Bill Cassidy offered RFK Jr. an out. He didn’t take it.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s bid to lead the Department of Health and Human Services could come down to one senator. That senator, Bill Cassidy (R-La.), said he was deeply torn about his vote during a hearing of the Senate committee in charge of health policy on Thursday. Cassidy, the panel’s chair and a gastroenterologist before […]

Democrats denounce Gabbard for Snowden sympathy

Democratic senators on Thursday tore into Tulsi Gabbard, President Donald Trump’s nominee for director of national intelligence, over her past support of leaker Edward Snowden. Senate Intelligence Committee ranking member Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) and other panel Democrats condemned Gabbard during her confirmation hearing for sympathizing with Snowden, an intelligence contractor who leaked numerous highly […]

Trump’s FBI pick dodges on 2020 election results

Kash Patel, Donald Trump’s nominee to run the FBI, repeatedly refused to say that Joe Biden won the 2020 election — following similar refusals by Trump’s nominee to be attorney general, Pam Bondi. “What’s so hard about saying Biden won the 2020 election?” said Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee […]

Budget Committee advances OMB nominee

Russ Vought is one step closer to returning to the helm of the Office of Management and Budget, which threw Washington into confusion this week with sweeping orders to freeze federal grants and loans. President Donald Trump’s pick to run the powerful White House budget office will head to the Senate floor soon for a […]

Kash Patel makes opening pitch for FBI job

President Donald Trump’s controversial FBI director nominee, Kash Patel, is appearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee now. In his opening remarks, Patel laid out his vision for the FBI, telling senators that the agency must return to tackling violent crime and committing to transparency for the law enforcement organization. Anticipating questions over his qualifications for […]

Cassidy to RFK Jr.: Can I trust you?

Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) put Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on the spot about his history of anti-vaccine activism at a hearing of the health panel Cassidy chairs on Thursday, prompting Kennedy to say he would “apologize for any statement that misled people” about vaccine safety. Cassidy, seen as a crucial vote in determining whether Kennedy […]

Democrats to boycott committee vote on OMB nominee

Democrats on the Senate Budget Committee say they will boycott Thursday’s scheduled vote on Russ Vought’s nomination to lead the Office of Management and Budget. It won’t affect the panel’s ability to send Vought’s nomination to the Senate floor, as Budget Committee rules only require 11 members to be present and voting, according to a […]