For weeks we’ve been watching Republicans squirm to find a messaging balance.

The party as a whole is attempting to walk a bizarre tightrope as leaders try to downplay Republicans’ unadulterated joy at the defeat of Roe, a social issue the GOP’s been using as a policy placeholder for decades, in the face of our evidence-backed reality: support for abortion access is at a record high among Americans across the political spectrum.

When Donald Trump looks at Dr. Oz, he sees himself.

(He probably sees his own reflection in the glint in everyone’s eye, but …)

Mehmet Oz is super close to transforming into his highest self as a Trump mini-me — he’s already got the celeb status, he’s a reality TV host with no business being in politics, he’s just as bombastic in his MAGA beliefs as the ex-president. But he’s missing one key ingredient that Trump is already subtly calling him out for.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer reached out to Tucker Carlson, Fox News owner Rupert Murdoch and other top Fox executives personally to ask them to stop promoting the racist bile that is the great replacement conspiracy theory.

“I write to urge you to immediately cease the reckless amplification of the so-called ‘Great Replacement’ theory on your network’s broadcasts,” he wrote in a letter obtained by the New York Times, before placing the blame for the conspiracy theory’s entrance into the mainstream squarely on Fox News’ shoulders.

New polling conducted by NBC News has found that American opposition to overturning Roe v. Wade is at a record high. The poll was conducted after the draft Supreme Court majority opinion overturning Roe was leaked earlier this month.

When the Jan. 6 select committee begins holding hearings on their investigative findings in about one month, we may see video testimony from some members of the Trump family.

There’s an argument to be made that Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) et al. knew what they were getting themselves into; the wrath from Trump their little musketeers-ing might evoke.

Sure, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), go ahead and take home the trophy for passing the most outrageous/bizarre/problematic anti-education laws of all the red state governors in the land, if that’s the distinction you’re after.

At this point, it seems that’s the governor’s goal (coupled with the, seemingly, broader party aim to distract voters so completely with such non-serious non-existent issues that they don’t remember why they decided to support GOPers in the midterms in the first place).

The latest DeSantis culture war to get legislated into law in Florida: a sidetrack focus on communism.

In an effort to sound like the “compassionate” party, the Senate Republicans’ campaign arm is reportedly circulating a messaging memo among members that gives the GOP talking points on how exactly they should publicly celebrate the Supreme Court’s plans to overturn Roe v. Wade.

There’s lots of brilliant think pieces from reporters, scholars and political observers to consume today to help wrap one’s head around the gravity of the last 24-hours. Here’s another take to add to the list this evening.

New York Times writer Max Fisher flagged a piece he published back in September 2021 here: