leading the incompetent Dems will be highly critical of their work. THEY WILL DO A FANTASTIC JOB. The great Tom Homan is in charge!!! Now a key in this conversation is what President Trump mentioned...which is that he’s sending in ICE to “help” TSA with airport security. As I covered last week, under law only trained TSA agents are able to conduct airport security. Therefore, ICE can’t replace the TSA – but yeah – there's nothing that says they can’t help along the way... Unless it’s a federal judge following a lawsuit – which Democrats will potentially pursue. Stay Tuned!