International
Gas prices across the United States have spiked by a full $1 per gallon in the past month due to Iran’s control over critical oil shipping routes.
Although the Strait of Hormuz handles twenty percent of global crude oil traffic, shipping companies have stopped sending vessels through the waterway since the onset of the U.S.-Iran conflict for fear of Iranian attacks on cargo ships.
The Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research, or SIEPR, explains gas is one of the most non-discretionary items for U.S. residents. People must buy gas at any price or lose their jobs.
SIEPR projects gas prices will peak at $4.25 a gallon in May, but will go down slowly according to the “rockets and feathers” effect, which states that gas prices tend to rise sharply like a rocket, but float down slowly like feathers.
According to American Petroleum Institute CEO Mike Sommers, the only way to restabilize the world oil economy is to reopen the strait.
“The truth of the matter is there’s no replacement for the strait. That is the critical piece that has to be done and done quickly,” Sommers told Politico.
Even if the strait is restored as a trade route, SIEPR notes the effects of the closure will be lasting. Oil production facilities will need to be brought back to normal operation capacity and facilities damaged by missiles and drones must still be rebuilt.
National
President Donald Trump announced Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents will be working in airports to help remedy the Transportation Security Administration staffing shortage.
“On Monday, ICE will be going to airports to help our wonderful TSA Agents who have stayed on the job,” Trump wrote in a social media post on Sunday.
The Trump administration has blamed Democrats for the Department of Homeland Security shutdown which began six weeks ago, pausing paychecks for TSA workers.
“This pointless, reckless shutdown of our homeland security workforce has caused more than 400 TSA officers to quit and thousands to call out from work because they are not able to afford gas, childcare, food, or rent,” Acting Assistant DHS Secretary Lauren Bis told NPR in a statement.
Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens said federal agents “indicated that this deployment is not intended to conduct immigration enforcement activities” and that ICE agents are being deployed to help with line management and crowd control.
The federal workers union representing TSA officers has opposed the replacement of TSA workers with ICE agents.
“ICE agents are not trained or certified in aviation security,” Everett Kelley, president of the American Federation of Government Employees told NPR.
TSA officers are thoroughly trained to detect explosives, weapons, and threats engineered to avoid detection at checkpoints.
“They deserve to be paid, not replaced by untrained, armed agents who have shown how dangerous they can be,” Kelley added.
The duties of ICE agents at airports have not yet been officially outlined and the deployment timeline and locations affected have not been announced.
Local
According to a report from KFOR, Oklahoma is the worst state in the country for allergies this year.
Dr. Greg Krempl, chair of the Department of Otolaryngology at the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, explained the factors leading to severe allergies in the state.
“The big component is the combination of the mild winter, which has brought out all of our flowers and our pollen early with that, and then it’s been combined with the winds that we’ve had,” Krempl told KFOR.
Most of the tree pollen is carried by winds from Texas and southern Oklahoma. Krempl said cedars are likely the worst perpetrator.
Now that tree pollen is diminishing, weeds have begun distributing pollen.
“So February, we started to get the traditional March tree pollen,” Krempl said. “As we’ve stayed through the month of March, those tree counts have stayed high. The second thing that’s on the rise for us in the last week or two is the weeds.”
Krempl offered practical advice for Oklahomans prone to seasonal allergens:
“You should have your air conditioning on in your car and you should have your windows up, because letting that outside air blow in is going to give you higher exposure.”
Tree pollen will diminish in coming weeks, but waves of ragweed and grass pollen are still to come.
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