Thursday, October 30, 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. Consider this your one-stop shop for news to kickstart your day.
TOP O' THE MORNIN'
Red-Hot at RedState
As Obama's legacy falls apart in the United States, accountability may be coming his way.
Turns out the administration's policy of keeping Biden in the basement went beyond just the public; apparently, he was kept away from key spokespeople as well.
Don’t Fall for It: Marine Colonel’s Resignation Letter Was a Move of PR Over Principle
Col. Krugman served and is most deserving of the fruits of constitutionalism for it. But turning this officer’s curtain call into an ideological swipe should be recognized for what it is.
Trending Across Townhall Media
Massachusetts Says Its 'Assault Weapon' Ban Immune to Federal Challenge
Massachusetts will undoubtably offer more defenses to the latest iteration of its gun ban as the lawsuit moves forward, including the argument that the First Circuit upheld an earlier version of the ban. And given the makeup of the First Circuit, that argument could prove to be acceptable, at least when the case reaches the appellate court.
Democrats Setting Themselves Up To Cave Twice In Two Weeks On The Same C.R.
Democrat strategists' nightmare scenario is that the least worst option for them might be to crash out of the shutdown before the Virginia and New Jersey elections, before the polling gets even worse for them. Yes, they'll get flattened on same day turnout, but they might be already flattening the longer this goes on.
And the Dictionary.com Word of the Year Is... You've Got to Be Kidding Me
Bill Maher's Observations About the 'No Kings' Insanity Was Spot-On
It’s a white whine fest. That’s the observation Bill Maher noted about the October 18 'No Kings' circus, which did nothing but increase the popularity of the Republican Party and Donald Trump.
THIS Is Abi Spanberger's Party: Virginia House Speaker SILENCES Delegate Speaking Against Violence
Vote wisely, Virginia. Our Commonwealth is at stake, but based on how Democrats vote, so are our lives.
WHAT'S ON TAP?
Today on Capitol Hill...
Things are getting a might chippy in/around the Senate of late.
SEE: Watch: Thune Goes Scorched Earth on Schumer Shutdown Dems in Blistering Floor Speech on SNAP Debate
'Worse Than Watergate': Senators Reveal Massive Scope of Biden Spying Efforts in Arctic Frost
They did manage to confirm another judge on Wednesday: Edmund G. LaCour Jr., to be United States District Judge for the Northern District of Alabama.
On the other hand, they passed another resolution rejecting President Trump's tariffs — this time as to Canadian goods. As with the rejection of Brazilian tariffs, there were Republican senator defectors again, only this time, Thom Tillis (NC) did not join in, leaving only Susan Collins (ME), Mitch McConnell (KY), Lisa Murkowski (AK), and Rand Paul (KY) to side with the Dems.
There are several hearings/meetings set for Thursday in the Senate:
- Senate Armed Services — Hearings to examine the nomination of Vice Admiral Richard A. Correll, USN, to be Admiral and Commander, United States Strategic Command
- Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs — Hearings to examine the nominations of Joseph Gormley, of Maryland, to be President, Government National Mortgage Association, Francis Cassidy, of Pennsylvania, to be an Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Paul Hollis, of Louisiana, to be Director of the Mint for a term of five years, and Travis Hill, of Maryland, to be Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation for a term of five years
- Senate Judiciary — Business meeting to consider S.1884, to clarify the Holocaust Expropriated Art Recovery Act of 2016, to appropriately limit the application of defenses based on the passage of time and other non-merits defenses to claims under that Act, and the nominations of Robert P. Chamberlin, and James D. Maxwell II, both to be a United States District Judge for the Northern District of Mississippi, James Kruger, to be United States Attorney for the Southern District of Mississippi, and Scott Leary, to be United States Attorney for the Northern District of Mississippi
- Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions — Hearings to examine the nomination of Casey Means, of California, to be Medical Director in the Regular Corps of the Public Health Service, subject to qualifications therefor as provided by law and regulations, and to be Surgeon General of the Public Health Service for a term of four years — Heads up to the MAHA crowd
White House What's Up
On Thursday (Wednesday night for us), President Trump met with Chinese President Xi Jinping while in South Korea. He's winging his way back to the U.S. and set to return to D.C. in the afternoon. In the evening, he and First Lady Melania are hosting Halloween at the White House.
Vice President JD Vance joined Erika Kirk for a Turning Point USA event at Ole Miss on Wednesday evening.
