Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is on his way to Make America Healthy Again.
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Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) arrived at the U.S. Capitol for a Monday vote in a wheelchair and with a boot on his leg, shocking video revealed.
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Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) fell down the stairs outside the Senate chamber Wednesday, where reporters watched the octogenarian regain his footing.
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During Sunday's broadcast of CBS's "60 Minutes," Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said he was still at odds with President Donald Trump despite his election victory last November.
The post McConnell Still ‘Very Upset’ with Trump — ‘We Haven’t Spoken for Quite a While’ appeared first on Breitbart.
President Donald Trump said he did not know that Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) voted against Pete Hegseth's confirmation as the Secretary of Defense, stating that he had "just heard that we won."
The post Trump on McConnell Voting Against Hegseth’s Confirmation as Secretary of Defense: ‘Winning Is What Matters’ appeared first on Breitbart.
Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., was one of three Republicans to vote on Friday against Pete Hegseth, who was narrowly confirmed as defense secretary in the new Trump administration.
The other Republican "no" votes came from moderates Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and Susan Collins, R-Maine, forcing Vice President JD Vance to break the 50-50 tie to confirm President Donald Trump's choice to lead the Pentagon.
"The most consequential cabinet official in any Administration is the Secretary of Defense," McConnell wrote, explaining his opposition to Hegseth. "In the face of the gravest threats to U.S. national security interests since World War II, this position is even more important today."
"Major adversaries are working closer together to undermine U.S. interests around the world," he said. "And America’s military capabilities and defense industrial capacity are increasingly insufficient to deter or prevail in major conflict with China or Russia, especially given the real risk of simultaneous challenges from other adversaries like Iran or North Korea."
PETE HEGSETH CONFIRMED TO LEAD PENTAGON AFTER VP VANCE CASTS TIE-BREAKING VOTE
Hegseth, a former Fox News host, had faced questions ahead of his confirmation over his infidelity, allegations of sexual assault and excessive drinking, his previous comments opposing women serving in combat roles in the military and his leadership abilities.
Married three times, Hegseth has admitted he was a "serial cheater" before he became a Christian and married his current wife, Jenny. He also originally said he opposed women in combat, before later saying that he only opposes standards for women in combat that are different from those for men. Hegseth has additionally denied the sexual assault allegations and has said he would abstain from alcohol as defense secretary.
McConnell said "dust on boots" in reference to Hegseth's military service "fails even to distinguish this nominee from multiple predecessors of the last decade. Nor is it a precondition for success. Secretaries with distinguished combat experience and time in the trenches have failed at the job."
"Effective management of nearly 3 million military and civilian personnel, an annual budget of nearly $1 trillion, and alliances and partnerships around the world is a daily test with staggering consequences for the security of the American people and our global interests," the senator said. "Mr. Hegseth has failed, as yet, to demonstrate that he will pass this test. But as he assumes office, the consequences of failure are as high as they have ever been."
MODERATE REPUBLICAN MURKOWSKI WON'T BACK TRUMP PICK HEGSETH FOR DEFENSE SECRETARY
McConnell stressed that Hegseth, in his testimony before the Armed Services Committee, "did not reckon with this reality" that the U.S. "faces coordinated aggression from adversaries bent on shattering the order underpinning American security and prosperity."
"President Trump has rightly called on NATO allies to spend more on our collective defense. But the nominee who would have been responsible for leading that effort wouldn’t even commit to growing America’s defense investment beyond the low bar set by the Biden Administration’s budget requests," McConnell said.
The senator also said Hegseth's testimony lacked "substantial observations on how to defend Taiwan or the Philippines against a Chinese attack, or even whether he believes the United States should do so." McConnell said Hegseth failed "to articulate in any detail a strategic vision for dealing with the gravest long-term threat emanating" from China.
McConnell additionally noted a lack of "substantive discussion" of "countering our adversaries’ alignment with deeper alliance relationships and more extensive defense industrial cooperation of our own."
