Foreign Policy

Operation Epic Fury: Little-known Marine Battle Group Deployed from California to Middle East — Here’s What They’ll Do

March 30, 2026
Three warships from San Diego and more than 2,000 Marines heading to the Middle East may have a crucial role to play in the US fight against Iran.
The San Diego-based USS Boxer amphibious assault ship and two other ships comprising the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit are en route to the region, the California Post previously reported, as President Donald Trump attempts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to international shipping.

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Politics

Trump Is Right to Demand China Share the Risk in the Strait of Hormuz

March 17, 2026
RED STATE–President Donald Trump is doing something American leaders have avoided for too long. He is telling China and other major importers of Gulf oil that if they want the benefits of open sea lanes, they need to help protect them. 
According to an interview with the Financial Times, Trump has warned that he may delay his state visit to China if Beijing will not assist in keeping the Strait of Hormuz open. He notes that China gets a large share of its oil from the Middle East and argues it is only fair for countries that rely on that route to shoulder part of the burden. 

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Foreign Policy

THE ESSEX FILES: Iran’s Lionesses Show Why Tehran Fears Its Own Women

March 13, 2026
RED STATE–The footage is brief but revealing. A player from Iran’s women’s national team is taken by the wrist and steered toward the team bus in Australia as the squad prepares to leave, days after several teammates slipped away to seek asylum. What looks like a simple travel scene is, in reality, a snapshot of life under a regime that treats female athletes less as representatives of their country and more as hostages of the state. 

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