NewsNation Chief Washington Anchor and On Balance host Leland Vittert was a foreign correspondent for four years in Jerusalem. He gives you an early look at tonight's 9 p.m. ET show, delivered straight to your inbox. |
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URGENT🚨: Mix "Black Hawk Down" with "Behind Enemy Lines," and a real-life movie is playing out in southern Iran. - ✈️US Air Force pararescue is the best in the world but is racing against time to find a downed American pilot before the Iranians get him.
- 📷Video of U.S. Air Force HC-130J "Combat King II" and UH-60 Black Hawks flying over Iran is the stuff of nightmares — and exactly what the air force trains for.
- Solemn promise‼️: This is America at its best — aircrews go into battle, deep in enemy territory, knowing that if they get shot down, the entire U.S. military will stop at nothing to rescue them.
- Hundreds of men and women knowingly put themselves in extreme danger — think continued low-level flights over known enemy air defenses — to bring back a single downed comrade.
- For example: Iranians hit an A-10 Warthog likely flying escort for the rescue helicopters — that pilot is safe.
- Watch tonight📺: Retired Air Force special operations commander Glenn Ignazio flew and commanded these missions. Plus, Aaron Love, a retired U.S. Air Force senior master sergeant, went in on the ground to rescue the pilots.
- They take us inside the fight.
- Who does the night favor? Pilot and rescuers or IRGC?
- What is the pilot doing right now to evade capture?
- How do rescuers find a pilot who is deliberately trying to hide?
- What does the pilot have with him?
- What are rescuers' options to fight off the IRGC?
- What if the pilot is injured?
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Editor's note✏️: "War Notes" is decidedly secular — that said, I learned during my time as a war correspondent that there are no atheists in foxholes. - 🙏No matter your religion, say a prayer for the missing pilot tonight and their family, no doubt holding vigil
- We wish you and your family a meaningful Passover and Easter filled with those you love.
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Easter disconnect🐰: This is the first time we have an American pope, and guess what — few American Catholics care what he says. - Wow😱: Gen Z embraces Catholicism, says The Washington Post:
- ✏️"Young men in their 20s and 30s are increasingly drawn to the Catholic Church as they seek truth, beauty and, yes, girlfriends."
- 📚Vice President JD Vance is out with a new book about his Catholicism and faith
- The Catholic Church in America is decidedly more conservative, while Rome is going the way of Europe.
- Watch tonight📺: One of my favorite guests, and favorite humans, Msgr. Jim Lisante, joins tonight.
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The Iran War Just Got Real 🚨 |
Full disclosure‼️: I spent four years in the Middle East, which means I know enough to be dangerous — but I am FAR FAR from an expert. - ‼️I understand the history, conflict, fault lines, etc., and can interpret events in real time.
- For example, I understand and can explain the Iranian desire for martyrdom and suffering
- The regime and much of the population's willingness for millions of their own to die just to kill a few Israelis or Americans.
- I know there is a political/religious intersection with Marxist ideology and Shia Islam
- But the true why — and the deep history is not my area of expertise.
- Must listen🎧: While you are driving this weekend, do yourself a favor and listen to my friend Eli Lake and Haviv Rettig Gur explain why Iran's regime is hard to kill.
Why it matters🚨: This morning, when you looked at your phone, everything changed in Iran — the three bitter options we told you Trump had last night just got worse.
‼️From a strategic standpoint, whether the second pilot is captured or rescued makes little difference. - 🙏Yes — we hope and pray they are rescued.
- 📺Yes — images of a wounded American on Iranian state TV is both the ultimate nightmare and Iran's dream
- We all remember downed flyers in Somalia and the Persian Gulf War
- ‼️But — strategically every American now knows another Iran hostage crisis is a real possibility.
- What I told my friends🗣️: War is unpredictable.
- 📺And — the Iranians reflexively see that American response on TV.
Higher stakes🚨: The shootdown and implications — especially if Iran holds an American pilot — only force Trump's hand to either quickly resolve at a higher cost or quickly escalate. - Ground war💥: For all of Trump's talk about a deal, the military is clearly planning for sustained ground operations.
- See above🔼: Iran views continued suffering by its people as a sign of Marxist virtue.
- Sad👎: They will gladly trade 100,000 dead and a decimated country for a few American or Israeli casualties.
- This is a fundamentally different war than fighting the Nazis or even the Japanese.
Watch tonight📺: Former Supreme Allied Commander General Phillip Breedlove with the difficult decisions facing the commander in chief and retired U.S. Navy SEAL Vice Admiral Robert Harward. |
Trump's Cabinet Shuffle 🔀 |
Watch tonight📺: NewsNation's Libbey Dean with new reporting on who Trump might ax next
‼️Loyalty vs. competence isn't just a tension inside the Trump administration — it's the whole game. - Clock ticking⏱️: Trump needs to act now and get new people approved before November.
- ‼️That gives him little time to reshuffle his Cabinet for the next two years
- ‼️Not to mention if there is pressure for an older member of SCOTUS to step down, ensuring a conservative appointment
- Look back🔙: Secretary Pete Hegseth's confirmation was messy — really messy. But he got through because Trump was popular at the moment and could twist arms.
- Now📅: Trump has to deal with Republican senators like Sen. Susan Collins and Sen. Thom Tillis — votes he HAS to win, not votes he can assume.
- Each has their own political considerations
- Collins faces a tough reelection fight
- Tillis is rightfully bitter at Trump's treatment and is retiring.
- Zoom out🌎: The more qualified someone is for a Cabinet job, the more they're thinking about their own political future post 2028, therefore, the less loyal they will be.
- Flipside 🔃: The more loyal = the less competent and harder to confirm.
Right now‼️: President Trump fired Attorney General Pam Bondi yesterday — and now the question isn't just who will replace her but who would even take the job.
Look at the bench👀: Trump could (likely) get Ron DeSantis as attorney general — but would he take it when thinking about his political future? - Then there's Ken Paxton — a Trump loyalist — but getting him through the Senate is going to be very hard.
More➕: Mike Nellis, Caroline Sunshine and Steve Cortes |
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FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA @lelandvittert @onbalancewithlelandvittert |
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WATCH ON BALANCE WEEKNIGHTS AT 9P/8C |
Every night during On Balance, Leland Vittert asks "why?" about the most pressing matters of the day, with an intellectual, balanced and sometimes irreverent take on the news. Make sure to let us know your thoughts on social media and by replying to this email. |
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