RECAP:
-The U.S.-Iran exchange exploded. The U.S. struck Iran again Wednesday and downed Iranian drones. Iran says it fired on four ships in Hormuz, then claimed it hit a U.S. airbase in retaliation.
-Kuwait activated its air defenses against "hostile" missile and drone attacks. Likely tied to the IRGC retaliation, since Kuwait hosts major U.S. bases.
-Israel escalated hard in Lebanon, striking over 150 Hezbollah sites and issuing evacuation orders for buildings in Tyre. Netanyahu authorized more intense attacks even as the deal is meant to end that war.
-Politico says the Pentagon has quietly staged the troops and warships for a Cuba invasion. All it needs is Trump's green light.
-AP reports: the Trump administration told Miami prosecutors to stand down on Venezuela's acting president as oil deals flow. Same pause reportedly hit Colombia's Petro.
-The Pentagon is in talks to fund U.S. drone makers. The U.S. builds 100,000 drones a year. Ukraine built 4 million.
-A Google engineer was charged with using insider company data to win $1.2 million on Polymarket.
🔊 SpaceX squeezed the Pentagon for a fivefold Starlink price hike for its kamikaze drones during the Iran war. @DavidJeans2 tells the Reuters World News podcast that SpaceX has ‘an ability to walk away from some agreements’
🔊 SpaceX squeezed the Pentagon for a fivefold Starlink price hike during the Iran war. @DavidJeans2 tells the Reuters World News podcast the Pentagon’s reliance on SpaceX ‘has handed Elon Musk a significant amount of leverage over negotiations’