National

It sounds like the start of an only-in-D.C. joke:

Three Republican power players walk into a bar for a freewheeling conversation. They unwittingly sit next to a liberal comic. She then skewers them in an Instagram post recounting their chat.

Why it matters: It became no laughing matter for one of the Republicans —oilman Harry Sargeant — who's trying to improve his uneasy relations with the Trump administration, partly related to his business dealings in Venezuela.

His rapprochement efforts were complicated last month when senior administration officials became aware of the comic's social media post, in which she alleged that Sargeant spoke negatively about President Trump.

The big picture: The story illustrates the panopticon of modern society and, especially, the nation's capital. Everyone is watched and being watched. And the White House takes notes on who's naughty and nice to Trump.

Zoom in: The episode unfolded Aug. 18 in the Bourbon Lounge of the Four Seasons hotel in D.C., where comic Suzanne Lambert was working on jokes for an upcoming set, she said in a post to her 495,000 Instagram followers that had 2 million views before she took it down.

In the video, Lambert said she coincidentally wound up sitting next to Sargeant and noted a vibe shift when two other men walked in: Pete Marocco and Gentry Beach.

Marocco was described by Fox News as the "mastermind" who helped dismantle USAID early in the second Trump administration. Politico subsequently reported he had tensions with Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Beach was the subject of a Wall Street Journal profile last year about how the lobbyist name-drops his longtime friend and presidential son Donald Trump Jr., in international business affairs, including one involving a Russian oil deal.

Inside the room: Lambert said her in post that she was just "minding my business" but started to pay more attention when the men at the bar began "spouting off about Trump. I hear Trump, Trump, Trump, Trump."

At one point, Lambert's post attributed comments to Sargeant that allegedly disparaged Trump and Republicans' midterm chances. Sargeant, through his attorneys, vigorously disputes that.

Behind the scenes: Lambert's video quickly went viral, prompting Sargeant's attorneys to send her a cease and desist letter.

Lambert took the post down but by then, the post had circulated among Trump advisers. Rubio was made aware of it, a source said.

"Harry's got some problems, and what the White House saw didn't help," an administration source said of Sargeant.

What they're saying: "Mr. Sargeant denies categorically the false statements attributed to him by a self-proclaimed liberal content creator and, as a patriot who served his country well as a Marine fighter pilot, supports fully President Trump's vision, leadership and tireless efforts to place America first," his attorney, Jason Wright, said in a written statement.

Beach and Marocco declined to comment through Wright. A Lambert spokesperson didn't return emails.

The intrigue: Sargeant first developed a challenging relationship with Rubio back in Florida, beginning in 2010. 

At the time, Rubio successfully ran for U.S. Senate against former Gov. Charlie Crist. Sargeant's is a friend and former Florida State University fraternity brother of Crist's who helped finance the ex-governor's campaign.

Sargeant's oil business dealings with former Venezuelan strongman Nicolas Maduro, whom Rubio loathes, did little to improve their relations through the years. 

After Trump returned to the presidency last year, Rubio was appointed secretary of state and pushed for regime change in Caracas. Sargeant's ally, Trump special envoy Richard Grenell, was initially opposed. Rubio won out. U.S. forces seized Maduro in a raid on Jan. 3. 

A month later, after a Wall Street Journal article about Sargeant's involvement in Venezuela after Maduro was gone, Trump singled him out in a Truth Social post that said Sargeant "has no authority, in any way, shape, or form, to act on behalf of the United States of America, nor does anyone else that is not approved by the State Department."

On Aug. 7, the Treasury Department sanctioned one of Sargeant's companies and froze its assets. He had divested its interests, for $300 million, to North American Blue Energy Partners, called NABEP.

11 days later, Sargeant wound up at the Four Seasons bar with Marocco and Beach (and Lambert).

Nine days after that, NABEP became the vehicle for Trump's mammoth Venezuelan oil deal, which Axios first reported on Aug. 27.

Zoom out: Trumpworld insiders say Sargeant's ordeal is a cautionary tale to stay on the good side of the administration. 

"I don't like Harry, but he got knifed," said one Trump adviser. "They kick him out of Venezuela. They sanction his company. They take him out of this other deal. And some people want him investigated."

A former business associate of Sargeant's pointed out that he financially supported Trump's campaign in 2020 and, at the time, even played a role in helping Trump push to have Ukraine investigate Joe Biden, 

"Harry wasn't disloyal to Trump," the associate said. "He's an oil guy. He wants to do oil deals. And he should've just gone with Team Rubio from the start."

Three Republican power players walk into a D.C. bar, and ...

How an oilman's push for warmer relations with the Trump administration was complicated by a scene that went viral.

