Cameron Peters | Vox

The new Hormuz blockade, briefly explained

2026-04-13T17:50:21-04:00

President Donald Trump speaks to the media after disembarking from Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, on April 12, 2026. | Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images

This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here.

Welcome to The Logoff: After the US and Iran failed to reach a longer-term peace agreement over the weekend, President Donald Trump is trying something new: blockading the Strait of Hormuz.

How does that work? Iran already closed the Strait, a crucial passage for oil and natural gas, to most foreign traffic shortly after the US-Iran war began. Now, Trump’s blockade will also stymie traffic to Iranian ports and limit Iran’s ability to sell its own oil, further disrupting the global market.

CENTCOM, the US military command covering the Middle East, has said that the blockade does not extend to ships “transiting the Strait of Hormuz to and from non-Iranian ports” — but given the Strait’s ongoing closure, it’s unlikely much other traffic will resume unless Iran wants it to.

What is Trump trying to accomplish? Trump still wants the Strait of Hormuz fully reopened, which last week’s ceasefire — despite his demands — did not achieve. Now, he appears to be betting that imposing his own closure targeting Iranian shipments will force Iran to give ground.

In a Truth Social post over the weekend, he wrote that “At some point, we will reach an ‘ALL BEING ALLOWED TO GO IN, ALL BEING ALLOWED TO GO OUT’ basis” for the Strait.

What’s the context? As we mentioned above, US and Iranian delegations met in Pakistan over the weekend to try to negotiate a peace deal addressing the ongoing conflict, the Strait of Hormuz, and Iran’s nuclear ambitions. That didn’t work out, so it’s back to the drawing board.

Now what? The blockade aside, the US-Iran ceasefire is still in place until next week, and we may get another round of talks before it expires. Whether that will bear fruit is another question: Vice President JD Vance described the US proposal over the weekend as “our final and best offer.”

The blockade is also likely to drive prices higher worldwide — and increase economic pressure on both countries to reach an agreement.

And with that, it’s time to log off…

Hi readers, have I mentioned that bike racing is maybe the most beautiful sport in the world? I’m sure I have. Specifically, I am thinking about this weekend’s edition of Paris-Roubaix, a race also known as the Hell of the North, and its winner, Wout van Aert, who triumphed on Sunday after years of injuries, mishaps, and being almost but not quite there.

Patrick Redford, Defector’s steadfast cycling correspondent, does a better job than I can of capturing what van Aert’s victory means, and you can read his story here with a gift link (and watch van Aert’s triumphant sprint here).

Thanks for reading, have a great evening, and we’ll see you back here tomorrow!

Why inflation is up

2026-04-10T17:11:11-04:00

Customers shop for beef at a grocery store in Los Angeles, California, on April 6, 2026. | Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here.

Welcome to The Logoff: The economic impact of the Iran war is becoming clearer.

What’s happening? On Friday, we learned that inflation climbed to 3.3 percent in March, almost 1 percentage point higher than it was in February and the quickest inflation has grown in nearly four years.

Unsurprisingly, consumers aren’t thrilled. New data from the University of Michigan, also released Friday, shows consumer sentiment from April under 50, its lowest point ever. It’s not even mid-April, so for now, those numbers are preliminary — but they point in a concerning direction.

What does Iran have to do with this? Shortly after the war began in late February, Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial passage for oil and natural gas. It has remained largely closed ever since, driving gas prices over $4/gallon in the US and making many more goods, including food, more expensive.

Will the ceasefire fix prices? No. The ceasefire, while fragile, is holding. But despite President Donald Trump’s demands this week, there is no sign that it has led to the Strait reopening.

According to the BBC, four tankers, and only 19 total ships, have passed the Strait since the ceasefire was announced; under normal conditions, well over 100 ships transit the Strait each day.

Even under the most optimistic scenario where the Strait does reopen in the near future, it will take weeks, if not months, for the oil supply to rebound, oil markets expert Rory Johnston told Vox earlier this week.

What’s next? American and Iranian negotiating teams will meet in Pakistan this weekend to discuss a more permanent peace deal, which could provide the US economy with a needed reprieve. How that will go is anyone’s guess: On Friday, Trump issued another threat, writing on Truth Social that “The only reason [the Iranians] are alive today is to negotiate!”

And with that, it’s time to log off…

I always enjoy New York Magazine’s “Grub Street Diet,” where someone — a politician, a celebrity, a journalist — lays out a week of sometimes-eclectic culinary choices. Their latest features investigative reporter and author Patrick Radden Keefe, and you can read it here.

