Reporter’s Pocket book: Persons are coverage

It’s that in politics, individuals are coverage. 

So President-elect Trump’s “policies” descended on Capitol Hill this week. 

Thus begins the quadrennial custom of varied Cupboard nominees parading across the Senate. They’re right here to satisfy with senators, reply questions, press the flesh, get a way of what senators wish to learn about them in a affirmation listening to – and the place the pitfalls lie.

We obtained a sliver of this earlier than Thanksgiving. That’s when former lawyer normal nominee and former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., huddled with a handful of Republican senators. Then Gaetz bowed out, so it was on to Trump’s second decide for lawyer normal – Pam Bondi.

Bondi arrived on the Capitol Monday to satisfy with incoming Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, however her first assembly was postponed as a result of Grassley’s flight was delayed. They lastly chatted later within the afternoon.

“I look forward to working with you and leading your nomination through the United States Senate,” stated Grassley as soon as he lastly made it to his workplace within the Hart Senate Workplace Constructing.

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“Should I earn the trust and the nomination from all of the senators, I will do my best every day to work tirelessly for the American people. And I will make you, the president and our country proud,” added Bondi.

“Is this going to be easier than Mr. Gaetz?” requested yours actually.

“No questions. No questions,” ordered Grassley.

Bondi quickly headed to the Russell Senate Workplace Constructing to caucus with the present high Republican on the Judiciary Committee, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.

“She’s a great choice. Been a longtime friend. I think right person at right time,” stated Graham.

Bondi could have a better path to Senate affirmation than the opposite nominee roaming the Senate corridors, Protection secretary decide Pete Hegseth.

He met with Sens. Invoice Hagerty, R-Tenn., Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., and Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska.

“We’re taking it meeting by meeting,” stated Hegseth.

Hegseth, a former Fox Information host, faces a bunch of questions on whether or not he’s certified to guide such an enormous group because the U.S. army. There’s been a blanket of allegations lodged in opposition to Hegseth.

“Were you ever drunk while traveling on the job?” requested Nikole Killion of CBS.

“I won’t dignify that with a response,” replied Hegseth.

He then proceeded to a sequence of classes with Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., Rick Scott, R-Fla., and Mike Lee, R-Utah. Hegseth seems to have earned the assist of a number of the most conservative members of the Senate.

“We don’t need a general officer, admiral or a person of high command,” stated Tuberville. “We need a drill sergeant in the military. We need somebody to straighten the military out. Get the woke, the DEI affiliation out and go from there.” 

Hegseth was again at it Tuesday morning, assembly with Sens. Deb Fischer, R-Neb., Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.V., Ted Budd, R-N.C., Jim Risch, R-Idaho, and Eric Schmitt, R-Mo. 

Wednesday meant conferences with Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, incoming Senate Majority Chief John Thune, R-S.D., and the subsequent chairman of the Senate Armed Providers Committee, Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss. 

Hegseth has additionally expressed reservations about ladies serving in fight. 

Colleague Aishah Hasnie pressed Hegseth on this very level as he toggled between Senate places of work. 

“We have amazing women who serve in our military. Amazing women,” stated Hegseth. 

“Do you think they should be in combat?” requested Hasnie.

“I think they’re already in combat,” replied Hegseth.

Amid all of the deal with Bondi and Hegseth, Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., the nominee for United Nations ambassador, snuck in a gathering with Grassley. And Treasury secretary nominee Scott Bessent can be slated to satisfy with Thune and newly tapped Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo. 

Out of the center of nowhere, Schooling secretary nominee Linda McMahon materialized for a session with Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., Tuesday. 

You suppose issues are hitting a fevered pitch now? Wait till FBI decide Kash Patel and Well being and Human Providers secretary nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr. start making their workplace calls. 

And we haven’t even gotten to the potential affirmation hearings of Hegseth, Kennedy and Patel in early January. Cable TV channels will seemingly carry these hearings wall-to-wall. And relying on the day, it might be a difficult programming choice on which listening to to take stay – particularly if two or three all come across the similar time. 

A dynamic duo arrives at Capitol Hill later this week – who don’t require affirmation. And actually, their visits could command extra consideration than any of the nominees for the subsequent cupboard. 

President-elect Trump tapped former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy and Elon Musk to run the Division of Authorities Effectivity, or DOGE. They’re set to satisfy with Home and Senate Republicans about their plans to pare again the federal government. They start with conferences with Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, who’s main the Senate’s DOGE Caucus.

“We have a lot of waste that exists in the federal government,” stated Ernst. “We have over $1 trillion of savings already identified for the DOGE.”

Even Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla., turned the primary Democrat to affix the Home DOGE Caucus. 

“I believe that streamlining government processes and reducing ineffective government spending should not be a partisan issue,” stated Moskowitz. “The caucus should look at the bureaucracy that DHS has become and include recommendations to make Secret Service and FEMA independent federal agencies with a direct report to the White House.”

In relation to confirmations, Democrats insist that Republicans do issues by the e book. They need background checks on nominees, they usually’re additionally imploring the GOP to not permit Trump to bypass the Senate if there are issues and set up individuals briefly by way of recess appointments. 

Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, D-Unwell., took problem with the speedy conferences Republican senators had with nominees. A few of these classes resulted in GOP senators then proclaiming they’d vote to substantiate.

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“You can’t do a speed dating process for the Cabinet of the president of the United States without ending up embarrassed and with things that are discovered only through a deep investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation,” stated Durbin, “I can tell you privately, many Republicans senators have spoken to me and said ‘For goodness sakes, we can’t do away with the FBI check.’ That is something that’s just integral to the system.”

Senate Majority Chief Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., wrote to Thune, imploring him to protect the Senate customs for confirming nominees.

“The advise and consent authority is a cornerstone of the Senate’s constitutional mandate. A power central to preserving America’s system of checks and balances. The Founding Fathers knew firsthand the great danger of allowing unchecked executives to appoint individuals to positions of power without any guardrails,” stated Schumer. “Hopefully this doesn’t become an issue. But nevertheless, it will be the responsibility of the incoming Republican majority to protect the Senate against any attempt to erode its authority.”

So that is going to be fairly a number of weeks. 

A number of conferences. A number of hearings. A number of votes. All surrounding staffing the subsequent administration.

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Outgoing Senate Minority Chief Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., is fond of claiming that the Senate is “in the personnel business.” 

It’s additionally within the “policy” enterprise, and people “policies” at the moment are strolling across the halls of Capitol Hill.