Trump transition: Pam Bondi grilled about Trump, 2020 election, Kash Patel during Senate confirmation hearing

President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the CIA promised senators Wednesday he would not impose political litmus tests on the agency’s workforce or force employees to place loyalty to Trump over the country.

Trump has repeatedly portrayed the CIA and other spy agencies as corrupt institutions carrying out a political agenda. But John Ratcliffe, the former Texas congressman chosen by Trump to lead the spy service, spoke in respectful terms about its work at his Senate confirmation hearing and vowed he would not purge employees because of perceived political beliefs. 

Read the full story here.

Former Presidents Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush will not attend the traditional inauguration lunch, according to sources familiar with the matter.

Obama will not attend any inaugural events besides Trump's swearing-in, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Clinton and his wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, were invited, but they do not plan to attend the luncheon, according to a source close to the Clintons. 

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., said in a statement that she met with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. regarding his nomination to be secretary of Health and Human Services, noting that she "appreciated the opportunity to share my deep concerns about his long history of anti-vaccine activism."

Murray serves on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee (HELP), having previously chaired the committee. In her statement, she reiterated her staunch opposition to Kennedy's nomination.

"There is simply no reason whatsoever to believe that if finally given the levers of power to wreck access to vaccines and public confidence in them, he will abandon a cause he has championed," she said. "It takes no imagination to see how dangerous it would be to confirm RFK Jr. as Health Secretary, and it takes mountains of willful ignorance to ignore it."

Six of President-elect Donald Trump’s big-office nominees faced Senate confirmation hearings today, previewing a parade of policy and political fights that will define his second term.

The picks — Pam Bondi for attorney general; Marco Rubio for secretary of state; Sean Duffy for transportation secretary; John Ratcliffe for CIA director; Chris Wright for energy secretary; and Russell Vought for director of the White House Office of Management and Budget — largely avoided the kind of fireworks that can sink confirmation chances.

Read the full story here.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, praised Bondi following today's hearing, telling reporters she gave "an outstanding performance."

"I think she answered every question appropriately. She had some of the toughest questions you could have. And I think she’s going to be a darn good attorney general, and I think she’s going to change the culture of the department," the senator added.

It was clear during the hearing that Bondi has widespread support from Republicans on the panel, but Grassley wasn't sure whether she'd receive any votes from Democrats.

“There’s no way I could predict that, and I haven’t been told by anybody that they would [vote for her]," Grassley said.

A source familiar with the matter tells NBC News that on Inauguration Day, former President Barack Obama does not intend to attend the luncheon or any events beyond Trump's initial swearing-in ceremony. NBC News reported yesterday that former first lady Michelle Obama would not intend the inauguration.

Trump called Pete Hegseth following his Senate confirmation hearing yesterday and told his Defense pick that it was a “10 out of 10,” two sources familiar with the call told NBC News.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was also on the call and offered his congratulations, the sources said. NBC News is out to the Trump transition and DeSantis’ office for comment.

Senators will be back on Capitol Hill for a third day of confirmation hearings tomorrow.

Former North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum will testify before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee as Trump's pick to be the next Interior secretary.

Former Rep. Lee Zeldin will also testify in front of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee as he seeks to be the next administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.

The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee has wrapped up its confirmation hearing of Russell Vought, Trump's pick to lead the Office of Management and Budget.

Rubio's hearing has wrapped, and it included several warm exchanges with the Democrats he'd served with on the Senate.

One of the most notable was toward the end of the four-hour hearing, when Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., thanked him for his support when she sought to change the Senate rules to allow her to bring her baby onto the chamber's floor. Duckworth was the first senator to give birth while in office.

Senators have wrapped up the first day of Pam Bondi's confirmation hearing to be the next attorney general.

Throughout the day, Democrats and Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee engaged in a back-and-forth, lobbing accusations about whether Bondi would seek to maintain a Justice Department that's independent from the White House, or whether the Justice Department under the Biden administration had already violated institutional norms.

Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., asked Bondi whether she'll help address the price gouging happening in California in the aftermath of devastating wildfires in the greater Los Angeles area.

"I hope you will demonstrate a willingness to go after anyone who's engaged in price gouging. I think the oil companies are engaged in price gouging. The price at the pump in California is through the roof. Are you willing to take on even powerful interests like the oil industry if you determine that they are gouging consumers?" asked Schiff, who is attending his first confirmation hearing since being sworn in as senator.

"I handled the BP oil spill, senator, when I was attorney general for the state of Florida. Right now as an immediate concern, I would be concerned about helping you in California with all the criminal acts that I'm sure are happening throughout your state, with the looting," Bondi answered.

Rubio said he believes "without a question" that Cuba is a state sponsor of terrorism, and suggested the Trump administration will reverse Biden's decision to remove that designation.

Rubio said he did not want to get ahead of Trump on the issue, but noted, "Nothing that was agreed to is irreversible or binding on the next administration."

Rubio had been asked about the Tuesday action by Biden by Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, who, like Rubio, is Cuban American.

Trump designated Cuba as a state sponsor of terrorism in January 2021, shortly before he left office.

