Wednesday, January 22, 2025
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. We're still adjusting to the breathe-easier feeling of having a new (functioning) administration. Consider this your one-stop shop for news to kickstart your day.
TOP O' THE MORNIN'
Red-Hot at RedState
Trump's January 6 Pardons Met Mass Resistance From DC Jail and Federal Bureau of Prisons
Every case of a J6 prisoner being held past their legal release should result in terminations and criminal prosecution as they are sued into oblivion by the people they imprisoned.
Tale of Three Women: Usha Vance and Melania Bring the Class, While Lauren Sánchez Brings the Crass
You may have billions upon billions, Jeff and Lauren, but you’ve lost the plot.
What we have here is a sad case of a senior officer who has completely bought into the DEI balderdash.
Trending Across Townhall Media
'QAnon Shaman' Plans to Celebrate Pardon in Most American Way Possible
Now, though, he can go on with his life and by deciding to celebrate by buying guns, it's a definite affirmation that he is, in fact, a free man in every sense of the word these days.
Democrats see Americans as marks, and the Pravda Media is nothing but a propaganda operation to deceive the American people.
An Open Letter to the Left-Wing Bishop Who Lectured Trump and Vance at the National Prayer Service
And yet you have no words of admonishment or guidance for your own flock.
Greg Gutfeld Just Took His Fox Co-Host to the Cleaners Over Trump and Birthright Citizenship
They know, but they also can’t do anything to revive their credibility so spreading fake news is all they have.
'I Want Them Brought to JUSTICE!': Brent Bozell Recounts How His Son Was Railroaded for Jan 6
All we can say is that some people had better lawyer up when Pam Bondi and Kash Patel take office.
WHAT'S ON TAP?
Today on Capitol Hill...
No confirmation hearings are set on this Hill Hump Day, but there are a couple of hearings/meetings to consider advancing several of the nominees, along with other business to attend to:
- House Judiciary, Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement Subcommittee — “Restoring Immigration Enforcement in America”
- Senate Budget — Hearings to examine the nomination of Russell Vought, of Virginia, to be Director of the Office of Management and Budget
- House Transportation and Infrastructure, Highways and Transit Subcommittee — "America Builds: Highways to Move People and Freight"
- House Homeland Security — "Unconstrained Actors: Assessing Global Cyber Threats to the Homeland"
- House Energy and Commerce, Environment Subcommittee — “A Decade Later: Assessing the Legacy and Impact of the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act”
- House Veterans' Affairs — Restoring Focus: Putting Veterans First in Community Care
- Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation — Business meeting to consider the nomination of Sean Duffy, of Wisconsin, to be Secretary of Transportation
What we should be seeing is the Senate taking up floor votes on the nominees who've been voted out of committee, but Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and the Senate Dems have decided to drag their feet and throw up every delay and roadblock they can under the rules. As a consequence, Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) has let the Senate know they'll be working through the weekend. #ResistTheyMuch
White House What's Up
President Donald Trump is scheduled to sit for an interview with Fox News Channel's Sean Hannity on Wednesday (to air Wednesday evening).
Tuesday saw several more executive orders/actions issued, including one aimed at getting the FAA back to merit-based hiring and one ordering all federal DEI departments shuttered and employees in DEI roles placed on paid leave. The second day of Trump 2.0 (first full day in office) also saw a major infrastructure announcement regarding AI.
And a note/observation about that first full day: Even after the White House called a lid for the day, Trump was still at work in the Oval.
The White House called a lid signaling that the president is done with public events for the day. But Trump is still working in the Oval Office. A marine standing guard indicates so. pic.twitter.com/FTBaGEqbrO
— Reagan Reese (@reaganreese_) January 22, 2025
Full Court Press...
There are two more cases set for oral argument before the Supreme Court on Wednesday:
- Barnes v. Felix — Whether courts should apply the moment of the threat doctrine when evaluating an excessive force claim under the Fourth Amendment.
- Cunningham v. Cornell University — Whether a plaintiff can state a claim by alleging that a plan fiduciary engaged in a transaction constituting a furnishing of goods, services, or facilities between the plan and a party in interest, as proscribed by 29 U.S.C. § 1106(a)(1)(C), or whether a plaintiff must plead and prove additional elements and facts not contained in the provision's text.
As the Left continues to cluck over Trump's J6 pardons, some of the J6 jailers apparently didn't think they were bound by the Constitution and delayed releasing the defendants. Civil rights suits incoming...
On Tuesday, Judge Aileen Cannon blocked the release of Volume 2 of (former) Special Counsel Jack Smith's "Final Report" and spanked the Biden DOJ in the process/on their way out the door.
Lastly, a shout-out to Missouri's own Ed Martin, who's been tapped by Trump to serve as acting U.S. Attorney in D.C. (and immediately began filing motions to dismiss the J6 cases/release the J6 defendants. Between Martin, Will Scharf as Staff Secretary, and John Sauer as Solicitor General, Missouri is well-represented in the second Trump administration.
COMING ATTRACTIONS
On Thursday, Senate committees will review the nominations of Doug Collins (Veterans Affairs Secretary), Lee Zeldin (EPA Administrator), Doug Burgum (Secretary of the Interior), Chris Wright (Secretary of Energy), and Eric Turner (HUD Secretary). They'll also hold a hearing on Sean Driscoll's nomination for Secretary of the Army and Brooke Rollins' nomination for Secretary of Agriculture.
On Friday, President Trump will head to North Carolina to survey the situation as recovery efforts from Hurricane Helene continue. After that, he'll head to Los Angeles, California, to survey the wildfire damage, followed potentially by a stop in Nevada.
And, as noted above, the Senate may be working through the weekend trying to get Trump's nominees confirmed.
MORNING MUSING
Has it really only been two days since Trump was sworn in? There's that saying/meme, "Life comes at you fast," and I've a feeling that's going to define this presidency. Trump means business. I'm not naive enough to think I'll love everything he does — that would be creepy — but it's gratifying to know I'll like the vast majority of it infinitely more than I've liked the way Joe Biden (and the people pulling his strings) operated over the past four years. I'm still pinching myself — is this real? Also, this once again underscores that we've allowed the presidency/Executive Branch to become entirely too powerful. Hoping that some of the course corrections help us ease away from that. There won't always be Republican presidents.
LIGHTER FARE
It's good to know that even when it blizzards in the South, Waffle House will come through.
Yep, they’re still open. This is Pensacola, Florida. ❄️ @WaffleHouse pic.twitter.com/VQzp1f1C1m
— Matt Devitt (@MattDevittWX) January 22, 2025
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