Trump cabinet confirmation hearings live updates: Pam Bondi and Marco Rubio lead picks in Senate firing line

Jon Michael Raasch, U.S. Political Reporter on Capitol Hill for DailyMail.com

During Bondi’s opening remarks, her first order of business was thanking her many family members for traveling to Washington, D.C., to support her during the hearing.

‘I would not be here without my family. And if you can bear with me for just a moment, a lot of them have made a very long trip, and I wrote them all down so I don’t forget anyone,’ she said.

Her mother, children, husband, and many in-laws are all in attendance.

‘If you want to get dirt on me, these women have known me since I was a child, seriously,’ Bondi joked.

‘So thank you for indulging me in that they’ve all made a very long trip to be here and thank you for holding my hearing as well and not just coming in. I appreciate that.’

Jon Michael Raasch, U.S. Political Reporter on Capitol Hill for DailyMail.com

Pam Bondi has pulled out one of Donald Trump’s favorite campaign lines.

She has on multiple occasions promised to ‘Make America safe again.’

On one occasion it was about investigating immigration irregularities, and on another instance it regarded reforming surveillance courts.

‘I will commit to reading that and doing everything I can to keep America safe again,’ Bondi said of changing FISA court processes.

Sarah Ewall-Wice, Senior U.S. Political Reporter:

Rubio was pressed over President-elect Trump’s ability to withdraw the U.S. from NATO.

‘Will you commit to adhering to Senate approval or an act of Congress as required under the law that you authored if President Trump attempts to withdraw the U.S. from NATO?’ Shaheen asked.

Rubio pointed out that Trump did appoint an ambassador to NATO.

He noted it is tough to say he’s not supportive of the law he co-sponsored.

‘The NATO alliance is a very important alliance,’ Rubio said.

Rubio did question whether the U.S. role in the 21stcentury should be a primary defense role or a backstop to aggression with more countries assuming more of the responsibility and contributing more.

He said NATO partners need to contribute more to their own defense and the partnership.

By Katelyn Caralle, Senior U.S. Political Reporter

Sean Duffy introduced his wife and children at his confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill on Wednesday.

The former Wisconsin representative and current Fox Business host met his wife Rachel Campos-Duffy on MTV’s reality television show The Real World in 1997.

They have been married for 25 years and share nine children, the youngest of which had a heart condition and was diagnosed with Down Syndrome, which contributed to Duffy’s decision to leave Congress in 2019.

Duffy’s kids Evita, Lucia, John-Paul, Paloma, Maria Victoria, Margarita, Patrick, and Valentina were all seated behind him at his confirmation hearing.

His eldest child Evita was also joined by her husband, and his mother and father-in-law also attended.

The Duffy’s eldest son Xavier Jack did not attend the hearing because he and his wife just had a child and were forced to evacuate their home in California due to the raging fires.

The Duffys attend their eldest daughter’s graduation before the birth of their ninth child

Sarah Ewall-Wice, Senior U.S. Political Reporter:

‘The post war global order is not just obsolete, it’s now a weapon being used against us,’ Rubio warned in his opening.

He claimed the U.S. now faces the ‘single greatest risk of geopolitical instability and of a generational global crisis in the lifetime of anyone alive and in this room today.

He claimed America’s strength during Trump’s first term was a deterrent to adversaries.

He said Trump’s reelection is a mandate that voters want a ‘strong America’ that’s engaged in the world but ‘guided by a clear objective to promote peace abroad and security and prosperity here at home.’

Rubio said the top priority of the Trump state department is that every dollar spent, every program and every policy must be justified with three questions:

Does it make America safer?

Does it make America stronger?

Does it make America more prosperous?

Jon Michael Raasch, U.S. Political Reporter on Capitol Hill for DailyMail.com

Vice President-elect JD Vance praised Pam Bondi’s early performance in her confirmation hearing.

‘Pam Bondi is crushing it,’ Vance posted on X alongside a clip of Bondi responding to questions from Sen. Dick Durbin.

Sarah Ewall-Wice, Senior U.S. Political Reporter:

A first protester began shouting during Senator Rubio’s opening remarks.

The man was removed from the room.

Moments later, a second protester began shouting in Spanish.

Rubio joked that he gets bilingual protesters as the woman was removed from the room.

A third protester also started shouting about protecting human rights.

Sarah Ewall-Wice, Senior U.S. Political Reporter:

Senator Marco Rubio is giving his opening statement.

‘It’s a bit surreal to be on this side of the room, but you all look very distinguished,’ Rubio joked.

The senator noted his parents, immigrants from Cuba, made his remarkable life and career possible.

Rubio’s wife, one of his four children, and his two sisters are in the room to support him during the confirmation hearing.

Jon Michael Raasch, U.S. Political Reporter on Capitol Hill for DailyMail.com

Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., at the onset of his questioning pressed Pam Bondi on whether she thought Joe Biden was duly elected.