During Wright's confirmation hearing, Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., pressed the energy secretary pick on social media posts in which he downplayed "hype" related to wildfires.

"The hype over wildfires is just hype to justify more impoverishment from bad government policies," Wright wrote in a LinkedIn post over a year ago.

Padilla referred to the post, asking the nominee, "Given the devastation that we’re currently experiencing in Los Angeles, do you still believe that wildfires are just hype?"

Wright said he'd been watching the wildfires "with great sorrow and fear."

"Do you think it’s just hype or not?" Padilla asked again

"Climate change is a real and global phenomenon," Wright said.

Padilla pushed again, asking, "Is it hype or not?" to which Wright said, "I stand by my past comment."

Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., said that access to mifepristone, one of two drugs used for a self-administered abortion, has been threatened and asked if the DOJ would continue to defend it under her leadership if she is confirmed.

"The Department of Justice has vigorously defended the FDA's judgment about the safeness and effectiveness and I guess a lot of people are concerned about reversing a policy ... that could deeply affect people's access to mifepristone. I'm wondering if you would commit to continuing the U.S. Department of Justice's efforts to defend the FDA judgment in lawsuits against mifepristone?" Booker asked.

“It sounds like we’re going to have to open an entire unit to handle Senator Grassley's letters, to respond to them," Bondi joked after multiple members of the Senate Judiciary Committee brought up Chair Chuck Grassley's infamous letters to the attorney general.

"I'll make this suggestion," Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., told Bondi, "You can bring us together, if you will just answer Grassley's letters. That will be a really good start, because you'll never hear the end of it, nor should you. The man is, he's like a dog with a bone."

Later, Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., also brought up issues she had with the Justice Department under Biden not answering letters in what she considered a timely manner.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., asked Bondi again about TikTok and asked if its parent company, Bytedance, is a threat to U.S. national security.

"Senator, this is pending litigation within the Department of Justice," Bondi said, repeating what she said earlier in the hearing about the possible pending ban on TikTok.

Blumenthal said, "It's not pending litigation within the Department of Justice. It's in the courts."

"Will you continue to defend the law passed by the Congress defending America's national security?" Blumenthal asked, referring to the law passed to ban the platform.

Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., attacked Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg in his second line of questioning of Bondi, saying that Bragg came to mind during an earlier discussion of someone investigating someone because of his or her name and finding a crime afterward.

"It made me immediately think of District Attorney Bragg in New York, who actually, in 2019, ran a campaign in large part suggesting that, if you elect me, I prosecute Donald Trump," Kennedy said.

Shortly after Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., asked Bondi about Kash Patel's links to QAnon, Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., defended Trump's pick to lead the FBI, saying, "You know, it's just absurd to kind of throw that stuff out there."

"Does anybody honestly believe someone with a distinguished career like Kash Patel thinks that a cannibalistic cabal controlling the internals of government really exists?" Tillis added.

Patel has long been known to spread conspiracy theories about the "deep state," especially for an online show he once hosted for the right-wing organization The Epoch Times.

On a 2022 episode of another show, GraceTime TV, Patel said he was "blown away" by the "acumen" of some QAnon believers who he said were researching "government documents that expose their own corruption, that show their own unethical behavior."

Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., the ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, dug into Vought's past at the start of his confirmation hearing, criticizing his actions as OMB director during Trump's first administration and afterward.

"Unfortunately, your record and actions in these roles raise serious concerns about how you’re going to lead this critical agency that touches literally every single part of the federal government," Peters said, criticizing Vought's "total disregard" for Congress' direction on federal spending, citing as one example how the administration handled disaster relief following Hurricane Maria.

Peters pointed specifically to Vought's involvement in Project 2025, an expansive conservative plan for overhauling U.S. policy under the Trump administration. Vought wrote a chapter of the blueprint outlining an expansive view of the the OMB director's role as an enforcer of the president's policy goals, in part through directives on federal spending.

"Mr. Vought, you are one of the architects of Project 2025, which sets forth a blueprint for implementing these unlawful and dangerous plans under this new administration," Peters said. Peters repeated that the role which Vought is nominated for carries "enormous responsibility," adding that he has "serious questions about whether you can be trusted to carry out the laws that Congress has passed under the Constitution."

During his second round of questioning, Durbin asked Bondi whether she knew about the QAnon conspiracy theory, describing it as a movement whose core belief is "that a cabal of satanic, cannibalistic child molesters are embedded within our government and are conspiring against President-elect Trump."

Durbin added that Kash Patel, Trump's pick to lead the FBI, has previously endorsed the movement, to which Bondi answered: "I've never heard that definition attached to it at all. You're going to have to ask Mr. Patel about those statements."

Later, after Durbin spoke more about QAnon, Bondi drew chuckles in the hearing room when she told the senator, "I look forward to hearing his testimony about QAnon in front of this committee."

During a fiery exchange between Bondi and Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., Trump's pick for attorney general blasted Schiff, referencing the time he was censured on the House floor in a party-line vote led by Republicans.

The tension between Bondi and Schiff was evident as he began a line of questioning about Trump's plan to pardon hundreds of Jan. 6 defendants.