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Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Stock: Getty Images

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2024 will be an election year like no other, as President Biden seeks re-election amid economic uncertainty, two wars and questions about his age. His likely foe, former President Trump, faces felony charges and vows revenge on his political enemies. Meanwhile, Americans generally are dissatisfied with those choices and are divided over immigration, race, education and more.

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The long-promised personal AI assistant is finally arriving, with a suddenly crowded field of agents offering to run pieces of your everyday life.

Why it matters: For years, tech's "personal assistants" were little more than voice-controlled search boxes. Rapid advances in AI are finally giving them the memory, judgment and autonomy to act on our behalf.

Catch up fast: Chatbots answer questions. AI agents can actually do things — shopping, making calls, booking tickets, managing calendars and navigating the web.

The model first took off in coding and other professional work. Now it's spilling into the far more intimate terrain of everyday life.

The intrigue: OpenAI is expected to enter the market soon after hiring the creator of OpenClaw — a breakout hit among AI power users earlier this year — to "drive the next generation of personal agents."

Driving the news: A consumer-agent race has erupted almost overnight, with startups and tech giants pursuing the same basic idea — persistent digital proxies that know your life.

Instinct has become buzzy by connecting to users' email, messages, screen, audio and location — then proactively texting or calling to help run their lives. It recently added its own email addresses and the ability to make phone calls, and is now in talks for a $10 billion valuation.

Grok Bot, launched by Elon Musk's SpaceXAI in August, gives persistent agents their own cloud computers, lets them sign into users' apps and keeps them working around the clock.

Meta's Muse brought the concept to a broader consumer audience this month with a polished app, a customizable avatar and deep integration with Meta's ecosystem.

Apple's Siri is finally getting its AI overhaul, bringing more context and capability to an assistant already built into hundreds of millions of devices.

The big picture: The battle to become your personal agent is also a battle to become the keeper of your personal information and data.

The frontier AI race has revolved around raw intelligence. Personal agents win by becoming useful and deeply embedded in your daily life. 

The more an agent knows about your relationships, schedule and spending, the more useful it becomes.

Between the lines: Becoming someone's default agent could be one of the most valuable relationships in consumer technology.

People are likely to share far more with an AI that manages their lives than they did with a search engine. 

The catch: Nobody yet knows what price consumers will pay for that convenience, in cost or privacy.

Apple says some server-based Apple Intelligence features, including the upgraded Siri, will have usage limits, with expanded access potentially tied to iCloud plans.

Meta is offering free and paid Muse tiers, while pitching the product as more privacy-conscious than its earlier AI offerings.

What to watch: Some people inside and outside the industry argue that users should own the personal data and context their agents accumulate, rather than handing that relationship to ad-driven tech giants.

will.i.am, whose FYI.AI offers agents equipped with their own phone numbers that can text, call and collaborate with humans to build projects, says he recoils at getting an agent for free "in exchange for extracting your very core — how you think."

"That's nasty," the Black Eyed Peas frontman told Axios. "We've seen that with social media."

https://www.axios.com/2026/04/01/will-i-am-electric-three-wheeled-smart-car-nvidia

The era of the personal agent has finally arrived

Tech giants and startups are racing to build your AI agent.

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Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios. Stock: Getty Images

Illustration of a suited hand pointing a finger and multiple cursors shooting out. 

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios. Stock: Getty Images

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President Trump said Sunday morning his proposed "triumphal arch" in Washington, D.C., will become a dual-use facility housing snipers, drones and ammunition storage. 

Why it matters: The president is now framing construction of the arch as a national security issue — much like he did with the East Wing ballroom/military complex at the White House. 

What they're saying: "At the strong request of the United States Military, and for National Security purposes, I have agreed to convert the magnificent Triumphal Arch, planned since the Civil War Era many years ago, at the Receptive Circle adjoining the Arlington Memorial Bridge, into a top grade Military Complex/Triumphal Arch, to house, store, and have the rapid ability to use large numbers of drones, plus Snipers, on both the roof and plaza areas, and additionally have and hold large quantities of sniper ammunition in storage," Trump posted on Truth Social. 

Catch up quick: The proposed 250-foot arch would be one of the largest such monuments in the world, sparking concerns that it could interfere with other national symbols, block views and even complicate landings for pilots at nearby airports. 

The New York Times reported this week that the National Park Service is rushing through a final review of the project ahead of a likely approval in November. 

The NPS's own August report indicated the construction of the arch would have adverse effects on many nearby monuments and landmarks. 

This is a developing story. Check back for updates. 

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Trump's proposed Washington arch to become sniper, drone facility

The president is now framing construction of the arch as a national security issue.

Karoline Leavitt holding a photo of a rendering of the proposed DC triumphal arch. 

