Monday, March 23, 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
Mamma Mia! Italian Anarchist Couple Blow Themselves Up While Trying to Engineer Mass Casualty IED
So congratulations to them. They did kill people — themselves. Arrivederci, sayonara, au revoir, toodle‑oo. You'll probably be memorialized as twisted but somehow noble heroes in a Hollywood/Netflix avant-garde film someday, but for now, you are just what you are: dead would-be killers.
Unless we later learn that Senator Schatz did, as Senator Kennedy graciously suggested, suddenly fall ill, then this was a perfectly shameful performance.
Trump Threatens Weak-Kneed Republicans—No DHS Funding Deal Until Dems Cave on SAVE America Act
Trump won't back down, and neither should Senate Republicans.
Trending Across Townhall Media
Bearing Arms — D.C. Government Continues Epic Freakout Over Magazine Ban Decision
In other words, so long as the District complies with the appellate court's decision, it can prosecute as many cases of possession of unregistered guns and carrying without a license as the local Attorney General can find... at least until those statutes, too, are found to be unconstitutional.
Hot Air — Democrat Lies About Homeland Security Shutdown Get More Insane Every Day
Since Elon Musk can't fund the TSA, perhaps he should spend the money he was offering on something that might work to break the logjam: commercials exposing the Democrats' lies. What the Democrats are doing is a campaign ploy, so treat it like one.
PJ Media — Ugly, Cheap, and Deadly: The A-10 Proves Itself Again Over the Red Sea
The A-10 Warthog keeps proving a simple truth: looks and hype don't win fights; capability does.
Townhall — This Dem Senator Had the Dumbest Tweet About ICE Agents Working at Airports
You’re lying, Dick—just like you did when you said you were hunting ‘Charlie’ in Vietnam.
Twitchy — On Diego Garcia, Anthony Scaramucci Is Just Asking Questions -- Really, Really Dumb Questions
It is a very common form of brain damage known as Trump Derangement Syndrome.
And it's quite debilitating.
WHAT'S ON TAP?
Today on Capitol Hill...
No meetings or hearings are teed up for Monday, but there's plenty going on:
The Hitchhiker’s Guide To Trump Demanding Republicans Nuke The Filibuster To Pass The SAVE America Act And Blow Up Recess
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) March 23, 2026
Lots of developments on the SAVE America Act over the weekend.
President Trump made two big demands of Senate Republicans last night:
End the filibuster…
The Hitchhiker’s Guide To Trump Demanding Republicans Nuke The Filibuster To Pass The SAVE America Act And Blow Up Recess
Lots of developments on the SAVE America Act over the weekend.
President Trump made two big demands of Senate Republicans last night:
End the filibuster and blow up the Easter/Passover recess to pass the SAVE America Act.
The Senate is into its second week on the bill, one of the longest debates on any singular piece of legislation in recent memory. Proponents of the bill argue that if the Senate just stays in session for weeks, Republicans can wear Democrats out, not need 60 votes to end a filibuster and pass the bill with a simple majority.
It’s possible the Senate could nix the recess. But the bill still lacks the votes to pass. Even with a simple majority. The President also continues to advocate to tack onto the bill a plan to bar men from competing in women’s sports. But a test vote on that amendment failed to even muster a simple majority on Saturday.
The President wants Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) to single out GOP opponenents to the bill. And he even suggested that Republicans not negotiate an end to the DHS funding impasse until the bill passes.
Moreover, he also implored Republicans to nuke the legislative filibuster to pass the SAVE America Act. Thune has refused to go there. Plus, there aren’t the votes to do that.
Democrats are united in their opposition to the bill. So most of this is a standoff inside the GOP. It remains unclear how long the Senate will stay on the bill. But it’s possible this could go for a while - not necessarily gauranteeing success.
The Senate likely diverts from the bill this evening to confirm Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) as DHS Secretary.
White House What's Up
President Trump is still in Palm Beach this morning, though he'll return to the White House later today. Here's his schedule for the day:
- 8:00 AM — THE PRESIDENT participates in Executive Time — Palm Beach, Florida
- THE PRESIDENT departs Palm Beach, Florida, en route to Memphis, Tennessee
- 12:00 PM (CDT) — THE PRESIDENT participates in the Memphis Safe Task Force Roundtable — Memphis, Tennessee
- THE PRESIDENT departs Memphis, Tennessee, en route to Washington, D.C.
- THE PRESIDENT arrives at the White House
Keeping Up With the Cabinet
Sec. Interior - Doug Burgum — On Sunday, Burgum toured "a cutting-edge oil site in Texas," touting the critical nature of American energy dominance.
Just toured a cutting-edge oil site in Texas, where American innovation is making energy production cleaner, faster, smarter and safer than ever.
— Secretary Doug Burgum (@SecretaryBurgum) March 22, 2026
This is American Energy Dominance in action, and Texas is leading the way to make energy more affordable for American families. 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/R2zZ7A4wXR
Full Court Press...
We had one decision of note over the weekend:
- ❌ In Presidents' Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration v. Bondi (termination of SEVIS record), Judge Patti Saras (Massachusetts) GRANTS admin's motion to dismiss as to Count V only; DENIES the rest. (This one doesn't rate a ✅ or even a ↔️ because the judge denied the motion to dismiss as to the bulk of the case.)
The Supreme Court is back in action Monday, hearing oral argument in:
- Watson v. RNC — Whether the federal election-day statutes preempt a state law that allows ballots that are cast by federal election day to be received by election officials after
that day.
ALSO SEE: Skinny on SCOTUS: Tariffs, Mail, and the Limits of Power (Feb. 2026)
COMING ATTRACTIONS
The Senate is likely to vote on Markwayne Mullin's confirmation as DHS Secretary this evening.
READ MORE: Sunday Vote: Senate Nudges Mullin Closer to DHS Post
MORNING MUSING
I don't know if you caught this over the weekend — Sunday Senate sessions are relatively rare. But the upper chamber was indeed in session and, at one point, Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) proposed a resolution that would block senators from receiving their paychecks whenever the government is in a shutdown. In other words, if federal employees, like those who staff the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), aren't getting paid, neither would the senators who are holding that up.
Seems reasonable, right? Well, apparently, Sen. Brian Schatz (D-HI) didn't think so. He objected to the proposed resolution and then promptly fled the chamber. Didn't give a reason for the objection. Didn't stick around to debate the matter. Just high-tailed it out of there, effectively killing the proposal without Dems having to offer any explanation as to why they're fine with depriving federal employees of their paychecks (yet expecting them to work), as long as they themselves are getting paid.
Schatz is rumored to be in line for leadership. If this is an indication of his leadership style, yikes. Seems to me his cut-and-run tactic should be brought up regularly. Says a lot about him, no?
LIGHTER FARE
Deer's best friend...
My dog's best friend is a deer, and they play fetch together. It's so cute pic.twitter.com/zdWUjBstls
— Puppies 🐶 (@Puppieslover) March 22, 2026
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