The Megyn Kelly Show - SCOTUS Hears Arguments on Mail-In Ballots, Trump Eyes Cuba, ICE Deploys to Airports： AM Update 3⧸24

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00:00:30.000 Good morning, everyone. I'm Megan Kelly. It's Tuesday, March 24th, 2026. And this is your AM

00:00:36.040 Update. If I have nothing more to look at than the phrase election day, I think this is the day

00:00:42.720 in which everything is going to take place. The Supreme Court hearing oral arguments in a case

00:00:47.700 that could limit how mail-in ballots are counted. I do believe I'll be the honor of having the honor

00:00:53.960 As Cuba struggles with fuel shortages, blackouts, and a collapsing electrical grid,

00:01:01.520 the Trump administration publicly weighs taking action. President Trump in Memphis,

00:01:06.360 Tennessee, highlighting a successful task force cracking down on violent crime in what was once

00:01:11.560 one of the most dangerous cities in America. ICE agents arriving at airports nationwide,

00:01:17.260 assisting overwhelmed TSA agents amid a partial DHS shutdown.

00:01:22.880 All that and more coming up in just a moment on your AM update.

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00:02:31.660 The U.S. Supreme Court yesterday hearing oral arguments in a case that could reshape

00:02:36.200 how states handle mail-in ballots, specifically whether ballots postmarked by Election Day,

00:02:42.220 but arriving later can still be counted. At issue, a Mississippi law adopted in 2020 during the

00:02:49.220 COVID pandemic, allowing mail-in ballots to be counted as long as they are postmarked by election

00:02:55.120 day and then received within five business days thereafter. Four years later, the Republican

00:03:00.920 National Committee, the Mississippi Republican Party, a voter, and a county election official

00:03:06.240 challenging that law, arguing it conflicts with a federal statute that sets a single

00:03:11.620 National Election Day, the Tuesday after the first Monday in November. A separate lawsuit by

00:03:17.140 the Libertarian Party of Mississippi eventually combined with the Republicans' case. The

00:03:22.280 Constitution grants states authority over the, quote, times, places, and manner of elections,

00:03:28.020 but also gives Congress the power to override those rules. Mississippi arguing that an election

00:03:33.240 occurs when voters cast their ballots, not when officials receive or count them, and that timely

00:03:39.960 postmarking therefore satisfies federal law. The challengers arguing election day means when

00:03:46.400 officials receive the ballots, making Mississippi's mail-in policy in violation of federal law.

00:03:53.040 The case appealed all the way up to the Supreme Court, where, after more than two hours of

00:03:57.040 arguments, several of the more conservative justices appeared skeptical of Mississippi's

00:04:02.160 position. Right out of the gate, Justice Clarence Thomas, Chief Justice John Roberts, and Justice

00:04:07.460 Amy Coney Barrett, pressing Mississippi Solicitor General Scott Stewart with a rapid-fire round of

00:04:13.380 questions. If I give my ballot, mail-in ballot, to my neighbor, is that a choice? It's a choice.

00:04:21.820 It's not a final choice that can be recognized in the context of an election. So when do I know

00:04:25.660 whether or not a choice is final? Is there any limit to that? As to how early people could vote?

00:04:31.920 Sure. You know, they fill out a ballot if you're giving them a ballot and, you know, drop it off two weeks before.

00:04:39.060 Your Honor, I don't think there is a limit to how early that could occur.

00:04:42.940 If I have someone in my neighborhood, in my HOA, who says, listen, I'm going to take everybody's votes in,

00:04:49.840 what if the state said that's fine if you've cast your final vote and you've, you know,

00:04:55.120 you've designated someone to carry your vote to as long as it gets to the ballot box five days

00:05:02.480 after election day, it's fine. Submission to mail or common carrier is different in kind than say

00:05:08.400 submitting it to a relative or sort of a neighbor. What's the difference? They're not government

00:05:12.680 officials. Justice Samuel Alito zeroing in on the meaning of the term election day. We have lots of

00:05:20.340 phrases that involve two words, the last of which, the second of which is day.

00:05:27.680 Labor Day, Memorial Day, George Washington's birthday, Independence Day, birthday, and

00:05:35.140 Election Day, and they're all particular days.

00:05:39.720 So if we start with that, if I have nothing more to look at than the phrase Election Day,

00:05:45.820 I think this is the day in which everything is going to take place and or almost everything.