READ MORE: JD Vance Emphasizes Faith, Family, and Courage in Rousing Speech at TPUSA Ole Miss Event
Erika Kirk at Ole Miss: 'You Can't Change a Nation If You're Enslaved to Fear'
Keeping Up With the Cabinet
Sec. Energy - Chris Wright — Wright had praise for both President Trump and...Bill Gates "for helping bring the [climate] conversation back to common sense!"
Real progress on climate is about improving lives, reducing vulnerability, and making the world better for everyone.
— Secretary Chris Wright (@SecretaryWright) October 30, 2025
Grateful to President Trump and Bill Gates for helping bring the conversation back to common sense! https://t.co/kYAxxWUEot
Full Court Press...
I guess the Supreme Court heard me tapping my fingers on that Illinois National Guard case because they finally issued a ruling...sort of. They ordered the parties to provide additional briefing on:
Whether the term “regular forces” refers to the regular forces of the United States military, and, if so, how that interpretation affects the operation of 10 U. S. C. §12406(3)
The lower courts were busy on Wednesday, as well:
- ❌ Chicago Headline Club v. Noem (National Guard Deployment) — Judge Sara Ellis (Northern District of Illinois) continues to micro-manage ICE operations. (She modified her prior TRO to place further conditions on DHS.) The administration then sought a writ of mandamus from the 7th Circuit, leading to...⬇️
- ✅ Noem v. Ellis (Chicago Headline Club v. Noem - National Guard deployment), 7th Circuit Court of Appeals GRANTS administration's request for administrative stay.
- ↔️ Newsom v. Trump (National Guard deployment) — 9th Circuit DENIES plaintiffs' motion for injunctive relief pending appeal as unnecessary, as the district court still retains jurisdiction to address the requested relief. (This one is essentially a wash because the denial just redirected the plaintiffs back to the district court for the relief they're seeking.)
- ↔️ Grundmann v. Trump (removal of independent agency leaders)— D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals orders case held in abeyance pending SCOTUS ruling in Slaughter case.
MORNING MUSING
I was glad to see the administration take an appeal on the second Illinois National Guard case — the one in which Judge Sara Ellis has decided to micromanage DHS operations at the Broadview ICE facility. Her latest modified temporary restraining order demanded, in pertinent part:
The Court orders Defendants to have all Federal Agents operating in Operation Midway Blitz to place an identifier conspicuously on their uniform where one can easily view it and the Agent's equipment does not obscure it. Custom and Border Protection will strive to ensure that all CBP agents working in Operation Midway Blitz have body−worn cameras. Additionally, Defendant Bovino has agreed to have a body−worn camera assigned to him by 10/31/2025 and have completed BWC training. The Court orders Defendants to provide to the Court, under seal, all CBP use of force reports relating to Operation Midway Blitz from 9/2/2025 through 10/25/2025, by COB 10/31/2025. The Court further orders Defendants to provide to the Court, under seal, all BWC video corresponding to the use of force reports from 9/2/2025 through 10/25/2025 filed with the Court by COB 10/31/2025. The Court orders Defendants to provide to the Court, under seal, all additional CBP use of force reports and corresponding BWC video within 24 hours of finalization of the CBP reports. The Court orders Defendant Bovino to appear in court, in person, week days at 5:45 PM (modifying the Court's oral order during the hearing to account for the security needs of the Dirksen Courthouse) in courtroom 1403 to report on the use of force activities for each day.
When I read the order, my reaction, after I picked my jaw off the floor, was to note that Judge Ellis is attempting to micromanage ICE operations. Apparently, that wasn't just me — the administration has petitioned the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals for a writ of mandamus on Ellis' order, noting in their petition the degree of micromanaging in which Ellis is engaging.
Oh really? https://t.co/63UBDHQRQt pic.twitter.com/O6g7nZqKx5
— Susie Moore ⚾️🌻🐶 (@SmoosieQ) October 30, 2025
As noted above, the 7th Circuit has at least issued an administrative (temporary) stay. That doesn't mean that will hold, but at least it's being looked at.
I give judges a lot of deference — it's ingrained in me because of my legal education and career. But the degree to which Ellis (and quite a few of her judicial peers) appear to think they're entitled and obligated to micromanage this administration is appalling.
No. That's not how it works.
LIGHTER FARE
Just hangin' around...
Secret hideout busted..🐈🐾😅 pic.twitter.com/VOVBNnZPir
— 𝕐o̴g̴ (@Yoda4ever) October 29, 2025
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