‘I accept, of course, that Joe Biden is President of the United States,’ Bondi said.

She also noted how when working with the Trump team in 2020 she discovered many unusual things in Pennsylvania, presumably relating to voting irregularities.

‘I was on the ground in Pennsylvania, and I saw many things there. But do I accept the results? Of course,’ she said.

By Katelyn Caralle, Senior U.S. Political Reporter

Both U.S. senators from Wisconsin – one Democrat and one Republican – introduced and endorsed former Rep. Sean Duffy to be the next Transportation Secretary.

Wisconsin Republican Sen. Ron Johnson and Wisconsin Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin spoke alongside Duffy at the top of his confirmation hearing before the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee.

The show of bipartisanship exhibits how the hearing could be much more friendly than others on Capitol Hill this week.

By Katelyn Caralle, Senior U.S. Political Reporter

Former Wisconsin Rep. Sean Duffy appeared for his confirmation hearing on Wednesday to be the next Transportation Secretary.

He is the second Fox News host to face confirmation for a position in President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet after Pete Hegseth’s hearing on Tuesday for Defense Secretary.

The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee will grill Duffy, a former MTV reality television star, on his qualifications to lead a Department focused on infrastructure and transportation.

The father-of-nine is now a co-host of The Bottom Line on Fox Business and a contributor on Fox News.

Sarah Ewall-Wice, Senior U.S. Political Reporter:

Senator Rick Scott of Florida is introducing his fellow Floridian Senator Marco Rubio at his confirmation before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Rubio is President-elect Trump’s nominee for Secretary of State.

The Florida senator is expected to be confirmed with bipartisan support having served in the Senate since 2011.

Jon Michael Raasch, U.S. Political Reporter on Capitol Hill for DailyMail.com

The National Border Patrol Council announced they are fully backing Donald Trump’s selection Pam Bondi for attorney general.

‘Bondi is a proven leader and a dedicated public servant,’ the group’s statement said.

‘The Border Patrol Union fully supports and endorses [Pam Bondi],’ the group posted on X.

By Geoff Earle, Deputy U.S. Political Editor

Senate Judiciary Chairman Charles Grassley tore into the Steele dossier and ‘weaponization’ of the Justice Department in an opening statement Wednesday, signaling Trump’s demands to clean house has a new ally in the upper chamber.

Grassley, delivering the first statement at AG nominee Pam Bondi’s confirmation hearing, picked at some of the same grievances that animate Donald Trump, who continues to rage against ‘witch hunts’ against him.

‘The Justice Department is infected with political decision making, while its leaders refuse to acknowledge that reality – Crossfire Hurricane was a typical example of government weaponization,’ he said of the Russia probe that began during the 2016 election.

‘The FBI investigation was built on the fake Steele dossier, which was funded by the Democratic National Committee and Clinton campaign who worked with foreign operatives. My investigative work exposed that the FBI actually knew the dossier was false information and was likely a part of a Russian disinformation campaign,’ he fumed while Bondi listened. He accused retired special Jack Smith of running a ‘lawfare operation.’

Jon Michael Raasch, U.S. Political Reporter on Capitol Hill for DailyMail.com

During his opening remarks, the oldest congressman in America, Senate Judiciary Committee chair Chuck Grassley, 91, demanded Pam Bondi reform Justice Department weaponization.

‘The Justice Department is infected with political decision making, while its leaders refuse to acknowledge that reality,’ Grassley said.

He noted incidents where the DOJ prosecuted protestors outside of abortion clinics, investigated Catholics as terrorist threats and noted how the FBI investigated parents who visited school board meetings.

‘Ms. Bondi, should you be confirmed, the actions you take to change the Department’s course must be for accountability, so that the conduct I just described never happens again,’ the 91-year-old said.

‘The only way to accomplish that is through transparency for Congress and the American People.’

Donald Trump‘s choice to lead the CIA will promise to shake out mediocrity and return the spy agency to ‘culture of toughness and resilience’ in his opening statement to senators on Wednesday morning.

John Ratcliffe will be responsible for foreign covert operations and collecting data on American adversaries if he makes it through the confirmation process.

In his first remarks to the Senate Intelligence Committee he will lay out what he sees as the biggest threats to the nation as well as his plans to overhaul the CIA’s workforce, amid a string of claims that political bias has got in the way of the mission to track down enemies.

‘Above all will be a strict adherence to the CIA’s mission,’ he will say, according to remarks shared in advance with DailyMail.com.

‘We will collect intelligence – especially human intelligence – in every corner of the globe, no matter how dark or difficult.

Jon Michael Raasch, U.S. Political Reporter on Capitol Hill for DailyMail.com

Pam Bondi arrived at her Senate confirmation hearing with a warm welcome from Florida senator Rick Scott.

Shortly after arriving, Bondi was greeted with an embrace and a kiss on the cheek from Scott.

