Trending Now
We have updated our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use for Eurasia Group and its affiliates, including GZERO Media, to clarify the types of data we collect, how we collect it, how we use data and with whom we share data. By using our website you consent to our Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy, including the transfer of your personal data to the United States from your country of residence, and our use of cookies described in our Cookie Policy.
{{ subpage.title }}
Tulsi Gabbard, Trump’s nominee for Director of National Intelligence, testifies at a Senate Intelligence Committee confirmation hearing in Washington, DC, January 30, 2025. She is a controversial nominee due to her previous suggestions of support for autocrats and U.S. adversaries, including the recently toppled Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad.
Senate hearings: Gabbard and RFK Jr. make it out of committee
Two of Donald Trump’s more controversial cabinet picks, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Tulsi Gabbard, made it through key committee votes on Tuesday, moving closer to securing confirmations when the full Senate votes.
Vaccine skeptic, environmentalist, and health secretary pick RFK was confirmed in a party-line vote by the Senate Finance Committee. His only potential Republican holdout, former doctor and Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy, said he decided to support RFK after a series of conversations with him about “the issues we agree on like healthy foods and a pro-American agenda.”
Ahead of her hearing before the Senate Intelligence Committee, Gabbard, Trump’s pick for director of national intelligence, secured two yeses from key Republicans who had been on the fence about her nomination – Sens. Todd Young and Susan Collins. While Tulsi made it out of the committee thanks to a party-line vote, there are still several Republican senators who have not committed to voting for her when it comes time for her full Senate vote, including Sens. Mitch McConnell, Lisa Murkowski, and John Curtis.
We will be watching the Senate tomorrow as it convenes to hold a full vote to confirm Pam Bondi to lead the Justice Department as attorney general.
Pam Bondi, Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general, appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee for her first of two days of confirmation hearings on Wednesday.
DOJ independence takes center stage at Bondi confirmation hearing
Democrats' questions focused on Bodi’s loyalty to Trump and whether it would degrade the department’s independence or enable it to be weaponized by the president. Bondi is a longtime ally of Trump, who aided his defense during his first impeachment and refused to say whether Biden won the election during the hearing. Bondi also did not say whether she would defy White House pressure but reassured the chamber that “politics will not play a part” in her job. In his previous term, Trump forced out multiple attorneys general who disagreed with him.
Republicans pointed to the fact that several presidents in the past have appointed people close to them – including John F. Kennedy, who famously appointed his brother — and accused the department’s investigations into Trump under the Biden administration as being politically motivated. They also praised Bondi for her history of being tough on crime, and with a three-seat majority they are expected to have an easy time voting her in.
Why it matters whether the Justice Department is independent from the president. The Department of Justice is meant to investigate the wrongdoings of anyone, regardless of their political affiliations, and without fear or favor. Beyond eroding trust in the institution, some fear that Trump could use the department to carry out the “retribution” against his enemies that he promised on the campaign trail.