Tuesday, March 24, 2026
Good morning, and welcome to RedState's "Morning Minute" — a brief glimpse at which stories are trending at the moment and a look ahead at what the day may bring. Consider this your one-stop shop for news to kickstart your day.
TOP O' THE MORNIN'
Red-Hot at RedState
Bonta's behavior is confusing. Critics of the probe want to dismiss the larger gap as a simple paperwork misunderstanding — yet Bonta is pulling out every legal stop to prevent an actual physical count under a court-appointed special master. If it’s truly just 103 votes of human error, why go to emergency writ extremes to stop a court-supervised physical count?
Russia Just Delivered a Big Message to Iran About What It Should Do in Response to the U.S.
They apparently want this done and don't want their oil supply at risk. They also know ultimately that if the U.S. wins and in the process ends the regime in Iran, they could be up a creek without a paddle, just like what happened with Venezuela.
The Callous, Cheap Political Stunt JB Pritzker Pulled That Could Come Back to Haunt Him
Rest assured that this case is going to be brought back up in 2028 by Republicans, including whoever the eventual nominee is, as an example of how far Democrats will go to protect illegals - at the expense of the lives of innocent Americans.
Trending Across Townhall Media
Bearing Arms — Federal Appeals Court Seems Skeptical of Reciprocity Argument
Travelers at the time of the Founding weren't subject to restrictions like this, and gun owners shouldn't be subjected to them today in order to bear arms beyond the borders of their home state.
Hot Air — Moving Ever Farther Left, Rep. Angie Craig Says She Regrets Voting for Laken Riley Act
Minnesota Democrats have made clear that their #1 priority is moving as far left as quickly as possible. It's clear to me that the generation of Democrats who saw Angie Craig's "moderate Democrat" shtick as their path to victory is now powerless compared to the generation of progressives who see Ilhan Omar as a hero.
PJ Media — It Gets Much Worse: Code Pink's Cuban Commie Vacation Hits a New Low
Thankfully, the Cuban people themselves are continuing to find ways to show the truth of their situation, and they know exactly whose fault it is.
Townhall — This Dem Election Strategy Could Get Nuked by the Supreme Court
Mail-in ballots are susceptible to fraud. And these windows for counting them are insane. Enough. Let’s see what happens.
Barack Obama took to X to admit what conservatives always knew ... Obamacare was just a 'first step'.
WHAT'S ON TAP?
Today on Capitol Hill...
There's a lot going on on the Hill today, including multiple hearings:
- Senate Armed Services — A closed hearing to examine low-cost munitions; to be immediately followed by an open hearing.
- Senate Judiciary, Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action, and Federal Rights Subcommittee — Hearings to examine Arctic Frost.
- Senate Foreign Relations — Hearings to examine arms control and transforming international security functions at the State Department.
- Senate Armed Services, Cybersecurity Subcommittee — Hearings to examine enterprise security and information technology operations of Department of Defense networks and systems; to be immediately followed by a closed session.
- Senate Intelligence (Select) — To receive a closed briefing on certain intelligence matters.
- House Rules — H.R. 8029 – Pay Our Homeland Defenders Act; H. Res. 1128 – Expressing the support of the House of Representatives for the Department of Homeland Security; H.R. 7084 – Defending American Property Abroad Act of 2026; H.R. 5103 – Make the District of Columbia Safe and Beautiful Act of 2026.
- House Intelligence (Permanent Select) — Committee Business to Consider: 1) Amendment to Committee Rules; 2) Release of Committee Transcripts.
On Monday, the Senate voted to confirm Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) as the next Secretary of Homeland Security. He'll be sworn in later today.
READ MORE: Markwayne Mullin Is Confirmed As Department of Homeland Security Secretary
There are also whispers that there's been some progress on the DHS funding stalemate.
