U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio designated Afghanistan as a ‘state sponsor of wrongful detention,’ accusing the Taliban of ‘unjustly’ detaining Americans and other foreign nationals.

In his announcement on Monday, Rubio said the Taliban continues to use ‘terrorist tactics’ that he insisted ‘need to end.’

‘I am designating Afghanistan as a State Sponsor of Wrongful Detention,’ Rubio said in a statement. ‘The Taliban continues to use terrorist tactics, kidnapping individuals for ransom or to seek policy concessions. These despicable tactics need to end.’

The secretary also called on the terror group to free a pair of Americans who are ‘unjustly detained’ in Afghanistan.

‘It is not safe for Americans to travel to Afghanistan because the Taliban continues to unjustly detain our fellow Americans and other foreign nationals,’ he said. ‘The Taliban needs to release Dennis Coyle, Mahmoud Habibi, and all Americans unjustly detained in Afghanistan now and commit to cease the practice of hostage diplomacy forever.’

Coyle, 64, was detained more than a year ago without charges by the Taliban General Directorate of Intelligence, according to his family, noting that he still has not been charged. His family said he was legally working to support Afghan language communities as an academic researcher.

Habibi, a 38-year-old American citizen who was born in Afghanistan, was taken along with his driver from their vehicle in the capital of Kabul in August 2022 by the Taliban General Directorate of Intelligence, according to the State Department.

The FBI said Habibi was previously Afghanistan’s director of civil aviation and worked for the Kabul-based telecommunications company Asia Consultancy Group. The FBI said the Taliban detained 29 other employees of the company but has released most of them.

Habibi has not been heard from since his arrest, and the Taliban has not disclosed his whereabouts or condition, according to the State Department and FBI. The Taliban has previously denied it detained Habibi.

The U.S. is also calling for the return of the remains of Paul Overby, an author who was last seen close to Afghanistan’s border with Pakistan in 2014, according to Reuters, citing two sources familiar with the situation.

The State Department could restrict the use of U.S. passports for travel to Afghanistan if the Taliban does not meet the U.S. government’s demands, the sources told the outlet.

A passport restriction of this kind is currently only in place for North Korea.

The Taliban called the decision by Rubio to designate Afghanistan a ‘state sponsor of wrongful detention’ regrettable, adding that it wanted to resolve the matter through dialogue.

The Taliban took control of Afghanistan in 2021 during the U.S. military’s chaotic withdrawal from the country that ended the 20-year war in the region.

Rubio gave the ‘state sponsor of wrongful detention’ designation to Iran late last month, just one day before the U.S.-Israeli strikes on the country. He warned that the U.S. could restrict travel to Iran over its detention of U.S. citizens, but there have not been any restrictions yet.

‘The Iranian regime must stop taking hostages and release all Americans unjustly detained in Iran, steps that could end this designation and associated actions,’ Rubio said at the time.

Reuters contributed to this report.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., signaled Tuesday that Republicans will continue to closely align themselves with President Donald Trump as the November midterms creep closer.

‘The American people are going to understand he is on the ballot, at least in a metaphorical sense, because if we were to lose the midterms, everybody knows the chaos that would ensue,’ the leader of the House of Representatives told NBC News reporter Scott Wong.

Johnson made the remarks at House Republicans’ annual policy retreat, which is taking place this year at Trump’s golf course and resort in Doral, Florida, where GOP lawmakers are huddling to hash out policy goals ahead of the midterm races and beyond.

He said Trump is also going to take an ‘active’ role in the coming election cycle.

‘President Trump is going to be … he’s engaged, he’s going to run like he’s 2024. He’s going to do the rallies and do the events, and he’s already doing it now,’ Johnson said.

‘He’s going to be heavily involved. And he is still the turnout machine for our side — as well as the other side, I acknowledge that.’

The speaker’s comments are not surprising given Trump’s continued command and influence over the GOP, but tying Republicans so closely to a sitting president in a midterm year could be viewed as a risky strategy.

