TRANSITION: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. this week will seek to ease skepticism during meetings with Senate Republicans about his fitness to lead the Department of Health and Human Services next year.
Kennedy is among the highest-profile appointees Trump has rolled out for his Cabinet. A Democrat-turned-independent from a storied family, he has a reputation as a vaccine skeptic and fluoride foe who promotes health misinformation and was denounced by his siblings and famous relatives while challenging Biden in the presidential primary. Kennedy initially was thought to be one of the most controversial Trump Cabinet choices, yet he has stirred little public criticism among GOP senators.
"He's in a good spot. You haven't really heard much consternation about his nomination at all in recent weeks," one Senate GOP aide told The Hill, adding they expect Kennedy to focus on his "Make America Healthy Again" priorities and his now evolved opposition to abortion rights. "If that turns out to be true, I think he'll be on a glide path to being confirmed."
One possible Kennedy critic to watch is outgoing Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who contracted polio as a child. He'll step down from leadership next year. McConnell warned last week that it's "very dangerous" for Trump's health team to question the efficacy or safety of the polio vaccine, referring to a New York Times article about Aaron Siri, Kennedy's lawyer who specializes in vaccine lawsuits. Siri has petitioned the government to revoke its approval of the polio vaccine and is helping Kennedy identify possible appointees to work in the health and science fields in a Trump government.
"Anyone seeking the Senate's consent to serve in the incoming Administration would do well to steer clear of even the appearance of association with such efforts," McConnell said in a statement. "The polio vaccine has saved millions of lives and held out the promise of eradicating a terrible disease. Efforts to undermine public confidence in proven cures are not just uninformed — they're dangerous."
The Washington Post: How Trump broke the ice between RFK Jr. and drug company CEOs.
▪ Axios: Trump's advisers are hoping to get bipartisan support for at least some of his less controversial nominees — starting this week with Scott Turner, pick for Housing and Urban Development.
FBI: Kash Patel did well during initial interviews with GOP senators last week, but the tougher interviews are ahead this week before lawmakers leave town, and senators are still waiting to see an FBI background check on Trump's controversial pick to lead the bureau. Former FBI officials have warned that Patel could have limitless power at the bureau, and that under his leadership, typical checks on the power of the FBI director would likely not be enforced.
The Hill: Appearing on The Hill's Sunday show, Rep. Glenn Ivey (D-Md.) warned that Patel would take the FBI in a political direction.
Treasury: Trump's Treasury Department pick has a 3-prong strategy for the economy. The hedge fund investor Scott Bessent is keen on increasing growth to 3 percent, cutting the budget deficit to 3 percent of gross domestic product and raising U.S. energy production by three million barrels of oil per day, or the equivalent in other fuels.
▪ The Wall Street Journal: Businesses are beginning to think Trump will make good on his threat of raising tariffs, triggering a behind-the-scenes campaign to soften or alter his plans.
▪ The Hill: Trump has tapped individuals to serve in his administration who have faced legal troubles. Here are past appointees with their own thorny legal histories.
▪ The Hill: Republican senators are gearing up for the possibility of primary challenges ahead of the 2026 midterms.
POLICY CZARS: Trump is signaling he plans to lean on appointed czars to carry out his plans in key policy areas, specifically when it comes to immigration and energy production, centralizing power within the White House. The decision allows the president-elect to avoid relying on Senate-confirmed nominees at sprawling agencies to implement his agenda.
"The creation of czars can at least, even if Trump is bound to use preexisting legal authority to affect change in these policy areas, it does politically help them because this signals to the media and the public that these are important areas," said Mitch Sollenberger, a professor at the University of Michigan-Dearborn and author of the book "The President's Czars: Undermining Congress and the Constitution."
▪ The Hill: As in his first term, Trump is leaning on his extended family for key White House roles.
▪ Politico: The Catholics in Trump's administration could take the GOP in a whole new direction.
▪ Axios: Trump is considering a U.S. Postal Service overhaul.
▪ The Hill: Trump, Democratic lawmakers and the Supreme Court are on a collision course over restricting birthright citizenship.
Trump's focus on the federal workforce has sparked alarm among employees as they take center stage in discussions about transforming government. DOGE co-leaders Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy have floated a number of plans targeting federal workers, including plans to end telework. And while federal employees have long reported feeling like a punching bag, the renewed rhetoric is escalating fears over how they may be targeted.
"The sort of broadsides against federal employee telework paint a picture of federal employees as people who are committing fraud against the American people, and collecting paychecks without performing the duties of their jobs, which is simply not true," said Jacqueline Simon, public policy director of the American Federation of Government Employees.
The Wall Street Journal: SpaceX executives haven't sought higher security clearance for Musk to avoid questions about his drug use and contact with foreign officials.
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