Friday, November 13, 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
Richard Blumenthal’s Tough Guy Act Gets Roundhoused by a Texas Prosecutor Who Went There on Vietnam
Dick is no doubt sitting at his keyboard again, trying to come up with a better comeback. He has a better chance of getting a combat service award for his days in Vietnam.
Hegseth Has an Important Announcement About the OSS
The OSS post noted that the redesignation strengthens the Special Operations Forces representation within the Department of War and "reaffirms America’s commitment to the forces entrusted with the Nation’s most demanding missions."
Media Tries New Smear Against Hegseth, but His Response Shows How Right He Is for the Job
Good on Specialist Iglesias for doing his job, despite it being Hegseth's group. And that's exactly what Hegseth has been trying to encourage with the moves he has been taking to strengthen the military — standards and doing the job.
Trending Across Townhall Media
Bearing Arms — Circle K's Message to Armed Clerk Who Stopped Robbers: Leave Your Gun at Home
Circle K may believe its employees are safer without guns. Its employees might disagree, and if I were one of them I'd be quietly carrying every shift. If I get fired for acting in self-defense, so be it. It's possible to find another job, but we only get one life
HotAir — Ilhan Omar Is in Real Trouble, and She Knows It
I will lick the salty tears of liberals and enjoy it if Omar is prosecuted and convicted, or if she is driven out of Congress. She is corrupt to the point of being evil.
PJ Media — The NCAA Revealed an Ugly Truth About the Transfer Portal
The idea of getting a scholarship to play a sport in college is to graduate eventually, but that’s not happening as often when athletes hop from school to school. Granted, many athletes go pro, but the decreased graduation rates for multi-transfer players should raise serious questions about whether the fast-and-loose transfer rules are as beneficial as proponents claim.
Townhall — John Kennedy Was Asked About the Nvidia Fiasco. His Reaction Did Not Disappoint
He also called the whole scandal an “intergalactic freak show."
Twitchy — Control-Alt-Defeat: Microsoft Outlook Outage Brings Outrage
You know, this might be the best, most plausible explanation. Did Clippy really die or was he kept in a lab and enhanced to become CoPilot?
WHAT'S ON TAP?
Today on Capitol Hill...
Even though it's Friday, there actually is a hearing set for today — but it's a field hearing in Charlotte, North Carolina:
- House Education and Workforce — "Workers in Charge: Restoring Choice and Accountability in the Workplace"
And Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) has made it official:
New: Chris Van Hollen Makes His Move Against Chuck Schumer
Greeeeeeaaaatttttt.....
White House What's Up
President Trump’s schedule for Friday includes:
- 8:00 AM — THE PRESIDENT participates in Executive Time — The White House
- 12:30 PM — THE PRESIDENT participates in a Policy Meeting — Oval Office
- 3:00 PM — THE PRESIDENT participates in a Policy Meeting — Oval Office
- 4:00 PM — THE PRESIDENT participates in a Policy Meeting — Oval Office
- 4:30 PM — THE PRESIDENT participates in a Policy Meeting — Oval Office
The President is staying in D.C. for the weekend, with planned "Executive Time" both mornings. Meanwhile, he's redirecting his Veep to focus on fraud:
Trump Just Slammed the Door on an Iran Deal — His Message to the Mullahs Is a Doozy
Blue-State Fraud Could Balance the Federal Budget? Trump Makes Stunning Claim, Orders Swift Action
Keeping Up With the Cabinet
Dir. Office of Management and Budget - Russ Vought — Apparently, Vought remains over the target...
Yawn
— Russ Vought (@russvought) November 7, 2026
Full Court Press...
There weren't a lot of notable decisions on Thursday, but today, there's a hearing set in D.C. District Court before Judge Ana Reyes over the East Potomac Golf Course case — litigation which has taken on a life of its own. I expect that one will be chippy.
COMING ATTRACTIONS
President Trump is set to travel to the Philippines and China in mid-November, and in December, he'll head to Miami, Florida, for the G20 Leaders' Summit.
GOP congressional leadership may be set now, but the Dems still have to select theirs — House Democrats are expected to hold their party elections next week, while Senate Democrats will make their leadership pick on December 1.
The Supreme Court will resume hearing oral arguments on November 30.
MORNING MUSING
It's Friday the 13th — the third one this year. I'm pretty sure I've shared this before, but while many consider this date "unlucky," for me/my family, it's the opposite. You see, my parents were married on a Friday the 13th — true, it was July and 70 years ago, but they celebrated every Friday the 13th as a little mini-anniversary.
My folks had a long, happy marriage and life together before my Dad passed in 2020. I couldn't have asked for better parents or a sweeter childhood. And so I always celebrate this day.
And that reminded me yet again that we should celebrate each day.
LIGHTER FARE
Seems about right...
Please be patient, our technical team is working very hard to resolve the issues. #MicrosoftOutlookDown #MicrosoftOutage #Microsoft https://t.co/zUMaAZOKKi
— SlenderSherbet (@SlenderSherbet) November 13, 2026
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