{"id":218016,"date":"2026-07-23T15:38:12","date_gmt":"2026-07-23T15:38:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/trump-administration-live-updates-iran-backed-militants-red-sea-attacks-could-open-new-trade-chokepoint-nbc-news\/"},"modified":"2026-07-23T15:38:12","modified_gmt":"2026-07-23T15:38:12","slug":"trump-administration-live-updates-iran-backed-militants-red-sea-attacks-could-open-new-trade-chokepoint-nbc-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/trump-administration-live-updates-iran-backed-militants-red-sea-attacks-could-open-new-trade-chokepoint-nbc-news\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump administration live updates: Iran-backed militants\u2019 Red Sea attacks could open new trade chokepoint – NBC News"},"content":{"rendered":"

President Donald Trump said today that a nuclear deal between the United States and Saudi Arabia requires the kingdom to normalize relations with Israel.
Former South Carolina governor and Rep. Mark Sanford on Thursday said he planned to run for Senate in the seat left vacant by Sen. Lindsey Graham’s death earlier this month.
“Our country is at a financial tipping point, and I can\u2019t sit on the sidelines while Washington adds a trillion dollars to the debt every 100 days,” he said in a post on X. “I\u2019ve spent my entire time in politics fighting this fight, and I\u2019m running for U.S. Senate to keep the American dream alive for our sons, my grandson, and those you love.”
Sanford joins Rep. Russell Fry<\/a> and Sen. Darline Graham<\/a>, who declared their intentions to run for the seat earlier this week, in a special GOP primary that will take place on August 11.
Darline Graham, Lindsey Graham’s sister, was appointed by Gov. Henry McMaster after Lindsey Graham’s death to serve out the rest of his term. Days later, Trump publicly urged Darline Graham<\/a> to run for the term, offering her his endorsement.
The House approved a Democratic war powers resolution that directs the president to remove armed forces from hostilities with Iran.
The vote was 214-208. Four Republicans joined all Democrats in voting for the measure: Reps. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Tom Barrett of Michigan, Warren Davidson of Ohio and Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania.
The measure now heads to the Senate. But as a concurrent resolution, it would not go to the president for his signature and would not have the force of law.
The House now heads out on its summer recess and will return Aug. 31.
The House approved a similar war powers resolution in early June<\/a> on a 215-208 vote, with the same Republicans supporting it who voted for the measure today. The Senate later passed the same nonbinding measure.
The Supreme Court in its 1983 INS v. Chadha ruling \u201cfound simple and concurrent resolutions that approve or disapprove of executive action to be unconstitutional because they did not require presentation to the President,\u201d according to the <\/a>Congressional Research Service<\/a>.
That ruling prompted the Senate to update its fast-track procedures to consider war powers resolutions as bills or joint resolutions, which would be subject to the president\u2019s signature. But the House does not have a way for members to expedite consideration of war powers bills or joint resolutions.
Only four months into his role heading the Department of Homeland Security, there appears to be growing tension between Markwayne Mullin and the White House after some early missteps, according to a senior Trump administration official and a senior DHS official.
<\/span>Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span> Jim Lo Scalzo \/ Bloomberg via Getty Images<\/span>
Read the full story here.<\/strong><\/em><\/a>
The Senate will vote today at 11:30 a.m. on another war powers resolution related to the Iran war.
The resolution<\/a>, which was introduced by Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., \u201cdirects the President to remove the United States Armed Forces from hostilities within or against Iran, unless explicitly authorized by a declaration of war or a specific authorization for use of military force.\u201d
The resolution would only need a simple majority to pass, and we\u2019re watching to see if enough Republicans join Democrats to vote to pass it.
Some Republican senators, such as Rand Paul, R-Ky., and Bill Cassidy, R-La., have been willing to switch their votes from yes to no to give Trump more time to negotiate during the ceasefire, but now that that\u2019s over, we\u2019re watching them particularly to see if they\u2019ll vote for the resolution.
Speeches on the Senate floor related to the resolution are expected around 11:10 a.m.
Oil prices rose today to their highest level since early June after the latest Iran war escalation<\/a> threatened severe new disruption to global supplies.
Brent crude oil, one of two key global benchmarks, rose more than 6% to more than $100 per barrel in early trading. That is its highest level in eight weeks, since the end of May.
U.S. crude oil also jumped for a second straight day, rising more than 5% to almost $92 per barrel \u2014 its highest level since June 11.
The new surge in prices comes after Tehran-backed Houthi rebels claimed attacks on two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea, following their announcement of a naval blockade on the kingdom<\/a>.
Read the full story here.<\/strong><\/em><\/a>
Trump <\/a>said today that the nuclear deal between the United States and Saudi Arabia requires the kingdom to normalize relations with Israel \u2014 a significant condition not previously mentioned as the deal was announced.
There will \u2060be \u201c\u200bno \u2060enrichment of \u2060material\u201d under the agreement, he wrote on Truth Social, adding that the deal signed a day earlier \u201cpertains only to non-military use.\u201d <\/strong>Lawmakers and experts have raised concerns that the civil nuclear agreement could fuel nuclear proliferation in the Middle East.
