October 17, 2026

The American Conservative Morning Briefing · Oct 17, 2026 · 4m

Good morning! Today is Saturday, October 17th 2026, and this is The American Conservative's Morning Brief. W. James Antle III argues Trump has become a president of inflation and war, with the Iran conflict driving an energy price spike that threatens a midterm bloodbath for Republicans. As the Iran war reaches day 231, Trump floats striking Pickaxe Mountain and refuses to rule out the mother of all bombs, while Brent crude hovers near 106 dollars and gas climbs to 4.33 a gallon. A new book by Eli Clifton and Ian Lustick examines how the Israel lobby has grown richer and more aggressive since…