Have a good weekend and we’ll see you back here on Monday!

The ceasefire is already getting shaky

2026-04-08T17:11:45-04:00

President Donald Trump talks with reporters on the South Lawn during the White House Easter Egg Roll on April 6, 2026. | Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here.

Welcome to The Logoff: Hi readers, big news broke just after yesterday’s newsletter went out: The US and Iran reached a temporary ceasefire agreement, averting President Donald Trump’s threats of civilization destruction.

While we may have missed the breaking news yesterday, there’s still plenty to catch up on today. Here’s what you need to know:

What’s the latest? As of Wednesday afternoon, a US-Iran ceasefire appears to be in place, but shaky. Iran has already accused the US of violating several points of the agreement, and it’s not clear whether the sides are even on the same page about what has been agreed to.

In particular, Israel’s offensive into Lebanon is still ongoing; on Wednesday, more than 250 people were killed by Israeli strikes. Both Iran and Pakistan, which has served as a mediator for recent US-Iran talks, have said Lebanon is supposed to be covered by yesterday’s ceasefire.

Nonetheless, talks appear to be moving forward: Vice President JD Vance and two other US negotiators, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, are set to meet with Iranian officials in Pakistan on Saturday.

What has Trump said about this? On Tuesday evening, Trump wrote in a post that he had agreed “to suspend the bombing and attack of Iran for a period of two weeks” because the US was “very far along with a definitive Agreement concerning Longterm PEACE with Iran, and PEACE in the Middle East.”

Early Wednesday morning, he added that “[the] United States of America will be helping with the traffic buildup in the Strait of Hormuz. There will be lots of positive action! Big money will be made.”

So far, however, it doesn’t seem like the strait has reopened: According to Bloomberg, as few as three ships — out of hundreds — may have passed through on Wednesday.

And with that, it’s time to log off…

I’d like to extend an official Logoff endorsement (do we have those? I’ll have to ask my editor) to this recent article from the Washington Post: 5 ways to add a little inconvenience to your day — and improve your brain (as always, it’s a gift link).

It might sound counterintuitive, but as the piece explains, adding a little bit of friction — whether that means cooking a meal instead of ordering one, or trying something new that challenges your brain to work in a different way — is ultimately beneficial. If you have any other suggestions in the same vein, I’d love to hear them. Have a great evening, and we’ll see you back here tomorrow!

Trump’s new attack on mail-in voting, briefly explained

2026-04-01T17:10:14-04:00

Donald Trump on the South Lawn of the White House after returning to Washington, DC, on March 29, 2026. | Ken Cedeno/AFP via Getty Images

This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here.

Welcome to The Logoff: President Donald Trump is still trying to limit mail-in voting.

What happened? On Tuesday evening, Trump signed an executive order that would create new citizenship lists to determine eligibility to vote and limit who the US Postal Service can send ballots to.

Is this order going to go anywhere? Very likely not, for a number of reasons. First, it’s almost certainly unconstitutional: The Constitution gives states the power to determine the “Times, Places and Manner” of elections, with no role for the executive branch.

There are also practical obstacles. As Kevin R. Kosar, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, points out, the implementation of the order in time for the 2026 midterms — should it be allowed to go forward — would present serious logistical challenges.

What’s the context? Limiting mail-in voting has been Trump’s white whale since his defeat in the 2020 election, which he has blamed on mail ballots. Most recently, he’s tried to get it done legislatively: The SAVE America Act, which is currently stuck in the Senate (and unlikely to come unstuck), would not only limit mail-in voting, but impose new voter ID requirements.

Despite Trump’s attacks, there is no evidence that mail-in voting is associated with significant voter fraud.

Didn’t Trump vote by mail himself? Yes. Records show Trump, who has attacked mail-in voting as “cheating,” voted by mail in Florida’s recent special elections, despite being in Palm Beach at the time.

What’s the big picture? As Rick Hasen, a University of California Los Angeles law professor, pointed out in a blog post, the order is flimsy enough that it’s more “election denialism theater” than anything else — intended to paint US elections, baselessly, as not secure and in need of reform.

That kind of theater isn’t without real-world dangers. This specific order is unlikely to throw US elections into chaos — but it’s yet another entry in Trump’s long-running campaign to undermine Americans’ confidence in the democratic process.

And with that, it’s time to log off…

It’s moon mission day! You can read my colleague Caitlin Dewey on the new space race here, and tune in to watch on YouTube, C-SPAN, and lots of other places. The two-hour launch window opens at 6:24 pm Eastern.

