Category: fox-news/person/donald-trump

‘Highly qualified’: Former state AGs urge Senate to confirm Bondi to lead Justice Department

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FIRST ON FOX: A group of more than 60 former Democratic and Republican attorneys general sent a new letter to Senate leaders Thursday urging the confirmation of Pam Bondi to head up the Department of Justice, praising what they described as Bondi’s wealth of prosecutorial experience— including during her eight years as Florida’s top prosecutor—that they said makes her especially qualified for the role. 

The letter was previewed exclusively to Fox News Digital and includes the signatures of more than 20 Democratic attorneys general or attorneys general appointed by Democratic governors. 

The group praised Bondi’s work across the party and state lines during her time as Florida’s attorney general and as a state prosecutor in Hillsborough County, where she worked for 18 years. 

"Many of us have worked directly with Attorney General Bondi and have firsthand knowledge of her fitness for the office," the former attorneys general said in the letter. "We believe that her wealth of prosecutorial experience and commitment to public service make General Bondi a highly qualified nominee for Attorney General of the United States." 

MORE THAN 100 FORMER JUSTICE DEPT OFFICIALS URGE SENATE TO CONFIRM PAM BONDI AS AG

The letter praised what signatories described as Bondi’s "unwavering" commitment to public safety and the rule of law in her time in the Sunshine State, where she sought to crack down on violent crime, protect consumers and combat the opioid crisis— which was at its height when she was elected as attorney general in 2010.

Bondi "was and remains a valued and respected member of the State Attorney General community," they wrote. "Thus, we are confident that she will serve with distinction as United States Attorney General."

The letter comes just hours after the Senate Judiciary Committee announced the official dates for Bondi's confirmation hearing later this month.

TRUMP'S AG PICK HAS ‘HISTORY OF CONSENSUS BUILDING’

Bondi is expected to be confirmed in the Republican-majority chamber. Earlier this week, a group of more than 100 former Justice Department officials sent a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee urging her confirmation.

Still, the new letter of support from the state attorneys general comes just hours after the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., issued a statement Wednesday evening expressing fresh reservations about Bondi following their meeting — citing in particular Bondi’s work defending President-elect Donald Trump in his impeachment proceedings and following the 2020 election.

"The role of the Attorney General is to oversee an independent Justice Department that upholds the rule of law and is free of undue political influence," Durbin said in a statement. 

"Given Ms. Bondi’s responses to my questions, I remain concerned about her ability to serve as an Attorney General who will put her oath to the Constitution ahead of her fealty to Donald Trump." 

More than 100 former Justice Dept officials urge Senate to confirm Pam Bondi as AG

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FIRST ON FOX — Dozens of former Justice Department (DOJ) officials sent a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee Monday urging confirmation of President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general, Pam Bondi, later this month— praising both her commitment to the rule of law and her track record as Florida’s former attorney general that they said makes her uniquely qualified for the role.

The letter, previewed exclusively to Fox News Digital, was signed by more than 110 senior Justice Department officials who served under both Democratic and Republican administrations, including former U.S. attorneys general John Ashcroft, Jeff Sessions, Bill Barr and Edwin Meese. 

Former acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker, deputy attorneys general Rod Rosenstein and Jeffrey Rosen, and Randy Grossman, who served as the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of California under the Biden administration, are among the other notable signatories. 

The DOJ alumni expressed their "strong and enthusiastic support" for Bondi, Florida’s former attorney general, who also spent 18 years as a prosecutor in the Hillsborough County State Attorney’s office.

"It is all too rare for senior Justice Department officials—much less Attorneys General—to have such a wealth of experience in the day-to-day work of keeping our communities safe," they wrote.

TRUMP'S AG PICK HAS ‘HISTORY OF CONSENSUS BUILDING’

"As a career prosecutor, Attorney General Bondi will be ready from the first day on the job to fight on behalf of the American people to reduce crime, tackle the opioid crisis, back the women and men in blue, and restore credibility to the Department of Justice," they wrote in the letter sent to Sens. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Dick Durbin, D-Ill.

The letter praised Bondi's work as Florida's attorney general, where she led an aggressive crackdown on opioid drugs and the many "pill mills" operating in the state when she took office. They also praised what they described as Bondi's "national reputation" for her work to end human trafficking, and prosecuting violent crime in the state.

Officials also emphasized Bondi's other achievements in Florida, where she secured consumer protection victories and economic relief on behalf of residents in the Sunshine State. After the 2008 financial crisis, her work leading the National Mortgage Settlement resulted in $56 billion in compensation to victims, the letter said — and in the wake of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, Bondi's lawsuit against BP and other companies responsible resulted in a $2 billion settlement in economic relief.

The letter also stressed Bondi's commitment to the rule of law, and what the former officials touted as her track record of working across the aisle during the more than two decades she spent as a prosecutor. 

'UNLIKELY COALITION': A CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM ADVOCATE SEES OPPORTUNITIES IN A SECOND TRUMP TERM

"Some of us have worked directly with Attorney General Bondi during her time in office and can personally attest to her integrity and devotion to the rule of law," they wrote. "Many more of us know and admire her well-earned reputation from her long and accomplished career in government service in Florida, her litigation and advocacy on the national stage, and her demonstrated courage as a lawyer."

"As former DOJ officials, we know firsthand the challenges she will face as Attorney General, and we also know she is up to the job."

Those close to Bondi have praised her long record as a prosecutor, and her staunch loyalty to the president-elect, alongside whom she has worked since 2020—first, helping to represent him in his first impeachment trial, and, more recently, in her post as co-chair of the Center for Law and Justice at the America First Policy Institute (AFPI) a think tank set up by former Trump staffers.

She also served in Trump's first presidential term as a member of his Opioid and Drug Abuse Commission.

Bondi's former colleagues have told Fox News Digital they expect her to bring the same playbook she used in Florida to Washington—this time with an eye to cracking down on drug trafficking, illicit fentanyl use, and the cartels responsible for smuggling the drugs across the border. 

"We firmly believe the Justice Department and the Nation will benefit from Attorney General Bondi’s leadership," the DOJ officials  said in conclusion, adding: "We urge you in the strongest manner possible to confirm her as the next Attorney General of the United States."

Gingrich warns Freedom Caucus to study his era as conservatives issue demand letter following Johnson vote

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Former Speaker Newt Gingrich, who led Republicans to their first House majority in four decades in 1994, said Saturday the House Freedom Caucus should recall how his own caucus led conservatives to power within the party.

Gingrich tweeted that he and other conservatives had developed "positive action principles" in 1983 as part of what they called the Conservative Opportunity Society.

