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'

Report: The Reason Kamala Skipped Out on DNC Night 2 Reveals Even More Drama and Democrat Division

Of course, the answer is because they're all fake, she doesn't know what she's doing, and she has bad policies.

Reports: Biden Team Unhappy With How He Was Treated - and There's Talk of 'Revenge'

Joe's team may be thick, but they get an insult when they're handed one.

WATCH: Trump Drops the Mic After Reporter Asks Why He Visited a City 'Linked to White Supremacy'

To Democrats, rural Americans are expendable. They don't matter. They aren't important. That's what this latest faux outrage shows.

WHAT'S ON TAP?

Today on Capitol Hill...

The Dems are all (or most) in Chicago, celebrating their joy and newfound love for Kamala Harris. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) addressed the DNC crowd Tuesday night. He's vowing to make "voting rights" a Number One priority in 2025 if the Dems control Congress. (Because Jim Crow 2.0, or something.) Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz (R) is celebrating an easy victory in Tuesday's primary over a challenger handpicked by former Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Meanwhile, in Alaska, incumbent Democrat Rep. Mary Peltola secured over 50 percent of the primary vote and will face off against Republicans Nick Begich and Nancy Dahlstrom — and a fourth contender to be named later as the next closest candidate has less than 600 votes — in November. 

White House What's Up

President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill continue their vacation in Santa Ynez, California. Just...don't ask where they're staying, who's paying for it, or whether it raises any ethical concerns. 

The Homestretch

It's Day 3 of the DNC for Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. Walz will be speaking Wednesday night, as will former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and former President Bill Clinton. Whee!

Former President Donald Trump and running mate Ohio Senator JD Vance will be visiting Asheboro, North Carolina, on Wednesday to speak about national security. 

Full Court Press...

Wednesday's the big day for Hunter Biden in his California tax case — well, for his attorneys, anyway. (Hunter himself will not be appearing.) It's the pre-trial conference, which RedState's own Jennifer Van Laar will be attending. We'll keep you posted on any interesting developments on that front. 

MORNING MUSING

I've been comforting myself this morning with the knowledge that we're over halfway through the DNC. Only two more nights to go. It's tough, watching and listening through gritted teeth, but we know it must be done. The thing that stood out to me about Tuesday night was the stark reminder, compliments of Doug Emhoff, Michelle Obama, and Barack Obama, of just how bad Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are as speakers. Biden, in particular, as Harris can at least read from a teleprompter in semi-coherent fashion (and I expect will do so on Thursday night). I guess we'll see tonight if old Bill Clinton still can manage. Certainly, he'll be more charming than his wife. (Low bar.) Anyhoo, yes, we're halfway there. Yay. 

LIGHTER FARE 

Much as I love a little extra sleep, I don't think my OCD would permit this...

pic.twitter.com/oPQB3IlfVh

— no context memes (@weirddalle) August 21, 2024