Political history dictates that the party holding all levers of power in Washington at the beginning of a presidential term — in this case, Republicans — generally lose control of one or both houses of Congress in the following election cycle.

It happened most recently during former President Joe Biden’s term, when Republicans clawed back the House majority in the 2022 races and won the Senate in the following 2024 cycle.

But Johnson has been and continues to be optimistic about Republicans’ chances of bucking that trend in November.

‘I think there’s so many factors in our favor. I think the energy and excitement is going to be on our side,’ Johnson said. ‘I can’t wait for the midterm convention that we’re going to have before early voting starts in the fall, where we parade all of our stars across the stage, and we talk about all the great things we’ve done for the American people.

‘This is a midterm like none other. So, I’m telling you, do not bet against the House Republicans.’

A senior Trump administration official and former acting U.S. attorney for D.C. is under disciplinary review for his role in President Donald Trump’s anti-diversity, equity, and inclusion initiative — sparking outrage from the Justice Department, which assailed alleged ethics violations against Ed Martin as a ‘partisan’ effort, and one that unfairly targets Trump and his allies. 

The disciplinary charge, filed Friday to the D.C. Court of Appeals Board on Professional Responsibility and published Tuesday, centers on a letter sent by Martin to Georgetown Law last February while Martin was serving as interim U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia. 

Martin allegedly demanded in the letter that Georgetown Law provide information about its DEI practices and teachings, according to the ethics complaint. It states that without ‘further explanation,’ and without receiving a response from Georgetown Law, Martin then announced he would be imposing sanctions on the school — instructing his staff not to hire any students, fellows, or interns affiliated with the university.

The Justice Department blasted news of the ethics complaint, telling Fox News Digital on Tuesday that the complaint represented yet another ‘clear indication’ of unfair and ‘partisan’ treatment from the D.C. Bar, a body they argued has continued ‘to target and punish those serving President Trump while refusing to investigate or act against actual ethical violations that were committed by Biden and Obama administration attorneys,’ representing what DOJ spokesperson described as ‘a clear indication of this partisan organization’s agenda.’

The complaint was signed by the disciplinary counsel for the D.C. Bar, Hamilton Fox, whose role allows him to function similarly to a prosecutor for attorney misconduct cases.  Fox previously donated thousands to Obama’s first presidential campaign in 2008, according to FEC records reviewed by Fox News Digital. 

The complaint accuses Martin of violating the First and Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution by using his role as a government official to demand that the university change its teachings; failing to give the university a time frame to respond; and threatening adverse action against Georgetown Law for teaching a particular viewpoint.

It also accuses Martin of conducting unauthorized, ex parte communications with the chief judge and senior judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit after he was asked to respond to a complaint about his remarks to Georgetown Law. ‘In that letter, he stated that he would not be responding to Disciplinary Counsel’s inquiry, complained about Disciplinary Counsel’s ‘uneven behavior,’ and requested a ‘face-to-face meeting with all of you to discuss this matter and find a way forward,” the complaint said, noting that Martin had copied White House counsel onto the email. 

The Justice Department’s second-highest-ranking official, Todd Blanche, sharply criticized the complaint on social media Tuesday, noting: ‘The DC Bar is such a blatantly Democrat-run political organization.’

‘Thank God I’m not a member, and trust me, I never will be,’ Blanche said in a post on X.Martin, a former defense attorney who helped represent individuals charged in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol, has made headlines during his short time at DOJ. His path to confirmation to serve as U.S. Attorney for D.C. stalled last year amid concerns from some Senate Republicans, prompting Trump to install Martin last May as the Justice Department’s pardon attorney. 

Trump also tapped Martin at the time to head up the Justice Department’s so-called ‘Weaponization Working Group,’ or the newly formed internal body within DOJ tasked with probing federal prosecutions viewed by the administration as unfairly partisan. 

Martin was removed last month from his role heading up the working group, though no reason for his removal was immediately provided. 

The complaint will now be kicked to D.C. Court of Appeals for next steps and review — a notoriously lengthy process that will likely take months, if not longer.