"This, of course, is due to change," McConnell said. "As the 29th Secretary of Defense, Mr. Hegseth will be immediately tested by ongoing conflicts caused by Russian aggression in Europe and Iranian-backed terror in the Middle East. He will have to grapple with an unfinished FY25 appropriations process that – without his intervention – risks further harming the readiness of our forces."
"By all accounts, brave young men and women join the military with the understanding that it is a meritocracy," he added. "This precious trust endures only as long as lawful civilian leadership upholds what must be a firewall between servicemembers and politics. The Biden Administration failed at this fundamental task. But the restoration of ‘warrior culture’ will not come from trading one set of culture warriors for another."
FIRST ON FOX: Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., has selected four top Republican allies to be part of his unofficial cabinet as he looks to make his own impression on the upper chamber after taking the mantle from longtime GOP Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.,
The new Republican leader has tapped Sens. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., Steve Daines, R-Mont., Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., and John Cornyn, R-Texas, to advise him in his new role and sit in on key leadership meetings.
McConnell had his own group of personally selected senators that joined him for meetings. At times, that included Sens. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., Katie Britt, R-Ala., Thom Tillis, R-N.C., Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Deb Fischer, R-Neb.
SCHUMER DIRECTS DEMS TO TO PUT PRESSURE ON TRUMP NOMINEES AHEAD OF CONFIRMATION HEARINGS
Weekly leadership meetings are also routinely attended by elected leaders in the conference, such as Senate President Pro-Tempore Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, Senate Republican Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo., Senate Republican Conference Chairman Cotton, Senate Republican Policy Committee Chairwoman Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., Republican Conference Vice Chair James Lankford, R-Okla., and National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) Chairman Tim Scott, R-S.C.
Each of the members of Thune's new informal team brings their own style and priorities along with them.
Blackburn brings with her the advantage of her ties to President-elect Trump and his sphere of influence. The Tennessee Republican has her finger on the pulse of the "Make America Great Again" movement and, in this capacity, can help keep the leadership team as plugged in as possible.
She can also attempt to bridge any gaps between the group of conservative Republicans that clashed with McConnell, namely Sens. Rick Scott, R-Fla., and Mike Lee, R-Utah, as Blackburn has aligned with them on several issues.
In a statement, Blackburn told Fox News Digital, "My role helping Leader Thune will be to move forward the President’s nominees and ensure we are championing the President’s agenda in the Senate to Make America Great Again."
SENATE GOP TEES UP CONFIRMATION HEARING BLITZ IN EFFORT TO MEET AMBITIOUS TRUMP TARGETS
Fresh off of a stint as chairman of the NRSC, during which he helped elect a Republican Senate majority, Daines will also bring to the table his great relationship with Trump and the team he's bringing with him to the White House. The senator also sits on the Finance Committee, which will be front and center during the tax debate that Trump has made one of his top priorities. Republicans are planning to extend key provisions from the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act as they are set to expire this year. Daines will be a key point person between the committee and leadership as they work to accomplish Trump's agenda.
Also sitting on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC), the Montana Republican brings key knowledge of the intersection of policy and politics, as Trump and the GOP set out to accomplish as much as they can in the first 100 days of his administration – including action on several global issues.
"Senate Republicans are ready to get to work enacting President Trump’s agenda of a secure border, lower taxes, safe cities, lower prices, affordable gas, an end to reckless spending and strong national security. I look forward to working with Leader Thune and the rest of our colleagues to deliver these wins to the American people," Daines said in a statement to Fox News Digital.
TULSI GABBARD CHANGES TUNE ON CONTROVERSIAL INTELLIGENCE TOOL FOLLOWING GOP LOBBYING
Mullin has made himself invaluable to his colleagues as a key link between Trump, the House of Representatives and the Senate. He was the first senator to publicly endorse Thune for the leader role, and he previously was part of his deputy whip team. His solid relationship with Trump is expected to help guide relations between the chamber and the incoming president. Notably, Mullin was one of Trump's 2024 campaign surrogates, traveling with both the president-elect and Vice President-elect JD Vance, as well as assisting Republican Senate candidates across the country.
