TOP O’ THE MORNIN’

Red-Hot at RedState 

Raddatz is an all-time bastion of Trump Derangement Syndrome.

The Trump team managed to drive China to the table, and it looks like they’ve made good progress toward some change. 

For the Democratic Party, he remains a persistent issue, much like a wound that refuses to heal, indicating that they’ll have to contend with him for the foreseeable future. It’s similar to dealing with poison ivy.

Trending Across Townhall Media

While suppressors aren’t as difficult to acquire as machine guns, they’re still cumbersome to obtain due to the NFA regulations currently in place.

If we accept Todd’s claim that he was honestly misinformed in the past, the next consideration is whether he or any other journalist should continue to engage with those who deceived them.

[T]here’s one thing we know about Donald Trump: He doesn’t need this gig for a paycheck or for a “10% for The Big Guy” cut of the action.

The liberal media’s allergy or inability to cover anything the Trump White House does remains an ongoing issue.

If they’ve been able to waste tens of billions of dollars, then the Democrats will consider it a “success.”

WHAT’S ON TAP?

Today on Capitol Hill…

There are only two meetings/hearings set for Monday as Congress kicks off a new week:

• House Natural Resources, Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee — Oversight Field Hearing on “Letting Off Steam: Unleashing Geothermal Energy Development on Federal Land” [hearing set at Southern Utah University, in Cedar City, Utah]
• Senate Armed Services, Strategic Forces Subcommittee — To receive a closed briefing on space superiority

The real focus this week will, of course, be on the reconciliation package. There were signs that the meeting between Ways and Means Chair Jason Smith (R-MO) and President Donald Trump on Friday went well…

.@JakeSherman pic.twitter.com/ToTTbv2oZh

— Rep. Jason Smith (@RepJasonSmith) May 9, 2025

Here’s the backdrop:

Hill Republicans want to get the package on Trump’s desk by July 4. We’ll note that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is looking for a debt-limit increase – which is in this package – by mid-July.

The House GOP leadership’s goal is to have three key committees mark up this week – Ways and Means, Energy and Commerce and Agriculture – and then have the House Budget Committee assemble the bill by week’s end. GOP leaders would then bring the package to the House Rules Committee on May 19 ahead of a floor vote later next week.

The bottom line: We’re about to see some serious horse trading. 

White House What’s Up

President Trump is gearing up to head to the Middle East after making several big announcements over the weekend, including an India-Pakistan ceasefire, a Chinese trade deal, the imminent return of Edan Alexander, the last living American hostage held by Hamas, and an ambitious plan to lower prescription drug prices. First, though, he’ll hold a joint press conference with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (at 9:30 a.m. Eastern). Then he’ll depart and fly to Royal Air Force Mildenhall in England, arriving late Monday evening. From there, he’ll travel to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, arriving Tuesday morning.