00:05:53.540 President Trump long critical of mail-in balloting, arguing it opens the door to fraud and undermines confidence in the integrity of the election system.

00:06:01.980 That concern echoed during arguments with Justices Alito and Brett Kavanaugh raising questions about delayed ballot counts.

00:06:09.060 Some of the briefs have argued that confidence in election outcomes can be seriously undermined.

00:06:15.820 If the apparent outcome of the election on the day after the polls close is radically flipped by the acceptance later of a big stash of ballots that flip the election.

00:06:32.040 Late arriving ballots open up a risk of what might destabilize the election results.

00:06:37.980 If the apparent winner the morning after the election ends up losing due to late arriving ballots, charges of a rigged election could explode.

00:06:45.640 Mississippi's Solicitor General arguing that there is little evidence that late-arriving ballots lead to fraud.

00:06:51.900 Liberal Justice Elena Kagan questioning whether the RNC's argument could also call into question early voting.

00:06:58.420 You're basically saying there are two things that have to happen, and they have to happen on Election Day.

00:07:04.000 And it's the voting and, you know, the casting of the vote and the receipt of the vote.

00:07:08.220 And both of those things have to be on Election Day.

00:07:10.580 And just like a normal person says, OK, well, when I early vote, I'm not doing that on that first Tuesday.

00:07:19.400 Paul Clement arguing for the challengers that early voting is different because those votes are still finalized on Election Day.

00:07:27.340 More than a dozen states allow for late arriving mail-in ballots to be counted if they're postmarked by Election Day,

00:07:33.720 meaning the court's decision could have ripple effects well beyond Mississippi.

00:07:37.340 We spoke with America First Policy Institute's Director for Election Integrity, Thomas Lane, about yesterday's arguments and what's at stake.

00:07:46.400 He describes how a ruling striking down the Mississippi law could affect elections in other states with similar laws.

00:07:52.760 If this case is resolved so that the ballot receipt deadline is struck down, this question was asked, hey, does this affect primary elections?

00:08:02.360 Is it just a general election in November?

00:08:05.260 And while Mississippi's law applies to all of their elections, primary elections, recall elections, the general election in November, what is at hand in that issue before the court is just the federal general election in November.

00:08:23.300 So for primary elections that are coming up or in some states have already gone by, this ruling would not affect them.

00:08:30.820 But what it does affect those 18 states and the District of Columbia is in November.

00:08:36.920 One way this case is unusual is it's not California or New York defending late arriving ballots, but Mississippi, a reliably red state now on the opposite side of President Trump, the RNC and many Republicans.

00:08:51.240 We asked Lane about that.

00:08:52.600 When the RNC was looking at challenging the post-receipt deadline, if you go and you sue in Illinois or you go and sue in New York, that you're not going to have a favorable decision in those lower courts and you're going to hope that you can appeal all the way up to the Supreme Court.

00:09:12.480 But what I think happened here is the RNC saw that Mississippi is a very favorable venue for this. Mississippi's Solicitor General, who argued for Mississippi here, actually was the lawyer who argued the Dobbs case that overturned Roe v. Wade.

00:09:32.280 And so it is odd that you have a red state, you have Mississippi on the opposite side of the administration or, in my view, very common sense practice and policy of having Election Day be Election Day.

00:09:46.920 I think in the end, no matter how formidable the argument was from Mississippi, their law will be overturned.

00:09:55.640 Lane giving us his prediction on the outcome.

00:09:57.800 If I were to predict how this would go down, I think this is a very easy five and up to six vote majority for striking down Mississippi's law of receiving ballots five days after the election.

00:10:16.440 An opinion is expected by late June.

00:10:18.580 Cuba's power grid collapsing Saturday, marking the third nationwide outage this month as the

00:10:26.940 communist regime struggles to maintain its aging infrastructure amid ongoing fuel shortages.

00:10:32.600 The U.S. imposing sanctions on Cuba in various forms since the 1960s aimed at pressuring the

00:10:38.560 regime on human rights and democratic reforms, tightening further in recent years to target

00:10:43.620 financial transactions, tourism, and energy imports. Cuba previously leaning heavily on

00:10:49.420 subsidized oil shipments from Venezuela, now largely cut off following the U.S.-backed

00:10:54.780 operation that led to the arrest and extradition of former Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro

00:10:59.960 on drug charges. With the island now facing protests amid exacerbated energy and economic

00:11:06.080 struggles, many wondering if the Trump administration is preparing to push regime change.