"[Those] led 11 years later to the Contract with America and the first GOP House Majority in 40 years."

"If the Freedom Caucus would study them, they could be dramatically more effective," Gingrich said, going on to cite and agree with a sentiment from political reporter Mark Halperin’s "Wide World of News" newsletter.

"[T]he Freedom Caucus is a bunch of rebels with a series of causes but no coherent path to achieving said causes," Halperin wrote.

In the 1980s, although Ronald Reagan was in the White House, Boston Democratic Speaker Tip O’Neill wielded strong control of the House. O’Neill and Reagan had a notably friendly but ideologically disparate relationship.

Coinciding with the early days of C-SPAN televising live floor proceedings, Gingrich would often take to the well of the House in the late-night hours and address conservatives’ issues to a mostly empty chamber but with a captive audience on the new TV format.

GINGRICH BLASTS HARRIS' ‘RAMBLING’ SPEECHES

Gingrich biographer Craig Shirley told Fox News Digital on Saturday that the Freedom Caucus should study the work of their comparative predecessor, the Conservative Opportunity Society, as well as the path Gingrich led from a low-profile congressman to speaker.

"I guess the word brilliant is thrown around so, so cavalierly. So let me just say, it was extremely smart politics to make the case for conservative governance," Shirley said of Gingrich’s work in the 1980s and 1990s.

"Reagan had already blazed that path eight years before Gingrich did."

While critics say the GOP has shifted hard to the right on some issues and softened on others, Shirley said it’s essentially the same as it was during Gingrich’s rise.

"Less government, more freedom, less taxes, strong national defense, pro-life."

Former Rep. Vin Weber, R-Minn., another top member of Gingrich’s conservative group, said in a PBS interview that there have not been too many groups like the Conservative Opportunity Society (or the Freedom Caucus, which hadn’t been formed at the time of the interview) and that there was the same issue with apprehension over angering their party leaders.

Weber said there had been a few small intra-caucus conservative groups prior to the Reagan era, including one in the 1960s led by then-Rep. Donald Rumsfeld, R-Ill. – who would go on to serve as Pentagon chief two times.

On the last day of the 1982 session, Gingrich approached Weber and asked, "What are you doing next year and for the next 10 years after that?." 

"I thought that was interesting and I said, ‘I expect to be back here, but nothing special other than that,’" Weber recalled. 

"What he was saying was that he, as one person, was not being effective…. He identified me in the [GOP] conference as somebody [who] had been supportive of his point of view and maybe had some ability to organize things," Weber said.

MIKE JOHNSON RE-ELECTED HOUSE SPEAKER

Shirley said the current Freedom Caucus has the rare opportunity to achieve their goals if they play their cards right, with full Republican control of Washington.

"They don't have a ‘contract,’ but they have the next best thing there. They have a core set of issues and an ideology that they can easily follow," he said, adding that "no one should ever doubt" Speaker Mike Johnson’s commitment to "Reaganite" principles.

In additional comments to Fox News’ "Hannity," Gingrich said the one-round vote Friday was a "great victory" for Johnson, R-La.

"[He’s] just a decent, hardworking, intelligent human being.… I could not have been the kind of speaker he is. I don't have the patience. I don't have that ability to just keep moving forward. It's really very extraordinary."

Meanwhile, Freedom Caucus member Ralph Norman, R-S.C., told Fox News the group met with Johnson earlier and that he "just didn't come away with the feeling that the ‘umph’ or the willingness to fight for Trump's agenda was there."

"And I use as a backdrop what’s happened the last 14 months, we had 1500-page omni-bills that you couldn’t read – where you had no spending cuts to offset $100 billion in new spending."

"And I know we had a slim majority, but that's over with now. What we wanted to impress with [Johnson] yesterday was, are you going to fight for these things that we've been asking for, like a balanced budget? Like offsets? Like getting behind all of the Trump agenda?"

Norman, along with Rep. Keith Self, R-Texas, initially did not vote for Johnson, which would have set up a second round of speaker votes.

But, Norman told "The Story" that that action was the "only way to let my voice be heard."

He said Johnson "gave his word" to fight for the things he mentioned to Fox News, and that agreement, plus a message from Trump that Johnson was the only speaker candidate with support in the caucus, guided his decision to ultimately support the Louisianan.

In a "Dear Colleague" letter released Friday, House Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris, R-Md., and his members expressed several policy points that Johnson should commit to in order to "reverse the damage of the Biden-Harris administration," as well as achieve long-standing conservative goals.

The letter indicated they had voted for Johnson because of their "steadfast support" of Trump and ensuring the Jan. 6 elector certification can run smoothly.

"We did this despite our sincere reservations regarding the Speaker’s track record over the past 15 months."

The caucus called for Johnson to modify the House calendar so its schedule is as busy as the Senate’s, ensure reconciliation legislation reduces spending and deficits in "real terms," and halt violations of the "72-hour-rule" for debate on amendments to bills.

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They also demanded Johnson not rely on Democrats to pass legislation that a majority of his own caucus won’t support.

In comments on "The Story," Norman said he believes Johnson now understands – through the initial silence of several Republicans during the first roll call and his and Self’s initial non-Johnson-vote – that he will have to work to consider the conservative bloc’s demands.

EXCLUSIVE: Republicans in key red state launch campaign to elect ‘true’ conservatives ahead of Trump return

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EXCLUSIVE – Ahead of President-elect Trump's inauguration, conservatives in the most populous red state in America are launching a new Texas Republican Leadership Fund (TRLF) to elect "true" conservatives to crucial leadership roles.

Despite being led by a strongly conservative Republican governor and having a commanding majority in the legislature, the last four Texas House speakers have been elected through the support of Democrats. The result has been Democrats exercising an outsized level of power and influence in the largest Republican state in the nation. An inside track with the Texas speaker also gives Democrats significant control over some of the most important issues affecting the nation, such as enforcement of Texas’ more than 1,250 miles of border.

Alex Fairly, the TRLF’s principal donor, told Fox News Digital it is time for that to change.

TRLF, which is officially registering with the Texas Ethics Commission Tuesday and launching with $20 million of initial funding, has the support of many of Texas’ most influential leaders who are intent on making the state the definitive leader in conservative politics.

ELON MUSK MOVES TO MAKE STARBASE, TEXAS, THE OFFICIAL ‘GATEWAY TO MARS’

While he hopes that all Republicans in the Texas House will stand with the caucus to elect a conservative leader, Fairly said the $20 million will be available for use in the primaries and upcoming 2026 general election to hold elected officials "accountable" if they side with a Democratic-backed speaker.

According to Fairly, Texas conservatives are fed up with lukewarm Republicans cutting backroom deals with Democrats in the state legislature. And as Trump prepares to return to the White House in January, he said it will be more important than ever for Texas to support the new administration’s agenda through strong conservative leadership at the state level.

"Texas leads the way on many of the biggest conservative issues," he said. "I don't think there's any question that having a Republican majority in the House… has a massive impact on what happens across the country and supporting President Trump and his agenda."

This comes amid an ongoing battle in the Texas legislature over who will be the next speaker of the House. The most recent speaker, Rep. Dade Phelan, who came to power in 2021, dropped out from consideration after facing intense criticism from Republicans for failing to pass key conservative priorities such as school choice and for his role in the unsuccessful impeachment effort against vocal Trump ally Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

TEXAS BLOCKS SCHOOL CHOICE AS OTHER REPUBLICAN-LED STATES GO ALL-IN

Now, the Texas House of Representatives is set to elect a new speaker on Jan. 14. There are two frontrunners: Phelan ally Rep. Dustin Burrows and Rep. David Cook, who is backed by more hardline conservatives.

After going to the Democratic side of the aisle to help him secure the necessary 76 votes to win the speakership, Burrows declared the race over.  

However, Burrows’ attempt to bargain with Democrats has caused outrage from many conservatives, even including Donald Trump Jr., who said the move was not in line with voters’ election night "mandate" to Republicans. 

"It’s unbelievable what is happening in Texas right now," he said on X. "There is a group of so-called Republicans cutting a deal with liberal Democrats to elect a speaker instead of uniting behind the Republican nominee, @DavidCookTexas! Unbelievable! Republicans have a mandate!"

LONGTIME DEMOCRAT TEXAS JUDGE SWITCHES PARTIES IN MONUMENTAL MOVE

Fairly, who is an entrepreneur and health care executive who has been a vocal supporter of school choice, says the race for the speakership is not set in stone. This time, he believes there is strong resolve among Texas Republicans to stop moderates from handing over control to the Democrats.

"In spite of the progress made in this past election cycle toward… conservative priorities, there may still be work to do in the next primary cycle," he said. "These funds will be available to help expand a true Republican majority."

"Democrats don't give their votes away for free, they want things in return," he went on. "So, we end up with a House that's not really run by the majority, it's co-run by Democrats and a minority of Republicans. It just puts Texas in just such a weak position to accomplish what we could if we really were led by a majority of Republicans."

"This time we're bringing this out into the light."  

Trump allies turn up the heat on GOP Senate holdouts in nomination battles

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As President-elect Trump and his transition team steer his cabinet nominees through the landmines of the Senate confirmation process, top MAGA allies are joining the fight by putting pressure on GOP lawmakers who aren't fully on board.

"There will be no resource that we won’t use to go after those U.S. senators that vote against Donald Trump’s Cabinet picks or his other nominees," longtime Trump outside adviser Corey Lewandowski told Fox News this week.

Fueled by grassroots support for Trump and his nominees, the president-elect's political team and allies are cranking up the volume.

Exhibit A: Republican Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa.

NEW POLLS REVEAL WHAT AMERICANS THINK OF THE TRUMP TRANSITION

Ernst, the first female combat veteran elected to the Senate, is considered a pivotal vote in the confirmation battle over Pete Hegseth, Trump's nominee for defense secretary.

Hegseth, an Army National Guard officer who deployed to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and who until last month was a longtime Fox News host, has been the focus of a slew of media reports spotlighting a series of drinking and sexual misconduct allegations, as well as a report alleging he mismanaged a veterans nonprofit organization that he once led.

FIRST ON FOX: HOUSE GOP MILITARY VETS ON NEW MISSION — BACKING HEGSETH

Hegseth has denied allegations that he mistreated women, but did reach a financial settlement with an accuser from a 2017 incident to avoid a lawsuit. He has vowed that he won't drink "a drop of alcohol" if confirmed as defense secretary.

Ernst, a member of the Armed Services Committee, which will hold Hegseth's confirmation hearings, took plenty of incoming fire after last week publicly expressing hesitance over Hegseth's nomination.

While Trump publicly praised Hegseth late last week, as the nomination appeared to be teetering, top allies of the president-elect took aim at Ernst, who is up for re-election in 2026 in red-state Iowa.

GET TO KNOW DONALD TRUMP'S CABINET: WHO HAS THE PRESIDENT-ELECT PICKED SO FAR?

Donald Trump Jr., the president-elect's oldest son and MAGA powerhouse, took to social media to target Ernst and other potentially wavering Republican senators.

"If you’re a GOP Senator who voted for Lloyd Austin [President Biden's defense secretary], but criticize @PeteHegseth, then maybe you’re in the wrong political party!" he posted.

Top MAGA ally Charlie Kirk quickly took aim at Ernst with talk of supporting a primary challenger to her.

"This is the red line. This is not a joke.… The funding is already being put together. Donors are calling like crazy. Primaries are going to be launched," said Kirk, an influential conservative activist and radio and TV host who co-founded and steers Turning Point USA.

Kirk, on his radio program, warned that "if you support the president’s agenda, you’re good. You’re marked safe from a primary. You go up against Pete Hegseth, the president, repeatedly, then don’t be surprised, Joni Ernst, if all of a sudden you have a primary challenge in Iowa."

Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird, a top Trump supporter in last January's first-in-the-nation presidential caucuses, wrote a column on Breitbart urging Hegseth's confirmation.

While she didn't mention Ernst by name, Bird took aim at "D.C. politicians" who "think they can ignore the voices of their constituents and entertain smears from the same outlets that have pushed out lies for years."

HEAD HERE FOR THE LATEST FROM FOX NEWS ON THE TRUMP TRANSITION

And longtime Iowa-based conservative commentator and media personality Steve Deace took to social media and used his radio program to highlight that he would consider launching a primary challenge against Ernst.

Ernst, who stayed neutral in the Iowa caucuses before endorsing Trump later in the GOP presidential primary calendar, may have gotten the message.

After meeting earlier this week for a second time with Hegseth, Ernst said in a statement that her meeting was "encouraging" and that she would "support Pete through this process."

But Ernst's office told Fox News that "the senator has consistently followed the process, which she has said since the beginning, and doing her job as a United States senator."

It's not just Ernst who has faced the fire from Trump allies and MAGA world.

Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, one of four remaining GOP senators who voted in the 2021 Trump impeachment trial to convict him, is also up for re-election in 2026 in a reliably red state. Cassidy is now facing a formal primary challenge from Louisiana Treasurer John Fleming, a senior adviser in the first Trump administration.

Sen. Mike Rounds, another Republican up for re-election in two years in GOP-dominated South Dakota, has also been blasted by Kirk, as well as by top Trump ally and billionaire Elon Musk.

