>> thank you, michael. ahead, this week in retaliation for weeks of attacks on commercial ships in the red sea by iran-backed rebels, the u.s. and allies launched two days of assault. will this make the region safer or lead to mr escalation? and how about this, monitoring on public police communications used to be somewhat of an obscure hobby. with the advent of the internet, technology has made it easier to listen not only locally but nationally. so where is the line between the right to listen in and invasion of privacy? plus, don't forget, please vote on today's poll question at smerconish.com. is the republican nomination already over?