A rendering of the proposed triumphal arch. Photo: Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images

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A line chart showing the change in the S&P 500 from the last trading day before inauguration through the first twenty months of their term for presidents W. Bush, Obama, Biden and Trump. The S&P increased by 32.4% under Obama, 28.5% during Trump's first term, 27.6% under Trump's second term and 2.7% under Biden. It decreased 37.2% during W. Bush's term.

2026-09-14-president-sp500

Data: Financial Modeling Prep; Chart: Erin Davis/Axios Visuals

The stock market soared during the first 20 months of President Trump's second term, but slightly underperformed the same period of his first term.

Why it matters: Trump considers the stock market to be a proxy for the economy, even though many economists disagree.

By the numbers: The S&P 500 rose nearly 27.6% between inauguration day and this past Friday's close, compared to 28.5% during his first term.

The gap at 20 months is closer than it was at the one-year mark, with Trump 2.0 leapfrogging former President Biden but still trailing former President Obama.

Zoom in: Trump 2.0 also trails Trump 1.0 in terms of Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq Composite performance, but is ahead on the Russell 3000.

How Trump 2.0's stock market stacks up with predecessors

Trump 2.0 stock market easily topped Biden, but remains behind Obama and Trump 1.0.

A line chart showing the change in the S&P 500 from the last trading day before inauguration through the first twenty months of their term for presidents W. Bush, Obama, Biden and Trump. The S&P increased by 32.4% under Obama, 28.5% during Trump's first term, 27.5% under Trump's second term and 1.2%

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President Trump announced Saturday he is creating an "AI Force" modeled on the Space Force and will soon name a new AI czar, doubling down on his push to accelerate artificial intelligence development with limited regulation.

Why it matters: The White House isn't backing down from its laissez-faire  approach to AI, even as the industry's biggest leaders call for stronger safety rules and as public concern about AI intensifies.

The latest: Trump offered few details on what this AI Force would actually do, what budget it would have or where it would be placed in the federal government.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

His Truth Social post said the government would "not in any way hinder or stifle" AI's growth but would look for "BAD" behavior using "our already existing Criminal and Civil Justice System."

He compared the proposed AI Force to Space Force, a military branch established by Congress in his first term.

Catch up quick: Trump has hardened his anti-regulation position during an extraordinary month of warnings from inside the AI industry.

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and Demis Hassabis — the Nobel laureate who co-founded and chairs Google DeepMind — have all called for slowing AI development as their systems become more powerful.

Anthropic alignment researcher Evan Hubinger recently said he personally believes there is a greater than 10% chance AI could "kill all humans" within the next decade.

Trump responded by calling technologists' fears that AI could destroy humanity a "hoax" and saying the only guardrail the technology needs is a "strong and smart" president.

The intrigue: The AI czar position would revive a role that the White House didn't plan to fill six months ago.

David Sacks left the formal AI and crypto czar job in March, though he remains influential as co-chair of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.

By the numbers: Public sentiment has not matched Trump's enthusiasm.

A New York Times-Siena poll of 1,503 likely voters released this week found 61% opposed building data centers to power AI, including 47% of Republicans and 75% of Democrats.

An AP-NORC-University of Chicago poll also released this week found 53% were highly concerned about AI's environmental impact.

A POLITICO-Public First poll released this week found 63% of U.S. adults see at least a moderate risk that advanced AI could eventually destroy humanity.

The other side: Democrats have increasingly called for intervention, but they haven't united around a single AI agenda.

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) wants to pause advanced AI development and permanently ban so-called superintelligence — AI more capable than humans and able to operate beyond human control.

In a campaign email Friday night, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.)  called for strict safety standards and public oversight and warned Congress not to bail out Big Tech if the "AI bubble" pops.

Editor's note: This story has been updated with new detail throughout. 

Screenshot of a long Sept. 19 Truth Social post from Trump announcing plans to form an “AI Force” and appoint an AI “czar.”

Trump wants a new AI czar and an "AI Force" modeled on Space Force

The fight over how fast AI should move is widening.

Photo illustration of President Donald Trump pushing away a binary-filled speech bubble.

Photo illustration: Lindsey Bailey/Axios. Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

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President Trump said Friday he is banning CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House "effective immediately," escalating his long-running battles with news organizations.

Early Saturday morning, Politico, CNN and MS NOW said their journalists were denied access to White House grounds. 

Why it matters: Trump is seeking to use White House access against news outlets whose coverage he objects to, while threatening to target additional organizations.

Press freedom groups immediately called on news outlets to fight the bans.

Driving the news: Trump's Truth Social post called the three outlets "Fake News" and accused them of reporting "FICTION and LIES," before threatening to also ban other "Fake News Media Outlets."

The White House declined to comment beyond Trump's post.