And staunch Trump supporter Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama had a warning for Republican Senate colleagues who may oppose the president-elect's nominees.

"Republicans: If you’re not on the team, get out of the way," he told FOX Business.

Whether these early threats from Trump allies turn into actual primary challenges in the next midterm elections remains to be seen. And ousting a senator is no easy feat. It's been a dozen years since an incumbent senator was defeated during a primary challenge.

But Trump's team and allies are playing hardball in the wake of former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., the president-elect's first attorney general nominee, ending his confirmation bid amid controversy.

There has been a full-court press by Trump's political orbit to bolster Hegseth — in order to protect him and some of the president-elect's other controversial Cabinet picks.

"If Trump world allowed a couple of establishment senators to veto a second nominee, it would have led to a feeding frenzy on Trump's other nominees, and so the thinking in Trump world was we have to defend Pete not just for the sake of defending Pete, but also for the sake of defending our other nominees," a longtime Trump world adviser, who asked to remain anonymous to speak more freely, told Fox News.

Fox News' Emma Colton, Cameron Cawthorne, Julia Johnson, Tyler Olson and Chad Pergram contributed to this report.

Biden could pardon these Trump adversaries amid Dem fears that ‘revengeful first year’ is looming

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President Biden’s days in office are coming down to the wire, and amid President-elect Donald Trump’s transition into the Oval Office, the 46th president is reportedly considering pardoning high-profile allies and fellow Democrats who are viewed as Trump's political foes.

After Trump’s election win over Vice President Harris last month, Massachusetts Democrat Sen. Ed Markey said he expects Trump to act in a "fascistic way" as president and called on Biden to pardon Democrats and the party's allies who could face prosecution under a second Trump administration.

"I think that, without question, Trump is going to try to act in a dictatorial way, in a fascistic way, in a revengeful first year at least of his administration toward individuals who he believes harmed him," Markey said during a local radio interview last month.

"If it’s clear by Jan. 19 that that is his intention, then I would recommend to President Biden that he provide those preemptive pardons to people because that’s really what our country is going to need next year."

MOTHER OF HUNTER BIDEN'S DAUGHTER DEFENDS PARDON, SAYS HE'S 'TARGETED BECAUSE OF WHO HIS DAD IS'

The comments were soon echoed by other Democrats and ​​some legal experts in a bid for Biden to sink any prospect of Trump getting "revenge" against his political enemies.

"Biden should keep going with his pardons: Trump, Jack Smith & team, Mueller & team, and a blanket pardon for all on Trump’s enemies list for any and all political statements before December 25, 2024! Merry Christmas," John Dean, CNN contributor and former President Nixon’s White House counsel during the Watergate scandal, posted to social media this month. "​​Take the wind out of retribution/revenge!"

HOW BIDEN – AND TRUMP – HELPED MAKE THE PARDON GO HAYWIRE

As Biden wraps up his final days, Fox News Digital compiled a list of prominent Trump antagonists who have been rumored to be among those considered for pardons.

Cheney, the Republican former Wyoming congresswoman, and Rep. Bennie Thompson, the Jan. 6 House Select Committee chair, were the targets of Trump's ire during a recent interview on NBC's "Meet The Press."

"Cheney did something that’s inexcusable, along with Thompson and the people on the un-select committee of political thugs and, you know, creeps," he said in the interview. "They deleted and destroyed all evidence."

"And Cheney was behind it, and so was Bennie Thompson and everybody on that committee," he continued. "For what they did, honestly, they should go to jail."

The Jan. 6 committee was founded in July 2021 to investigate the breach of the U.S. Capitol earlier that year by supporters of Trump ahead of President Biden officially taking office on Jan. 20. The Jan. 6 committee’s investigation was carried out when Democrats held control of the House.

BIDEN'S PARDONING OF HUNTER INDICATES HE HAS 'A LOT MORE TO HIDE': LARA TRUMP

Cheney slammed Trump’s remarks in a statement this week, saying they were a "​​continuation of his assault on the rule of law," but she did not address a potential blanket pardon or whether she would accept such an offer.

"There is no conceivably appropriate factual or constitutional basis for what Donald Trump is suggesting – a Justice Department investigation of the work of a congressional committee – and any lawyer who attempts to pursue that course would quickly find themselves engaged in sanctionable conduct," Cheney said in her statement. 

Thompson’s office also slammed Trump’s comment in a statement provided to Fox Digital this week, arguing that "no election, no conspiracy theory, no pardon, and no threat of vengeful prosecution can rewrite history or wipe away his responsibility for the deadly violence on that horrific day."

"We stood up to him before, and we will continue to do so," he added.

The former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Dr. Anthony Fauci, was a keystone of the nation's pandemic response, including advising then-President Trump in 2020 on how to handle COVID-19 as it swept across communities.

Fauci’s tenure under the first Trump administration, however, devolved with Trump slamming him and fellow pandemic task force adviser Dr. Deborah Birx as "two self-promoters trying to reinvent history to cover for their bad instincts and faulty recommendations."

FAUCI RIPPED OVER NEW PAPER CRITICIZING TRUMP ON CORONAVIRUS, PROMOTING NATURAL ORIGIN THEORY: 'EMBARRASSMENT'

Conservatives, including lawmakers such as Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., slammed Fauci for his promotion of mask mandates, vaccine mandates and strict lockdown orders that upended the day-to-day lives of Americans.

"Dr. Fauci should be voluntarily removed from TV because what he says is such a disservice, and such fearmongering and almost all of what he says isn’t even matched by the science of his own institute," Paul, who is a doctor, said in 2021 during an appearance on Fox Business.

"It doesn’t obey the science," he said at the time. "There is no scientific evidence that the lockdowns in Michigan have done anything or in California. In fact, the daily incidents of the disease in the last two months has been about almost one and a half times greater in California than it has been in Florida. The death rate is lower in Florida. So there is no real correlation between economic lockdowns, mask mandates or any of this."

Trump allies, including tech billionaire Elon Musk and Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr, have endorsed calls to prosecute Fauci if evidence is found of any crimes during the pandemic, including the Wuhan lab leak in China.

BIDEN, TRUMP BOTH RIP DOJ AFTER PRESIDENT PARDONS HUNTER

"If there were crimes that he committed, of course I would tell the attorney general to prosecute him, not hold off," Kennedy said on Fox News last year.

Fauci has denied any wrongdoing amid the pandemic, and he told CNN this year, "I don't know what one would prosecute me for. … I played a major role in the development of the vaccine that was responsible for the saving of millions of lives. … I'm definitely guilty of that."