News of the ethics complaint comes just days after the Justice Department filed a notice of proposed rulemaking in the Federal Register that would allow the department to suspend state bar investigations while the DOJ conducts its own review. 

Kharg Island, which handles the bulk of Iran’s crude exports and was once floated by President Donald Trump as a potential target could spark broader regional instability and attacks on energy infrastructure if struck by the U.S., a leading energy security expert has warned.

Reports indicate the Trump administration is weighing options that could include a direct attack on Kharg Island.

Discussing the possibility of boots on the ground amid Operation Epic Fury on ‘The Claman Countdown,’ retired Army Brig. Gen. Mark Kimmitt also told Liz Claman striking Kharg could be in the ‘offing.’

‘I don’t think a significant number of boots on the ground, other than the chance of an assault on Kharg Island, is in the offing,’ he said March 9.

Trump’s interest in the island dates back to a 1988 interview in which he reportedly suggested targeting Kharg in response to Iranian aggression, according to reports.

‘I’d be harsh on Iran. They’ve been beating us psychologically, making us look like a bunch of fools,’ Trump said. ‘One bullet shot at one of our men or ships, and I’d do a number on Kharg Island. I’d go in and take it.’

Sara Vakhshouri, a global energy analyst, said striking Kharg aligns squarely with Washington’s ‘energy dominance’ doctrine and spoke as U.S. and Israeli military action in Iran rattles energy markets and disrupts oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz.

‘Kharg currently acts as a strategic restraint point in the conflict,’ Vakhshouri, founder and president of SVB Energy International, told Fox News Digital.

‘Interrupting Iran’s main export terminal would likely trigger a major oil price spike, market instability and regional retaliation against energy infrastructure.’

Kharg’s significance is not only tactical but strategic, she added, arguing that it fits squarely within Trump’s long-touted doctrine.

The policy, central to Trump’s first term, prioritized maximizing U.S. oil and gas production, expanding exports and leveraging U.S. energy strength as a geopolitical tool.

‘But when we talk about Kharg, the most important factor is that it fits within the U.S. energy dominance concept,’ Vakhshouri said, suggesting that holding the island in reserve as a pressure point — rather than immediately striking it — may be a more strategic option.

Kharg sits in the northern Persian Gulf, roughly 15 miles off Iran’s mainland. Tankers leaving the terminal pass through the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow choke point that handles about one-fifth of global oil trade.

Around 90% to 95% of Iran’s crude and petroleum exports pass through Kharg, making it the regime’s primary oil revenue hub.

‘Roughly 15 to 20 million barrels may be in storage, with around 1.5 to 3 million barrels per day exported through the terminal during the sanctions, with export capacity up to 5 million barrels per day,’ Vakhshouri said.

‘If the export capability from Kharg were lost, this restraint could diminish, shifting the risk toward further strikes on regional energy facilities and, more importantly, prolonged disruption of oil flows and tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz,’ she warned.

‘Putting a price ceiling on such a scenario would depend largely on Iran’s retaliatory actions,’ Vakhshouri added.

‘The certain outcome, however, would be prolonged volatility and uncertainty in the market, driven by fears of further retaliation or an extended cycle of disruption.’

Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House for comment.

Russia has turned to its so-called ‘shadow fleet’ to carry out a roughly $29.3 million ‘semi-dark’ ship-to-ship oil transfer in the Gulf of Oman, deliberately sidestepping Western sanctions, according to reports.

Maritime intelligence firm Windward AI reported on March 8 that the Russian-flagged tanker M/V TRUST, a vessel already blacklisted by the U.S., European Union and United Kingdom, carried out a ‘high-probability’ covert crude transfer in Omani territorial waters.

Based on an estimated price of about $90 per barrel on March 10, the cargo involved in the transfer was valued at roughly $29.3 million.

‘The timing of the operation coincided with heightened military escalation in the Gulf following Operation Epic Fury, suggesting the vessel exploited regional instability to conduct the transfer under reduced scrutiny,’ Windward said.