Scott served as Florida’s governor when Bondi was the state’s attorney general.

She was the first woman AG in Florida history.

Jon Michael Raasch, U.S. Political Reporter on Capitol Hill for DailyMail.com

Donald Trump’s choice for attorney general, Pam Bondi, is expected to open her confirmation hearing by talking about the equal application of justice.

‘America must have one tier of justice for all,’ she is expected to say according to portions of her opening remarks.

She is also expected to say that the ‘partisan weaponization of the Department of Justice will end.’

Bondi has been a Trump loyalist for years since serving as Florida’s attorney general before becoming a lobbyist.

The president-elect’s history of being the target of federal crimes is sure to come to a head during the hearing where senators will press Bondi on her relationship with Trump and whether she is willing to stand up to him if he should be wrong.

This week, he’s working to provide Donald Trump suggestions for a new government ‘business model’ to cut down on the staggering number of federal teleworkers.

Comer, who chairs the powerful House Oversight Committee, is holding a hearing Wednesday on federal teleworking practices that have persisted long after the COVID pandemic.

‘We know that more than half of the federal employees, and a vast majority of federal office workers, are either regularly teleworking or fully remote,’ Comer revealed to DailyMail.com exclusively.

With roughly 2.2 million civilian federal employees, the vast scope of how many of government’s workers are remote has been difficult to quantify, the Republican admitted.

Comer also shared that he spoke to Donald Trump about the scale of teleworking over the weekend when he was visiting the president-elect at Mar-a-Lago along with other lawmakers.

‘At the very least, President Trump expects the federal workforce to show up for work,’ the chairman said of their chat.

By Katelyn Caralle, Senior U.S. Political Reporter

Sen. Marco Rubio appears to want the U.S. to take a more isolationist approach to global affairs, claiming that other countries have taken advantage of a ‘global order’ approach.

He will say in his open remarks at his confirmation hearing on Wednesday that the U.S. has put other nations above ‘our core national interest.’

Rubio, who Trump nominated to be his Secretary of State, will face grilling from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

In his prepared remarks, Rubio outlines:

While America far too often continued to prioritize the ‘global order’ above our core national interests, other nations continued to act the way countries always have and always will, in what they perceive to be in their best interest.

And instead of folding into the post-Cold War global order, they have manipulated it to serve their interest at the expense of ours.

GOP Sen. Joni Ernst says she’ll back Pete Hegseth for defense secretary.

The senator from Iowa, who was on the fence about Hegseth due to the sexual allegations made against him, made her decision after his hearing Tuesday:

Our next commander in chief selected Pete Hegseth to serve in this role, and after our conversations, hearing from Iowans, and doing my job as a United States Senator, I will support President Trump’s pick for Secretary of Defense.

As I serve on the Armed Services Committee, I will work with Pete to create the most lethal fighting force and hold him to his commitments of auditing the Pentagon, ensuring opportunity for women in combat while maintaining high standards, and selecting a senior official to address and prevent sexual assault in the ranks.

This week’s Senate confirmation hearings will put Donald Trump’s Cabinet nominees in the hot seat as lawmakers grill them about their controversial histories and ties to the incoming president.

These hearings, which will determine whether the incoming president’s hand-picked top-level staff can lead his administration, kicked off on Tuesday with Pete Hegseth and will run all week.

Each of Trump’s picks will be effectively on trial before the senators in the committees overseeing the federal agencies.

A lecture by the highest ranking transgender officer in the armed forces; a celebration of Loving Day and sessions on ‘equity assurance training.’

A trove of flyers obtained by DailyMail.com from serving CIA officers lays bare the extent of the agency’s ‘diversity, equity and inclusion’ work triggering fresh accusations that it is being distracted from its core job of protecting Americans from foreign threats.

But Trump transition insiders say those concerns will be tackled head on by John Ratcliffe, who is the president-elect’s pick to lead the agency, and who will be grilled by senators about his plans on Wednesday.

By Katelyn Caralle, Senior U.S. Political Reporter

The confirmation hearing for President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Homeland Security is postponed.

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem was slated to have her confirmation hearing before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee at 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday.

It was rescheduled for Friday, at the same time.

The switch-up in schedule, according to reports, is ‘due to a delay on the FBI background check for Governor Noem.’

Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of the Interior, former North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum is also facing a two-day postponement for his hearing due to delayed paperwork.

9:30 AM: Trump Attorney General nominee Pam Bondi at the Senate Judiciary Committee

10:00 AM: Trump Secretary of State nominee Sen. Marco Rubio at the Senate Foreign Relations Committee

Trump CIA Director nominee John Ratcliffe at the Senate Intelligence Committee

Trump Energy Secretary nominee Chris Wright at the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Committee

Trump Transportation Secretary nominee Sean Duffy at the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee

1:00 PM: Trump White House Budget Director nominee Russell Vought at the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee