This is the March 31, 2026, edition of “The Tea, Spilled by Morning Joe” newsletter. Subscribe here to get it delivered straight to your inbox Monday through Friday.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Go to the Strait and just take it.”
— PresidentDonald Trump to U.S. allies on seizing oil resources in the Strait of Hormuz
CHART OF THE DAY
Source: Gallup survey conducted March 2-18, 2026, among 1,000 U.S. adults, margin of error: ±4 percentage points
ON THIS DATE
In 1943, “Oklahoma!” premiered on Broadway, going on to dominate the stage for more than 2,000 performances before closing five years later. It was the first show written by Broadway legend Richard Rodgers without his longtime partner, Lorenz Hart.
A CONVERSATION WITH ED LUCE
Gas prices just topped $4 a gallon, and Iran is still striking targets across the Gulf region as the war enters its second month. Financial Times columnist Ed Luce spoke with Donald Trump yesterday about the state of the conflict and joined “Morning Joe” with a readout of their conversation.
JS: Ed, what stood out most from your call with the president?
EL: He was toggling between extremes — raising the idea of taking Iran’s oil, even seizing Kharg Island, then shifting to saying he was having great talks with the regime.
JS: Who exactly is negotiating here? Is there a real diplomatic channel?
EL: It’s really all indirect. Pakistan is acting as an emissary — that was the word he used — so it’s less direct negotiation and more back-channel signaling.
JS: The president has talked about “taking the oil” for years. Did you get the sense he’s more serious about that now?
EL: He kept bringing it up himself, saying, “Why wouldn’t we take it?” and that Kharg Island’s defenses were weak and easy to seize.
At the same time, he pointed to Iran allowing about 20 tankers through, calling it a “gift,” but that also highlights Iran’s control over the strait, which complicates the idea of simply taking assets.
JS: Stepping back, how did he sound overall — confident, frustrated, something else?
EL: I didn’t sense anger. He was more thrashing around for ideas. It didn’t sound like he had a clear strategy for how to get out of this.
This conversation has been condensed and edited for brevity and clarity.
“ALWAYS AT YOUR DISPOSAL”
Michael Weiss, editor at The Insider, called “Morning Joe” today to talk about his new reporting on Russian and Hungarian leadership colluding to delist Russian oligarchs from European Union sanctions.
Watch Joe’s interview with Michael below.
EXTRA HOT TEA
9.9%
— The share of American adults who smoke cigarettes, a record low. Down from 42.2% in 1965 and now below 10%, smoking is officially considered a “rare” activity in the United States.
ONE MORE SHOT
A pet lover walks with her cat on the runway at the Shanghai Business School show on Day 3 of the 2026 Petjoy Fashion Week at Shanghai Fashion Center on March 29, 2026.
CATCH UP ON MORNING JOE
The post The Tea, Spilled by Morning Joe: ‘Go to the Strait and just take it’ appeared first on MS NOW.
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