That is, in politics, people are policy.
So this week, President-elect Trump's “policies” descended on the Capitol.
Thus begins the quadrennial tradition of parading various Cabinet nominees around the Senate. They're here to meet with senators, answer questions, provide direct feedback, and find out what senators want to know about them during confirmation hearings and where the pitfalls are.
I got some of this before Thanksgiving. That's when former attorney general candidate and former congressman Matt Gaetz (R-Florida) gathered with several Republican senators. After Gaetz resigned, Trump's second pick for attorney general, Pam Bondi, was appointed.
Bondi arrived at the Capitol on Monday to meet with incoming Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), but the first meeting was postponed because Grassley's flight was delayed. They finally spoke in the late afternoon.
“I look forward to working with you and guiding your nominations in the United States Senate,” said Grassley, who finally arrived at his office in the Hart Senate Office Building.
President-elect Donald Trump watches the UFC 309 event at Madison Square Garden on November 16, 2024 in New York City. (Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)
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Bondi added, “If I can earn the trust and nomination of every senator, I will do my best every day to work tirelessly on behalf of the American people. And I know I will make the president and our country proud.” added.
“Is it easier than Mr. Gates?” I really asked.
“No questions. No questions asked,” Grassley ordered.
Mr. Bondi soon headed to the Russell Senate Building to caucus with Sen. Lindsey Graham (RS.C.), the current top Republican on the Judiciary Committee.
“She's a great choice. She's a longtime friend. I think she's the right person at the right time,” Graham said.
Bondi may have an easier path to Senate confirmation than the other nominee roaming the Senate corridors, Pete Hegseth, for secretary of defense.
He met with Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), and Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska).
“We're taking it meeting by meeting,” Hegseth said.
Hegseth faces many questions about his qualifications to lead an organization as large as the U.S. military. Countless allegations have been raised against Hegseth.
“Have you ever drank while traveling for work?” asked CBS's Nicole Killion.
“I’m not going to dignify it in a reply,” Hegseth replied.
Then, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Sen. Rick Scott (R-Florida), and Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah). proceeded to a series of sessions. Hegseth appears to have support from some of the Senate's most conservative members.
“We don't need officers, we don't need admirals, we don't need senior commanders,” Tuberville said. “The military needs a drill sergeant. We need someone to set up the military. Get rid of the woke people and DEI people and get out of there.”
Mr. Hegseth returned to work Tuesday morning, along with Sens. Deb Fischer (R-Nebraska), Shelley Moore Capito (R-West Virginia), Rep. Ted Budd and Sen. Jim Risch (R-West Virginia). (Idaho) and U.S. Sen. Eric Schmidt (Republican). Too.
Wednesday, Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R.S.D.), and incoming Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Mississippi). A meeting was scheduled.
Hegseth also expressed concerns about women taking part in combat.
My colleague Aisha Husny pressed Hegseth on this very point as he travels between his Senate offices.
“We have great women in our military. Great women,” Hegseth said.
“Do you think they should fight?” Husney asked.
“I think they're already in combat,” Hegseth replied.
President-elect Donald Trump's nominee for secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth, is accompanied by his wife, Jennifer Laschet, as they walk through the basement of the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
While all eyes were on Mr. Bondi and Mr. Hegseth, U.N. ambassador candidate Elise Stefanik (RN.Y.) snuck into a meeting with Mr. Grassley. Treasury Secretary nominee Scott Bessent is also scheduled to meet with Thune and the new Senate Majority Whip, John Barrasso (R-Wyo.).
Education Secretary candidate Linda McMahon appeared out of nowhere on Tuesday for a session with Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.).
Do you think things are reaching a climax now? Just wait until FBI nominee Kash Patel and Secretary of Health nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr. start calling your office.
And even confirmation hearings for Hegseth, Kennedy and Patel, scheduled for early January, have not yet been held. Cable television channels will likely broadcast these hearings wall-to-wall. Also, depending on the day, difficult programming decisions may need to be made regarding which hearings should be conducted live, especially if two or three hearings are all occurring at the same time.
The dynamic duo will arrive at Capitol Hill later this week, but no confirmation is required. And in fact, their visit may garner more attention than any of the nominees for the next Cabinet.
President-elect Trump has appointed former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy and Elon Musk to head the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). They are scheduled to meet with Republican lawmakers in both chambers of Congress about the government's cuts plans. They will begin with a meeting with Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), who heads the Senate DOGE caucus.
“There's a lot of waste in the federal government,” Ernst said. “We have already identified over $1 trillion in savings for DOGE.”
Left: Elon Musk speaks at America PAC Town Hall on October 26, 2024 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Right: Vivek Ramaswamy speaks at the Republican National Convention (RNC) at the Fiserv Forum on Tuesday, July 16, 2024 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Left: Samuel Corum/Getty Images, Right: Eva Marie Uzcategui/Bloomberg, Getty Images)
Even Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Florida, became the first Democrat to join the House DOGE caucus.
“I believe that streamlining government processes and reducing inefficient government spending should not be a partisan issue,” Moskowitz said. “The caucus should examine the DHS bureaucracy and include a recommendation to make the Secret Service and FEMA independent federal agencies reporting directly to the White House.”
When it comes to confirmation, Democrats insist Republicans do things by the book. They are calling for background checks on nominees and also asking Republicans not to allow Trump to bypass the Senate and temporarily install members through recess appointments if there are problems.
Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, D-Ill., took issue with Republican senators' rapid meeting with candidates. Some of these sessions resulted in Republican senators declaring they would vote for confirmation.
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“Going through the process of speed dating with members of the Cabinet of the President of the United States will ultimately lead to embarrassment and will only be discovered through a thorough investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation,” Durbin said. Privately, a number of Republican senators have talked to me and said, “Just to be clear, you can't get rid of the FBI checks.'' It's essential to the system. ”
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York sent a letter to Thune imploring him to uphold the Senate's practice of confirming nominees.
“The power of advice and consent is fundamental to the Senate's constitutional duties. It is a power central to maintaining America's system of checks and balances. The Founding Fathers believed that an unchecked executive authority “We knew firsthand the great risks of allowing individuals to be appointed to positions of power without any guardrails,” Schumer said. “While we hope this does not become an issue, it will still be the responsibility of the incoming Republican majority to protect the Senate from any attempts to erode its authority.”
So this will take quite a few weeks.
Lots of meetings. Lots of hearings. Lots of votes. All around staffing the incoming administration.
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Outgoing Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) likes to say that the Senate is “in the personnel business.”
It's also a “policy” business, and those “policies” are currently roaming the halls of the Capitol.
