It’s Wednesday. Have I mentioned that I’m ready for spring? I’m over this freezing cold weather. What’s happening today: - Trump’s first sit-down interview will be with Sean Hannity tonight.
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Trump demands an apology from the inauguration prayer service’s pastor.
- Thune tees up a final Hegseth confirmation vote, despite new allegations.
- Winter White House? Rare snowstorm hits Florida, other southern states.
I’m Cate Martel with a quick recap of the morning and what’s coming up. Send tips & feedback to cmartel@thehill.com. Someone forward this to you? Sign up.
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And on the third day, President Trump created prime-time buzz: |
It’s Day 3 of President Trump’s second term in office. And for his first Oval Office sit-down interview since returning to the White House, he’ll sit down with none other than … his buddy Sean Hannity. The Fox News host will speak with Trump about his barrage of executive orders and plans for his first 100 days. Trump and Hannity are close friends, so don’t expect this to be a contentious conversation.
Keep in mind: Sit-downs with friendly interviewers can at times produce some newsy bits, with politicians feeling less guarded than they perhaps otherwise would in an interview. Still, expect plenty of pushback from Trump against those criticizing his initial second-term moves. Topics likely to come up:
Immigration: Trump’s sweeping immigration plans, including trying to end the constitutional promise of birthright citizenship for babies born to immigrants lacking permanent legal status.
DEI: Trump is hitting the gas on his anti-diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) push today. All websites and social media accounts related to DEI and accessibility will be taken down by 5 p.m. Plus, all federal workers in related roles will be placed on paid leave by this evening.
What about TikTok?: There are swirling legal and practical questions about Trump’s 75-day delay of the TikTok ban. Trump recently warmed to the social media app because of the young supporters the app attracted to his 2024 campaign. He floated a “joint partnership” where the U.S. controls 50 percent of the company. That’s raised a lot of eyebrows. Watch for any mention of plans for a divestiture. ➡️ The Hill’s Julia Shapero wrote a helpful explainer on the legal and practical situation for TikTok.
Keep in mind — Hannity’s making the GOP rounds: The Fox News host sat down with Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and a group of House Republicans at the U.S. Capitol to discuss their agenda. 📹 Watch the clip
📸 Selfie from Rep. Andy Barr (R-Ky.) 🗨️ Follow today’s live blog |
➤ A SQUABBLE THAT’S GETTING ATTENTION: |
During Tuesday’s inauguration prayer service, the Right Rev. Mariann Budde, asked Trump to have mercy on transgender children and immigrant families during her sermon. Budde said, with Trump sitting in the first pew: “I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared. There are gay, lesbian, transgender children, Democratic, Republican, independent families — some who fear for their lives.”
Another excerpt: “The people who pick our crops and clean our office buildings, who labor in poultry farms and meatpacking plants, who wash the dishes after we eat in restaurants and work the night shifts in hospitals — they may not be citizens or have the proper documentation, but the vast majority of immigrants are not criminals.”
As you can imagine, Trump did not take that well. He slammed the pastor in a lengthy Truth Social post this morning and demanded an apology.
