Midterm primaries kick off and no end date to Trump's Iran war: Morning Rundown

Marissa MartinezTue, March 3, 2026 at 12:04 PM UTC

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In today’s newsletter: The candidates at risk in today’s primaries. Trump won’t put an end date to the Iran war. And the Supreme Court blocks California restrictions on schools notifying parents about students’ transgender status.

Here’s what to know today.

Incumbents at risk as the first primaries of the midterm elections get underway

Texas, Arkansas and North Carolina are kicking off the 2026 midterm elections today with primaries that will shape the battle for control of the House and the Senate, while simmering fights for control of each party could boil over as voters decide whether to discard longtime incumbents.

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The highest-profile race features longtime Texas GOP Sen. John Cornyn, who is in the fight of his political life against state Attorney General Ken Paxton and Rep. Wesley Hunt in the Lone Star State. Both are challenging Cornyn from his right flank in a primary that has drawn almost $100 million in advertising.

Meanwhile, Rep. Jasmine Crockett and state Rep. James Talarico will square off in the Democratic primary — a race that has exposed an important strategic divide in the party over exciting their base or focusing on bipartisan appeal.

Analysis: Steve Kornacki goes deep on Texas’ big Senate races.

North Carolina’s Senate primary will likely formalize the November matchup between Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper and former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley, endorsed by President Donald Trump.

Your guide to today’s primaries.

More politics news:

Trump will attend the White House correspondents’ dinner this year, for the first time as president.

The White House says “redness” on the side of Trump’s neck comes from “preventative skin treatment” using a “very common cream.”

The House Oversight Committee released videos of Hillary and Bill Clinton’s depositions about Jeffrey Epstein.

The White House has dropped suits against law firms after judges found the president’s executive orders targeting them were unconstitutional.

Trump, who campaigned against ‘endless’ wars, enters Iran with no end date

One year into his second term, Trump has begun military action in multiple countries, ordered the capture of Nicolás Maduro and entered into a war with Iran — a departure from his promise to avoid U.S. involvement in what could become longstanding conflicts.

His criticisms of the Iraq war and former President George W. Bush were a feature of his 2016 campaign, and his success in 2024 was predicated in large part on how he hadn’t started any wars in his first term. Now, he’s started a war of his own.

At a briefing yesterday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth rejected suggestions that Iran could become Trump’s Iraq, pledging that it would not spiral into an “endless” war. But Trump himself said it’s “not possible” to know the full scope and duration of operations in Iran at this time.

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More on the impact of Trump’s actions in Iran and follow the latest on our liveblog.

More Iran news:

Higher gas prices are likely coming to the pump after oil prices jumped in wake of the strikes.

The conflict has also choked a key shipping lane, threatening the global cargo industry.

One resident’s dispatch from Tehran, where “nowhere feels safe” from attack.

Supreme Court blocks California restrictions on schools notifying parents about students’ transgender status

Protesters supporting transgender athletes competing in women's sports wave a transgender pride flag outside the Supreme Court on January 13, 2026. (Heather Diehl / Getty Images file) (Heather Diehl)

The Supreme Court barred California from restricting when schools can notify parents about students who come out as transgender and require teachers to use children’s preferred pronouns.

Justices voted 6-3 on ideological lines, allowing a federal judge’s ruling in favor of parents who opposed the policy on religious grounds to go into effect. The court said parents have valid parental rights claims under the 14th Amendment, agreeing with a longstanding precedent that says parents have primary responsibility over how to raise their children.

The court also issued a ruling that would keep New York City’s lone GOP congressional district in place for this year’s midterms, siding with Republican Rep. Nicole Malliotakis. A state judge had previously ruled her Staten Island-based district unconstitutional for diluting Black and Latino voting power — and ordered New York’s independent commission to redraw it — part of a national mid-decade redistricting battle across multiple states.

In granting the stay, Justice Samuel Alito said the order from the state court “blatantly discriminates on the basis of race.”

More on the court’s California decision.

Read All About It -

The Justice Department is taking Live Nation-Ticketmaster to court in an antitrust trial.

“Skin care in a can”: The fishy beauty hack once again taking over TikTok.

A Minnesota county launched an online portal to probe immigration enforcement abuse allegations.

Staff Pick: Patients hit dead ends with insurance ‘ghost networks.’ Now, some are suing.

Finding a health provider in a directory can be a nightmare, even with the best insurance. But what if the directories themselves were wrong?

My colleagues reported on how these inaccurate or misleading physician directories have been an obstacle for patients seeking in-network providers — even leading some to pay large sums out of pocket, or to delay or forgo care. They found the problem to be especially acute when it comes to mental health care providers.

While there is a recent New York state class action lawsuit based on health plans offered to government employers, a federal law prevents patients with employer-sponsored health plans from using state consumer protection laws to sue insurance companies over the issue. All while state regulators rarely fine these companies for directory errors.

— Marissa Martinez, newsletter editor

NBC Select: Online Shopping, Simplified

Big news for candle lovers: You can now shop your favorite Bath & Body Works products on Amazon. Meanwhile, Select’s tech editor takes a deeper look at Samsung’s latest products, which are set to launch March 11.

Sign up to The Selection newsletter for hands-on product reviews, expert shopping tips and a look at the best deals and sales each week.

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Source: “AOL Breaking”