The tanker had previously loaded approximately 325,000 barrels of Russian crude oil at the Russian port of Ust-Luga, Windward said.

Windward described the operation as a ‘semi-dark’ activity, meaning one of the vessels transmitted its automatic identification system (AIS) signal while the other did not.

According to the firm, the M/V TRUST had anchored and switched off its AIS transponder while holding what it called a ‘prolonged stationary meeting’ with another tanker, likely producing an anonymous vessel to transfer cargo process.

A fully ‘dark’ meeting, Windward said, typically involves two vessels not transmitting, but, in this case, only one ship appeared to be broadcasting, creating partial visibility that still complicates tracking efforts.

Such tactics are part of a broader strategy by Moscow to continue exporting crude despite sweeping Western sanctions imposed after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The semi-dark oil transfer comes amid heightened volatility in global energy markets tied to the escalating conflict in the Middle East and limited traffic in the Strait of Hormuz given the joint U.S.-Israeli military action against Iran.

Oil topped $100 a barrel March 9 as traders priced in the risk that the conflict was disrupting flows through the Strait, which carries about a fifth of global supply, CNBC reported.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on March 9 that Russia, the world’s second-largest oil exporter and holder of the largest natural gas reserves, stands ready to resume long-term energy cooperation with European customers if they choose to return, Reuters reported.

Meanwhile, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said Tuesday that Russia ‘should not be involved’ in the escalating conflict between the U.S., Israel and Iran.

His comments followed reports suggesting Moscow may be providing intelligence support to Tehran, though the Kremlin has not publicly confirmed the claims.

On Russia’s ship-to-ship semi-dark cargo transfer amid the ongoing conflict, Windward highlighted ‘operational blind spots that enable illicit maritime activity to proceed largely uninterrupted.’

Senate Democrats are preparing a series of war powers votes aimed at curbing President Donald Trump’s authority to continue military operations against Iran — and forcing the administration to publicly defend its actions.

Several Senate Democrats filed war powers resolutions last week meant to handcuff Trump and his continued conflict in the Middle East. It’s a power play by the group, who say the administration has not shown enough evidence that the U.S. should have struck Iran in the first place, much less continue fighting in the region.

Sens. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., Cory Booker, D-N.J., Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., collectively filed five war powers resolutions last week, and they’re joined by Sens. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., and Tim Kaine, D-Va. Kaine has filed resolution after resolution to curb Trump’s war authority since he took office for his second term.

Those resolutions, barring an official slate of hearings with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, could hit the Senate next week and grind down floor time.

‘This Congress should be focused on the biggest military action since the Afghanistan war, and we’re not even holding hearings on that,’ Booker told Fox News Digital. 

Murphy said that the resolutions could hit the Senate floor as soon as next week, and warned that if hearings are set in motion, Democrats would be able to ‘call up a vote every day on war powers and force at least a short debate and vote every day.’

‘There’s no excuse to hide what the administration is doing from the public,’ Murphy said. 

While the group wouldn’t reveal exactly what their gridlock-inducing floor strategy would look like, they contended that the chairs of the Senate Armed Services and Senate Foreign Relations committees had already requested that Rubio and Hegseth testify.

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair Jim Risch, R-Idaho, wouldn’t say whether he had requested Rubio to appear before his panel but blamed Senate Democrats for helping the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.

‘You’ll notice the Democrats are the only entity on this planet who are helping the IRGC,’ Risch told Fox News Digital, referring to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

The group argued that Rubio and Hegseth should make the case for the war in Iran to the public and that closed-door, classified briefings on the matter weren’t enough to convince them that the war was necessary.

‘I was absolutely not convinced. In fact, nothing was offered to show me that we were under imminent attack,’ Baldwin said. ‘That we were under imminent attack, or that it was reasonable to believe that we were at risk — and that’s what would trigger the president’s authority to use military force without coming to Congress first.’

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., acknowledged that Democrats’ strategy would eat away at floor time but cautioned that ‘we’ll see how the next few days in the conflict go.’