New York Attorney General Letitia James and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg have been at the forefront of legal cases aimed at Trump ahead of the 2024 election, frequently landing in the upcoming president’s line of fire for criticism as he battled lawsuits he slammed as "shams."

James, a former City Council member in New York and public defender, launched her run for New York AG during the 2018 cycle while emphasizing that if she were elected, she would aggressively pursue charges against Trump. 

"What is fueling this campaign, what is fueling my soul right now, is Trump and his abuses, abuses against immigrants, against women, against our environment. We need an attorney general who will stand up to Donald Trump," James said on the campaign trail in 2018.

NEW YORK AG LETITIA JAMES SAYS SHE WON'T DROP CIVIL FRAUD CASE AGAINST TRUMP

About three months after taking office, James announced an investigation into the Trump Organization, alleging there was evidence indicating the president and his company had falsely valued assets to obtain loans, insurance coverage and tax deductions. The investigation began after Trump’s former personal attorney, Michael Cohen, who had previously served federal prison time for violating campaign finance laws, testified before Congress that the Trump Organization exaggerated the value of his assets.

James officially sued Trump, the Trump Organization and its senior leadership for allegedly falsely inflating "his net worth by billions of dollars to induce banks to lend money to the Trump Organization on more favorable terms than would otherwise have been available to the company, to satisfy continuing loan covenants, to induce insurers to provide insurance coverage for higher limits and at lower premiums, and to gain tax benefits, among other things."

Trump charged that James had launched a "witch hunt" against him after she explicitly campaigned on a platform to prosecute the president. Trump and his family denied any wrongdoing, with the former president saying his assets had been undervalued.

James was also caught on camera appearing gleeful as Donald Trump Jr. took the stand at his father's civil trial in November, after frequently sitting in the courtroom amid proceedings.

Judge Arthur Engoron ruled in September last year in the non-jury trial that Trump and his organization had committed fraud while building his real estate business by deceiving banks, insurers and others by overvaluing his assets and exaggerating his net worth. Trump appealed the ruling in September this year.

James said this week that she will not drop Trump’s civil fraud judgment after his win last month. 

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg emerged as another Trump political foe, leading the charge in his criminal trial this year after charging Trump with 34 counts of falsifying business records.

Trump was found guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records after his Manhattan criminal trial in May. Bragg's office worked to prove that Trump falsified the business records to conceal a $130,000 payment to former porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election to quiet her claims of an alleged affair with Trump in 2006. Trump has maintained his innocence in the case, and he has argued that it was "lawfare" promoted by the Biden administration and Democrats to injure his re-election efforts. 

Sentencing in the case was indefinitely postponed after Trump’s election win, with his legal team calling on the presiding judge to drop the case altogether.

Trump was hit with four separate indictments issued between March and August 2023, including Special Counsel Jack Smith prosecuting Trump in two of the cases: a classified documents case and a election interference case. 

In the classified documents case, the FBI agents seized 33 boxes of documents in August 2022 from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida, spurring another legal battle that Trump has called a "scam." Smith, who Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed to the job, oversaw the case and charged Trump with 40 felony counts, including allegedly violating the Espionage Act, making false statements to investigators and conspiracy to obstruct justice.

PROSECUTORS REQUEST STAY IN TRUMP NY CASE UNTIL 2029 AS DEFENSE PLANS MOTION FOR DISMISSAL 'ONCE AND FOR ALL'

In the election interference case, which focused on alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election and the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, Trump was charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding, and conspiracy against rights.

Both cases were dropped after the presidential election, but Trump’s repeated criticisms and condemnation against Jack Smith, who he commonly referred to as "deranged," and other prosecutors have continued.

"These cases, like all of the other cases I have been forced to go through, are empty and lawless, and should never have been brought. Over $100 Million Dollars of Taxpayer Dollars has been wasted in the Democrat Party’s fight against their Political Opponent, ME. Nothing like this has ever happened in our Country before," Trump posted on social media after the election. 

In that same social media post, Trump also took issue with Fulton County, Georgia, District Attorney Fani Willis, ​​who led the prosecution of Trump in connection to a racketeering indictment for allegedly trying to overturn the 2020 presidential election in Georgia. Trump pleaded not guilty in that case and has maintained his innocence.

"They have also used State Prosecutors and District Attorneys, such as Fani Willis and her lover, Nathan Wade (who had absolutely zero experience in cases such as this, but was paid MILLIONS, enough for them to take numerous trips and cruises around the globe!)" Trump posted. "It was a political hijacking, and a low point in the History of our Country that such a thing could have happened, and yet, I persevered, against all odds, and WON. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!" 

California Sen. Adam Schiff, who won election to the Senate last month after serving in the U.S. House, has been a common target of Trump’s for spearheading the first impeachment trial.

The House impeached Trump in 2019 over allegedly leveraging U.S. military aid to Ukraine for political favors involving investigations of the Biden family. Schiff, who served as chair of the House Intelligence Committee, said Trump’s call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy "reads like a classic organized crime shakedown," opening the floodgates of Trump’s criticisms aimed at the Democrat.

TRUMP FIRES BACK AT 'CORRUPT' SCHIFF, 'PHONY' MAINSTREAM MEDIA DURING FIERY REMARKS ON IMPEACHMENT

The Senate ultimately acquitted Trump in the first impeachment as well as his second impeachment involving allegations he incited an insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021. Trump and Schiff have continued trading barbs since the impeachment saga.

"We have two enemies. We have the outside enemy, and then we have the enemy from within. And the enemy from within, in my opinion, is more dangerous than China, Russia and all these countries," Trump told Fox News’ "Sunday Morning Futures" in October.

"But the thing that’s tougher to handle are these lunatics that we have inside, like Adam Schiff – Adam ‘Shifty’ Schiff," Trump added.

As speculation mounts over who Biden could pardon ahead of his White House exit, Schiff has balked at calls for blanket pardons for those viewed as Trump’s political foes.

​​"I don't think the idea of a blanket pardon of some kind is a good idea. And I would recommend against it," he told CBS News last week. ​

Just days ahead of the election, news broke that the former chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, retired Gen. Mark Milley, slammed Trump as a "fascist" and "the most dangerous person to this country" in Washington Post editor Bob Woodward’s latest book.

Trump has repeatedly slammed Milley since leaving office, including after the United States' botched withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021 when he called Milley a "loser who shamed us in Afghanistan and elsewhere!"

RETIRED GEN MILLEY SAYS AMERICA WILL 'BE OK' UNDER TRUMP AFTER REPORTEDLY SAYING HE WAS 'FASCIST TO THE CORE'

After the election, Milley apparently backtracked his characterization of Trump as a "fascist," saying ​​America will "be OK" under Trump’s second administration.

