Beyond Matt Gaetzthere has been perhaps no Donald Trump nominee with as fraught a path to confirmation as Pete Hegseth. Soon after the president-elect announced him as his pick for defense secretary, the former Fox News host was beset by the publicization of a sexual assault accusation (which he’s denied), as well as reports about […]
Watching ABC submit to Donald Trump over his defamation lawsuit against the network—giving him $15 million for his presidential library and another $1 million in legal fees to settle the case—did not feel great. But there’s more where that came from, and Trump is about to weaponize the government to settle his scores with the […]
President Joe Biden and his pro-union agenda suffered a major setback Wednesday when the Senate narrowly voted against advancing his nominee to the National Labor Relations Board. Lauren McFerran, the labor board’s current chair, was nominated to serve another term at the agency that would stretch until mid-2026. Her confirmation could have ensured the board […]
WASHINGTON — In a normal presidential transition, the president-elect spends weeks carefully considering candidates for the most important jobs in his Cabinet. Potential nominees undergo rigorous private vetting by trusted aides and lawyers, then by the FBI. It’s a painstaking process that often consumes the entire three months between the election and the inauguration. But when […]
NPR’s Leila Fadel speaks with Rob Kelner of the law firm Covington and Burling about the vetting process for presidential nominees. LEILA FADEL, HOST: President-elect Donald Trump has moved with lightning speed to name his choices for cabinet members and senior staff in his second term. Hundreds of those nominees will face confirmation hearings in […]
A coping mechanism I’ve adopted since the election of Donald Trump, a man more deserving of prison than the presidency, is to look for reasons for even the slightest optimism about the nation’s governance over the next four years. To that end, this Thanksgiving I’m grateful for the Republican “Grim Reaper,” Mitch McConnell. Really. Yes, […]
Donald Trump has nominated longtime ally Brooke Rollins for secretary of agriculture, completing his cabinet roster. He made the announcement Saturday late afternoon, tapping the head of Maga-backed think tank the America First Policy Institute for the job. “As our next Secretary of Agriculture, Brooke will spearhead the effort to protect American Farmers, who are […]
The speaker of the House, the man second in line to the presidency — Rep. Mike Johnson of Louisiana — had to photobomb the much-shared shot taken aboard the so-called Trump Force One airplane last weekend. There was no room for him at the four-top table where the real power bros — Donald Trump, of […]
Hollywood superstars Ryan Reynolds and Glen Powell took on bad guys and tornados this year, but that’s nothing compared to the threat of an ass-kicking from 94-year-old June Squibb. Earlier this year Squibb starred in “Thelma,” her first lead role in a film, playing a grandmother who tracks down her swindlers. While promoting the film, […]
Now that we are on the other side of Labor Day and summer is subsiding, this is — as tradition goes — when focus on political campaigns really begins to heat up. The off-year elections this November will get some attention, but the main attraction is still the 2024 Republican presidential primary. In this installment […]
