Wednesday 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'

Newsweek Gets Mocked Into Next Week for 'Fact-Checking' Supposed 18th-Century Painting of Trump

This may not be as embarrassing as Joe and Mika’s epic flip flop over at MSNBC, where they went from eight years of calling Trump Hitler to suddenly visiting him at Mar-a-Lago to kiss the ring, but it’s still pretty humiliating.

This Fight Between Cenk Uygur and Left-Wing Pollster Is Glorious: 'You Were Preposterously Wrong’

If I had known this was going to happen on Piers Morgan's show, I would have gladly watched this fight over the Jake Paul-Mike Tyson bout. I mean this — THIS — was popcorn-worthy.

Travesty: Elderly Vet Told to Remove Trump Signs or FEMA Officials Would View Him As ‘Domestic Terrorist’

It seems a more thorough investigation needs to be undertaken to see just how widespread this attitude of abandoning Trump supporters during an emergency has become.

WHAT'S ON TAP?

Today on Capitol Hill...

Yet another busy day on Capitol Hill Wednesday — lots of meetings and hearings, including:

House Homeland Security — "Worldwide Threats to the Homeland"
House Appropriations, Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Subcommittee — Investigating the Crisis of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women
House Veterans' Affairs, Technology Modernization Subcommittee — VA Cybersecurity: Protecting Veteran Data from Evolving Threats
Senate Appropriations — Hearings to examine disaster funding needs
House Judiciary, Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement Subcommittee — Oversight of the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Refugee Resettlement
House Foreign Affairs, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations Subcommittee — Meeting the Challenges of Global Brain Health: Diagnosis and Treatment for the 21st Century

White House What's Up

President Joe Biden returned from this South American jaunt late Tuesday night, so naturally, there's nothing on his schedule for Wednesday aside from receiving his Daily Brief. Hopefully, Russia won't get a wild hair and decide to disturb his rest.

Full Court Press...

Tuesday was a bit of a rollercoaster ride on the Trump legal front, with an anticipated ruling from Judge Juan Merchan on the immunity issue giving way to a request from Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office to postpone that and sentencing while contemplating whether Trump's election preempts his being sentenced. So far, there's been no response from Merchan as to what he intends to do next. We're watching.

Speaking of Bragg's office, the trial of Daniel Penny continues in New York, with the prosecution seeking to suppress Jordan Neely's drug use and psychiatric records. The judge apparently disagreed and the forensic psychiatrist was permitted to testify.

The trial of Jose Ibarra for the murder of Laken Riley continues in Georgia, with witness testimony expected to wrap Wednesday. As it is a bench trial, a verdict may come as early as today.

MORNING MUSING

Since it's the topic du jour (as opposed to Biden turning up the heat on the Russia-Ukraine war front on his way out the door), I'm going to share my thoughts about The Great Bathroom Debate (which I shared yesterday on X):

I don't think there's an easy answer, TBH. Obviously, a number of businesses and public accommodations have taken to offering all-gender restrooms as a workaround. And perhaps that's the most rational, compassionate solution. [Clarification: By this, I mean in addition to, not in place of, unless we're talking about single-occupancy bathrooms.]
This issue is most often analyzed/argued around the issue of trans-women (i.e., biological males using spaces traditionally reserved for girls/women). That carries with it an added safety/security component. Are (biological) females entitled to their own private spaces? If so, then it seems inappropriate to allow biological males to use them.
But then, what about the reverse situation? If trans-men (biological females) who "appear" male use a women's restroom, that's liable to cause concern, too. But if we make it strictly a biological determination, that's the restroom they should be using.
I do think it's inconsistent for people to claim: "You do you — if you're an adult and you want to live your life as the opposite gender of your biology, that's fine. Just leave kids out of it." And then turn around and say, "People should only use the facilities that match their biological gender."