Trump added that the deal \u201cis totally subject to Saudi Arabia joining the very respected and successful Abraham Accords.\u201d
The U.S.-brokered agreements aimed at normalizing relations with Israel <\/a>were forged during Trump\u2019s first term, and signed by several majority Muslim countries including the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, and later Sudan and Morocco. Their expansion across the Middle East has been a long-standing objective for Trump in his second term.<\/a>
Read the full story here.<\/strong><\/em><\/a>
Trump said in a Truth Social post that the U.S. would hold Iran responsible if the Houthi militants target ships transiting nearby waterways.
The Houthis “have acted very responsibly” during the war with Iran, Trump wrote, adding, “Unfortunately, now they are starting up again, shooting at two Saudi Arabian ships last night.”
Houthi militants,<\/a> who control part of Yemen, said today that they hit two tankers in the Red Sea.
Trump wrote in his post, “Please let this TRUTH serve to represent that if they do this again, the U.S. will hold Iran responsible, in that the Houthis are a Surrogate and\/or Proxy of Iran, and major military punishment will be inflicted upon Iran and, of course, the Houthis, themselves, who I am very disappointed with in that they have, until now, acted very professionally and smart.”
The United States carried out a 12th straight night of airstrikes just hours after Trump attended the dignified transfer of four American service members killed in Iran attacks. With negotiations to end the war stalled, Trump has threatened to destroy Iran\u2019s bridges and power plants each time it attacks a ship in the Strait of Hormuz. NBC\u2019s Garrett Haake reports for “TODAY.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said today the Trump administration is poised to help end the \u201csenseless war\u201d in Ukraine<\/a> but acknowledged there is no quick path to a deal, saying diplomacy will require sustained effort and new ideas.
Rubio, who earlier held talks with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, said Moscow and Kyiv should have the incentive to end a \u201cvery blood war\u201d that devastated both sides<\/a>.
Read the full story here.<\/strong><\/em><\/a>
The top Republican on the House Judiciary Committee sent a letter to the Justice Department<\/a> yesterday requesting a criminal investigation of former special counsel Jack Smith, alleging he made false statements during a congressional deposition last year.
Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, wrote in a letter to acting Attorney General Todd Blanche that Smith \u201cseemingly made willfully and intentionally false statements of material fact that contradict new documents\u201d the Senate Judiciary Committee obtained<\/a> this month.
In a letter to Jordan and Blanche, attorneys for Smith denied that he made any false statements during his deposition, writing that he \u201cprovided truthful, responsive answers and candidly discussed his work as Special Counsel.\u201d
Read the full story here.<\/strong><\/em><\/a>
The Secret Service has opened more than 10,000 investigations this year into threats against people it protects, a 40% rise over the same period last year, officials said yesterday.
Director Sean Curran told reporters at a briefing that the volatile political climate has reached a new level that he has not seen in his 24-year career.
He said the threat numbers are \u201coff the charts.\u201d
Read the full story here.<\/strong><\/em><\/a>
Far from easing the crisis over a key global trade route,<\/a> Iran has now moved to create another critical chokepoint. Iran-backed Houthi militants said today that they had struck two tankers in the Red Sea, risking another bottleneck that could further disrupt global energy supplies, spike prices<\/a> and heap domestic political pressure on Trump.
Read the full story here.<\/strong><\/em><\/a>
Michigan progressive Abdul El-Sayed is picking up another endorsement for Senate, with Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., announcing that she is backing him.
Smith, whose endorsement was shared first with NBC News, is part of a group of Democratic senators who have been weighing in key primaries and have been critical of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer\u2019s approach to intraparty contests.
\u201cI\u2019ve been in Washington for nearly nine years, and I\u2019ve seen two kinds of senators. There are those that go along to get along, hoard their power, and pacify big money. And then there are the fighters willing to challenge the status quo to make this country better for working people,\u201d Smith said in a statement. \u201cAbdul is a fighter, and that\u2019s why I\u2019m endorsing him to be the next United States Senator for Michigan.\u201d
Smith, who is retiring, went on to say that the nation\u2019s capital needs leaders \u201cwith bold ideas for how to help Americans afford their lives and fix an economic system that\u2019s rigged to benefit the wealthiest and biggest corporations while regular people struggle to pay for rent and groceries, let alone save a little for a vacation or their retirement.\u201d
<\/span>Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., has endorsed progressive Abdul El-Sayed for Senate in Michigan.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span> Getty Images<\/span>
Smith joins fellow Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and fellow Democrats Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Chris Van Hollen of Maryland in backing El-Sayed, who is facing Rep. Haley Stevens in the Aug. 4 primary.
Stevens has been endorsed by Schumer, retiring Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., and former Michigan Sen. Debbie Stabenow.
NBC News<\/p>\n

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President Donald Trump said today that a nuclear deal between the United States and Saudi Arabia requires the kingdom to normalize relations with Israel.Former South Carolina governor and Rep. Mark Sanford on Thursday said he planned to run for Senate in the seat left vacant by Sen. Lindsey Graham’s death earlier this month.“Our country is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":218017,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-218016","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-us","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/218016","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=218016"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/218016\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/218017"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=218016"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=218016"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=218016"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}