PDB Afternoon Bulletin | March 6th, 2026: Is Iran’s Regime Beginning to Crack? & War Powers Fight Fizzles on Capitol Hill

It's Friday, the 6th of March. Welcome to the PDB afternoon bulletin. I'm Mike Baker,

your eyes and ears on the world stage. Alright, let's get breathed.

First up, intelligent sources say members of Iran's security forces may already be abandoning

the regime, as reports indicate that personnel are failing to report for duty amid ongoing

American and Israeli strikes. I'll bring you the latest.

Later in the show, an effort in Congress aimed at limiting President Trump's war powers

over Iran collapse this week on Capitol Hill after key votes held on Wednesday and Thursday,

leaving the administration with broad latitude to continue the campaign. I'll explain

what lawmakers were trying to do and why it didn't work. But first, today's afternoon

spotlight. As U.S. and Israeli forces continue to dominate the skies over Iran, a new question

is beginning to surface among analysts and intelligence officers. Could the pressure

now be starting to crack the regime itself? After nearly a week of relentless airstrikes

that have battered Iran's military infrastructure and decimated the country's leadership ranks,

Israeli intelligence sources say there are signs that some Iranian soldiers, police officers

and members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the IRGC, are failing to report for

duty. That's a potential indicator of strain or dissent inside the regime's security apparatus.

The claim appears in a report from the economist, which describes the American Israeli air

campaign as an overwhelming military success so far. Earlier this week, U.S. Central Command

said nearly 2,000 targets have been struck inside Iran, while the Israeli military says

its aircraft have dropped more than 4,000 munitions since the war began. According to General

Dan Cain, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Iranian missile launches have now declined

by nearly 90% that's 90% since the first day of the war, while drone attacks have dropped

off by some 70%. Reports also suggest Iran's stockpile of munitions and equipment have been

severely depleted. At the same time, the strikes have dealt a major blow to Iran's chain of command.

As we've been tracking here on the PDB, much of the country's senior military and political

leadership has been killed, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Hamani. His early officials

have already signaled that potential successors, including Hamani's son Moshtaba, will be targeted

for assassination as the campaign continues. As a result, the regime is now facing extraordinary

pressure on multiple fronts, leaving its ability to effectively coordinate operations across the

region diminished. For example, according to reports cited by the Times of Israel,

militant groups such as Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad say they've been unable to reach

their usual handlers within the IRG scene since the war began. Those IRGC officers normally

maintain constant contact with the groups, coordinating funding and intelligence and operational

guidance. The sudden silence has raised questions about whether those command channels have been

severed, if the IRGC officers responsible for Palestinian affairs have been killed, or if they

have simply abandoned their posts. Still, other reporting suggests that the picture may be more

complicated. Officials briefed on the latest intel assessments told the Washington Post on Thursday

that while they are aware of reports that some Iranian security personnel have failed to report

for duty, that may not necessarily signal a collapse in morale. Instead, the officials said the

behavior could reflect orders for forces to disperse and avoid gathering in barracks or compounds,

which have become prime targets for Israeli air strikes. In other words, what might appear to be

the early signs of a security breakdown could also simply be battlefield adaptation, and despite

the scale of the bombardment, these officials said there is little evidence so far that the regime's

grip on power inside the country is slipping. European and Arab officials familiar with the intelligence

assessments say Iran's governing structure, which was said to be designed to survive this kind

of decapitation strike, remains largely intact. Security forces reportedly continue to patrol

Iranian cities. The besieged paramilitary remains active, and there have been no reports of

major defections or popular uprisings inside the country. And according to some reports,

regime officials have been vocal in stating that any citizens taking to the streets to protest

the regime will be killed. Senior Iranian officials reportedly anticipated the possibility of

leadership losses and built what analysts describe as a layered command structure with multiple

individuals prepared to step into key roles if senior figures were killed. Even after several

top leaders were eliminated in the opening strikes, replacement officials were quickly

appointed to maintain continuity of command. But to be clear, none of that means that the regime

is on solid ground. Authoritarian governments rarely collapse because buildings are destroyed or

weapon stockpiles are depleted. They collapse when the security forces that sustain them begin to

fracture when soldiers stop showing up when commanders defect or the state loses the ability to

enforce its authority. Now whether that process is beginning to unfold inside Iran, well,

that remains unclear. Okay, coming up next, we'll look at this week's failed effort by U.S.

Democrats to limit President Trump's war powers over Iran. I'll be right back.

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Welcome back to the afternoon bulletin. As US military operations against Iran continue overseas,

a very different battle unfolded this week in Washington DC, one over who actually has the

authority to send America to war. On Wednesday, the US Senate rejected a resolution that would

have forced President Trump to seek congressional authorization before continuing military operations

against Iran. The measure introduced by Democratic Senator Tim Cain of Virginia failed on a 47

to 53 vote, largely along party lines. The vote was held after several days of classified

briefings on Capitol Hill from senior administration officials that raised questions in both parties

about how long the US operation in Iran will last. Only one Republican Senator Rand Paul

of Kentucky voted in favor of the resolution while Democratic Senator John Federman of Pennsylvania

broke ranks with his party to oppose it. Now, the resolution would not have stopped military operations

overnight. Instead, it invoked the 1973 war powers resolution, which allows Congress to require

the president to end hostilities unless lawmakers formally authorize the conflict. Under the proposal,

US forces would eventually have to halt offensive operations against Iran, though defensive actions

such as protecting American troops would still be permitted. Supporters argued the vote was about

reasserting Congress's constitutional role in matters of war and peace. But critics, mostly Republicans,

warned that restricting the president in the middle of an ongoing military campaign would undermine

US forces and embolden adversaries. Some lawmakers also argued the current strikes fall within

the president's authority as commander in chief. And the effort to restrain the president didn't

gain traction in the House, either. On Thursday, lawmakers rejected a similar bipartisan resolution

introduced by Republican Congressman Thomas Massey of Kentucky and Democratic Congressman

Rokana of California. That measure failed on a 212 to 219 vote after several Democrats joined

most Republicans in opposing it. Their proposal would have also required the president to

terminate US military involvement in hostilities against Iran unless Congress formally authorized

the conflict, essentially forcing lawmakers to take a clear position on whether the war should

continue. Taken together, the votes amount to the first real test of whether Congress was willing

to curb the president's authority after the conflict began. And at least for now, lawmakers appear

reluctant to do so, leaving the administration with broad latitude as the military campaign against

Iran continues. And that, my friends, is the PDB afternoon bulletin for Friday, the 6th of March.

If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at PDB at thefirsttv.com.

This evening, as with every Friday evening, we launch a brand new episode of our extended weekend

show, the PDB situation report. Terrific guests this weekend, we've got former US fighter pilot,

Ryan Bowdenheimer. You may know him as Max Afterburner. Check out his YouTube channel,

that's at Max Afterburner USA. He's providing insight into the air campaign against Iran,

along with Bill Rosio from the Foundation for Defense of Democracies with analysis of what's

happening on the ground in Iran. You can catch it tonight at 10pm on the first TV, as well as on

our YouTube channel at President's Daily Brief and podcast platforms all over podcast land.

That's the PDB weekend situation report. I'm Mike Baker and I'll be back over the weekend with

the said PDB situation report. Until then, stay informed, stay safe, stay cool.

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