Friday, February 21, 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.
Red-Hot at RedState
JD Vance Delivers Blistering Response to Historian on Ukraine That Has People Cheering
Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine because he knew Biden was weak.
Both Putin and China know Trump is a different kettle of fish, and puts our interests first.
FAFO Time: Musk-Threatening Dem Congressman Begins Backtracking After Letter From the DOJ
Martin's inquiries to Garcia and Schumer are part of an initiative that he reportedly calls "Operation Whirlwind," which was no doubt inspired by Schumer's notorious call to action in front of pro-abortion activists, and which was designed to zero in on threats made against public officials.
Big, Beautiful Budget Resolution Passes US Senate
The House and Senate need to bring all this in for a landing, and soon. There's a lot more to be done.
Trending Across Townhall Media
Mexican President Talking Tough Following Trump's Declaration on Cartels
Of course, something Sheinbaum needs to consider is that if her military and police forces couldn't resist a criminal gang, there's not much she could do if the 82nd Airborne decided to pay her nation a visit.
A Wooden Stake Through the Heart of California High Speed Rail?
Duffy's announcement of an investigation into the project is necessary because contracts have been signed, so he will likely have to show that requirements set forth in those contracts have not been met.
Now More Than Ever, Dem Media Lapdogs Are Gushing Founts of Monumental Ignorance
Most normal humans experience profound embarrassment when their ignorance is exposed to a large audience. That doesn't happen in the Dems' media propaganda wing.
Tom Hanks, Margaret Brennan, and the European Ministers -- Reveal It All
Sometimes Trump haters prove to be his best allies. Their venom shows us they either lack common sense or intelligence or both.
Elon Musk Calls Out Zelensky and Community Note Manipulation
We are gratified to finally see some recognition that Community Notes can be just plain wrong.
Today on Capitol Hill...
The House is still out, and there are no meetings or hearings set today (it's Friday, after all), but...the Senate did pull an all-nighter "vote-a-rama" and adopt a budget blueprint for Trump's agenda. More on that:
From colleague Tyler Olson. There were 26 total votes in this vote-a-rama.
Only two amendments were agreed to during the all-night session, both from Republicans.
The first was from Sen. Sullivan on protecting medicare/medicaid. The second was from Sen. Lee on reigning in the administrative state.
The Sullivan amendment passed along party lines, except for both Utah senators who opposed it. Sen. Lee's amendment passed along party lines.
Prior to the vote-a-rama drama, the Senate confirmed Kash Patel as FBI Director. He'll be sworn in today.
White House What's Up
It's a busy Friday for President Donald Trump (a/k/a a day ending in "y"). He'll deliver remarks at the Governors' Working Session, then have lunch with Vice President JD Vance. At 2:30 p.m. Eastern, he'll participate in Howard Lutnick's swearing-in as Commerce Secretary, followed by the signing of even more executive orders.
Keeping Up With the Cabinet
Sec. State - Marco Rubio — Rubio shared the State Department highlights of Trump's first month in office.
Sec. Defense - Pete Hegseth — Hegseth shared a message to the American Warfighter and the American Taxpayer.
Attorney General - Pam Bondi — Bondi sat for an interview with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) at CPAC on Thursday.
Sec. Interior - Doug Burgum — Burgum also shared a post highlighting the administration's successes in the first 30 days.
Sec. Agriculture - Brooke Rollins — Rollins provided an update from USDA's DOGE meeting.
Sec. Commerce - Howard Lutnick — Lutnick, as noted above, will be sworn in Friday.
Full Court Press...
We're awaiting a ruling from the Supreme Court on the Hampton Dellinger case.
And we're still getting a variety of court rulings on all of the Trump administration's moves — some rulings more sound than others.
We expect Trump to make a Saturday appearance at CPAC. We know Javier Milei, fresh off his gifting of the golden chainsaw to Elon, will be speaking on Saturday, as will Italy's Giorgia Meloni. Of course, we'll continue to bring you the highlights here at RedState.
As I type this, I'm staring out at National Harbor on the Potomac, just a stone's throw from the nation's capital. I'm surrounded by conservatives and patriots who are excited at the promise of this new Trump administration. And for good reason. We've seen so many steps in the right direction in just this first month. I know it's naive to expect there won't be stumbles along the way, but it's a welcome feeling...this realization that there's hope yet for our country and what we can accomplish. It's morning in America, the sun is shining, and I am here for it.
Me-yawn...