00:11:11.700 President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio in recent weeks

00:11:14.880 openly discussing the possibility.

00:11:17.480 President Trump on March 16th speaking to reporters.

00:11:20.860 You know, all my life I've been hearing about the United States and Cuba.

00:11:24.540 When will the United States do it?

00:11:27.020 I do believe I'll be the honor of having the honor of taking Cuba.

00:11:33.740 That's a big honor.

00:11:35.020 Taking Cuba. 0.96

00:11:35.960 Taking Cuba in some form, yeah. 0.88

00:11:37.840 Taking Cuba. 0.96

00:11:38.480 I mean, whether I free it, take it, I think I can do anything I want with it.

00:11:43.920 You want to know the truth?

00:11:44.900 They're a very weakened nation right now.

00:11:48.720 They were for a long time.

00:11:50.100 Very violent, very violent leaders.

00:11:53.880 Castro was a very violent leader. 0.76

00:11:55.620 His brother's a very violent leader. 0.94

00:11:58.160 Extremely violent.

00:11:59.960 That's how they governed.

00:12:01.280 They governed with violence.

00:12:02.980 But a lot of people would like to go back.

00:12:04.660 Secretary Rubio, whose family emigrated to the U.S. from Cuba, leading negotiations with Cuban

00:12:11.040 officials, reportedly tying any sanctions relief to sweeping government reforms, including the

00:12:16.960 removal of current President Miguel Diaz-Canel. The Atlantic reporting Sunday, one administration

00:12:23.020 official telling the outlet, quote, regime change is lined up, with the White House eyeing a

00:12:28.460 Venezuela-style model. That approach removes the head of state while leaving parts of the

00:12:33.560 governing structure intact, so long as they align with U.S. interests. A White House spokesperson

00:12:39.080 telling The Atlantic, quote, we are talking to Cuba whose leaders want to make a deal and should

00:12:44.160 make a deal. Cuba is a failing nation whose rulers have had a major setback with the loss of support

00:12:49.980 from Venezuela. Meanwhile, Cuban officials warning they are preparing for the possibility of

00:12:55.380 military conflict. Deputy Foreign Minister Carlos Fernandez de Cosio telling NBC on Sunday, quote,

00:13:02.040 Our military is always prepared. And in fact, it is preparing these days for the possibility

00:13:07.500 of military aggression. Coming up, President Trump in Memphis touting a sweeping crackdown

00:13:15.120 on violent crime. And ICE agents now deploying to major airports nationwide

00:13:19.940 as lawmakers remain deadlocked in DHS funding negotiations.

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00:14:35.780 President Trump in Memphis, Tennessee, yesterday, highlighting the administration's push to crack

00:14:40.600 down on violent crime, showcasing the work of the Memphis Safe Task Force. The president forming

00:14:46.920 the interagency task force in September, citing Memphis as one of the most dangerous cities in

00:14:52.420 the country, with some of the highest per capita rates of murder, robbery, aggravated assault,

00:14:57.800 and property crime. The president joined by a slate of top officials, including Secretary of

00:15:02.880 War Pete Hegseth, Attorney General Pam Bondi, FBI Director Kash Patel, Task Force Chairman

00:15:08.260 Gadi Seralta, and Tennessee Republican Governor Bill Lee. The task force chairman laying out the

00:15:13.900 results so far pointing to thousands of arrests and a sharp drop in major crimes.

00:15:19.040 In just over six months, the Memphis Safe Task Force has made over 7,342 arrests. This is last

00:15:27.280 week's numbers. With charges ranging from homicide, there was 44 of those, 812 drug offenses,

00:15:35.140 and 757 gang-related offenses.

00:15:39.500 We have seized over 1,200 illegal firearms

00:15:43.120 and located and returned 150 missing children.

