Tuesday Morning Minute

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'

Brian Trascher of United Cajun Navy Confirms a Blackhawk Did 'Rotor Wash' a Western NC Resource Site

Trascher affirmed UCN's mission to "show up and never back down" in providing first response in the aftermath of a disaster.

NEW: More Kamala '60 Minutes' Clips Show Why Her Campaign Is Doomed After Border and Gun Comments

I'm not sure what she thought she was going to get out of this interview.
But it just showed how unfit she was.

Tim Walz '60 Minutes' Interview Is a Train Wreck, As He Gets Nailed for Lying on the Show

This isn't just lying about himself now; it's lying about very substantive objections from thousands of people in his state.

WHAT'S ON TAP?

Today on Capitol Hill...

It's down to the wire, and some of the Senate races are tightening up (in a good way). It's easy to focus primarily on the presidential race (which is critical) but imagine a U.S. Senate without Chuck Schumer (D-NY) as the majority leader. It actually warms my heart.

With Monday being the one-year anniversary of the horrific October 7 attacks in Israel, a bipartisan group of lawmakers unveiled a resolution condemning Hamas. Meanwhile, Rep. Greg Landsman (D-OH) was treated to a group of ~~ghouls~~ anti-Israel protesters camped outside his house on Monday.

White House What's Up

Unlike Monday, President Joe Biden has a busy Tuesday. He'll start the day receiving his Daily Brief as well as briefings on the response to Hurricane Helene and preparations for Hurricane Milton, then deliver remarks on same. Then, he heads to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he'll deliver remarks "discussing the Biden-Harris Administration's progress in replacing lead pipes and creating good-paying jobs." Then he heads to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to participate in a campaign event with Sen. Bob Casey (D), before heading back to Washington, D.C.

And here's a little tidbit of interest: "From Friday, October 11th – Tuesday, October 15th, 2024, First Lady Jill Biden will travel to Arizona, Nevada, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania for political events." All it says is "political events" — no indication if these are in support of the Harris/Walz campaign. Those are all states with contested Senate races, so...one wonders.

The Homestretch

Unlike the fella she's hoping to replace, Vice President Kamala Harris will not be involved in hurricane response/preparedness meetings on Tuesday. Instead...she'll be giving three different "interviews" (a/k/a "The View," "Howard Stern," and "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert") in New York. No doubt, those will be hard-hitting. Her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, will be attending campaign events in Seattle, Washington, and Sacramento, California on Tuesday.

Former President Donald Trump was scheduled to participate in a Latino Summit roundtable in Miami, Florida, on Tuesday, but that event has been postponed due to the impending Hurricane Milton. Trump running mate Sen. JD Vance (R-OH) will deliver remarks in Detroit, Michigan.

Full Court Press...

The Supreme Court will hear oral argument in two more cases on Tuesday:

Garland v. Vanderstok —

In the Gun Control Act of 1968, 18 U.S.C. 921 et seq., Congress imposed licensing, background-check, recordkeeping, and serialization requirements on persons engaged in the business of importing, manufacturing, or dealing in firearms. The Act defines a "firearm" to include "any weapon * * * which will or is designed to or may readily be converted to expel a projectile by the action of an explosive," as well as "the frame or receiver of any such weapon." 18 U.S.C. 921(a)(3)(A) and (B). In 2022, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives issued a regulation clarifying that certain products that can readily be converted into an operational firearm or a functional frame or receiver fall within that definition. See 87 Fed. Reg.24,652 (Apr. 26, 2022) (codified in relevant part at 27 C.F.R. 478.11, 478.12(c)). The Fifth Circuit held that those regulatory provisions are inconsistent with the Act.

Issues:

Whether "a weapon parts kit that is designed to or may readily be completed, assembled, restored, or otherwise converted to expel a projectile by the action of an explosive," 27 C.F.R. 478.11, is a "firearm" regulated by the Act.
Whether "a partially complete, disassembled, or nonfunctional frame or receiver" that is "designed to or may readily be completed, assembled, restored, or otherwise converted to function as a frame or receiver," 27 C.F.R. 478.12(c), is a "frame or receiver" regulated by the Act.

The Supreme Court's Ruling on 'Ghost Guns' Could Be Pivotal

Lackey v. Stinnie —

The case began as a challenge to the constitutionality of a Virginia law that required the state’s department of motor vehicles to automatically suspend the licenses of any drivers who had unpaid court fines and fees. The law did not provide any process for the department to consider whether an individual driver was actually able to pay the fines and fees. When drivers were able to do so, they also faced an additional fee of $145 to reinstate their licenses.
The challengers went to federal court, seeking to have their licenses reinstated and an order known as a preliminary injunction, which temporarily barred the state from enforcing the law against them while the litigation continued. A federal district judge in Lynchburg, Va., granted that request, and the state did not appeal.
Before the case could go to trial, the Virginia legislature repealed the law, prompting the court to dismiss the case.
The challengers then returned to federal court, seeking to have the state reimburse them for their attorney’s fees. In most cases, the parties to a lawsuit have to pay their own lawyers’ fees. But federal law gives the “prevailing party” in some civil rights cases the right to recover reasonable attorney’s fees. The challengers contended that they were prevailing parties because the district court had ordered the DMV to reinstate their licenses. Even if the legislature later repealed the law, they argued, it doesn’t take away from the legal significance of their win.
The full U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit agreed with the challengers, prompting the state to come to the Supreme Court last fall, asking the justices to weigh in.

Issues:

Whether a party must obtain a ruling that conclusively decides the merits in its favor, as opposed to merely predicting a likelihood of later success, to prevail on the merits under 42 U.S.C. § 1988.
Whether a party must obtain an enduring change in the parties' legal relationship from a judicial act, as opposed to a non-judicial event that moots the case, to prevail under 42 U.S.C. 1988.

MORNING MUSING

There are a lot of promising signs as we look ahead to November 5 — but just as a friendly reminder: Most people aren't wired to want to give up power once they have it. And the ones least willing to — typically those who've held onto it the longest and amassed a great deal of it — will fight dirty as all get out to hold onto it. Keep your head on a swivel, vote as soon as you can, and leave nothing on the table — in all races, up and down the ballot.