Wednesday, April 8, 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
New: Iran Is Already Blatantly Violating the Ceasefire, Large Missile Barrages Reported
For my money? I wouldn't bet on any of this deal turning out well. The Iranians aren't going to suddenly become benevolent business partners in the Middle East, and right now, they think they've just won a major victory
The Republicans Announce Their 2026 Senate Targets
Currently, the Republicans have a 53 to 47-seat majority in the Senate. There are 35 seats up for grabs in 2026. The Democrats need a net pick up of four seats to win control of the chamber.
Chaos Erupts at Pennsylvania DMV: Illegals Scatter and Ditch Trucks After Tip Brings ICE — 13 Nabbed
After public tips poured in about a large gathering at the West Kittanning, Pennsylvania DMV, ICE agents arrived and ultimately arrested 13 illegal immigrants. Those taken into custody were from countries including Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Turkmenistan.
Trending Across Townhall Media
Bearing Arms — Did Trump Really Send Guns to the Iranian People, and Where'd They End Up?
Again, it may very well be that Trump's comments are an intentional bit of misdirection aimed at the Iranian government. I actually hope that's the case, because the most likely scenario if Trump is telling the truth is that we shipped who knows how many guns to groups we consider terrorists and were shocked to learn that they decided to keep them instead of handing them off to their intended recipients.
HotAir — What the Swalwell Allegations Tell Us About How Politics Works
But when there is Dem on Dem violence, they pick a side. Not always the same side, of course, because of internal divisions in the Party, but whenever a Democrat gets slagged like this, it's because another Democrat wants it done.
PJ Media — Cuba Threatens ‘Guerrilla-Style’ Fight — Rubio Can’t Keep a Straight Face
Of Course, these "threats" are a response to the fact that Trump has been threatening a "friendly" — or not so friendly —takeover of Cuba since January. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson has suggested that he doesn't think military action will be necessary for what the president and Rubio plan to do, but Trump has implied that it's not off the table.
Townhall — Yesterday Was Probably the Most Insane Anti-Trump Leftists Have Acted Since 2016
I’m a three-time Trump voter. I’d happily vote for him again if he could run again. None of this was shocking. The inability for liberals to get this man is frustrating but a little entertaining, because the piping hot cup of STFU is coming.
Twitchy — From Tampon Tim to Hypocrite-in-Chief: Walz's Trump Attack Backfires Spectacularly
Tim Walz would know all about losing his mind assuming he still has a mind which isn't entirely clear.
WHAT'S ON TAP?
Today on Capitol Hill...
The critters are out for a few more days, but here's what some congressional Dems are up to:
House Democratic defense hawks are pressing for fuller scrutiny of President Donald Trump’s war in Iran, vowing to make oversight of the United States’ military operations abroad a top priority in the months ahead.
The push for greater transparency from the House Armed Services Committee’s Democratic members is a clear shot across the bow at Chair Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) and Republicans more broadly, who have declined thus far to hold public hearings on the Iran war.
“We’re over a month into Trump’s disastrous war of choice and we’ve yet to receive a clear strategy from the president despite the staggering costs,” Ranking Member Adam Smith (D-Wash.) said.
White House What's Up
President Trump's schedule today:
- 8:00 AM — THE PRESIDENT participates in Executive Time — The White House
- 11:30 AM — THE PRESIDENT participates in a Meeting with the Secretary of Agriculture — Oval Office
- 2:00 PM — THE PRESIDENT participates in an Interview — Roosevelt Room
- 3:30 PM — THE PRESIDENT participates in a Meeting with the Secretary General of NATO — Oval Office
- 5:00 PM — THE PRESIDENT participates in a Freedom250 Reception — State Dining Room
And White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt will hold a press briefing at 1:00 PM Eastern.
Keeping Up With the Cabinet
Dir. Central Intelligence Agency - John Ratcliffe — Ratcliffe recently joined in with President Trump, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, and Joint Chiefs Chair Dan Caine to give a rundown of the rescue operation to retrieve our downed airmen from Iran.
SEE: CIA Chief: Trump Ordered a No-Fail Mission and America’s Aviator Came Home
Full Court Press...
We had several recent court decisions of note, including:
- ❌ In PFLAG Inc. v. Trump (ban on gender affirming care for <19), Judge Brendan Hurson (Maryland) DENIES admin's motion for stay pending appeal. [4/1]
- ❌ In State of NY v. Kennedy (dismantling/restructuring of HHS), Judge Melissa Dubose (Rhode Island) DENIES admin's motion to dismiss.
- ↔️ In Louisiana v. U.S. FDA (Mifeprestone), Judge David Joseph (Western District of Louisiana) FINDS state has standing; DENIES preliminary relief (for now); GRANTS FDA's motion to stay pending ongoing FDA review.
- ↔️ In CREW v. CDC (FOIA), Judge Timothy Kelly (D.C.) GRANTS admin's motion to dismiss Count II; DENIES as to Count III; DENIES parties' cross-motions for summary judgment as to Count II. [3/31]
- ✅ In CASA v. Noem (termination of TPS status), Judge Theodore Chuang (Maryland) GRANTS admin's motion to stay case pending SCOTUS decision in related cases.
COMING ATTRACTIONS
As noted, the President is meeting with NATO Secretary Mark Rutte today. That should be interesting.
SCOTUS resumes oral arguments on April 20. (Think I said April 23 yesterday — sorry about that!) I do expect we'll see some more opinions handed down before then.
Artemis II is on its way back to Earth and scheduled to splash down on Friday evening.
MORNING MUSING
It's been repeated so often that it's become trite, but so many have refused delivery on Salena Zito's sage advice: Take Donald Trump seriously but not literally.
In 2016, @ZitoSalena famously said to take Trump seriously but not literally.
— Josh Hammer (@josh_hammer) April 7, 2026
Ten years later, that is still correct. And it's frankly amazing that it still needs to be said.
You can love the guy or despise him, but taking his rhetoric literally is folly. It's ironic, too, because those who continue to do so also accuse him of being the biggest Liar McLiarface on the planet.
Not sure how you square that circle, but I guess that's leftist logic for ya.
LIGHTER FARE
Impossibly cute.
Hear no evil, hear all evil, hear some evil. pic.twitter.com/Tj7jG2It1t
— Paul Bronks (@SlenderSherbet) April 7, 2026
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