Here’s what we’re watching in transition world today:
🗓️ What we’re watching
- President-elect Donald Trump’s transition, which kicked off at an expeditious pace with his naming of top Cabinet positions, comes to a close on Monday, when Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance will be sworn during a frigid ceremony at the Capitol.
- Speaker Mike Johnson is remaking the House Intelligence Committee in Trump’s image, a shakeup with immense implications.
- Prospective Secretary of State Marco Rubio may be riding solo on Day One, as he appears to be the only Cabinet nominee with the backing to be confirmed Monday.
👀 What’s Trump up to?
- Trump has a jam-packed weekend before Inauguration Day that will end with a MAGA rally at Capital One Arena Sunday night. He’s also scheduled to attend a dinner and a wreath-laying at Arlington National Cemetery over the weekend. You can read the full Inauguration schedule here.
- New York City Mayor Eric Adams is headed to Mar-a-Lago.
- Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is skipping Trump’s inauguration.
- China is sending an envoy to the inauguration.
- TikTok is spending $50,000 on an inauguration party honoring influencers who used the app to campaign for the president-elect.
🚨What’s up with the nominees?
- Trump’s choice to lead the Department of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, will appear before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee at 9 a.m., after her initial Wednesday hearing was delayed.
- Defense Secretary-designate Pete Hegseth’s confirmation vote has already been delayed past Day One of the Trump administration.
- A progressive group is launching a $250,000 ad campaign against Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s confirmation as Health and Human Services secretary.
📝ICYMI: Here are Trump’s latest administration picks
- Troy Meink was selected by Trump for Air Force secretary.
- Trump announced Actors Jon Voight, Mel Gibson and Sylvester Stallone to serve as special envoys to “a great but very troubled place,” Hollywood.
- Chris Stallings was tapped to be assistant administrator for disaster recovery and resilience of the Small Business Administration.
- Trump selected Bill Pulte to lead the Federal Housing Finance Agency.
- The president-elect announced picks for three under secretaries in the Agriculture Department: Richard Fordyce as under secretary for farm production and conservation, Michael Boren as under secretary for natural resources and environment, and Dudley Hoskins as under secretary for marketing and regulator programs.
- Trump also named a number of Energy Department under secretaries on Thursday, including Wells Griffith as under secretary of energy, Darío Gil as under secretary for science and innovation, and Brandon Williams as under secretary for nuclear security and administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration.