Schiff asked whether Bondi would commit to advising Trump against pardoning those who assaulted police officers during the riot at the Capitol.

"The pardons are at the direction of the president. I will look and I will advise," Bondi said, adding, "I abhor violence to police officers."

Statement

“The FBI opened dozens of investigations into parents who voiced their concerns at school board meetings regarding curriculum choices and Covid-19 mandates."

Bondi refused to say in her testimony whether she would investigate former special counsel Jack Smith, who oversaw the federal investigations into Trump that led to two indictments.

"The president has said Jack Smith should go to jail. Will you investigate Jack Smith?" Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., said.

"Senator, I haven't seen the file," Bondi said. "I haven't seen the investigation. I haven't looked at anything. It would be irresponsible of me to make a commitment regarding anything without ..."

Schiff said, "You would need a factual predicate to open an investigation of Jack Smith?"

Russell Vought's confirmation hearing is underway for his nomination to take back on the role of director of the Office of Management and Budget.

Vought served as director during Trump's first administration. After Trump left office, Vought took on a new project: Project 2025.

After founding the right-wing organization Center for Renewing America in 2021, Vought was also working on the Heritage Foundation project that would seek to reshape federal government.

Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., asked Bondi if she would retract her previous statements that Trump won Pennsylvania in 2020, when it was Biden who won the state.

"Yes or no?" Padilla said.

"Senator, I traveled to Pennsylvania in the 2020 election," said Bondi, who repeatedly was cut off by Padilla who kept asking her to answer his yes-or-no question.

Padilla said that Bondi stood beside Rudy Giuliani who made similar statements and he's been since disbarred from multiple jurisdictions

Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., blasted past Democratic attorneys general, telling his Democratic committee members, "I will remind my colleagues that the last three Democratic attorneys general for the United States of America were perhaps the most politically biased."

Specifically, Schmitt cited Eric Holder, Loretta Lynch and Merrick Garland. Holder and Lynch served during the Obama administration while Garland served for the last four years under the Biden administration.

Schmitt also blasted the classified documents cases against Trump and Biden, saying that the FBI raid at Mar-a-Lago included "staged photos." He noted that classified documents were also found at Biden's personal residence.

Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vt., asked Bondi if she's had any conversations with Trump about going after Biden using the Justice Department or other adversaries.

"Absolutely not," Bondi said, adding that she also hasn't had conversations regarding going after people like Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., who is a member of the committee and was sitting next to Welch.

Senators shared their initial thoughts on the first day of Bondi’s confirmation hearing.

Democrats reiterated their concerns about the extent of Bondi’s loyalty to the president-elect and her refusal to say that Biden received more votes than Trump in the 2020 election. 

Blumenthal said that “the time will come” when Trump will ask Bondi to do something “illegal,” and she has not convinced him that she “will speak truth to power.”

“I think what she’s demonstrated in this hearing so far is that she lacks either the courage or strength to say no to Donald Trump,” he said.

The topic of Duffy’s hearing shifted to the East Palestine, Ohio, train derailment when Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., asked Duffy if he would uphold the Federal Railroad Administration’s rule that freight trains must be staffed by a minimum of two crew members. 

“Last Congress, this committee heard over and over again that having multiple crew members on the train in East Palestine increased safety and helped prevent the disaster from being even worse,” Markey noted in his questioning. 

Following the East Palestine train derailment in early 2023, Markey worked with Vice President-elect J.D. Vance, then a senator from Ohio, to include a provision in the Railway Safety Act that required at least two crew members on freight trains. The provision received pushback from rail companies, but was supported by rail labor unions, which had long advocated for the change. 

“What happened in East Palestine, I think all of us on this committee were horrified by it, by what happened to the community, what happened to their air and their water,” Duffy said. “I believe you worked with the vice president, I’m sure he’ll have a position on the two-person crew, which will flow down to the Department of Transportation, which I’ll abide by.” 

Asked by Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., about possible conflicts of interest involving the Trump Organization's foreign business dealings in Saudi Arabia and elsewhere, Rubio was dismissive.

"My understanding — maybe I'm, speaking out of turn — is the president doesn’t manage that company, his family members do, and they have the right to be in that business," he said. "At the end of the day, his family is entitled to continue to operate their business."

Rubio added that policy decisions would be made based on national interests.

"Our foreign policy is going to be driven, as the president made abundantly clear, by whether some action is in the interest of the United States and our national security," he said.

Ratcliffe's confirmation hearing, which has been open to the public, has paused for a 30-minute lunch break.

The Senate Intelligence Committee is scheduled to reconvene at around 12:40p.m. ET for the closed portion of the hearing to discuss sensitive intelligence matters.

During questioning, Ratcliffe brought up the CIA assessment in connection to the 2020 presidential election, saying that he did believe that China had interfered in Trump's re-election efforts — something the Trump campaign had said.

Ultimately, the federal intelligence report released following the 2020 election contradicted those claims.

Bondi drew the distinction between her work representing Trump in the White House during his first impeachment trial, where she served as special adviser, and the work Trump's personal lawyers did during his criminal trials.