While you’re waiting, here’s a gift link explaining why the Artemis II spacesuits are not white but a specific shade called International Orange (I’m a fan, personally).

Thanks for reading, have a great evening, and we’ll see you back here tomorrow!

Trump’s gas prices problem

2026-03-31T16:15:04-04:00

Gas prices are displayed at a gas station in Pasadena, California, on March 30, 2026. | Mario Tama/Getty Images

This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here.

Welcome to The Logoff: President Donald Trump’s war with Iran has pushed US gas prices to their highest point in more than three years.

What happened? On Tuesday, the national average for a gallon of gasoline cleared $4 for the first time since August 2022, capping an increase of more than $1/gallon since the war with Iran began.

The spike is largely a consequence of Iran’s decision early in the war to close the Strait of Hormuz to most traffic. Until recently, about one-fifth of the global oil supply flowed through the strait.

Why do gas prices matter so much? While gas isn’t the biggest item in most people’s budgets, it’s one measure of the cost of living that many Americans interact with on a regular basis and is prominently posted near roads everywhere. Trump has also regularly boasted about bringing gas prices down, often offering false statistics.

They’re also an indicator of the broader energy shock wracking global markets: Oil prices are hovering somewhere above $100/barrel, diesel prices are at $5.45/gallon, and jet fuel prices have doubled.

High energy prices will soon trickle down to many other aspects of American life, making food, air travel, and consumer goods more expensive. Disruptions caused by the Strait of Hormuz won’t stop there, either: As my colleague Bryan Walsh explains, fossil fuels are an input in the fertilizers that help feed the world; a shortage will be felt acutely.

What comes next? It’s anyone’s guess. In a Truth Social post on Tuesday, Trump suggested that he could be looking to bring US involvement in the war to an end with the Strait of Hormuz still largely closed, matching reporting by the Wall Street Journal. An earlier effort by Trump to recruit US allies to help open the strait fell flat.

The strait remains closed, though, the worse the global energy crisis will get — and that’s not something Trump can opt out of.

And with that, it’s time to log off…

If all goes to plan, the US will send astronauts to the moon tomorrow for the first time in more than 53 years. Unlike the Apollo mission in 1972, the Artemis II crew won’t land on the lunar surface; for this trip, they’ll slingshot around it Apollo 13-style before returning to Earth.

The Artemis rocket is set to lift off tomorrow evening from Cape Canaveral, Florida, at 6:24 pm ET (assuming the weather is good). We’re covering it today too, though, because space is exciting, and that way you’ll have more time to read this great Wired story about what the mission will entail.

Have a great evening, and we’ll see you back here tomorrow!

How Trump is paying TSA, briefly explained

2026-03-30T17:49:00-04:00

Travelers wait in line at a TSA checkpoint at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, Texas, on March 26, 2026. | Mark Felix/Bloomberg via Getty Images

This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here.

Welcome to The Logoff: The US air travel situation is looking up — for now.

What’s happening? TSA agents received paychecks today for the first time in more than a month, easing the burden of the ongoing Homeland Security shutdown and alleviating long security lines at major US airports.

Where is the money coming from? DHS still doesn’t have funding, but President Donald Trump signed an executive order Friday directing that TSA agents be paid anyway, as airport security lines began to reach crisis proportions.

The paychecks covered some, but not all, of the back pay owed to agents due to the shutdown and were reportedly paid out of money allocated to DHS under last year’s reconciliation package (Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill”).

As CNN has reported, it’s unclear whether that kind of unilateral direction of funding is legal, but paychecks are flowing regardless.

What’s the context? This is the second time a prolonged government shutdown has resulted in the Trump administration going around Congress to pay federal employees. Last year, during a much broader, record-long shutdown, Trump redirected Defense Department money to pay US troops. (Military paychecks have not been affected this time, since DOD has been funded by Congress.)

What’s the big picture? Monday’s paychecks are a big deal for the tens of thousands of TSA employees who have been going without, as well as for America’s beleaguered air travel system. But they’re more of a Band-Aid than a permanent fix.

Specifically, while we don’t know exactly where the Trump administration is getting the money for TSA paychecks, it’s not going to last forever; at some point, Congress will still need to fund TSA and the rest of DHS, with or without ICE and CBP.

There’s also an underlying problem: These kinds of funding lapses are getting more and more frequent. Even if Congress gets this shutdown sorted out soon, we’re likely to be staring down another before we know it.

