This is the Nov. 9, 2026 edition of “The Tea, Spilled by Morning Joe” newsletter. Subscribe here to get it delivered straight to your inbox Monday through Friday.

“It’s clear people want something new. They want something different.”

— Texas Sen.-elect James Talarico on the “Saturday Night Live” cold open

Since the day he won his primary, Republicans have treated James Talarico like a joke.

Donald Trump called him “TalaFREAKo” and “unelectable.” Sen. Tim Sheehy dismissed him as a “creepy goofball.” His opponent, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, mocked him as “Low-T.”

Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick accused the seminarian of blasphemy and said he was going to hell.

Talarico’s going to Washington instead.

He won by 12 points in a state Trump carried by 13 just two years ago.

It’s amazing how parties can be blinded by their own success. Texas Republicans had not lost a statewide race since 1994. Even as Talarico led in the polls, they never understood what they were dealing with.

In terms of pure star power, it’s hard to match what he now means to Texas and the Democratic Party. When he made a surprise appearance on “SNL” on Saturday night, the cheers and applause drowned out his first line.

I told my Republican friends from the start: This guy is a political athlete on the order of Barack Obama.

It reminds me of how Democrats laughed at Ronald Reagan, right up until 8:30 on election night in 1980.

And as the Gipper liked to say, “You ain’t seen nothin’ yet.”

A Chief of Staff Who ‘Will Crack Skulls’
by Jonathan Lemire

President Donald Trump is looking for someone who “will crack skulls.” That person appears to be Stephen Miller, his new chief of staff.

Miller’s first day in the new job is today, and the appointment seems to be a clear signal that Trump is gearing up for a fight with the new Democratic majorities in the House and Senate. Miller is the architect of Trump’s hardline immigration policies — including its deportation program — and not the sort of choice made in the spirit of compromise and bipartisanship.

As I co-wrote in The Atlantic, Trump does not want to be reined in despite his party’s poor showing in the midterms — and Miller may embrace even more extreme positions:

Where Wiles served as something of a guardrail—making sure Trump was fully briefed and that he understood the risks and pitfalls of any decision—Miller has played the role of an accelerant for a president who already has rash tendencies.

One issue on which Wiles and Miller seem to diverge: how to force journalists to reveal their sources in the government.

Trump has pushed the Department of Justice to pursue criminal-leak investigations on national-security grounds, and there have been discussions in the White House and at DOJ about various tactics they could use—including arrests—as part of those efforts, according to three people familiar with the matter. Two of those people said that Wiles had pushed back. Miller, though, was in favor and insisted that it wouldn’t take long for journalists to give up their sources, they told us.

Miller is one of Trump’s most loyal, longest-serving and hardest-charging aides. And now he has the most powerful staff job in Washington. Read more at The Atlantic.

ON THIS DATE

Beginning Nov. 9, 1938, Nazis unleashed a wave of coordinated violence against Jews across Germany and Austria in a pogrom known as Kristallnacht, or the “Night of Broken Glass.” More than 1,400 synagogues were damaged or destroyed, thousands of Jewish-owned businesses were vandalized, and hundreds of Jews died in the attacks and their aftermath — marking a dramatic escalation in the Nazi campaign against European Jews.

Hulton Archive/Getty Images

WHAT THEY SAID

Mika Brzezinski on Democrats Staying Focused

“Voters just handed Democrats a clear mandate: lowering costs, making lives better, and yes, reining in ICE. Stephen Miller’s promotion doesn’t change Democrats’ goals; it defines them. I highly encourage Democrats and many others not to take the bait, and remember they have the power to deliver real results to the American people.”

Pablo Torre on Why Young Men Turned on the GOP

“They thought they could sprinkle in some sports, put Dana White in there, and forge a permanent bond with young men. But now 58% say Trump’s presidency has hurt their lives. They  feel locked out of an economy rigged against them. It’s not just podcasts, sports, or culture wars. It’s: ‘You promised us something, and we can feel how we’re not getting it.’”

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