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What to Know About Iran’s Response to Trump’s Letter Urging Talks

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What to Know About Iran’s Response to Trump’s Letter Urging Talks

Iran announced on Thursday it had responded to a letter from President Trump in which the American president had urged direct negotiations with the government in Tehran on a deal to curb the country’s advancing nuclear program.

Iran appeared to be taking the middle ground, neither rejecting negotiations with the United States nor accepting face-to-face talks with Mr. Trump.

But Kamal Kharazi, the top foreign policy adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said, according to local news reports, “The Islamic Republic has not closed all the doors and is willing to begin indirect negotiations with the United States.”

The countries have not had official diplomatic relations since the Islamic Revolution in 1979, but they have engaged directly and indirectly on issues like the nuclear program, detainee swaps and regional tensions.

Iran said it submitted its written reply to Mr. Trump through Oman on Wednesday. The foreign minister of Iran, Abbas Araghchi, said Tehran had presented a comprehensive view on the issues raised by Mr. Trump and on the overall situation in the Middle East, according to the official news agency IRNA.

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“Our policy is to not negotiate directly while there is maximum pressure policy and threats of military strikes,” Mr. Araghchi said on Thursday. “But indirect negotiations can take place as they have in the past.”

Mr. Trump sent the letter this month to Mr. Khamenei, saying he preferred diplomacy to military action.

“I’ve written them a letter saying, ‘I hope you’re going to negotiate, because if we have to go in militarily, it’s going to be a terrible thing,’” Mr. Trump told Fox News. “You can’t let them have a nuclear weapon.”

On March 12, Anwar Gargash, a senior diplomat from the United Arab Emirates who traveled to Tehran to deliver Mr. Trump’s letter, told Iranian news media that it contained “threats” and also an opportunity.

Steve Witkoff, the Trump administration’s special envoy to the Middle East, revealed more details in an interview with Tucker Carlson, a former Fox News host who is now a popular podcaster. Mr. Witkoff said the letter roughly said: “We should talk, we should clear up the misconceptions, we should create a verification program so that nobody worries about weaponization of your nuclear material.”

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An Iranian official who asked not to be named because he was not authorized to speak publicly said that Mr. Trump had set a two-month deadline for Iran to negotiate, a detail initially reported by Axios.

Sanam Vakil, director of the Middle East and North Africa program at Chatham House, a research institute based in London, said the letter-writing between Tehran and Washington showed that both sides were “sizing each other up and finding different channels, some public and many private, to define what they can achieve.”

“This is an opportunity for both sides,” she added, “but it comes with a thousand risks and challenges.”

Since Mr. Trump’s election, officials and pundits in Iran have publicly debated the topic, with a conservative hard-line faction vehemently objecting to talks or concessions and a moderate and reformist faction arguing that negotiations are necessary to lift sanctions.

Mr. Khamenei, who has the last word on all key state matters, has said he does not believe that Iran would gain from talks.

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President Masoud Pezeshkian, a moderate, has distanced himself from that view, telling Parliament this month that he favored negotiations but would follow Mr. Khamenei’s directive.

On Thursday, Mr. Khamenei’s office signaled a shift in tone, based on Mr. Kharazi’s remarks.

If talks on a deal to curb Iran’s nuclear program fail, Israel and the United States have suggested the possibility of launching targeted strikes on the two main underground nuclear facilities in Iran, Natanz and Fordow.

But that risks setting off a wider regional war since Iran has warned it would respond to any strikes on its soil. And any attacks could destabilize the Middle East, with Tehran turning to its network of weakened but still active proxy militias, like Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen.

Iran maintains that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, but the West and Israel are concerned that Tehran has been secretly planning a faster, cruder approach to building a weapon.

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In 2018, Mr. Trump pulled the United States out of the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran and imposed tough economic sanctions. The moves prompted Iran to abandon its commitments to the deal and increase uranium enrichment from a cap of 3.5 percent to 60 percent now.

The United Nation’s nuclear watchdog says in its latest report that Iran has stockpiled enough enriched uranium to make several bombs. But the watchdog says it has found no evidence that Iran is weaponizing its program.

“Iran is at a crossroad, between having an off ramp or being militarily hit,” said Ms. Vakil, of Chatham House. “It’s a year of really consequential decisions, and how they play their hand could give them a lifeline or lead to further strikes and weakening of the government.”

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4 House Dems vote against Women’s History Museum bill over biological women-only amendment, Republican claims

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4 House Dems vote against Women’s History Museum bill over biological women-only amendment, Republican claims

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All four Democrats on the House Administration Committee voted against advancing a measure to authorize land on the National Mall to construct the Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum.

The measure cleared the committee on a 7-4 party-line vote, the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., said. 

Malliotakis, who does not sit on the committee, said in a post on X that Democrats opposed an amendment to ensure the museum only honors biological women.

“Democrats in the House Administration Committee just voted against my bill to build a Women’s History Museum on the National Mall because an amendment was adopted to ensure only biological women are exhibited. What a way to celebrate #WomensHistoryMonth!” Malliotakis said in the post.

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CALIFORNIA’S TRANS AGENDA SUFFERS ANOTHER LEGAL BLOW AFTER ATTEMPT TO UNDERCUT SCOTUS ORDER FAILS

Rep. Joe Morelle, D-N.Y., walks down the House steps after the last vote before the Easter recess at the Capitol on Thursday, March 30, 2023. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Her post includes a screenshot of the legislative text that states, “The Museum shall be dedicated to preserving, researching, and presenting the history, achievements, and lived experiences of biological women in the United States” and “The Museum may not identify, present, describe, or otherwise depict any biological male as a female.”

The four Democrats on the committee include Ranking Member Rep. Joe Morelle of New York, as well as Reps. Terri Sewell of Alabama, Norma Torres, of California, and Julie Johnson of Texas, the committee’s website indicates.

The bill initially had 231 cosponsors, including Johnson and Sewell, two of the committee Democrats who voted against advancing the measure.

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Morelle criticized Republicans in a statement obtained by Fox News Digital, saying that they inserted “ideological poison pills” into the proposal.

“The Republican majority took a bipartisan, Republican-led bill with 230 cosponsors and, at the last minute, replaced it with one that gives President Trump unchecked authority to choose the museum’s location, hands control of its design and construction to boards now filled with political loyalists, omits its sister museum honoring American Latinos, and inserts ideological poison pills aimed not at building a museum, but at generating cheap political talking points,” Morelle said in the statement. 

TRANSGENDER TRIPLE KILLER REMOVED FROM HOME WITH 2 FOSTER CHILDREN MONTHS AFTER AUTHORITIES WERE NOTIFIED

Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., arrives for the House Republican Conference caucus meeting in the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, March 4, 2026. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

“The star of the Epstein files and Access Hollywood tape is the last person who should be handed the keys to a museum celebrating American women,” he added.

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Sharing Malliotakis’ post, President Donald Trump’s daughter-in-law Lara Trump commented, “This is insane, but not surprising for the Democrats.” She also included the clown emoji in her tweet. 

Former college swimmer Riley Gaines, who staunchly opposes allowing biological males to compete in female sports, wrote in a post on X, “A Women’s History Museum is one step closer to the National Mall. It passed out of committee, BUT only along party lines after an amendment was added to ensure it honors real women, not men identifying as women. Yes, that’s where the debate is in 2026.”

FORMER UTAH STATE VOLLEYBALL STAR SAYS SJSU TRANS SCANDAL CAUSED INJURED FINGERS, SHATTERED DREAMS

Riley Gaines speaks during the 10X Ladies Conference Hosted by Elena Cardone at JW Marriott Miami Turnberry Resort & Spa on Aug. 15, 2025, in Aventura, Florida.  (Ivan Apfel/Getty Images)

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She added in another post, “Thank you to @RepNicole for championing this effort and standing firm in reality!”

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Eight state attorneys general file suit to block TV station group merger

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Eight state attorneys general file suit to block TV station group merger

A group of attorneys general are taking legal action to block Nexstar Media Group’s proposed $6.2-billion acquisition of Tegna’s TV stations, calling the deal bad for consumer cable bills and local journalism.