And with that, it’s time to log off…

My colleague Allie Volpe — arguably the unofficial patron saint of logging off — is a font of good advice about living life. For her latest story, she spoke with an expert, Professor Gillian Sandstrom, about how, and why, you should talk with strangers. You can read their conversation here.

Have a great evening, and we’ll see you back here tomorrow!

Trump’s moving Iran deadline, briefly explained

2026-03-26T18:18:51-04:00

Donald Trump at the National Republican Congressional Committee's annual fundraising dinner in Washington, DC, on March 25, 2026. | Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here.

Welcome to The Logoff: President Donald Trump has had a lot to say about US negotiations with Iran this week. Here’s what’s actually going on.

What’s the latest? Right now, the US and Iran are reported to be talking indirectly, with Pakistan serving as an intermediary. Both sides have rolled out preliminary proposals — a 15-point plan from the US and five rival points from Iran — though they’re likely far from anything that will actually be agreed upon. Stocks were down Thursday as investors grew more pessimistic about a deal.

There have been some positive signs, however: On Thursday afternoon, Trump said he was extending a deadline for threatened strikes against Iranian power plants by an additional 10 days, until the evening of Monday, April 6.

What’s the context? This is the second time Trump has revised his timeline for negotiations. Over the weekend, he initially threatened to “obliterate” Iranian power plants if the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway controlled by Iran and crucial to the global energy supply, wasn’t reopened within 48 hours.

He subsequently extended that timeline for five days to create space for ongoing talks, which he described as “IN DEPTH, DETAILED, AND CONSTRUCTIVE.”

Iran’s partial blockade of the strait has driven up oil prices since the war began and threatens to do lasting damage to the global economy, particularly if it persists.

What’s the big picture? As my colleague Josh Keating reports, there are still some serious obstacles to a quick end to the war. For one, control of the strait gives Iran a way to punish the US for launching the war, and the Iranian regime may think more pain is needed to hammer the message home. Israel and other Trump allies in the Middle East also appear interested in the war continuing.

In the meantime, the US is sending more troops to the region, raising speculation about a possible ground invasion. And the 10-day pause on strikes only covers Iran’s power plants; other targets are still being struck. Without a deal over Iran’s nuclear program in place, Trump said Thursday, “we’ll just keep blowing them away.”

And with that, it’s time to log off…

Here’s a great story from my colleague Allie Volpe: The case for a little bit of healthy delusion. Enjoy, and we’ll see you back here tomorrow!

How Trump is complicating TSA funding

2026-03-25T17:35:11-04:00

Donald Trump speaks to reporters before boarding Air Force One at Palm Beach International Airport in West Palm Beach, Florida, on March 23, 2026. | Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here.

Welcome to The Logoff: The DHS shutdown is causing chaos at airports, but Donald Trump has his own set of priorities.

What’s happening? Lawmakers are negotiating this week over a possible measure to fund much of the Department of Homeland Security — but not ICE — before a scheduled Easter recess starting on Saturday. The ongoing DHS shutdown has meant that TSA workers are not getting paid, and some are either quitting or calling out sick, resulting in increasingly long security lines at airports.

Those talks are facing their own difficulties — Sen. Angus King (I-ME) called a GOP DHS proposal today “illusory” — but President Donald Trump is throwing extra sand in the works with his demand that lawmakers pass a bill called the SAVE America Act along with DHS funding.

“I think any deal they make, I’m pretty much not happy with it,” Trump said on Tuesday about negotiations.

What would the SAVE America Act do? At its core, the bill would introduce stringent new voter ID requirements, including requiring proof of citizenship when registering to vote and cracking down on mail-in voting.

More recently, Trump has also tried to graft unrelated new requirements onto the bill; on Sunday, he posted, “All Paper Ballots, No Men In Women’s Sports, and No Transgender MUTILIZATION of our precious children … lump everything together as one, and VOTE!!!”

Is this going to happen? It is not. Despite Trump’s demands, the SAVE America Act has no clear path to passage in the Senate, whether or not it’s tagged onto a DHS funding measure (a version of the bill already passed the House last month).

Under pressure from Trump, however, Republican senators have still been going through the motions of trying to advance the bill.

What does this mean for airport lines? For now, there’s no agreed-upon plan to reopen DHS, though one could materialize as senators stare down the prospect of missing Easter recess. If that happens, the next question will be whether Trump lets his SAVE America fixation get in the way.

And with that, it’s time to log off…

Here’s a remarkable story from Vox’s Unexplainable podcast about environmental activist Casey Harrell. After being diagnosed with ALS in 2020, Harrell eventually lost the ability to speak. Now, microelectrodes implanted in his brain are helping him talk once more.