‘I’m sure there’ll be some decisions made around that, but maybe that’ll affect whether or not they try to trigger all those,’ Thune said.

Thune said that ‘there always are’ hearings and noted that the Senate Armed Services Committee would be holding hearings soon on the annual National Defense Authorization Act.

‘So they’re going to have all those folks coming through on a fairly routine basis anyway, and I’m sure this will be a subject of discussion,’ Thune said.

The Trump administration, citing Iran, is taking more action against the Muslim Brotherhood—this time in one of the world’s worst conflicts: the civil war in Sudan.

On Monday, the State Department declared the Sudanese Muslim Brotherhood (SMB) to be a ‘Designated Global Terrorist and intends to designate the group as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, effective March 16, 2026.’ The statement also contained a warning to Iran regarding its meddling in the conflict.

‘The SMB has contributed upwards of 20,000 fighters to the war in Sudan, many receiving training and other support from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps,’ the statement noted. 

It added, ‘As the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism, the Iranian regime has financed and directed malign activities globally through its IRGC. The United States will use all available tools to deprive the Iranian regime and Muslim Brotherhood chapters of the resources to engage in or support terrorism.’

In November, the State Department sanctioned the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, Jordan and Lebanon, declaring it to be a terrorist organization in those countries.

The organization, the State Department noted, is ‘composed of the Sudanese Islamic Movement and its armed wing – the al-Baraa Bin Malik Brigade (BBMB), (and) uses unrestrained violence against civilians to undermine efforts to resolve the conflict in Sudan and advance its violent Islamist ideology.’

The statement added that the group’s ‘fighters have conducted mass executions of civilians in areas they captured, and repeatedly and summarily executed civilians based on race, ethnicity or perceived affiliation with opposition groups.’

Edmund Fitton-Brown, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), told Fox News Digital that the Muslim Brotherhood’s links within the Sudanese government’s Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) are deep and contribute aggressively in the war against the Rapid Support Forces.

Fitton-Brown, a former U.K. ambassador to Yemen, added that the Brotherhood has a ‘strong component’ in the Sudanese regular army.

Adding that the Brotherhood in Sudan has historical links with Osama Bin Laden, responsible with al Qaeda for the 9/11 terrorist attack, Fitton-Brown stated that the State Department’s move is significant. ‘It is the first concrete indication that the November executive order was only the start of a process.’

On the sanctioning of the Brotherhood in several countries in the region, he said, ‘I expect there will be many more, possibly starting with al-Islah in Yemen.’ He said the move ‘puts Sudan under political pressure because it is effectively associating its government with a terrorist entity.’

The effects of the nearly three-year-long civil war on the people of Sudan are dire. Last month, the Council on Foreign Relations’ global conflict tracker stated the ‘death toll estimates vary widely, with the former U.S. envoy for Sudan suggesting as many as 400,000 have been killed since the conflict began on April 15, 2023. More than 11 million have been displaced, giving rise to the worst displacement crisis in the world.

On Monday, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho., posted on X, ‘This is a vital step to curb the Muslim Brotherhood’s influence in the region, especially as hardline Islamists seek to reassert themselves. Now, we must also seriously consider the same FTO designation for the genocidal Rapid Support Forces and their terror campaign in Sudan.’

Fitton-Brown said the State Department’s designation against the Brotherhood in Sudan ‘is good because it objectively targets a group of people who have brought untold misery to Sudan over decades. It is not a statement of support for the RSF. It is potentially empowering of democratic forces inside Sudan, although it will not be sufficient to change the way Sudan is governed or end the civil war, without much more proactive external involvement in the country.’

Nicholas Coghlan, a former Canadian diplomat in Khartoum, was not as hopeful, telling Toronto’s Globe and Mail that hardline factions within leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan’s government alliance ‘will push him now to ignore the U.S. and other potential mediators and go all out,’ adding ‘they have nothing further to lose by holding back.’

Rep. Erin Houchin, R-Ind., was in college when her father was ‘raking up thousands of dollars of debt’ while battling a crippling gambling addiction she says was brought on by medication to treat his Parkinson’s disease diagnosis.