It is "absolutely" different, Bondi said. "You’re working for the government, you’re working for the Office of White House Counsel.”

The hearing for Wright has now been interrupted by protesters five times, several of whom brought up the ongoing Los Angeles fires.

The hearing is now in a lunch break. Grassley said that it would last for 30 minutes and that they'll resume at 12:25 p.m. ET.

Hirono asked Bondi if the felons who broke into the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, were "hostages" or "patriots" as Trump has described them.

"I am not familiar with that statement," Bondi said about Trump's past statements.

Hirono said she had just familiarized her with his statement and asked again if she agrees with it.

"I'm not familiar with it, senator," Bondi said.

After questions by Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, about whether Bondi would ever prosecute former special counsel Jack Smith, Attorney General Merrick Garland or former GOP Rep. Liz Cheney, Bondi answered, "I am not going to answer hypotheticals."

Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, blasted Bondi for failing to acknowledge that President Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election.

Asked who won that presidential election, Bondi simply said, "Joe Biden is the president of the United States."

"Ms. Bondi, you know that there is a difference between acknowledging it and — you know, I can say that Donald Trump won the 2024 election. I may not like it, but I can say it. You cannot say who won the 2020 presidential election," Hirono said.

The senator added, "It’s disturbing that you can’t give voice to that fact."

So far, much of the Democrats' questioning has focused on criticism of Trump and Bondi’s pledge to keep the Justice Department free of political interference and independent of the White House.

Sen. Chris Coons asked Bondi who would be her client as the nation’s top prosecutor. Sen. Dick Durbin asked her to weigh in on a fateful call between Trump and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger after the 2020 election. And Sen. Richard Blumenthal said senators have “some history” with Bondi’s predecessors, who, like she is now, vowed to resist pressure from the top. 

Meanwhile, Republicans have raised questions over the so-called weaponization of the Justice Department, illegal immigration, "improprieties" in elections, and “misinformation” around warrant tapping by the FBI. Sen. Lindsey Graham also pushed back on the notion that “there’s something wrong” with Trump picking a loyalist he trusts as his attorney general. “That’s a good thing,” Graham said. “That’s probably why President Kennedy picked his brother.”

It's a hearing that showcases each side's priorities in selecting an attorney general and how they hope Bondi will weigh in on these issues if confirmed.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., asked Ratcliffe for his commitment to anti-sexual assault initiatives if he were to take over CIA leadership.

"The scourge of sexual assault is problematic in every area of society. We want to make sure that the CIA is a safe place to work and that people who are being harassed or assaulted can come forward and demand justice," said Gillibrand, who has been vocal in working to end sexual assault in the U.S. military.

Ratcliffe pointed to his past leadership roles, which he said reflect that he didn't tolerate "sexual assault and sexual abuse when I was U.S. attorney, when I was DNI, when I was in Congress, all of those."

"I make that pledge to you gratefully," Ratcliffe said, also acknowledging Gillibrand's "leadership on this issue."

Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said in his line of questioning of Bondi that she suggested there are "election improprieties in every election."

"The matter of the question is a matter of scale and whether or not you can prove it. We've seen it in North Carolina and seen it in other places. It's one of the reasons why I support voter ID, because we want to make elections easy to vote and hard to cheat. But the fact of the matter is, people are cheating," he said.

He added, "If anybody on this dais suggests that there aren't irregularities in every election, that they need to spend more time at home and really studying the facts."

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., asked the first question of the hearing about TikTok, which is set to be banned in the U.S. on Sunday if the Supreme Court doesn't intervene.

"Senator, as I discussed with you during our meeting, that is pending litigation within the Department of Justice," Bondi said, adding, "I can't discuss pending litigation."

Trump has sought to intervene in the Supreme Court case, asking the court to pause the ban from going into effect so that the incoming Trump administration can seek other solutions to address privacy concerns without banning the app.

Rubio said the war between Russian and Ukraine needs to end, and that both countries will have to make "concessions."

"This war has to end, and I think it should be the official policy of the United States that we want to see it end," he said, calling for a ceasefire and "bold diplomacy."

"It is important for everyone to be realistic. There will have to be concessions made by the Russian Federation, but also by the Ukrainians," he said.

Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., asked Bondi about incarcerated lawyer Michael Avenatti and disgraced FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried.

On Avenatti, Kennedy said, "Several years ago, he was a media star here ... many members of our media loved him because he persistently bashed Donald Trump."

"I believe he's sitting in prison, senator," Bondi said.

Coons asked Bondi if she would resign as attorney general if she's ordered to do something improper, criticizing Trump for pushing former AG Bill Barr out after Barr said he saw no widespread fraud in the 2020 election.

"Senator, I wouldn't work at a law firm, I wouldn't be a prosecutor, I wouldn't be attorney general if anyone asked me to do something improper and I felt I had to carry that out," Bondi said. "Of course, I would not do that. That's one of the main things you learn when you're a young prosecutor, is to do the right thing. And I believe that has continued with me throughout my very long career."

During Sen. Mike Lee's, R-Utah, first round of questioning, he asked Bondi about her take on the weaponization of the Justice Department, specifically against parents.