^ From Trump: “The so-called Bishop who spoke at the National Prayer Service on Tuesday morning was a Radical Left hard line Trump hater. She brought her church into the World of politics in a very ungracious way. She was nasty in tone, and not compelling or smart. She failed to mention the large number of illegal migrants that came into our Country and killed people. Many were deposited from jails and mental institutions.” 🔎 Read Trump’s full post
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Trump announced the creation of a new project involving OpenAI, Softbank and Oracle to invest up to $500 billion to build infrastructure for artificial intelligence (AI). Trump said the goal is to create more than 100,000 jobs in the U.S. |
Trump signed 26 executive orders, 12 memos, four proclamations and revoked 78 of former President Biden’s executive actions. This includes roughly 1,500 Jan. 6 pardons, nearly a dozen immigration orders and plans to withdraw from the World Health Organization and the Paris Climate Agreement. Read more: ‘Trump executive orders and actions: By the numbers’
What about the tariffs?: Trump threatened Monday that he would impose a 25 percent tariff on Mexico and Canada beginning Feb. 1, but that hasn’t been finalized. |
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The Washington Post: How Trump’s security clearances order could make the U.S. vulnerable
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Analysis in The New York Times: How Trump Is Pushing at Limits of Presidential Power in Early Orders
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The Wall Street Journal: Musk Pours Cold Water on Trump-Backed Stargate AI Project
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Axios: "F--k it: Release 'em all": Why Trump embraced broad Jan. 6 pardons
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Vox: What Trump’s executive orders tell us about the future of immigration
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‘What’s our job?’ ‘TO CONFIRM!’ ‘When are we doing it?’ ‘NOW’:
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Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) set up a vote to confirm embattled Defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth by the end of the week. What happens now?: The Senate will vote to advance Hegseth’s nomination sometime Thursday, setting up a final vote for Friday (or early Saturday).
Timing: Hegseth’s ex-sister-in-law gave an affidavit Tuesday accusing him of being abusive toward his second wife.
What she alleges: “Danielle Hegseth, who was married to Pete Hegseth’s brother, detailed the claims in a six-page statement that said Samantha Hegseth, the second wife of the Defense secretary nominee, once had to hide in a closet out of fear and devised a plan to deploy if she ever needed to get away. It also mentioned multiple instances of alcohol abuse over many years.” More on the allegations
Keep in mind: Samantha Hegseth denied the allegations in an email to NBC News.
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio is the only Cabinet member to be confirmed. Here’s where each of Trump’s Cabinet nominees stands in the confirmation process:
🔎 Bookmark this page. It will be updated as nominees move through confirmation. |
Trump put his colleagues in a tough spot: |
“President Trump’s sweeping pardons of more than 1,500 people charged with crimes related to the Capitol riot of Jan. 6, 2021, including individuals who assaulted police officers, stunned Republican lawmakers who witnessed firsthand the chaos on Capitol Hill four years ago,” reports The Hill’s Alexander Bolton.
“Trump’s action, which defied assurances from his allies that he would examine convictions on a case-by-case basis and not grant clemency to people who committed violence, divided GOP senators and overshadowed talk about his first-100-days agenda.”
The general reaction among Republicans: “GOP lawmakers are largely willing to overlook the hundreds of people who entered the Capitol illegally four years ago, which disrupted the certification of former President Biden’s victory by several hours, but pardoning people who assaulted Capitol Police, causing dozens of injuries, was hard to swallow.” From Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), who’s up for reelection this cycle: “It’s not right. People who assault police officers — if they do the crime, they should do the time,” he said.
From Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska): “I don’t think that the approach of a blanket pardon that includes those who caused harm, physical harm to our police officers, to others, that resulted in violence — I’m disappointed to see that. And I do fear the message that is sent to these great men and women who stood by us,” she said.
Read more of the GOP responses: ‘Trump’s blanket Jan. 6 pardons stun Republicans on Capitol Hill’
Related: ‘Trump pardoned violent Jan. 6 rioters. Here are 5 of them’ |
🎥 What a pivot: Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) was asked about the Jan. 6 pardons. NewsNation’s Joe Khalil posted a clip of his response — and his quick pivot. 📹 Watch the clip
🐾Babydog!: Sen. Jim Justice (R-W.Va.) is on Capitol Hill today and his dog, Babydog, is getting a lot of attention. 📸 See for yourself |
The House and Senate are in. President Trump and Vice President Vance are in Washington. (all times Eastern) |
- 1:30 p.m.: First House votes. Last votes are expected at 4:30 p.m. 📆 Today’s agenda
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2:30 p.m.: The Senate holds a cloture vote on an abortion vote. 📆 Today’s agenda
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9 p.m.: Fox News’s Sean Hannity interviews Trump from the Oval Office.
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