Now, the Indiana Republican is working to make sure other American families can seek help for their loved ones before facing the same monetary problems.

‘The POINTS Act is about helping people who are struggling with gambling addiction, by utilizing existing excise tax revenue to issue grants to states and jurisdictions, including Indian tribes across the country, for the use of education and training on preventing and treating gambling addiction,’ Houchin told Fox News Digital.

Her bipartisan bill, the Providing Opportunities for Individuals in Need of Treatment and Support (POINTS) Act, is a rare bipartisan initiative in Congress being co-led with Rep. Andrea Salinas, D-Ore.

It’s an issue Houchin said she is passionate about, given her own family history — which she said is ‘not unique.’

‘Unfortunately, many families across the country have had similar experiences, if not from Parkinson’s, but from other illnesses and just suffering from addiction in general,’ she said. ‘And it can cripple families and ruin their future if it’s not treated.’

Her own father was 55 when he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s, Houchin said, and the gambling addiction set in soon after.

‘My mom would tell stories that, you know, they often would go out west if they’d take a vacation, and it would be difficult for her to get him through the airport at Las Vegas because of the casino that’s right there as you pass through,’ Houchin said.

She told Fox News Digital that her father’s doctors knew little about why the medication caused his gambling addiction, but suggested it took her family years to financially recover.

‘My mom just let me know that she just paid off a second mortgage, took her about 10 to 15 years to pay it off, around $91,000 of gambling debt that my dad had raked up over the course of his illness after being prescribed this medication,’ Houchin said. ‘So we want other families to have the support system necessary to have the resources to treat gambling addiction.’

Her legislation, which is also backed by Reps. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, R-Iowa, and Troy Carter, D-La., would create a first-of-its-kind federal fund dedicated to specifically addressing gambling addiction.

She also pointed out that it would not be funded by any new taxes on Americans.

‘This is existing excise taxes that are going to be distributed in the form of grants for states that adhere to the principles in the POINTS Act, which is providing resources, not just to healthcare professionals, but also for families on how to access gambling addiction treatment,’ Houchin said.

Both she and Salinas also argued the legislation was critical now, given the meteoric rise of sports betting via apps and other easily accessible means.

‘As sports betting and online gambling continue to expand across the country, we have a responsibility to ensure people struggling with addiction are not left behind. Gambling addiction can devastate individuals and families, yet too many communities still lack the resources needed to provide prevention, treatment, and recovery support,’ Salinas told Fox News Digital.

‘The POINTS Act helps close that gap by investing existing gambling excise tax revenue into programs that expand care, raise awareness, and connect people to the help they need.’

. — As Republicans aim to hold their fragile House and Senate majorities in the 2026 midterm elections, they’ve got an ally in the politically potent and deep-pocketed fiscally conservative group Club for Growth.

Framing the midterms, Club for Growth President David McIntosh emphasized in an exclusive Fox News Digital interview on the sidelines of the group’s annual economic conference ‘what’s at stake’ in the midterms.

‘It’s the difference between all the great progress, the jobs, the good economy, turning America around,’ that McIntosh said President Donald Trump and Republicans on Capitol Hill have accomplished over the past year, ‘versus letting the socialists back in, they’ll shut it all down.’ 

For a quarter-century, the club has been one of the biggest backers of Republican candidates and causes, as it pushes its pro-growth and limited-government conservative agenda.

McIntosh, in a presentation to major donors to the group, highlighted that the club spent more than $160 million in the GOP primaries and general election during the 2024 election cycle, ‘and won nearly 80%’ of its races.

In 2026, the group aims to raise and spend $175 million in the midterms, and says it’s already brought in $65 million from donors.

The club plans to spend $75 million on Senate races, $55 million on House showdowns, $20 million in ballot box battles for governors, and $20 million — mostly already spent — on issue advocacy in support of Trump’s tax cuts, school choice efforts and the push for congressional redistricting.

‘I think the House is the most vulnerable,’ McIntosh said as he pointed to the GOP’s fragile 218–214 majority. 