"Going after parents at a school board meeting has got to stop," Bondi said. "Sending informants into Catholic churches must stop."

"What about branding parents as domestic terrorists, or trying to incarcerate one's political opponent as a sitting president of the United States?" Lee asked.

Bondi answered that it "will stop."

Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., asked Bondi who her client would be if she's confirmed as attorney general.

"My oath would be to support and defend the Constitution of the United States of America," she said. "The people of America would be my client. That is also my job to advise the president. My client are the people of America."

Asked if Trump is eligible to run for another White House term as president in 2028.

"No, senator, not unless they change the Constitution," she said.

Rubio called NATO a "very important alliance," while also echoing Trump's position that member countries need to pay more on their own defense capabilities.

"It’s important we have alliances, but we have to alliances with strong and capable partners," Rubio said of the alliance Trump has criticized.  

Rubio was asked if he would support the law he co-sponsored barring a president from withdrawing from NATO without a vote from Congress. "It's tough to say I'm not supportive of a law I helped to pass," he said, smiling, and added, "The power of the purse still resides with Congress."

Asked whether she supports the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, Bondi labeled the law "very important."

"FISA is very important," she said, adding that, "it provides important intel-gathering capability to protect our nation."

Both Tom Cotton and Mark Warner have directed questions toward Ratcliffe on bipartisanship and maintaining the truth clear of political bias.

To both senators, Ratcliffe repeated "the truth shall set you free," adding that the CIA is must do its job "in an apolitical way."

Warner specifically asked Ratcliffe whether he would disagree with the Trump administration to maintain the truth in conveying agency findings.

"I can assure you is those types of instances, if I'm in that position as CIA director, and have to do that again, as uncomfortable as that can be to be accused, you know, the truth will ultimately defend itself. And I think that intelligence will as well," Ratcliffe said.

During a back-and-forth exchange with Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., over political interference, Bondi said the Justice Department “must act independently” and pledges that “politics will not play a part” in how cases are adjudicated. Bondi is facing repeated questions and requests for assurances over how she will handle DOJ independence if confirmed and the threat of White House interference.

The confirmation hearing for Chris Wright, Trump's pick for energy secretary, has been interrupted by protesters three times so far. One protester interrupted opening statements and two have interrupted questioning. One of the protesters mentioned the Los Angeles fires before being removed from the room.

Cotton kicked off the questioning at the confirmation hearing for CIA director, asking Ratcliffe if he would "aggressively and unapologetically collect foreign intelligence — which is to say, steal the secrets of our adversaries to protect this nation?"

Ratcliffe responded that he would direct the agency "to go to every corner of the globe, no matter how dark or difficult to do that."

"The CIA is the world's premier, and must be the world's premier, clandestine collector of human intelligence," Ratcliffe continued.

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, also asked Bondi about Laken Riley and immigration issues and asked if she'll do everything at the DOJ to restore security to the border.

"Yes, senator, absolutely," she said.

"President Biden and Vice President Harris had granted parole that has released people into the United States on a categorical basis," Cornyn said. "Do you believe Laken Riley would be alive today, [if] President Biden and Vice President Harris had enforced the law and secured the border?"

Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., emphasized aviation safety in her line of questioning at the confirmation hearing for Sean Duffy for transportation secretary. Cantwell asked Duffy if he would meet with the families of victims of Boeing 737 Max crashes, to which Duffy said “absolutely.” 

“You believe that the Federal Aviation Administration should have a robust oversight of aviation manufacturing including listening to whistleblowers on the ground?,” Cantwell asked. 

“I 100% do,” Duffy replied. 

Cantwell said bolstering aviation safety is a major concern for her, citing a recent Seattle Times investigation that found 90% of complaints submitted by airline and manufacturing employees through the FAA’s whistleblower program resulted in no violations. 

“This underscores the concerns about how do we get a strong FAA oversight and listening to the people that are on the ground, the machinists and engineers,” Cantwell said. 

Bondi says that if she is confirmed, she will follow a policy that limits contacts between the White House and the Justice Department to a few senior officials on each side. The practice is considered traditional for pending cases or litigation and is aimed at preventing the appearance of political interference for Republican and Democratic administrations alike.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., asked Bondi if she would prosecute journalists if she becomes attorney general.

"I believe in the freedom of speech only if anyone commits a crime," Bondi said. "With any victim, and this is this goes back to my entire career, for 18 years as a prosecutor, and then eight years as Florida's attorney general, you find the facts of the case, you apply the law in good faith, and you treat everyone fairly."

Asked by Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I, about whether Bondi has ever had an "enemies list" and whether she ever hired someone with one, Bondi shot back, "Senator, to cut to the chase, you're clearly talking about Kash Patel. I don't believe he has an enemies list."

Bondi was referencing Trump's pick to be the next FBI director, who has publicly said before that he keeps a list of people whom he believes to be a part of the "deep state."

During her opening remarks, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., also pushed Rubio on women's issues, telling the nominee that in most global conflicts, "women often bear the brunt."

"I’m interested to hear you’re your vision for the State Department’s Office of Global Women’s Issues and more broadly, how the Administration will work to empower women and girls on the global stage," Shaheen said.

She added that women deserve a seat at the the table in resolving issues "whether it is food insecurity or the sexual violence that accompanies war, whether in Sudan or Haiti or Afghanistan or Ukraine or Gaza."

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., grandstanded in his line of questioning by speaking about the immigration system and the February 2024 murder of Georgia college student Laken Riley by an undocumented immigrant.

"Do you know why the man who killed her was released from custody? It was parole due to detention capacity at the Central Processing Center in El Paso, Texas," Graham said. "Now that's not your call. You would be DOJ, but do you agree with me that the statute regarding parole doesn't allow parole to be based on we don't have detention beds? There's nothing in that statute [that] would authorize parole based on lack of capacity. Are you familiar with that statute?"

Bondi said she is familiar with it and Graham asked if she is going to fix that.

Rubio vowed to promote the Trump agenda around the world during his opening statement.

"We will never be indifferent to the suffering of our fellow man. But ultimately, under President Trump, the top priority of the United States Department of State must be and will be the United States," he told the panel.

"Placing the interest of America and Americans above all else has never been more relevant or more necessary than it is right now. For in the end, how can America promote the cause of 'peace on earth' if it is not first safe at home?" Rubio said.

He pointed to immigration, drug and sex trafficking, and "dictators" in Russia, Iran and North Korea who "sow chaos and instability and align with and fund radical terror groups" as concerns.

His statement before his former colleagues was briefly interrupted twice by protesters, including one speaking Spanish. "I get bilingual protesters," Rubio quipped.

Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., said in his opening statement that he welcomes Ratcliffe, who has already served as the director of national intelligence during Trump's first administration, as the nominee for CIA director.

But Warner quickly turned his focus to the issue of respect within the CIA, pointing to past attacks on agents by Trump.

"I'm very concerned that the President-elect has continued to engage in undeserved attacks on the professional women and men of our intelligence agencies," Warner said, adding that he believes Trump's comments do affect the morale of officers.

During his first round of questioning, Durbin, the committee's ranking member, asked whether Bondi would support a potential presidential pardon for Jan. 6 defendants.

"The pardons, of course, fall under the president, but if asked to look at those cases, I will look at each case and advise on a case by case basis, just as I did my entire career as a prosecutor," Bondi told Durbin.

Trump has repeatedly floated plans to pardon those convicted for their actions at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Durbin's first question focused Bondi's previous efforts to help Trump overturn the 2020 presidential election.

"President Biden is the president of the United States. He was duly sworn in, and he is the president of the United States. There was a peaceful transition of power. President Trump left office and was overwhelmingly elected in 2024," Bondi said.

In his opening statement, Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., told Ratcliffe that the CIA has been too political and needs to refocus on strengthening its intelligence efforts.

"The CIA needs to get back to its roots, but must overcome several challenges to do so," Cotton said.

Cotton said that the agency has "neglected its core mission: collecting clandestine foreign intelligence, put more simply, stealing secrets." He added that too often the CIA's analysis and priorities has "aligned curiously with the Biden administration's policy preferences."

After asking Bondi to introduce herself, Grassley asked Bondi a series of questions, including if Bondi would commit to defending the False Claims Act.

She answered yes to believing the False Claims Act and to Grassley's follow-up question about committing resources to defend the False Claims Act.

Sen. James Risch, R-Idaho, gaveled in the confirmation hearing for Marco Rubio to be secretary of state at 10:05 a.m. Risch nodded to his long history working alongside Rubio on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee he now chairs and the Intelligence Committee, calling Rubio a “great friend,” and saying Trump made an “excellent choice.”

“Over that period of time, I have come to respect his clear-eyed understanding of U.S. foreign policy interests and his deeply rooted conservative values,” Risch said. “We need a principled, action-oriented chief diplomat like Marco.”

Risch, pointing out that America faces pressing foreign policy concerns with China, Russia, North Korea and Iran, then slammed the outgoing Biden administration for its handling of the Afghanistan withdrawal in 2021 and other foreign conflicts, saying the administration has “frequently made ill-informed decisions that have empowered these adversaries.”

“Failure to deter Russian aggression, constant concessions to China and undermining support for Israel- our allies question U.S. resolve and our adversaries believe they have a free hand. These days are over,” Risch said, underscoring his support for Rubio. 

Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., addressed Rubio by telling him that she believes he has "the skills and are well qualified to serve as secretary of state," adding that the two "have had a good working relationship for many years."

Nonetheless, Shaheen said it was important to "dig" into the plans for American foreign policy in the new administration, focusing closely on the war in Ukraine.

"There is strong bipartisan support in the Senate for Ukraine and a clear understanding that we cannot trust Putin," Shaheen said in her opening statement, mentioning that Trump has said he would end the war in Ukraine within his first day in office.

The Senate Commerce Committee has kicked off the confirmation hearing for President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for transportation secretary, Sean Duffy. 

The former congressman, reality TV star and Fox News host is currently giving his opening statement. 

