White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt holds a briefing with reporters — 3/10/2026
Speakers
Karoline Leavitt — White House Press Secretary
— White House Press Secretary
Summary
- The US military is 10 days into "Operation Epic Fury" against Iran, having struck over 5,000 targets, destroyed 50 naval vessels, and severely degraded Iranian ballistic missile and drone capabilities.
- The administration acknowledges a temporary increase in oil and gas prices due to the conflict and threats to the Strait of Hormuz, but is utilizing political risk insurance, naval escorts, and temporary sanctions waivers (including allowing India to buy Russian oil) to stabilize global energy markets.
- A partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is leaving over 100,000 federal workers, including TSA agents, without pay, causing severe delays at US airports.
- The newly passed "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" is injecting significant liquidity into the consumer economy, with average federal tax refunds rising to $3,800 and millions claiming tax exemptions on tips, overtime, and car loan interest.
Trade Ideas
"Our incredible B2 bombers recently dropped dozens of 2,000 lb penetrator bombs on deeply buried missile sites... [Iran] may have Tomahawk missiles." The active and aggressive deployment of heavy munitions, specifically mentioning B2 bombers (manufactured by Northrop Grumman) and Tomahawk missiles (manufactured by RTX Corp), indicates a rapid depletion of US military stockpiles. This will force the Department of Defense to issue massive replenishment contracts to prime defense contractors to restock precision-guided munitions and maintain operational readiness. LONG. Prime defense contractors with exposure to aerospace and precision munitions will see accelerated top-line revenue growth from wartime supplemental spending bills. The conflict ends faster than expected ("swift fashion"), leading to a rapid de-escalation and lower-than-anticipated long-term defense appropriations.
"President Trump fully expected the rogue Iranian regime to try and disrupt the global markets... the recent increase in oil and gas prices is temporary." The US is actively destroying the military infrastructure of a major OPEC producer, and Iran is threatening the Strait of Hormuz (a critical global energy chokepoint). Even with US naval escorts and sanctions waivers, the geopolitical risk premium on crude oil will remain elevated as long as kinetic strikes continue. LONG. Oil prices and major US exploration and production (E&P) companies will benefit from the supply-side fear premium and temporary disruptions in Middle Eastern output. The US successfully secures the Strait of Hormuz without incident, or the rapid defeat of Iranian forces causes the geopolitical risk premium to collapse, sending oil prices sharply lower.
"To any American out there who is showing up to an airport and facing incredibly long wait times and lines, call your Democrat member of Congress and tell them to fund the Department of Homeland Security." TSA agents and air traffic controllers are working without pay due to the DHS shutdown. This leads to low morale, increased absenteeism ("sickouts"), and severe operational bottlenecks at airports. Prolonged airport chaos will suppress near-term travel demand and increase operational costs for commercial airlines due to delayed or canceled flights. SHORT. The airline sector faces immediate operational headwinds and potential revenue hits if consumers delay travel to avoid airport gridlock. Congress passes a sudden funding resolution to reopen DHS, immediately restoring normal TSA operations and removing the headwind for airlines.
"The average refund this year is more than $3,700... Over 15.5 million returns have claimed no tax on overtime." The combination of higher-than-average tax refunds and new tax exemptions (no tax on tips or overtime) acts as a direct, massive fiscal stimulus to the lower- and middle-class consumer. This sudden influx of untaxed discretionary income will flow directly into retail, e-commerce, and consumer discretionary spending. LONG. Broad consumer discretionary ETFs and mega-cap retailers will capture the lion's share of this newly unlocked consumer liquidity. Inflation re-accelerates due to the fiscal stimulus, forcing the Federal Reserve to hike interest rates, which would ultimately crush consumer credit and spending power.
"Over 690,000 returns have claimed no tax on car loan interest." Making auto loan interest tax-deductible effectively lowers the true cost of financing a vehicle. This policy directly incentivizes consumers to take out auto loans and purchase new or used vehicles, providing a strong tailwind for auto manufacturers and auto retailers who have previously struggled with high interest rates. LONG. Automakers and used-car platforms will see a surge in demand as the tax code now subsidizes the cost of auto financing. Underlying vehicle prices remain too high, or broader macroeconomic weakness prevents consumers from taking on large debt obligations despite the tax incentive.
Up Next
This CNBC video, published March 10, 2026, features Karoline Leavitt discussing NOC, RTX, LMT, USO, CVX, XOM, JETS, DAL, UAL, XLY, WMT, AMZN, CVNA, GM, F. 5 trade ideas extracted by AI with direction and confidence scoring.
Speakers: Karoline Leavitt · Tickers: NOC, RTX, LMT, USO, CVX, XOM, JETS, DAL, UAL, XLY, WMT, AMZN, CVNA, GM, F