‘So we’ve already started raising money for the general. I’ve got a House fund, an ambitious goal of $40 million to help our guys win,’ he added as he spotlighted a fund for vulnerable House Republican incumbents.

As the party in power, Republicans are facing traditional political headwinds which usually result in the loss of congressional seats in the midterms. And Democrats are energized, thanks to a slew of ballot box victories and overperformances in off-year and special elections in the 14 months since Trump returned to the White House, as they stay laser focused on affordability amid persistent inflation.

But the GOP also is dealing with a low propensity midterms issue that it didn’t have to worry about before Trump upended the political order: MAGA voters who don’t always go to the polls when Trump’s name isn’t on the ballot.

‘We’ve got to get the folks who voted for President Trump,’ McIntosh said. ‘They don’t necessarily come out in the midterms. We have to share with them what’s at stake.’ 

‘We’re going to work with President Trump on that so they know he wants them to vote,’ he said. ‘He wants them to come out. He needs them so he can keep going.’

McIntosh said the Club will highlight that ‘Republicans have a plan that will help make things more affordable. It will keep cutting taxes. They will see the benefits.’

‘But the bigger message is going to be, you can’t let the Democrats back in, because they’ll shut everything down,’ he claimed. ‘It’ll be back to the Biden days, high inflation, higher taxes, fewer jobs. That’s what’s at stake, and our job is to tell the voters, we need you to vote because it makes all the difference.’

The economy, and specifically inflation, was a key issue that boosted Trump and Republicans to sweeping victories in 2024. But affordability boosted Democrats at the ballot box in 2025 and so far in 2026. 

And with oil and gas prices surging since the start of the U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran a week and a half ago, Republicans face more potential political headaches.

But McIntosh predicted that ‘by the end of the year, we’re going to be back to a robust economy because the Trump tax cuts are going to kick in. People will keep more of their money. There’s a huge incentive for companies to build factories back here in America again, and that will kick in. People will say, ‘Yeah, I like the direction we’re going. Things are turned around. We can’t let the Democrats ruin that.’’

Most Democrats obviously disagree with the political narrative coming from the club.

And the Democratic National Committee has long criticized the group for its ‘extreme positions on banning abortion and cutting Social Security and Medicare.’

While the club is ramping up for the general election showdowns, it’s already playing in this year’s GOP primaries.

In the battle for the Senate, the club recently made a major endorsement, backing Rep. Mike Collins of Georgia, who’s involved in an ugly three-way fist fight for the Republican nomination in the race to take on Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff in the southeastern swing state.

‘We’re definitely going to be there in Georgia to help Mike Collins win,’ McIntosh pledged.

The club enjoyed a major victory March 3, as the candidate it was backing, Texas state Rep. Steve Toth, toppled high-profile incumbent U.S. Rep. Dan Crenshaw, a former Navy SEAL officer, in the GOP primary for a Houston-area congressional seat.

But in this case, the club kept quiet its efforts to support Toth, as it put its funding in an aligned startup PAC.

McIntosh said he ‘knew if Club for Growth came in guns blazing, then the Washington money would come in to help Crenshaw.’

‘We don’t need the glory. We don’t need to take credit for it,’ McIntosh said. And pointing to Tosh, he added, ‘He did the job, but we were able to bring the funds in that let the voters know what their choice was.’

War Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday that Russia ‘should not be involved’ in the escalating conflict between the United States, Israel and Iran, even as analysts point to Russian military activity that aligns with reports Moscow may be aiding Tehran.

‘The president maintains strong relationships with world leaders, which creates opportunities and options for us in very dynamic ways,’ Hegseth said when asked about President Donald Trump’s recent call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. 

But as it relates to the Middle East conflict, he added, Russia ‘should not be involved.’

The administration’s messaging comes amid reports that Russia has provided information that could help Iran identify U.S. military assets in the Middle East. Moscow has not publicly confirmed the claims. 