 

In his prepared remarks, Duffy is speaking about transportation safety and note that his wife, Fox host Rachel Campos-Duffy, survived a car crash.

“Every year, 40,000 lives are lost in roadway accidents. This hits close to home — my wife survived a deadly head-on car crash, which profoundly shaped her life. If confirmed, I will prioritize road safety, ensuring lives and families aren’t forever changed by preventable accidents,” Duffy will say, according to his opening statement.

Duffy is pledging to work with Congress and the Federal Aviation Administration to “restore global confidence in Boeing and to ensure our skies are safe.”

“Transportation is entering an extraordinary new era,” Duffy says in his prepared remarks. “If confirmed, we will craft clear regulations that balance safety, innovation, and cutting-edge technology.”

Bondi, Trump’s pick to lead the Justice Department, is a former Florida attorney general with close ties to the president-elect who has been by his side since his first term in office after offering him her endorsement the day before Florida's winner-take-all primary in 2016.

Bondi represented Trump during his first impeachment, serving as one of his lawyers. She has remained a vocal advocate of Trump, defending him publicly against the federal indictments, and was by his side in New York as he came under fire in the hush money case last year.

Bondi said in her opening statement that if confirmed as attorney general, she will return the Justice Department "to its core mission of keeping Americans safe and vigorously prosecuting criminals."

"That includes getting back to basics: gangs, drugs, terrorists, cartels, our border and our foreign adversaries," she said.

Bondi said that, like Trump, she believes the DOJ is on the cusp of a new golden age.

"Lastly and most importantly, if confirmed, I will fight every day to restore confidence and integrity to the Department of Justice and each of its components — the partisanship, the weaponization — will be gone. America will have one tier of justice for all," she said.

Senators spoke as they entered the first day of Pam Bondi’s confirmation hearing.

Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware said that Bondi needs to demonstrate that she understands that “her client is not the President, but the Constitution and the American people.”

Durbin echoed Democrats’ concerns about the extent of Bondi’s loyalty to Trump, adding, “Is she prepared to risk her job as attorney general saying no to Donald Trump? Two of his attorneys general who said no, were fired on the spot. I mean, it’s pretty obvious he exalts loyalty, and she has to tell us that she’s going to hold the law and the Constitution above the president.”

Marco Rubio's Senate confirmation hearing has begun.

The confirmation hearing for John Ratcliffe as the nominee for CIA director has begun.

Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., will read his opening statement, followed by Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va. After the statements have concluded, Ratcliffe will begin testifying.

Durbin noted during his opening statement that Bondi is one of several former personal lawyers to Trump whom the president-elect has named to positions in his second administration.

Durbin said, "You joined Mr. Trump in working to overturn the 2020 election. You repeatedly described investigations and prosecutions of Mr. Trump as witch hunts, and you have echoed his calls for investigating and prosecuting his political opponents."

Other former lawyers Trump has chosen to join his administration include Alina Habba, Todd Blanche, John Sauer and Emil Bove.

During his opening remarks, Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Dick Durbin, D-Ill., blasted Trump and his intended nominee for FBI director, Kash Patel.

"Even before taking office, Trump has forced out his own FBI director that he appointed, Chris Wray. And he's trying to replace Wray with Kash Patel, whose main qualification to be FBI director seems to be his loyalty to Donald Trump," Durbin said.

Durbin also cited Patel's "enemies list," which Patel wrote about in his 2023 memoir, writing about a list of 60 people he alleged were part of the "deep state."

In his opening statement during the Bondi hearing, Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., the ranking member on the committee, lashed out at Trump and his actions during his first administration.

He said that Trump interfered with criminal cases of his friends and allies and pressured the Justice Department to investigate his rivals.

Grassley’s list of grievances here may seem foreign to many viewers, but right-leaning media has been aggressively covering perceived overreach by the Biden DOJ for years, and it's an article of faith for many Trump supporters that the “rot” at the department runs deep.

During his opening remarks ahead of Bondi's confirmation hearing, Sen. Chuck Grassley ripped into the FBI and the Justice Department.

The chair of the Senate Judicial Committee said, "The Justice Department is infected with political decision-making while its leaders refuse to recognize that reality."

He added later in his remarks, "I know — as other people on this committee and in and out of Congress know — what government weaponization is."

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, touted Bondi's experience and qualifications to be the next attorney general in his opening statement.

"As the Florida attorney general, Ms. Bondi achieved numerous successes. She engaged in key initiatives to fight human trafficking, counter the opioid epidemic, protect consumers, and protect the citizens of Florida from violence," he said.

Grassley said, "Her experience and performance as attorney general, prosecutor, and community leader speak volumes about her character and her dedication to the rule of law."

He also urged the committee to swiftly move her nomination forward, and give her the same benefit of the doubt as members gave Attorney General Merrick Garland during his confirmation hearing.

Trump’s pick for transportation secretary, former Rep. Sean Duffy, R-Wis., is appearing before the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee today for his confirmation hearing, beginning at 10 a.m.

