News On Tap For Tuesday, February 24, 2026

The Fractured State Of Our Union

Today's News On Tap is all about our State Of The Union - or disunion - in the U.S, currently. We’ve also got new information in the Trumpstein files, and updates on Trump’s immigration wars, his tariff wars, & his failed government. Plus, good news in Election Land, updates in Foreign Affairs, Media & Entertainment news, & some Olympic-level misogyny. Plus, Cliff Schecter & Jared Rizzi will both be in the bar tonight! Read up, get informed, then join us tonight!

First Round - The State Of The Union

• Trump Prepares For State Of The Union Address, Telling Americans ‘It’s Going To Be A Long Speech’

• Strength In Numbers Polling: Ahead Of State Of The Union, Trump’s Approval Falls To New Low Of 37%

• House Democrats Who Are Going To The SOTU Speech Are Bringing Epstein Survivors

• Symone Sanders Townsend: Democrats Who Choose To Attend Should Not Sit On Their Hands During The State Of The Union

• Brian Beutler: Why The State Of The Union Boycotters Have It Right

• Democrats, With Multiple Opposing State Of The Union Events, Set To Provide Honest Messaging, In Contrast To Trump

• In Democratic Message Tonight, Gov. Abigail Spanberger Will Focus On Affordability

Second Round - Republicans Can't Govern

ICE Monsters & Immigration Wars

• Federal Officials Now Claiming ‘Fewer Than 500’ ICE Agents Left In Minnesota

• New Whistleblower Confirms Training For Incoming ICE Agents Is ‘Deficient’ And ‘Broken,’ [Gift Link]

• New Whistleblower Testifies To Congress That ICE Agents Are Being Trained To Violate The Constitution

• Another Minnesota Federal Judge Issues Contempt Finding Over Trump’s DOJ Violating Court Orders Against ICE/DHS

• New Polling Data Confirms Reckless Immigration Enforcement Is Costing Republicans Their Own Voters

• Related: ‘Abolish ICE’ Gets Most Votes In Chicago Snowplow-Naming Contest; ‘Stephen Coldbert’ Also A Winner

Trump’s Tariff Wars

• Trump’s Global Tariff Takes Effect At 10%, Despite Him Claiming They’d Start At 15%

• Speaker Johnson: Congress Unlikely To Find ‘Consensus’ To Codify Trump’s New Tariffs

• EU Confirms U.S. Has Breached Trade Deal And Says They Are Ready To Retaliate

• Judd Legum: Trump’s New Tariffs Are Just As Illegal As His Old Tariffs

• Senate Democrats Now Pushing For Trump Tariff Rebates

• FedEx Sues U.S. Government, Seeking ‘Full Refund’ Over Trump Tariffs

Trump & Republicans’ Failed Govt.

• Goldman Sachs Confirms A.I. Added ‘Basically Zero’ To U.S. Economic Growth In 2025

• After Grand Jury Rejection, U.S. Atty For DC Jeanine Pirro’s Office Shelves Pursuit Of Democrats Over Social Video

• RFK Jr. Fought Pesticides For Years. Now He’s Backing Their Production Because Trump Told Him To.

• Figuring Out How To Spend Its $1.5 Trillion Defense Budget Is Causing Major Headaches Inside The Pentagon

Third Round - A Party Of Monsters

The Trumpstein Files

• Newly Confirmed: Trump’s DOJ Removed & Withheld Epstein Files Related To Accusations About Trump Raping A 14-Year-Old Girl

• Flashback Feb 3: New Epstein Files Fail To Quell Outrage As Advocates Claim Documents Are Being Withheld

• New Report Confirms FBI Gave “Stand Down” Directive To NYPD On Jeffrey Epstein Investigations 5 Days After 2019 Arrest

• Timeline: Most Of The Sexual Misconduct Allegations Against Donald Trump Between The 1980s And 2013

• Peter Attia Out At CBS News After Epstein Files Disclosures

• Former UK Ambassador Mandelson Released On Bail After Arrest In Epstein Probe

When They Show You Who They Are

• Newly Unearthed Texts Confirm Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales Sent Sexually Explicit Messages To His Former Staffer, Who Later Committed Suicide By Setting Herself On Fire

• Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales Of Texas Faces Bipartisan Resignation Calls Following Latest Discoveries

Fourth Round - More News To Drink About

Election Land

• Federal Court Clears Way For Utah’s New Congressional Map To Take Effect, Which Puts Democrats In Position To Gain A House Seat

• Key Republican, Sen. Lisa Murkowski, Comes Out Against Republicans’ Voter Restriction Effort

Foreign Affairs

• Zelenskyy Says Putin Has ‘Not Broken’ Ukrainians As Country Marks End Of 4 Years Of Russia’s All-Out War

• Uk Announces Biggest Sanctions Package Against Russia Four Years On From Full-Scale Invasion Of Ukraine

• Trump Claims Top General Predicts Easy Victory Over Iran; Top General Is Actually Saying Otherwise In Private

• Former & Current U.S. Officials Confirm Any New U.S. Attack On Iran Could Risk Large-Scale Retaliation

• U.S. Strike On Alleged Drug Trafficking Boat In Caribbean Kills 3

• France Curtails U.S. Ambassador Kushner’s Government Access After He Fails To Obey Summons

Fifth Round - Media, Entertainment, & More

Media Matters

• Warner Bros. Discovery Taking New Paramount Skydance Offer Under Review While Still Recommending Netflix Pact To Shareholders

• Savannah Guthrie Acknowledges Mom Nancy ‘May Already Be Gone,’ Increases Reward For Information To $1 Million

Entertainment & More

• Rest In Peace: Robert Carradine, ‘Revenge of the Nerds’ and ‘Lizzie McGuire’ star, dies at 71

• BAFTA Apologizes To Michael B. Jordan & Delroy Lindo And Takes ‘Full Responsibility’ For N-Word Outburst From Man With Tourette’s

• Taylor Swift’s ‘Opalite’ Reaches No. 1, Putting Her In A Tie For Third Place For The Most Hot 100 Leaders Ever

• WNBA Confirms March 10 Deadline Needed For New Collective Bargaining Agreement To Be Made, To Avoid Delaying May 8 Season Start

Olympics Cleanup

• Nielsen Ratings Confirm Milan Cortina Olympics Were Most-Watched Winter Games Since 2014 Beijing Games

• Lindsey Vonn Says Surgery Saved Her From Having Her Left Leg Amputated Following Olympic Crash

• Game Winning U.S, Men’s Hockey Player Jack Hughes’ Positive Stance On NHL Pride Night Has Resurfaced After Gold Medal Win - & Team’s Misogynist Post-Game Actions

• Dave Zirin & Jules Boykoff: The Ugly Underbelly Of The U.S. Men’s Hockey Victory - The Real Olympic Heroes Were The Athletes Who Stood Up For Each Other & Against Trump

Today’s Special Guest

Cliff Schecter, owner of Blue Amp Media (BAM), as well as political commentator, podcaster, author, columnist, & former Democratic campaign PR director, is back in the bar tonight - perfect timing! We’ll talk about Cliff & the BAM team’s new shows, and of course, draw a few rounds from the News OnTap, as we wait for Trump to stumble & ramble stupidly through the SOTU.

Tonight’s Bar Regular

Jared Rizzi, our favorite fill-in co-host, and former White House Correspondent for SiriusXM & CBS Radio New, is back at the bar tonight! Of course, we’ll talk about Trump’s brain droppings tonight, the multiple Democratic messages tonight, the newest Trumpstein files story, the Olympics and more. Plus, Jared & Jody will tackle the Drink Of The Day, with Shawn. Join us!

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