"It’s an honor to be included at Senator Thune’s leadership table," Mullin told Fox News Digital in a statement. "From border security and slashing regulations to funding our military and extending tax relief, Leader Thune is the right person to lead the Senate effort to implement President Donald J. Trump’s America First agenda. I’m proud to be in this fight with him. As the Leader often says, ‘if someone else is in a better position to take the shot, you always make the extra pass.’ That’s how we intend to govern this majority. It’s all hands on deck to deliver for the American people, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to serve."
As a 22-year veteran senator and a former leadership member, Cornyn brings crucial experience to Thune's leadership team. The Texas senator is a member of the all-important budget committee and is expected to make passing a budget and reining in federal spending one of his priorities in this capacity. He's also a member of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) caucus, which will help facilitate the new advisory board announced by Trump. DOGE will be led by billionaire Elon Musk and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy. Now at the helm of the Senate, House and presidency, Republicans have their best shot in years to dictate spending levels.
In recent floor remarks, Cornyn outlined his priorities for this Congress. "We have an opportunity to pass huge wins for President Trump and more specifically, for the American people, and that comes first through the budget reconciliation process. This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity," he emphasized.
"We can't let this go to waste by not taking this occasion to finally address our skyrocketing debt," he said.
Cornyn concluded, "We have a lot of work to do, but this is an incredible opportunity that I trust we will not squander."
As President-elect Donald Trump prepares to return to the White House next month, what sort of foreign policy can Americans expect during his second stint in the Oval Office?
Trump will pursue an "America first foreign policy," J. Michael Waller, senior analyst for strategy at the Center for Security Policy, suggested during an interview with Fox News Digital, describing Biden's approach as "America last."
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is advocating for the soon-to-be commander in chief to significantly increase military spending in a bid to build up the nation's "hard power."
The long-serving lawmaker is also warning against an isolationist approach to foreign policy, asserting in a piece on Foreign Affairs that "the response to four years of weakness must not be four years of isolation."
MCCONNELL WARNS RFK JR. TO STEER CLEAR OF THE POLIO VACCINE
"Trump would be wise to build his foreign policy on the enduring cornerstone of U.S. leadership: hard power. To reverse the neglect of military strength, his administration must commit to a significant and sustained increase in defense spending, generational investments in the defense industrial base, and urgent reforms to speed the United States’ development of new capabilities and to expand allies’ and partners’ access to them," McConnell contended.
"To pretend that the United States can focus on just one threat at a time, that its credibility is divisible, or that it can afford to shrug off faraway chaos as irrelevant is to ignore its global interests and its adversaries’ global designs," he argued.
Waller, who authored the book "Big Intel," explained that America-first foreign policy does not mean isolationism.
"It means for the United States to define its national interests very strictly," without suggesting that every crisis around the globe is "of vital, existential interest to our country," he noted.
Waller opined that in Foreign Affairs McConnell was seeking to "maintain the uniparty consensus for the United States' present global commitments that are stretching us beyond our means … without even stepping back to reassess what is really in our national interests and how can we best marshal our resources to ensure them."
Fox News Digital attempted to reach out to request comment from McConnell, but did not receive a response.
US ‘CLOSER THAN EVER’ TO REACHING HOSTAGE DEAL BECAUSE OF TRUMP, GOP REP SAYS
Trump has tapped Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., for secretary of state, a choice Waller graded as a "really good pick."
Regarding the ongoing Ukraine-Russia conflict, Rubio has said that the U.S. is funding a "stalemate war."
Trump has called for a ceasefire.
"There should be an immediate ceasefire and negotiations should begin. Too many lives are being so needlessly wasted, too many families destroyed, and if it keeps going, it can turn into something much bigger, and far worse," he declared in a post on Truth Social.
Trump has also called for the release of hostages in the Middle East, warning in a post on Truth Social that if they are not released by when he assumes office, "there will be ALL HELL TO PAY in the Middle East, and for those in charge who perpetrated these atrocities against Humanity. Those responsible will be hit harder than anybody has been hit in the long and storied History of the United States of America," he declared.
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