Monday, March 3, 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
The Cunning Barbarity of War Hawks for Ukraine
Russia was unjustified in starting this war. The U.S. has been unjustified in merely prolonging it.
The Obama years—along with his failed apologist policies—are long over.
Keep the pressure on. Contact your representative and demand that the Treasury Department follow through with a full repeal. It's time to pull the plug.
Trending Across Townhall Media
Following High Profile Shootings in Tennessee, There's a Shift in Tone
I'm glad to see the tone shift in Tennessee toward something that's far more rational than the hysterics that lead to gun control.
Most People Don't Know That the Europeans Are Helping Fund the Russian Side of the War
Zelenskyy overplayed his hand, and I think he did so because Europeans and liberals here in the US thought they could bully Trump into changing his mind by ambushing him on worldwide TV and then shaming him for being a bully.
Bessent Calls Out Media for Hiding Economic Crisis Until Trump Took Office
The American people knows the truth about the economy and who’s responsible, which is why Donald Trump had a landslide victory in the 2024 election. Brennan and her ilk are irrelevant liars.
Here's the SNL Skit That Got High Marks This Weekend
Gillis was hired as a cast member for SNL in 2019, but was fired after past remarks from a 2018 podcast resurfaced. The Left tried to cancel him, but he's come back bigger and better than ever.
You Don't Hold Any Cards Either: Pudgy Chow Thief Alex Vindman 'DEMANDS' Apology From J.D. Vance
Other than that, Chow Thief, no one cares about you even a little bit. Least of all, Vice President Vance.
Today on Capitol Hill...
On Monday, the House Rules Committee will meet in the afternoon to review resolutions aimed at rolling back rules issued by the Biden administration's EPA regarding appliance standards and emissions standards.
Additional confirmation hearings for nominees to various positions in the Trump administration are set for mid-week.
We're waiting to see if House Speaker Mike Johnson puts a CR on the House floor this week.
White House What's Up
Following a weekend at Mar-a-Lago, President Donald Trump returned to the White House Sunday evening, accompanied by First Lady Melania Trump's father, Viktor Knavs, Maye Musk, Elon Musk, and Little X. The only formal entry on Trump's calendar for Monday is his plan to make an "investment announcement" at 1:30 p.m. Eastern. No doubt, the president is gearing up for his joint address to Congress Tuesday evening.
Speaking of Melania, she's announced that the White House will again host the annual Easter Egg Roll on Monday, April 21, on the South Lawn.
Keeping Up With the Cabinet
Sec. State - Marco Rubio — Rubio hit the Sunday show circuit to address the Zelensky implosion.
Sec. Treasury - Scott Bessent — Bessent has clearly laid out the ongoing issues with Zelensky's apparent reluctance to sign the minerals deal.
Sec. Defense - Pete Hegseth — Hegseth leveled former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton over her attempt to take a cheap shot at the Trump administration on X.
Sec. Interior - Doug Burgum — Burgum sat down with "Morning Wire" and outlined Trump's leadership and plans for the National Energy Dominance Council.
Sec. Agriculture - Brooke Rollins — Rollins attended the Commodity Classic in Denver, Colorado.
Sec. Commerce - Howard Lutnick — Lutnick joined Maria Bartiromo on "Sunday Morning Futures" to "discuss how the Trump Administration is Making America Great Again by securing the border, imposing tariffs, strengthening our economy, and standing up for the American people on the world stage."
Sec. Health & Human Services - Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — Kennedy addressed the measles outbreak in Texas.
Sec. Housing & Urban Development - Scott Turner — Turner addressed the National Association of Home Builders.
Sec. Transportation - Sean Duffy — Duffy announced the reopening of I-40 in North Carolina and Tennessee following its five-month closure in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.
Sec. Homeland Security - Kristi Noem — Noem announced that "February was the lowest month in recorded history for encounters at our border."
Admin. Environmental Protection Agency - Lee Zeldin — Zeldin joined Pennsylvania Rep. Rob Bresnahan (R) in Swiftwater, PA, for a roundtable with local leaders and business owners.
Admin. Small Business Association - Kelly Loeffler — Loeffler affirmed the Trump administration's commitment to putting Americans first, including those in East Palestine and Western North Carolina.
Dir. National Intelligence - Tulsi Gabbard — Gabbard joined Shannon Bream on "Fox News Sunday" to discuss the war in Ukraine and Trump's aim to end it.
Full Court Press...
We're awaiting word from the D.C. Circuit and the Supreme Court over Judge Amy Berman Jackson's District Court ruling in the case of Hampton Dellinger (regarding his removal by Trump from the Office of Special Counsel.) That one's going to be interesting to watch play out.
Meanwhile, SCOTUS will be hearing oral argument in multiple cases on Monday (largely involving procedural/jurisdictional matters):
- CC/Devas Ltd. v. Antrix Corp. Ltd. and Devas Multimedia Private Ltd. v. Antrix Corp. Ltd. (consolidated) — Whether plaintiffs must prove minimum contacts before federal courts may assert personal jurisdiction over foreign states sued under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act.
- Blom Bank Sal v. Honickman — Whether Rule 60(b)(6)'s stringent standard applies to a post-judgment request to vacate for the purpose of filing an amended complaint.
On Wednesday, Dr. Jay Bhattacharya has his confirmation to become NIH Director before the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee.
The big event this week, of course, will be President Trump's joint address to Congress on Tuesday evening. This one's going to be must-watch, and we'll be here live-blogging it.
I happened to catch the last few minutes of Friday's Oval Office dustup and, coming in as I did initially on the tail-end of things, I wasn't at all sure what to make of it and what sent things off the rails. After better acquainting myself with the context, I reached the conclusion that, indeed, Volodymyr Zelensky had overplayed his hand here. Why and to what end, well, that remains to be seen. It would be extraordinarily interesting to find out who's been whispering in Zelensky's ear and who led him to believe that either he was playing with a better hand than he is or that it served a valid purpose to just blow things up regardless. There's plenty of room for speculation — and we may never learn the full truth of it. In any event, with all of the references to cards and gambling, this came to mind:
Sing...sing a song...