White House What's Up
President Trump's Tuesday is teed up:
- 8:00 AM — THE PRESIDENT participates in Executive Time — The White House
- 1:30 PM — THE PRESIDENT participates in a Swearing-In Ceremony for the Secretary of Homeland Security — Oval Office
- 2:00 PM — THE PRESIDENT participates in a Policy Meeting — Oval Office
- 4:00 PM — THE PRESIDENT participates in a Policy Meeting — Oval Office
- 5:00 PM — THE PRESIDENT participates in Signing Time — Oval Office
Also, on Tuesday morning, First Lady Melania Trump delivers Opening Remarks at the Fostering the Future Together Global Coalition Summit at the State Department.
Keeping Up With the Cabinet
Sec. Agriculture - Brooke Rollins — Rollins was in Nebraska on Monday, addressing concerns over wildfires in the state.
Today in Ogallala, Nebraska, I met with ranchers whose herds, operations, and multi-generational family legacies have been devastated by the largest wildfire in state history.⁰
— Secretary Brooke Rollins (@SecRollins) March 24, 2026
We flew an aerial tour over the ranchlands, received a full briefing from our wonderful leads on the… pic.twitter.com/oRMC53QSvz
Full Court Press...
There were several notable decisions on Monday, including:
- ↔️ In New Mexico v. Musk/Japanese American Citizens League v. Musk (establishment of DOGE), Judge Tanya Chutkan (D.C.) partially GRANTS admin's motion to dismiss (as to separation of powers, APA claims), but denies as to Appointments Clause and ultra vires claims.
- ❌ In Freedom Network USA v. Trump (Notices of Funding Opportunities (NOFOs) for certain grants under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA)), Judge Matthew Kennelly (Northern District of Illinois) partially GRANTS plaintiffs' motion for preliminary injunction.
Today at the Supreme Court, we've got oral argument in two cases:
- Keathley v. Buddy Ayres Construction — Whether the doctrine of judicial estoppel can be invoked to bar a plaintiff who fails to disclose a civil claim in bankruptcy filings from pursuing that claim simply because there is a potential motive for nondisclosure, regardless of whether there is evidence that the plaintiff in fact acted in bad faith.
- Noem v. Al Otro Lado — The Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq. , provides that an alien who"arrives in the United States" may apply for asylum and must be inspected by an immigration officer. 8 U.S.C. 1158(b)(1)(A), 1225(a)(1) and (3). The question presented is whether an alien who is stopped on the Mexican side of the U.S.-Mexico border "arrives in the United States" within the meaning of those provisions.
COMING ATTRACTIONS
The Supreme Court may be handing down additional decisions on Wednesday.
MORNING MUSING
The tragic death of Sheridan Gorman in Chicago last week really hits close to home for me. As someone who was a student in Chicago in my early 20s, and who spent plenty of time along the lake shore there and in Rogers Park, it's hard not to feel the horror of what happened to Sheridan a bit more keenly.
And what really strikes close to home is the fact that Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and his office appear to be more concerned with deflecting the political ramifications of the situation than in addressing the issue head-on. You see, JB was my classmate all those years ago when I was a student living along Lake Michigan in Chicago. I'm not going to pretend that he and I strolled together along the Lake — we did not; we ran in somewhat different circles. But our class was small enough that we all knew one another — I even gave him a ride home from school once.
ALSO SEE: The Callous, Cheap Political Stunt JB Pritzker Pulled That Could Come Back to Haunt Him
So I feel a connection both to the place and the people. And the fact that it didn't take but a hot second for JB to call for abolishing ICE after Alex Pretti was killed (in Minnesota, not Illinois, mind you), but it took him four days to acknowledge Sheridan's murder speaks volumes.
We see you, JB. And we hear you loud and clear.
LIGHTER FARE
So sweet!
Mama koala and her babies..🐨😍
— 𝕐o̴g̴ (@Yoda4ever) March 23, 2026
📹 australianreptilepark pic.twitter.com/drlkpgvSVd
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