Good morning and welcome to RedState’s Morning Minute – a quick look at what stories are trending right now and a look ahead to what the day might bring. Consider this your one-stop shop for news to lend a hand you start your day.
UP IN THE MORNING
Comedian Jim Gaffigan hits the jackpot at a charity dinner and smokes Kamala because she’s missing
I have often argued that comedy and satire are among the best ways to expose extremism on the left, and that conservatives must continue to do so as we fight back against misinformation wars, censorship, and cancel culture.
HOT TAKES: Al Smith Dinner featured Trump at his funniest, even though the elephant was (not) in the room
But the contrast is clear. A candidate stands up and shows up, even if they are against it. The other candidate shrinks, hides and casts shadows.
Megyn Kelly and Tucker Carlson reveal the Trump team’s hilarious reaction to the Biden debate collapse
This is the story unfolding before their eyes. They knew he was bad, but the looks that resulted were priceless. They were all taken aback, although Ben Carson was perhaps the best, pausing in the middle of the meal.
WHAT’S UP?
Today on Capitol Hill…
Senate Republicans are press the Small Business Administration (SBA) for depleting the agency’s disaster relief resources as a result of the devastation caused by Hurricanes Helene and Milton – particularly the agency’s failure to comply with proper reporting requirements.
Democrats are in close races in the House of Representatives reap the benefits of Vice President Kamala Harris’ fundraising efforts, with Democrats outperforming Republicans in the third quarter. Will it be enough to win?
What’s going on in the White House?
President Joe Biden is in Germany, where he will meet with President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Chancellor Olaf Scholz and attend events.
The home stretch
After missing the Al Smith dinner, Harris is touring Michigan today with campaign events in Grand Rapids, Lansing and Oakland County. No word on whether she’ll exploit an SNL character from a quarter-century ago as a prop during her performances on Friday. Second (none) Gentleman Doug Emhoff will appear at a campaign event in Reno, Nevada. Harris running mate Tim Walz will be campaigning in Michigan this weekend.
In contrast, former President Donald Trump even made some of the people who hate him laugh at last night’s Al Smith Dinner and began Friday morning with a long interview on “Fox and Friends.” Then he sits down for an interview with Dan Bongino. He will hold a rally in Detroit, Michigan, on Friday evening, with weekend events in Latrobe and Lancaster, Pennsylvania. His representatives are also on the move: Elon Musk will appear in Philadelphia on Friday evening and in Harrisburg on Saturday.
Full court press…
To no one’s surprise, Judge Tanya Chutkan denied Trump’s request to stay the unsealing of additional files in the D.C. election interference case filed by special counsel Jack Smith in an order overdue Thursday. Expect more breathless coverage of whatever is in the legacy media’s files.
As Joe Cunningham reported, would-be Trump assassin Ryan Routh is asking that Judge Aileen Cannon recuse himself from his criminal case because, he claims, she may have reason to have a fondness for Trump – you know, the guy, whom he tried to kill.
Morning rumination
I’m an agnostic when it comes to Molly Shannon – but I’ve never been interested in her Mary Katherine Gallagher character. As an isolated case it might have been worth a chuckle or two, but I didn’t find it particularly comical in 1995 when the character debuted, and I definitely didn’t find it comical on Thursday night at the Al Smith Dinner. In my opinion, this was another really stupid misjudgment on the part of the Harris campaign – it was bad enough that she chose not to participate. Offering those little three or four minutes of awkwardness instead was beyond lame.
LIGHTER COST
Oh, you did.
Photobombing giraffe 😅 pic.twitter.com/1I1uzwNxN2
— Nature is amazing ☘️ (@AMAZlNGNATURE) October 17, 2024