"CNN stands fully behind our White House team and their fair and accurate reporting," the network posted on X. "We have a right under the U.S. Constitution to do that reporting without hindrance or interference from the government. Should the ban which President Trump threatened go ahead, it would be an illegal assault on that fundamental and constitutionally-protected right."

Politico similarly wrote that it "will continue to fairly report on this White House and future ones. We will vigorously defend our First Amendment rights against any attempt to restrict them."

Between the lines: The scope of the ban wasn't immediately clear. As of shortly after the post, CNN continued to work from the White House, the network reported.

But Saturday morning journalists for CNN, MS NOW and Politico were unable to gain access. "MS NOW intends to take any and all steps necessary to defend our First Amendment rights and the essential role of independent journalism in our democracy," the network said in a statement. 

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals has previously held that once the White House opens general press facilities to journalists, access can't be denied arbitrarily, and press pass restrictions must come with due process.

A divided appellate court last year said the White House does have broader discretion over which journalists enter restricted spaces like the Oval Office and Air Force One. That case, brought by the Associated Press, remains unresolved.

Friction point: Trump has previously moved to restrict access for reporters and outlets he has clashed with.

In 2018, the White House revoked CNN reporter Jim Acosta's credential. A federal judge later ordered the pass restored.

Last year, the administration barred the AP from some events because it continued to use "Gulf of Mexico," sparking the still-pending First Amendment case.

State of play: The White House took control of selecting the presidential press pool from the White House Correspondents' Association last year.

The Pentagon has also restricted press access, but a federal judge this year struck down parts of its credentialing policy. The Defense Department responded with a different restrictive policy that was also blocked, though that decision has been stayed pending appeal.

Last month, the Treasury Department denied credentials to some journalists who sought to cover the G20 meeting in North Carolina.

What they're saying: Press freedom groups raised alarms about Trump's announced ban.

Seth Stern, Freedom of the Press Foundation's advocacy director, called banning outlets over their coverage "a blatant violation of the First Amendment" and urged news outlets to challenge restrictions.

Jameel Jaffer, executive director of the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, compared the move to Trump's efforts targeting universities and law firms.

"With so many courts having ruled against him on exactly this point, you'd think President Trump would have learned this lesson by now," Jaffer said in a statement.

The National Press Club blasted the move as well. "Every American should understand what is at stake. If implemented, this ban would mark an unprecedented assault on press freedom," president Mark Schoeff Jr. said in a statement.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer likened Trump's actions to those of an autocrat. 

"Donald Trump just did what dictators throughout history have done," Schumer wrote on X. "@realDonaldTrump- this is a democracy. You will not be able to manipulate the news or hide the truth."

Editor's note: This story has been updated with new information throughout. 

Trump bans CNN, MS NOW and Politico from White House

His post leaves the ban's exact scope unclear.

President Trump speaks at a campaign rally in Gastonia, N.C., on Wednesday.

President Trump speaks at a campaign rally in Gastonia, N.C., on Wednesday. Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

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A map showing the global change in gasoline prices since Iran war began. The U.S. saw an increase of 49% and Iran's unsubsidized price doubled.

Change in gasoline prices since Iran war began

Data: Axios research. Note: Some countries use a quota system for gasoline. Malaysia's figure reflects the unsubsidized market rate. Chart: Noah Bressner/Axios

The Iran war is driving fuel prices higher worldwide, leading to angry protests around the globe and straining the economies of countries that have nothing to do with the war.

Why it matters: It's not just driving up prices in the U.S. The war is causing problems around the world — in some cases far worse than anything Americans are experiencing.

The surge in prices squeezes consumers, and worsens the finances of governments trying to contain the shock — especially poorer and developing countries with little fiscal running room.

It affects many nations that are also facing higher prices for natural gas, diesel and other fuels.

Zoom out: The map above, based on World Bank data, shows the upward global trend.

Yes, but: Price increases vary greatly from country to country.

A number of countries that are heavily reliant on fuel imports, like Pakistan and Myanmar, have seen steep price hikes.

But the U.S., the world's largest oil and gasoline producer, also has soaring prices. 

Crude oil prices, the biggest input into gasoline costs, are set on global markets. The U.S. federal government, unlike some nations, has not set caps or subsidies on retail prices.

Context: Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian refineries are also helping to boost motor fuel prices, especially diesel. 

The big picture: With no resolution to the conflict in sight, many governments face hard choices — strain their budgets with fuel support or face the political consequences of higher fuel costs.

State of play: Dozens of nations have taken steps to cap, subsidize or lower taxes on various fuels, per the International Energy Agency. Governments are also taking steps to reduce demand, such as more remote work and limiting government travel.

The International Monetary Fund is worried about the fiscal hit from price supports, especially if they outlast the energy shock. 

Iran war causes global pain at the pump

The war is causing problems around the world — in some cases far worse than in the U.S.

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