Monday, February 9, 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
White House Drops Epic 'Unapologetically American' Smackdown Video to Counter Bad Bunny
The NFL offered someone who blatantly gave America the middle finger. Fortunately, Turning Point USA gave us artists who sang about the greatness of our nation and urged people to dust off their Bibles.
HOT TAKES: Bad Bunny's Super Bowl Halftime Show Performance Was a Middle Finger to America
I know every halftime show can't be legendary, but maybe we could set the bar just a smidge higher?
That Tulsi Gabbard 'Whistleblower' Story Just Completely Fell Apart
There's not even the husk of an actual newsworthy report left after that correction. Even if we take this latest revision as fact, and there's no reason to give that benefit of the doubt, we are left with people associated with foreign intelligence talking about the U.S. administration. Stop the presses!
Trending Across Townhall Media
Fifth Circuit Judge Casts Doubt on Federal Laws Dealing With Possession of Firearms
There is nothing in the Constitution that explicitly allows Congress to write laws criminalizing gun possession, but there is language stating that the right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed (presumably, by any branch of the federal government). Willett's faithfulness to federalism is something to be admired, and if there is an opening on the Supreme Court before the end of Donald Trump's second term, the 59-year-old judge would be my first pick to fill the vacancy.
If Only Loudoun County Could Be Expelled From the Union...
Unfortunately, unless they violate state or federal laws (which they likely are with their transgender policies), only the voters of Loudoun County can remove them. That they haven't says nothing good about those people.
The Best Thing About the Super Bowl Halftime Show Was Trump’s Response to It
Trump's reaction was perfect because it captured exactly what regular Americans were thinking while watching the halftime show.
Systems only function if all the parts work as designed. You can’t refuse to do your part in a system and expect it to keep functioning. When you change your input, you alter the output.
We’ve heard of people being described as a ‘tall drink of water’ but not a ‘short cup of coffee.’
WHAT'S ON TAP?
Today on Capitol Hill...
Things started out early on the Hill this Monday, with a Capitol Police "routine training exercise" (which should, theoretically, be over by the time this publishes).
EXERCISE: On Monday, February 9, 2026, at approximately 6:00 a.m., we will be working with our federal partners on a routine training exercise on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol. Please do not be alarmed if you see emergency vehicles and low flying helicopters. pic.twitter.com/PUDAJCkG8n
— The U.S. Capitol Police (@CapitolPolice) February 9, 2026
The big story this week will, of course, be DHS funding and the looming deadline for it. Here's some of the latest on that:
Fox confirms that Senate Dems send legislative text for DHS spending plan to GOPers
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) February 8, 2026
Fox confirms that Senate Dems send legislative text for DHS spending plan to Republicans ahead of another deadline to fund the department as of 11:59:59 pm et Friday night, February 13.
This…
Also, Ghislaine Maxwell is set to testify in front of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee today...but is expected to plead the Fifth Amendment rather than testify substantively. So there's that.
White House What's Up
President Trump is back in D.C. following a weekend at Mar-a-Lago. He's got a TV interview Monday afternoon, followed by another policy meeting in the Oval Office.
Vice President JD Vance, along with the rest of the U.S. Olympic Delegation, is in Italy for the Winter Games.
📸Vice President Vance, @SLOTUS, and @SecRubio at the U.S. Olympic Delegation lunch. pic.twitter.com/q1fKL6V42x
— Vice President JD Vance (@VP) February 8, 2026
Keeping Up With the Cabinet
Dir. Central Intelligence Agency - John Ratcliffe — Ratcliffe has been keeping a fairly low profile of late, which, come to think of it, is probably appropriate, given his role. He did travel to Venezuela to meet with acting President Delcy Rodriguez several weeks ago.
Full Court Press...
We've seen several notable court decisions over the past few days, including:
- ✅ National Ass’n of Diversity Officers in Higher Ed. v. Trump (ban on DEIA initiatives) — 4th Circuit Court of Appeals VACATES District Court's preliminary injunction and remands for further proceedings.
- ❌ State of New York v. Administration for Children and Families (freezing access to certain federal child care and family assistance funds for CA, CO, IL, MN, and NY) — Judge Vernon Broderick (Southern District of New York) GRANTS plaintiffs' motion for preliminary injunction.
- ✅ Buenrostro-Mendez v. Bondi (habeas) — 5th Circuit Court of Appeals REVERSES and remands case to district court (allowing for detention of aliens pending deportation proceedings)
- ❌ Aljorna v. Easterwood (habeas) — Judge Patrick Schiltz (Minnesota) GRANTS petition for habeas corpus and orders immediate release from custody.
READ MORE: Big Win for Trump Admin. on DEIA Initiatives As 4th Circuit Puts Kibosh on Lower Court Injunction
Trump Wins Big As 5th Circuit Upholds Indefinite Detention Without Bond for Illegal Immigrants
COMING ATTRACTIONS
As noted, Ghislaine Maxwell is set to testify before the House Oversight Committee today. We expect that she'll plead the Fifth, but Bill and Hillary Clinton are teed up for later in the month.
Congress is going to have to figure out something about DHS funding this week, otherwise, it's Shutdown Season...again.
Also, keep an eye on those Iran talks:
MORNING MUSING
I know we've discussed the 72-hour rule before — that idea that it's always best to give a hot new story a good 72 hours to settle before rendering any conclusions about it. Even that may be premature, but it's a safe bet that immediate hot takes are all too often not going to stand the test of time.
The downside of that is if you're pushing a particular narrative, you're liable to come up against some heavy skepticism. The upside is that many of us who've learned that lesson the hard way are no longer taken in so readily by narratives pushed by, well, we'll just call it/them "the Deep State."
We've seen them run this play time and again: Report on something dastardly involving a member of the administration. Shroud it with mystery, invoking "people familiar with the matter" and "someone close to the president," and paint the picture of something terribly awry. Call for investigation. Call for impeachment. Cry wolf!
Sorry, my friends, that dog don't hunt anymore. Witness:
That Tulsi Gabbard 'Whistleblower' Story Just Completely Fell Apart
LIGHTER FARE
The intrusive thoughts have won..🐈⬛🐾🐈😅 pic.twitter.com/IpFUOdnOH7
— 𝕐o̴g̴ (@Yoda4ever) February 8, 2026
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