Have a great evening, and we’ll see you tomorrow!

ICE heads to the airport

2026-03-23T17:00:41-04:00

ICE agents stand next to the security line at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on March 23, 2026, in Atlanta. | Megan Varner/Getty Images

This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here.

Welcome to The Logoff: Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents are deploying to US airports as a Homeland Security funding lapse stretches on.

What’s happening? Over the weekend, President Donald Trump announced his plan to send ICE agents into major US airports, starting Monday, in response to ballooning security lines and delays. Agents reportedly deployed to around 14 airports to start the week, including Newark, New Jersey; Chicago O’Hare; and Atlanta.

ICE agents are not likely to be helping directly with screening lines, according to Trump “border czar” Tom Homan, who told CNN that agents would “make sure people don’t go through those exits, enter an airport through the exits and stuff like that,” in hopes of freeing up TSA agents to screen passengers.

As of Monday, some airports have continued to report multi-hour security lines. Immigration agents also arrested at least one person at the San Francisco airport on Sunday.

What’s the context? Much of the Department of Homeland Security is shut down, but ICE and CBP — flush with money from Trump’s 2025 reconciliation package — are still operating.

So is TSA, whose employees are considered essential. But unlike ICE, TSA officers aren’t getting paid — and as the shutdown stretches on, more and more are calling in sick or quitting outright.

How does this end? To get TSA back on the job in full force and airport delays back to normal, Congress needs to pass a bill funding the agency (and the rest of DHS). Funding lapsed last month after lawmakers reached an impasse over new accountability measures for ICE.

It’s not clear when that will happen, though, as Trump has reportedly rebuffed a Republican plan to fund the rest of DHS — including TSA and the Federal Emergency Management Agency — while leaving ICE by the wayside for the time being.

On Monday, Trump said instead that he could “bring in the National Guard” if ICE agents are unable to fix airport delays.

And with that, it’s time to log off…

I am reliably informed that today is World Bear Day, which we here at The Logoff enthusiastically endorse. To celebrate, here’s a fun article from Scientific American: Why are bears friend-shaped?

As always, thanks for reading, have a great evening, and we’ll see you back here tomorrow!

Trump’s new coin, briefly explained

2026-03-20T17:22:55-04:00

President Donald Trump walks on the South Lawn of the White House before boarding Marine One in Washington, DC, on March 18, 2026. | Aaron Schwartz/Bloomberg via Getty Images

This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here.

Welcome to The Logoff: Donald Trump may be getting his wish: a super-sized gold coin with his face on it.

What’s happening? On Thursday, the US Commission of Fine Arts signed off on a proposed design for a new 24-karat gold commemorative coin to mark America’s 250th anniversary this summer. On the coin: Trump, scowling, as he leans on his desk.

The coin’s size is still to be determined, but characteristically, Trump may be going for the biggest possible option — a coin three inches in diameter (just over three times the size of a quarter).

Can he do that? Probably. As the AP points out, there’s a law that says living presidents cannot appear on currency. There’s also another committee specifically for coins that should get a say; it has refused to consider a Trump coin.

But the US Mint is part of the Treasury Department, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent can likely authorize the new coin regardless.

The Commission of Fine Arts, which approved the design, is also stacked in Trump’s favor (one recently appointed member, Chamberlain Harris, is a Trump White House aide). Last month, the commission also okayed Trump’s proposed ballroom design to replace the East Wing.

What’s the context? This is the unsurprising convergence of two of Trump’s very favorite things: gold and himself.

The Oval Office is overflowing with gold knick-knacks, picture frames, appliques, and trophies, which have multiplied since Trump returned to office last year. Trump has also (unlawfully) stamped his name on the Kennedy Center, as well as the US Institute of Peace and a class of new battleships.

What’s the big picture? As my former colleague Abdallah Fayyad wrote last year, Trump’s (re)branding obsession is bigger than any one building or coin. Instead, it’s an attempt to overwrite traditional American aesthetics with his own and cement himself as an — perhaps the — enduring symbol of the US.

And with that, it’s time to log off…

Hi readers, happy spring equinox! (It was this morning, a little bit before 11 am Eastern.)

I enjoyed this story from the New York Times (it’s a gift link) about how New Yorkers spent the week preparing for the Eid al-Fitr holiday marking the end of Ramadan, which is today. For those celebrating, Eid Mubarak! Have a great weekend, and we’ll see you back here on Monday.