A lawsuit filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Sacramento says the proposed deal by eight state law enforcers, including California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta, claims the proposed deal will give Nexstar too much control of local TV stations, ultimately hurting consumers by diminishing the diversity of news sources in their markets.

Bonta said in a statement that the deal will cause “irreparable harm to local news and consumers who rely on their reporting as a critical source of information.” The plaintiffs also include state attorneys general in Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, New York, North Carolina, Oregon and Virginia.

The Irving, Texas-based Nexstar is currently the largest station owner in the U.S., with 164 outlets including KTLA in Los Angeles. If the merger with Tegna succeeds, Nexstar would have 265 TV stations reaching 80% of the U.S. and multiple outlets in a number of markets.

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The suit also claims that the merger would give Nexstar too much leverage in negotiating fees from pay-TV providers that carry their stations. Higher fees paid to Nexstar would be passed along to consumers in their cable and satellite bills, the lawsuit asserts.

Most of Nexstar’s stations are affiliates of ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox, all of which carry NFL football, the highest-rated programming on TV by a wide margin. Disputes over carriage fees between station owners and pay-TV providers often result in blackouts and service interruptions to consumers.

DirecTV, which serves around 11 million pay-TV subscribers in the U.S., filed a similar lawsuit in the same court on Thursday, claiming the Nexstar deal will “irreparably drive up consumer costs, reduce local competition, shutter local newsrooms, and increase both the frequency and duration of blackouts of key local teams and network programming.”

A Nexstar representative did not respond to a request to comment.

President Trump has said he favors Nexstar’s proposed deal. But every major TV station owner believes consolidation in the TV station business is necessary to thrive going forward as they battle to compete with streaming video platforms that have eaten away at their audience share.

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The companies say they are at a disadvantage in competing with tech companies by being limited to owning stations in 39% of the U.S., a cap that was set in 2003.

Nexstar recently cut veteran anchors and on-air reporters from its stations in Los Angeles, Chicago and New York. Further reductions in local TV newsrooms would occur if Nexstar succeeds in acquiring Tegna, which would likely mean consolidation of local newsrooms in which it owns more than one station.

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Video: Trump’s D.H.S. Nominee Says He Would Approach Disaster Policy Differently From Noem

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Video: Trump’s D.H.S. Nominee Says He Would Approach Disaster Policy Differently From Noem

new video loaded: Trump’s D.H.S. Nominee Says He Would Approach Disaster Policy Differently From Noem

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Trump’s D.H.S. Nominee Says He Would Approach Disaster Policy Differently From Noem

President Trump’s Homeland Security nominee, Senator Markwayne Mullin, Republican of Oklahoma, struck a softer tone at his confirmation hearing on Wednesday, reflecting the administration’s efforts to project a more moderate tone toward immigration enforcement.

“You told the media that I was a freaking snake and that you completely understood why I had been assaulted. I just wonder if someone who applauds violence against their political opponents is the right person to lead an agency that has struggled to accept limits to the proper use of force. You went on to brag that you’d already told me to my face that you completely understood and approved of the assault. Well, that’s a lie.” “I said I could understand because of the behavior you were having that I could understand why the neighbor did what he did. As far as my terms, the snake in the grass, sir, I work around this room to try to fix problems. Seems like you fight Republicans more than you work with us.” “I wanted to ask you if we can commit — if you can commit to revoking this $100,000 policy by Secretary Noem.” “Absolutely. That’s called micromanaging. And I don’t know if secretary put that in or someone else did. I’m not a micromanager. I think it needs to be restructured, not eliminated. Some of these agencies under the current administration — not some, all of them — got very bloated.” “Do you think there’s still too many staff at FEMA?” “Senator, I can’t answer that. When I get there, we’ll be adequately staffed to respond to our nation’s disasters.”

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President Trump’s Homeland Security nominee, Senator Markwayne Mullin, Republican of Oklahoma, struck a softer tone at his confirmation hearing on Wednesday, reflecting the administration’s efforts to project a more moderate tone toward immigration enforcement.

By Cynthia Silva and Jackeline Luna

March 18, 2026

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