Trump minced no words on the 2016 campaign trail that if elected president, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton could face jail time, perhaps previewing a Biden pardon for the Democratic stalwart years later.  

It is "awfully good that someone with the temperament of Donald Trump is not in charge of the law in our country," Clinton said during a presidential debate against Trump.

HILLARY CLINTON'S NEW STATE DEPARTMENT PORTRAIT INSPIRES MOCKERY ON SOCIAL MEDIA: 'YOU SHOULD BE IN JAIL'

"Because you’d be in jail," Trump shot back in a mic-drop moment that earned praise from conservatives and condemnation from Democrats.

"Lock her up" became a common chant during Trump’s 2016 rallies.

FBI Director Christopher Wray, who Trump appointed during his first administration, is set to be fired or voluntarily resign from the position as Trump tees up his new pick for FBI chief, Kash Patel, and as conservatives slam Wray for "failing" his duties at the FBI.

The FBI director has also repeatedly come under fire from Trump, including during his Sunday interview on NBC for the FBI raid on Mar-a-Lago in 2022.

GRASSLEY RIPS WRAY'S 'FAILED' LEADERSHIP AT FBI WITH 11 PAGES OF EXAMPLES IN BLISTERING 'NO-CONFIDENCE' LETTER

"He invaded my home. I’m suing the country over it. He invaded Mar-a-Lago. I’m very unhappy with the things he’s done. And crime is at an all-time high. Migrants are pouring into the country that are from prisons and from mental institutions, as we’ve discussed. I can’t say I’m thrilled," Trump said during the interview.

The FBI declined to comment.

Legal experts have grappled for years with whether a president could pardon himself, but no president has yet tested the waters and actually issued a self-pardon.

Article II, Section 2, of the Constitution states that the president has the power to "grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States, except in cases of impeachment." The Constitution does not stipulate who a president can and can't pardon, instead granting them power to pardon any federal crime.

In Biden’s case, Trump has repeatedly slammed his Oval Office successor, including in June when he said Biden is a "criminal."

​"Joe could be a convicted felon with all of the things that he’s done," Trump said of Biden in June. 

"This man is a criminal. This man – you’re lucky. You’re lucky. I did nothing wrong. We’d have a system that was rigged and disgusting. I did nothing wrong."

Trump’s pick for FBI director, Patel, is known as a "deep state" crusader, who detailed in his book, "Government Gangsters," an alphabetical list of alleged "deep state" members who are either currently or formerly employed in the executive branch.

Among those on the list are Vice President Harris, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Biden.

Patel has advocated for the firings of "corrupt actors" within the FBI and the federal government overall, "aggressive" congressional oversight over the agency, complete overhauls of special counsels, and moving the FBI out of Washington, D.C. His list of alleged "deep state" actors could indicate which political players could face investigation during a second Trump administration, and if Patel is confirmed by the Senate.

Fox News Digital's Gabriel Hays, Tyler Olson and Kristen Altus contributed to this report.

How Biden – and Trump – helped make the pardon go haywire

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

The pardon debate – individual, group, partisan, preemptive – is spinning out of control.

In his "Meet the Press" interview, Donald Trump mocked Joe Biden’s repeated assurances about Hunter: "‘I’m not going to give my son a pardon. I will not under any circumstances give him a pardon.’ I watch this and I always knew he was going to give him a pardon."

In a portion of that interview that did not air but was posted online, the president-elect complained to Kristen Welker:

"The press was obviously unfair to me. The press, no president has ever gotten treated by the press like I was."

BIDEN'S PARDONING OF HUNTER INDICATES HE HAS 'A LOT MORE TO HIDE': LARA TRUMP

Why did he appear on "Meet the Press"? "You’re very hostile," Trump said. Her response: "Well, hopefully, you thought it was a fair interview. We covered a lot of policy grounds."

"It’s fair only in that you allowed me to say what I say. But you know, the answers to questions are, you know, pretty nasty. But look, because I’ve seen you interview other people like Biden."

"I’ve never interviewed President Biden," Welker responded. Trump said he was speaking "metaphorically."

"I’ve seen George Stephanopoulos interview. And he’s a tough interviewer. It’s the softest interview I’ve seen. CNN interview. They give these soft, you know, what’s your favorite ice cream? It’s a whole different deal. I don’t understand why."

The strength of Welker’s approach is that she asked as many as half a dozen follow-ups on major topics, making more news. When she asked, for instance, whether he would actually deport 11 million illegal immigrants, as he’d said constantly on the campaign trail, he answered yes – which for some reason lots of news outlets led with. But a subsequent question got Trump to say he didn’t think the Dreamers should be expelled and would work it out with the Democrats.

As for Trump, he reminded me of the candidate I interviewed twice this year. He was sharp and serious, connecting on each pitch, fouling a few off. This was not the candidate talking about sharks at rallies. 

BIDEN, TRUMP BOTH RIP DOJ AFTER PRESIDENT PARDONS HUNTER

With one significant misstep, he made the case that he was not seeking retribution – even backing off a campaign pledge that he would appoint a special prosecutor to investigate Biden.

That misstep, when Trump couldn’t hold back, was in saying of the House Jan. 6 Committee members, including Liz Cheney: "For what they did, honestly, they should go to jail."

He did add the caveat that he would let his attorney general and FBI chief make that decision, but it allowed media outlets to lead with Trump wanting his political opponents behind bars. For what it’s worth, there’s no crime in lawmakers holding hearings, and this business about them withholding information seems like a real stretch.

Now back to the pardons. This mushrooming debate was obviously triggered by the president breaking his repeated promise with a sweeping, decade-long pardon of his son, a 54-year-old convicted criminal.

But then, as first reported by Politico, we learned that the Biden White House is debating whether to issue a whole bunch of preemptive pardons to people perceived to be potential targets of Trumpian retaliation.

But the inconvenient truth is that anyone accepting such a pardon would essentially admit to the appearance of being guilty. That’s why Sen.-elect Adam Schiff says he doesn’t want a pardon and won’t accept one.

MEDIA ADMITS THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY IS TOO 'WOKE' AFTER KAMALA HARRIS' 2024 LOSS

But many of those potential recipients don’t even know they’re under consideration for sweeping pardons covering anything they may or may not have done.

It is a truly awful idea, and with Biden and Trump both agreeing that DOJ engages in unfair and selective prosecutions – which in the Republican’s case made his numbers go up – the stage is set for endless rounds of payback against each previous administration.

I remember first thinking about the unchecked power of presidential pardons when Bill Clinton delivered a last-minute one to ally and super-wealthy Marc Rich.

