Here’s what we’re watching in transition world today:
🗓️ What we’re watching
- President-elect Donald Trump and his MAGA allies are unleashing a pressure campaign against GOP senators to confirm his Cabinet picks.
👀 What’s Trump up to?
- Trump is going to meet with House Speaker Mike Johnson this weekend to discuss the party’s reconciliation strategy, according to Johnson.
🚨What’s up with the nominees?
- At least three closely watched senators are noncommittal about confirming Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who’s being considered to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. Those include swing votes like Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, as well as Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana. Kennedy has nearly two dozen meetings scheduled on Capitol Hill for next week.
📝ICYMI: Here are the latest Cabinet picks
- Trump picked Rep. Dan Bishop of North Carolina as deputy director of the OMB and conservative activist Ed Martin as chief of staff at the OMB.
- Trump picked private equity executive Tom Barrack, a longtime ally who faced legal scrutiny for his work on behalf of the United Arab Emirates, to be the next U.S. ambassador to Turkey.
- Kimberly Guilfoyle, the former Court TV anchor and Fox News host who became a staunch advocate for the president-elect, was chosen to be the next U.S. ambassador to Greece.
- Trump tapped Jacob Helberg to be the State Department’s top economic policy and trade official
- Ronald Johnson is the president-elect’s pick to serve as ambassador to Mexico, which is bad news for failed Arizona Senate candidate Kari Lake, who was reportedly in the mix.
