Welcome to the online version of From the policy deskevening bulletin, bringing you the latest reporting and analysis from the White House, Capitol Hill and the campaign trail from the NBC News Politics team.
In today’s edition, senior national political correspondent Sahil Kapur looks at how Senate Republican Leader-elect John Thune’s relationship with President-elect Donald Trump will soon be tested. Plus, the latest on Trump’s Cabinet nominations and JD Vance’s view of the vice presidency.
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The new Senate GOP leader is walking a MAGA tightrope
By Sahil Kapoor
Senator John Thune, RSD was elected the next majority leader In a closed-door session of Senate Republicans on Tuesday, the record replaced Mitch McConnell, who stepped down after 18 years in the top job.
Thune’s victory, a noted institutionalist, shows that while the Senate Republican Conference has become more aligned with President-elect Donald Trump with each subsequent election, it has not become the MAGA institution that the House GOP has become.
An online army of Trump supporters has mobilized to support Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., who sees him as the most loyal of his choices. Not only did the effort fail, but some GOP aides told NBC News it backfired and caused a backlash among senators. The secret ballot nature of the vote made them less susceptible to outside pressure and was a true test of how Republicans felt.
But Scott lost on the first ballot, receiving the fewest votes of the three candidates. That set up a runoff race between Thune and Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, a longtime institutionalist. Thune and Cornyn have both come up the ladder and have clashed with Trump in some areas in the past, including on Jan. 6 and his false claims about a stolen election.
The most obvious part? Trump himself did not participate in the race. Thune before voting He warned Trump about it “I think it’s in his best interest to stay out of it,” he said on CNBC.
Neither Thune nor Cornyn endorsed Trump in this year’s GOP primaries. But they both supported him in the general election after he ran. And after Trump’s decisive general election victory, all three candidates ran for office on the platform of advancing his agenda.
“This Republican team is united behind President Trump’s agenda, and our work starts today,” Tune said in a statement after his election.
Still, in his first post-election press conference, he made a promise to Senate Republicans protect the legislative filibuster on his watch — the 60-vote threshold that Trump repeatedly and unsuccessfully pressed GOP senators for in his first term. Republican senators fully agree with Tune on this.
And competitive dynamics within the Senate GOP will quickly resurface as Thune and his members oversee the confirmation process for Trump’s Cabinet picks in the new year. Already, several of those options — GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz Attorney General of Florida, former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard for the director of national intelligence and former National Guard member and Fox News anchor Pete Hegseth for the secretary of defense – drew reactions ranging from surprise for confusion.
Sen. Kevin Cramer, R.N.D., said Gaetz’s prospects for confirmation are a “long shot,” adding that it’s “very possible” Trump is testing the limits of how far he can go in the Senate.
Meanwhile, House Republicans unanimously voted for his candidacy Mike Johnson of Louisiana will be re-elected speaker in January Trump’s support.
NBC News predicted Republicans will retain control of the House of Representatives on Wednesday, meaning voters have officially handed all the levers of power in Washington to Trump and his party. But once again, a likely slim majority will spell trouble for the party — especially when Trump draws from the House GOP ranks for his own Cabinet.
Trump transition clock
Outside of Gaetz, Gabbard and Hegseth, Trump announced several other personnel changes in the past 24 hours.
- Trump has tapped tech billionaire Elon Musk and conservative activist Vivek Ramaswamy to lead a new company.Department of Government Efficiency,” Musk is making good on his campaign pledge to take broad controls on government spending.
- But Musk’s near-constant presence at Mar-a-Lago in the week after Election Day began to wear on people Those in Trump’s inner circle, more than him, saw him overstepping his role in the transition.
- Trump said he will nominate John Ratcliffe Director of the CIA. Ratcliffe, a former congressman from Texas, was director of national intelligence during Trump’s first term.
- Trump announced that William McGinley would be his White House Counsel. A longtime Republican legal activist, McGinley was a Cabinet secretary during the first Trump administration.
- And special counsel Jack Smith and his team plans to resign Before Trump took office. Smith’s office is evaluating the best way to end its case in two outstanding federal criminal cases against Trump, as the Justice Department’s longstanding position is that it cannot charge a sitting president with a crime.
Loyalty, trust and the ‘hammer’ for Trump: A look at Vance’s vice presidency
By Henry J. Gomez
JD Vance has said little about his vision for the vice presidency, other than to mention a few areas of his policy interests, such as immigration. As a candidate, he stuck to Trump’s script. filling in the blanks as needed but rarely overcome the man whose endorsement pushed him out of a crowded Republican Senate primary field in Ohio in 2022.
Those who have followed his rapid rise expect that momentum to continue even as Vance prepares to run for president in 2028. Allies of Trump and Vance believe that loyalty is Vance’s greatest attribute and his smartest play for the short-term future of his administration. and for his long-term political future.
“He’s going to focus on whatever the president tells him to do,” said a source familiar with the Trump-Vance relationship.
Vance’s unwavering loyalty to Trump has been his calling card since his transformation from Trump critic to champion. their bond grew stronger as running mates. They talk on the phone every day and every hour. After voting near his home in Cincinnati on Election Day, Vance told reporters about the 3 a.m. phone call he missed from Trump hours earlier. Trump was on his way home from his final campaign rally, but Vance was already asleep.
A campaign official said Vance appears to be a savvy political operator, not an ideologue, even as he defines policy views in Trump’s world. Those close to Trump don’t see Vance as someone who is expending political capital to advance an agenda that opposes him. The official said that what would best serve Vance’s political ambitions would be a successful Trump administration free of infighting, where he could shine.
Part of Vance’s portfolio could be based on his constitutional role as president of the Senate, which Republicans will control next year, and he would usually only need a tie-breaking vote. A source familiar with the relationship said Vance would be Trump’s “eyes and ears” in the chamber.
“JD,” the source said, “wants to be the hammer in the Senate for Trump.”
🗞️ Other top stories of the day
- 🤝 Return to Oval: Trump returned to the White House for the first time since being suspended to meet with President Joe Biden for a ceremony meant to signal a peaceful transfer of power. More →
- 🗳️ It’s not over yet: The Pennsylvania Senate race is headed for a recount where the narrow margin between Republican Dave McCormick and Democrat Sen. Bob Casey is automatically triggered under state law. More →
- ☑️ Final race calls: The next Congress will include two Republicans who voted to impeach Trump after the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021. According to NBC News, California’s David Valadao and Washington’s Dan Newhouse won re-election. More →
- 📺 Split ticket: In four battleground states where Vice President Kamala Harris lost but Democratic Senate candidates won, their messaging strategy has split. While Harris and his foreign allies focused on plans for the future, down-ballot candidates focused on significant advertising time to tout their accomplishments. More →
- 🙅 First stage: Republican Eric Hovde is refusing to concede defeat in the Wisconsin Senate race, casting doubt on the results despite a lack of evidence of any wrongdoing in last week’s election. More →
- 💲 Inflation clock : In October, inflation was higher as voters began voting in a presidential election in which economic concerns played a large role. More →
That’s all for the Policy Desk for now. If you have feedback – like it or not – email us politicsnewsletter@nbcuni.com
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