So it’s time to hear from Alexander Hamilton, who pushed it into the Constitution. Keep in mind that in that horse-and-buggy era, there were very few federal offenses because most law enforcement was done by the states.

In Federalist 74, published in 1788, Hamilton said a single person was better equipped than an unwieldy group, and such decisions should be broadly applied to help those in need.   

"In seasons of insurrection or rebellion," the future Treasury secretary wrote, "there are often critical moments, when a welltimed offer of pardon to the insurgents or rebels may restore the tranquillity of the commonwealth."

SUBSCRIBE TO HOWIE'S MEDIA BUZZMETER PODCAST, A RIFF ON THE DAY'S HOTTEST STORIES

Otherwise, it might be too late.

But another founding father, George Mason, opposed him, saying a president "may frequently pardon crimes which were advised by himself. It may happen, at some future day, that he will establish a monarchy, and destroy the republic. If he has the power of granting pardons before indictment, or conviction, may he not stop inquiry and prevent detection?"

An excellent argument, but Hamilton won out.

As Hamilton envisioned, George Washington, in 1794, granted clemency to leaders of the Whiskey Rebellion to calm a fraught situation.

Something tells me that Biden, Trump and their allies aren’t poring over the Federalist papers. But it’s still an awful lot of sweeping power to place in the hands of one chief executive, for which the only remedy is impeachment.

Pro-Trump impeachment Republican Sen Bill Cassidy targeted for ouster Freedom Caucus founding member

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

Louisiana State Treasurer John Fleming announced a bid to unseat Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Republican who voted to convict following the House impeachment vote against former President Donald Trump in the wake of the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot.

Fleming, a former U.S. congressman, was one of the founders of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, according to a press release about his Senate bid.

"Senator Cassidy has failed the people of Louisiana," Fleming said, according to the press release. 

"I will fight to bring real, conservative solutions to the U.S. Senate, I will not cut-and-run on these conservative principles, and I will stand and work with President Trump like I have many times before," he declared.

Fox News Digital attempted to request comment from the senator.

LOUISIANA LAWMAKERS WEIGHING CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT THAT WOULD SEND MORE JUVENILE OFFENDERS TO ADULT JAILS

Fleming held posts in Trump's prior administration.

"I cannot fully express the deep sense of pride I have, having served President Trump in the West Wing of the White House as he was literally fighting for his political life against those who were attacking him and turning their backs on him," Fleming noted, "but the opportunity to stand with him for the principles of America First is why I seek to serve the citizens of Louisiana in the United States Senate."

Trump endorsed Cassidy for re-election in 2020, before the lawmaker became one of the Senate Republicans who voted to convict after the House impeachment vote against Trump in early 2021.

That Senate vote took place after Trump had already departed from office, and the number of senators who voted to convict failed to reach the threshold necessary for a conviction.

CASSIDY INTRODUCES BILL TO STOP FEDERAL TAX DOLLARS FROM GOING TO HEALTHCARE FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS

Trump lambasted Sen. Cassidy in posts on Truth Social earlier this year.

"One of the worst Senators in the United States Senate is, without question, Bill Cassidy, A TOTAL FLAKE, Republican though he may be," Trump declared on April 1.

"Bill Cassidy is now shunned in his own State as a disloyal lightweight, and it’s a beautiful thing to watch," Trump declared in another post.

FEDERAL COURTS ARE DECLARING WAR ON AMERICAN OIL WORKERS: SEN. BILL CASSIDY

Cassidy's current U.S. Senate term ends in early 2027.

Fleming previously ran unsuccessfully for Senate in 2016.

President Biden’s pardon of son Hunter a political gift for Trump going forward

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Legal and political analysts are characterizing President Biden's stunning "full and unconditional pardon" of his son Hunter as an early holiday gift for President-elect Donald Trump.

"He's essentially endorsing Trump's long-held opinion that the Department of Justice is politicized and isn't acting impartially," longtime Republican strategist and communicator Ryan Williams said of the move by Biden.

In absolving his son ahead of twin sentencings on separate gun and tax convictions later this month, the president argued that the Justice Department's handling of the cases against Hunter Biden was politicized.

DID TRUMP PREDICT BIDEN PARDON OF HIS SON HUNTER?

Biden said in a statement Sunday night that his son, who is a recovering addict, was "treated differently" because of who his father is.

"No reasonable person who looks at the facts of Hunter’s cases can reach any other conclusion than Hunter was singled out only because he is my son — and that is wrong," the president said in the statement. "There has been an effort to break Hunter — who has been five and a half years sober, even in the face of unrelenting attacks and selective prosecution. In trying to break Hunter, they’ve tried to break me — and there’s no reason to believe it will stop here. Enough is enough."

TRUMP STATEMENT ON BIDEN'S MOVE TO PARDON HIS SON

Biden, in his statement, appeared to be pointing to the way the case was handled by David Weiss. He is the Trump-appointed U.S. attorney from Delaware who originally investigated Hunter Biden and was later appointed as a special counsel during the Biden administration by Attorney General Merrick Garland.

While an impeachment inquiry by House Republicans that looked into the president and his son's business relationships fizzled, Trump, during the presidential campaign, hinted at continuing to investigate the younger Biden in his second term in the White House.

However, Trump will not be able to undo the pardon when he takes office. Additionally, the pardon's sweeping nature means the next Trump Justice Department would not be able to reopen the criminal probe against Hunter Biden.

However, Trump gains something arguably more valuable - political cover.

Trump was heavily criticized during his first term for using pardons to protect political aides and allies - including longtime fixer Roger Stone and 2016 campaign chairman Paul Manafort - and relatives, including his daughter's father-in-law, whom the president-elect named as his second term ambassador to France. 

Biden's pardon of his son now gives Trump a powerful rebuttal.

"Biden has endorsed this idea that the Department of Justice acts in a political way, and he's thrown out long-held precedent when it comes to pardons," Williams told Fox News.  "He's blowing up an institution and procedures, which is what Democrats have long criticized Trump for. They don't have any moral authority to say that Trump is undermining institutions and changing long-held procedures. That's what Joe Biden just did with this pardon."

The president-elect will be under pressure as he takes office next month to pardon many of those convicted of crimes in the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol by Trump supporters aiming to upend congressional certification of Biden's 2020 election victory. Many of those convicted are still in prison.

HUNTER BIDEN SAYS HIS MISTAKES WERE EXPLOITED BY REPUBLICANS

Fox News legal editor Kerri Kupec Urbahn said that "Joe Biden has lowered the bar so much here in offering this pardon to Hunter Biden, that I think Donald Trump will be able to pardon a whole host of people including Jan. 6 [defendants]."