00:15:47.420 In the past six months, collectively,

00:15:49.260 our efforts have resulted in a 43% reduction in total serious crimes,

00:15:54.420 37% reduction in murder,

00:15:56.320 40% reduction in sexual assault,

00:15:59.240 56% reduction in robbery,

00:16:02.360 68 percent reduction in motor vehicle thefts and the most impressive of all is a 65 percent

00:16:12.100 increase in the solvability of the crimes that have been committed. A.G. Bondi highlighting the

00:16:17.960 real-life impact behind those stats. There was a horrible murderer Arsenio Davis who last October

00:16:24.200 committed a gruesome double homicide. He killed his mother and dismembered another person and

00:16:30.580 Based on this task force working hand in hand, he's off the street. 0.99

00:16:34.900 Another example, a horrible monster who's charged with raping a small child.

00:16:39.600 This task force, all of these members working together arrested him.

00:16:43.580 We can give you countless examples of that.

00:16:46.920 770, over 770 gang members off the streets.

00:16:51.340 And we know there's no normal day for a law enforcement officer.

00:16:54.600 We know it's so dangerous what our law enforcement officers do.

00:16:58.180 But know this, Donald Trump and this administration, we have your backs.

00:17:03.520 Also on the agenda yesterday, a stop at Graceland, home to Elvis Presley.

00:17:07.960 President Trump on the king of rock and roll.

00:17:10.700 I'm going to see Graceland after this, I think. Is that right?

00:17:14.720 I love Elvis. I never met Elvis. Everyone said, did you? I met them all.

00:17:20.100 I met Sinatra. I knew all of them. I never met Elvis.

00:17:23.580 Sometimes I feel I should tell the little fibs that I knew him well.

00:17:28.180 ICE agents now deploying to airports across the country as TSA operations buckle amid the partial

00:17:34.460 DHS shutdown now stretching into its sixth week. Between 100 and 150 ICE agents sent to 14 major

00:17:42.880 airports, including Chicago O'Hare, Hartsfield-Jackson-Atlanta, and Houston's George Bush

00:17:48.500 Intercontinental, stepping in to assist overwhelmed TSA agents, according to The New York Times.

00:17:54.320 The move coming as TSA faces a growing staffing crisis, agents going unpaid,

00:17:59.680 leading to mass call-outs and resignations. On Sunday alone, more than 3,450 TSA officers

00:18:06.700 failing to report to work. That's over 11 percent of the scheduled workforce,

00:18:11.680 the highest absence rate yet during the shutdown. At some airports, call-out rates ranging from

00:18:17.040 37 to 42 percent, according to Reuters. Deployed ICE agents, under the direction of Border Czar

00:18:23.300 Tom Homan, assigned to non-screening roles like crowd control, monitoring exit lanes and checking

00:18:29.220 IDs, allowing trained TSA officers to stay focused on security screening. As to whether the added

00:18:35.540 manpower is making a meaningful difference, results appear mixed so far. Yesterday afternoon,

00:18:41.500 wait times at George Bush Intercontinental topping three to four hours, with only two of eight

00:18:46.340 security checkpoints open to handle the traffic. At Hartsfield-Jackson in Atlanta, the effort

00:18:52.060 appearing more successful. CNN reporting by yesterday afternoon wait times dropping to about

00:18:57.060 40 minutes, down from three to four hours over the weekend. All of this unfolding as lawmakers

00:19:02.820 remain at an impasse over funding for the Department of Homeland Security, with no clear

00:19:08.120 agreement in sight. President Trump speaking to reporters yesterday, urging Senate Republicans to

00:19:13.600 hold the line, pushing to tie any DHS funding deal to passage of the SAVE Act, an election

00:19:19.960 integrity measure. The Democrats are being blamed for the shutdown and it's their fault and they're

00:19:25.780 getting killed. That's why when I when I announced yesterday about ICE, the Democrats called. We want

00:19:33.700 to settle. We want to settle. And I told the people, don't settle. Don't settle because we

00:19:39.100 have something bigger. Only settle if you get the Save America Act voter ID and so important proof

00:19:46.340 of citizenship, etc. Good luck, travelers. Maybe consider driving. 0.93

00:19:53.840 And that'll do it for your AM update. I'm Megan Kelly. Join me back here for The MK Show,

00:19:58.680 live on SiriusXM's The Megan Kelly Channel, 111 at noon east,

00:20:01.780 on youtube.com slash megankelly, and on all podcast platforms.

The Megyn Kelly Show - March 24, 2026

SCOTUS Hears Arguments on Mail-In Ballots, Trump Eyes Cuba, ICE Deploys to Airports： AM Update 3⧸24

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