Duffy has received bipartisan support, and his path to confirmation does not include significant roadblocks. Democratic Sens. Tammy Baldwin, of Wisconsin., and John Fetterman, of Pennsylvania, have come out in support of Duffy, and Democrats in general have not raised many concerns about his qualifications. Duffy served in the House for eight years and was later a co-host of "The Bottom Line" on Fox Business.

Electric vehicle policies, Boeing and the next surface transportation reauthorization are expected to come up in today's hearing.

Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, has gaveled in Pam Bondi's confirmation hearing. He is starting by welcoming new members to the committee, including Sen. Adam Schiff. D-Calif. Then he will soon begin reading his own opening statement.

Those in Trump's orbit thought Hegseth exceeded expectations during his confirmation hearing yesterday, and they’re glad he went first because now they have, in their view, a “win” under their belts.

The Trump team is now looking ahead to today's hearings and hoping Rubio can get Democratic support. They’re hoping Rubio gains Democratic votes beyond just that of Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., so they can point to “bipartisan support" for Trump’s secretary of state pick.

On Pam Bondi, Trump's pick for attorney general, they’re feeling like this hearing is a chance for the public to get to know this close Trump ally more broadly.

Bondi's confirmation hearing is expected to begin at 9:30 a.m. As is typical for past attorney general nominees, this will be the first of two days — the first day will feature just testimony from Bondi. 

We expect today's hearing to run into the afternoon, as late as 4 p.m.

Democrats will likely focus their questions during the hearing on issues such as loyalty to Trump and a weaponized Justice Department, efforts to promote false claims about the 2020 presidential election and conflicts of interest.

Bondi helped spread false claims about the 2020 election and she also suggested that Biden administration officials, members of Congress and political opponents of Trump have engaged in criminal behavior.

Democrats will also likely question Bondi about her record as Florida's attorney general, including on LGBTQ+ rights, the Second Amendment, immigration, the First Amendment, police brutality and reproductive rights.

NBC’s Hallie Jackson joins "TODAY" with an analysis of Pete Hegseth’s confirmation hearing and breaks down upcoming hearings for other Trump Cabinet picks, including Sen. Marco Rubio for secretary of state, Pam Bondi for attorney general and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for secretary of health and human services.

Pete Hegseth, Trump’s pick for defense secretary, testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee yesterday and got a warm welcome from his fellow Republicans.

Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa, a key Republican vote on the committee, began her questioning by introducing a letter of support for Hegseth, a former Fox News anchor, and she gave him the opportunity to explain his comments about women. After the hearing, Ernst announced her support for Hegseth, making his confirmation all but assured in the GOP-controlled Senate.

Democrats grilled Hegseth about his comments about women in the military, in addition to allegations of sexual assault, excessive drinking and workplace misconduct. Hegseth has denied the sexual assault allegation and called the other claims “anonymous smears.” His confirmation hearing was the first for Trump's Cabinet picks.

Rubio is testifying before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee today as he seeks confirmation to be secretary of state. It's shaping up to be a smooth path.

Among Trump’s Cabinet picks, Rubio is not considered controversial. Several Democratic senators have already expressed support for him.

“I think that will be the closest hearing that’s a lovefest of any of the confirmation hearings,” Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, a member of the committee, told NBC News last week.

Senators will begin their public deliberations over Trump's choice to lead the Justice Department today as former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi begins two days of confirmation hearings.

Bondi, the first woman to serve in the post, spent eight years as Florida’s top law enforcement official, prioritizing issues such as curbing drug abuse, advocating against human trafficking and pushing back against the Obama administration’s signature health care plan.

She has also been a longtime Trump ally, having served on his opioid and drug abuse task force and later joining the defense team during his first Senate impeachment trial. Bondi also falsely claimed that Trump “won Pennsylvania” in the immediate aftermath of the 2020 presidential election and later worked at a pro-Trump policy firm on legal issues and as a lobbyist.

Read the full story here.

Confirmation hearings initially scheduled for three of Trump's picks this week have been postponed.

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, Trump’s choice to lead the Department of Homeland Security, was supposed to have her hearing today, but it has been pushed back to Friday. It was not immediately clear why.

Former North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum's confirmation hearing for interior secretary was moved from yesterday to tomorrow. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chair Mike Lee, R-Utah, cited a “bureaucratic delay” in a statement, blaming the Office of Government Ethics.

A hearing for former Rep. Doug Collins, R-Ga., Trump's pick for veterans affairs secretary, was postponed until next week because his FBI file would not be available in time for review by Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Jerry Moran, R-Kan., and ranking member Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said a source with direct knowledge of the matter.

Six hearings are scheduled today in the Senate.

Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., Trump’s pick for secretary of state, will go before the Foreign Relations Committee, and Pam Bondi, his selection for attorney general, begins two days of testimony before the Judiciary Committee.

Project 2025 co-author Russell Vought, who is Trump's pick to lead the Office of Management and Budget as he did in the first Trump administration, will also testify today. He'll be joined on Capitol Hill by former Rep. Sean Duffy, R-Wis., who is up for transportation secretary; former National Intelligence Director John Ratcliffe, Trump's choice for CIA director; and Liberty Energy founder Chris Wright, his pick for energy secretary.