Trump, in a statement following Biden's move, raised expectations that he should issue pardons for some of those Jan. 6 convicts.

"Does the Pardon given by Joe to Hunter include the J-6 Hostages, who have now been imprisoned for years?" Trump wrote in a social media post Sunday night. "Such an abuse and miscarriage of Justice!"

Biden's pardon came 24 hours after Trump announced he would nominate loyalist Kash Patel as FBI director. Patel, a controversial pick, has long amplified Trump's unproven claims the 2020 election was stolen and long vowed to clean house at the FBI.

The move by Biden may help Trump as he works to push the nomination of Patel and Pam Bondi - a former Florida attorney general and another Trump loyalist who the president-elect named as his second pick for attorney general - through the Senate.

Republican Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas, a leading Trump ally in the Senate, argued in a social media post that "Democrats can spare us the lectures about the rule of law when, say, President Trump nominates Pam Bondi and Kash Patel to clean up this corruption."

The Hunter Biden pardon may convince Republican senators who may have serious reservations regarding the Patel and Bondi picks to now back Trump.

"I do think it makes it more likely that some of these more traditional Republican senators will be p****d off enough to help Trump confirm some of his more controversial nominees," a Republican who works on Capitol Hill told Fox News, as he noted that "it's the most sweeping pardon since Richard Nixon" a half a century ago.

Present and Accounted For: House Republicans’ small majority could make attendance a priority

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It’s long been said that Congress is a lot like school.

What’s the first thing they do in school? Take attendance.

That is one thing which they usually don’t do in Congress.

But they might next year.

FAMILIAR FACES, FAMILIAR PLACES: THE LATEST FROM CAPITOL HILL

Figuring out who is present and accounted for and who is out will emerge as one of the most dramatic daily events on Capitol Hill.

It is always about the math on Capitol Hill.

But the 119th Congress will really be about the math.

Every day in the House will hinge on who’s sick. Who has a parent/teacher conference. Whose plane was delayed due to snow. Who is just playing hooky and isn’t reliable. Who was giving a speech downtown, got caught in traffic and just didn’t make it back in time. Whose kid is starring in the school play. Whose aunt died.

President Trump and House Republicans have big plans for their 2025 legislative agenda. But the miniscule size of the GOP majority could temper those expectations on a daily basis.

It will be interesting to see what Republicans can execute.

Republicans will likely begin the new year with a 219-215 majority. So 434 seats. There is one vacancy as former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., resigned. That’s a margin of four seats. But it in reality, it means the GOP majority can only tolerate one Republican defector on each roll call vote without needing help from the other side. One Republican "nay" is 218-216. But two Republican rebels produces a 217-217 tie. By rule, ties lose in the House.

But the beginning of the new Congress on January 3 could represent the Halycon days for the House Republican Conference.

Reps. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., and Michael Waltz, R-Fla., intend to resign in January to join the Trump Administration. Stefanik is up for United Nations Ambassador and requires confirmation for that post. The President-elect tapped Waltz to serve as National Security Advisor. That position is not subject to Senate confirmation. So the Republican majority will dwindle to 217-215. At that point, Republicans can’t lose any votes to pass their agenda.

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That is a problem for House Republicans who regularly had a squadron of defectors – ranging from keeping the government open to even impeaching Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. This could even spell problems for House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., returning to the Speaker’s suite. Johnson must win an outright majority of all House members voting when the new Congress convenes on January 3 to become Speaker. He’ll have a bit of a cushion when the new Congress starts. But it won’t be much. House Republicans still suffer from political PTSD after the 15 rounds it took to elect former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., early last year.

Yes. There will be special elections to fill the seats of Gaetz, Stefanik and Waltz. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has already called a special election for the Gaetz seat for April 1.

You can’t make this stuff up.

The other special elections are months away because Stefanik and Waltz haven’t resigned yet. In fact, if Stefanik is confirmed and resigns in late January, it may be May before there’s a special election in her seat – based on New York law and discretion afforded New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D).

The results in special elections sometimes produce "special" results. The usual electorate periodically stays home and the opposite party captures those seats in off-cycle elections. So, even though these are "Republican" seats, there’s no guarantee that Republicans will automatically prevail.

But if things go according to plan, Republicans will have those seats back in a few months, with a comparatively robust 220-215 majority. That means Republicans can lose up to two votes on any major issue.

But there are always absences. Always resignations.

And this isn’t limited to the Republican side of the aisle.

SPRINT TO CONFIRM TRUMP NOMINEES KICKS OFF IN JANUARY

There have long been concerns about the health and attendance of 79-year-old Rep. David Scott, D-Ga., the top Democrat on the House Agriculture Committee. Scott faced criticism earlier this year over a lack of public appearances and interviews.

76-year-old Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., is the top Democrat on the House Natural Resources Committee. Grijalva vowed that this term would be his last after suffering from cancer. The illness sidelined Grijalva for months. He missed more than 300 roll call votes on the floor between February and this fall and did not conduct interviews.

Late Reps. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Tex., Bill Pascrell, D-N.J. and Donald Payne Jr., D-N.J., were all in office when they passed away this year. Late Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., died in 2023.

Democrats make a lot of noise right now about the agenda of President-elect Trump. It will be incumbent on Democrats to have full attendance to oppose Republicans and generally make life miserable for the majority. But Democrats can only do that if they show up. All the time.

Such was the case when House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., had the votes of every House Democrat on each roll call for Speaker in January and October of last year. Only Rep. David Trone, D-Md., missed a couple of votes because he underwent a surgical procedure. But Trone returned to Capitol Hill later that evening to vote.

Rep. Al Green, D-Tex., was hospitalized this past February. But Green came to the Capitol in a wheelchair in February to help torpedo the initial effort to impeach Mayorkas. Republicans had three defectors on their side. Green’s vote fresh from a hospital gurney forced the GOP effort to fail on the floor and try again.

One factor which was a challenge for the GOP was the health of House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La. Scalise was diagnosed with cancer last year and was out the first part of 2023. Scalise has now recovered. But his absence hamstrung the GOP on big votes like the initial Mayorkas impeachment.

Unfortunately – and inevitably – there will be absences due to health. And God forbid, death. Rarely does a Congress pass without the death of a lawmaker – sometimes unforeseen. Late Rep. Jackie Walorski, R-Ind., and two aides died in a traffic accident during the summer of 2022.

So listen for the attendance bells in the House next year. Check the weather forecast and the flight schedule at Reagan National Airport. Better look at Waze if they’re flying into Dulles. See if the flu or another round of COVID burns through Congress.

Yes. Understanding whether someone is for or against a given bill or amendment is always important in Congress. But what supersedes that is whether they’re actually present.