Intelligence assessments have reportedly said Russia provided Iran with information that could help identify the locations of American warships, aircraft and other military assets. Officials reportedly stressed there is no public evidence that Moscow is directing Iranian strikes, but said the information could assist Tehran’s targeting efforts.

The scope, timing and operational impact of that information have not been publicly detailed.

While there is no public evidence definitively proving Russia is providing real-time targeting data, George Barros, a Russia expert at the Institute for the Study of War, said open-source indicators are consistent with the type of support described in the reports.

Barros pointed to Russian military reconnaissance satellites, including Cosmos-2550, a radar and electronic signature spacecraft that recently passed over the Persian Gulf and Arabian Sea — areas where U.S. forces have been operating.

‘They’re specialized for naval reconnaissance and detecting ships, because the radar signature off the water really pings it quite well,’ Barros said. ‘These are known capabilities of the Russians.’

Such radar systems can detect maritime targets and electronic emissions that reveal force positioning. Barros said those capabilities align with known gaps in Iran’s own space-based intelligence collection.

Although he cautioned that he does not have dispositive proof of real-time targeting support, Barros said the convergence of Russian reconnaissance capabilities, satellite positioning and reported cooperation ‘makes total sense.’

Trump on Monday described his recent conversation with Putin as ‘very good’ and ‘constructive,’ saying the Russian leader ‘wants to be very constructive.’ Trump suggested Moscow could be more helpful by helping bring the war in Ukraine to an end.

Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, acknowledged over the weekend that Russia is assisting Iran ‘in many different directions’ in its war with the United States and Israel. Pressed on whether that includes intelligence sharing, Araghchi said, ‘They are helping us in many different directions,’ but added, ‘I don’t have any detailed information.’

Beyond intelligence collection, analysts say battlefield patterns suggest tactical cross-pollination between Russia and Iran. 

During the war in Ukraine, Iran supplied Russia with Shahed one-way attack drones, which Moscow deployed extensively against Ukrainian cities and infrastructure. Over time, Russian forces refined strike packages combining drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles to overwhelm integrated Western air defense systems.

‘The Russians got really, really good at learning how to launch drones against integrated Western air defense systems,’ Barros said.

Those lessons, he said, appear to have informed Iranian strike tactics in the Middle East, where Tehran has launched large-scale combined missile and drone attacks against U.S. and allied targets.

If confirmed, Barros argued, intelligence sharing that materially supports Iranian targeting would amount to Moscow acting as a ‘co-belligerent.’

‘The Russians are coming out with Iran as a co-belligerent,’ he said, adding that the Kremlin has long viewed the United States as a geopolitical adversary.

At the same time, Russia remains constrained in how far it can go. 

Russian ground forces are tied down in Ukraine and are not in a position to deploy to assist Iran. Analysts say any Russian support is far more likely to come in the form of intelligence sharing, technology transfers or drone production rather than boots on the ground.

One potential avenue involves drone manufacturing.

Russia operates large-scale Shahed-derived drone production facilities that were initially enabled by Iranian technology transfers. If Iran’s domestic drone factories are degraded by strikes, Russian production could theoretically help sustain Tehran’s aerial campaign, though there is no confirmed evidence that such transfers are occurring.

Defense officials have publicly downplayed the operational impact of any reported Russian assistance, saying U.S. commanders are tracking foreign intelligence activity and factoring it into planning.

The contrast between Trump’s characterization of Putin as ‘constructive’ and Hegseth’s warning that Russia should stay out of the conflict underscores the delicate balance the administration is attempting to strike — pursuing diplomacy in Ukraine while confronting the possibility of deeper cooperation between Moscow and Tehran in the Middle East.

For now, analysts say the evidence stops short of conclusive proof. But the alignment of Russian reconnaissance capabilities, battlefield tactics refined in Ukraine and Tehran’s own acknowledgment of assistance has intensified scrutiny of Moscow’s role as the regional war unfolds.

Russia has not publicly responded to the allegation of intelligence sharing with Iran, but has broadly called for de-escalation of the conflict. 

The Russian embassy could not immediately be reached for comment.