Tuesday, February 24th, 2026 - Trump SOTU; Jalisco cartel boss killed; Epstein-linked UK arrest; Nicki Minaj bot network

Morning Announcements

Betches

News, Daily News, Politics, News Commentary

4.7 • 1.7K Ratings

🗓️ 24 February 2026

⏱️ 7 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Today’s Headlines: Tonight is Donald Trump’s State Of The Union. Dozens of Democrats are skipping, and there will be three official rebuttals: Gov. Abigail Spanberger (main), Sen. Alex Padilla (Spanish-language), and Rep. Summer Lee (progressive). In Mexico, the head of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel was killed in a military operation aided by the US. The cartel is responding by torching buses and businesses and clashing with security forces.. Some U.S. flights to Puerto Vallarta and Guadalajara were suspended, and the State Department activated a 24/7 hotline for stranded Americans. Judge Aileen Cannon blocked release of part of Special Counsel Jack Smith’s report on Trump’s handling of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago, citing “manifest injustice” to Trump. In other news, Trump envoy Paolo Zampolli is pushing for Russia’s return to global competitions despite Ukraine war–related bans. A Russian team will compete at next month’s Paralympics, prompting backlash and a Ukrainian boycott of the opening ceremony. In the UK, former ambassador Peter Mandelson was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in office over alleged information-sharing with Jeffrey Epstein. A Politico-reported analysis found 18,000+ bots amplified Nicki Minaj’s recent pro–White House posts, especially when labeled toxic. Finally, a PRRI survey found about one-third of Americans are sympathetic to Christian nationalism, while 54% call Trump a “dangerous dictator” and 42% see him as a “strong leader.” and Providence, Rhode Island just set a single-storm snowfall record at 33 inches, beating 1978. Resources/Articles mentioned in this episode: Axios: Democratic response to Trump's SOTU becomes a crowded affair CNN: US citizens in parts of Mexico urged to still shelter in place as nation on edge following drug lord’s killing MS Now: Judge Cannon blocks release of Jack Smith’s classified documents report NYT: Trump Official Backs Russia’s Return to Global Sports BBC: Lord Mandelson arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office Politico” Nicki Minaj’s social media propped up by thousands of bots, analysis finds USA Today: Is or should America be a Christian nation? One-third say 'yes' NYT: Monday’s Snowfall Shatters a Record in Rhode Island Subscribe to the Betches News Room and join the Morning Announcements group chat. Go to: ⁠⁠⁠betchesnews.substack.com Morning Announcements is produced by Sami Sage and edited by Grace Hernandez-Johnson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Today is Tuesday, February 24th, and you're listening to The Morning Announcements presented by
0:06.0	Betches Media. I'm your host, Sammy Sage, and the morning announcements is your daily five-minute
0:10.6	breakdown of the headlines that isn't a megaphone for the loudest voices, but a magnifying
0:14.9	glass for the most important news.
0:20.3	Today's stories are a little bit random, if you will, starting with tonight's big State of the Union address by President Donald.
0:27.7	The good news is that by the time tomorrow's episode is out, we will be halfway through Donald's States of the Union.
0:34.3	According to reporting, dozens of Democrats in Congress are planning to skip the address,
0:38.6	and there will be three Democrats giving responses. Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger
0:43.5	with the main rebuttal, California Senator Alex Padilla with a Spanish language rebuttal,
0:48.4	and Pennsylvania Representative Summer Lee will give a distinct rebuttal on behalf of the
0:53.0	progressive wing of the party.
0:55.2	That doesn't even include the various options for counter programming.
0:58.5	I hear even Robert De Niro is giving a rebuttal.
1:01.9	It's really a lot.
1:03.5	And yet somehow, with all of these alternative broadcasts, I am disappointed not to see
1:07.6	the one that I actually want to see.
1:09.7	A Spanish language rebuttal from
1:11.2	Bad Bunny. As you may have seen by now, there's quite a bit of chaos south of the border.
1:19.3	Mexico's most wanted cartel boss, who's known as El Mentiono, was killed on Sunday, along with
1:24.8	eight other cartel members, as part of a Mexican military operation
1:28.4	that was aided by the United States. The cartel retaliated with widespread unrest,
1:33.8	torching buses and businesses, and clashing with security forces. Tourists are being advised
	...

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