Elon Musk is planning weekly livestream updates about his efforts to cut the government.

The Trump ally and Tesla CEO posted on his social media platform X that he is planning regular updates about the so-called Department of Government Efficiency.

The government-downsizing effort, announced this week by President-elect Donald Trump, will be led by Musk and wealthy entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy. The details of how the operation will work are still unclear, but Trump said the effort’s leaders will remain outside the government.

Musk told attendees at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort Thursday evening that the incoming administration won’t amount to business as usual. “This is going to be a revolution,” Musk said.

Musk and Ramaswamy have signaled how their team will work in social media posts this week.

They’re calling for “small government revolutionaries willing to work 80+ hours per week” to join their effort.

In addition to plans for a weekly livestream, Musk previously posted, “All actions of the Department of Government Efficiency will be posted online for maximum transparency.”

He and Ramaswamy have suggested they’ll be crowdsourcing ideas from the public about wasteful government programs.

Ramaswamy has already singled out an energy regulatory agency as a possible target.

“Too much bureaucracy = less innovation & higher costs,” he posted Friday on X. “That’s a real problem with the FDA, Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), and countless other 3-letter agencies. They are utterly agnostic to how their daily decisions stifle new inventions & impose costs that deter growth.”

During his presidential campaign, Ramaswamy pledged to eliminate a handful of agencies, including the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Ramaswamy also urged cutting at least 75 percent of the federal workforce.

President-elect Donald Trump named AI as a focus of his energy strategy Friday in his formal announcement of Republican North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum to head the Interior Department and a new National Energy Council.

“With U.S. Energy Dominance, we will drive down Inflation, win the A.I. arms race with China (and others), and expand American Diplomatic Power to end Wars all across the World,” Trump wrote in an email announcing his choice.

He said the National Energy Council would oversee a cross-agency effort to cut red tape, boost private-sector investments and promote innovation over regulation with a “DRILL BABY DRILL” approach. Expanding energy supply and driving down its cost would “win the battle for A.I. superiority, which is key to National Security and our Nation’s Prosperity,” Trump added.

The Republican party pledged in its 2024 platform to “MAKE AMERICA THE DOMINANT ENERGY PRODUCER IN THE WORLD, BY FAR.”

The president-elect first announced his choice of Burgum on Thursday at Mar A Lago. Burgum will also have a seat on the National Security Council, Trump announced in his release.

The decision over who will be tapped to head Treasury has been hung up as Trump’s transition co-chair Howard Lutnick and hedge fund executive Scott Bessent compete for the president-elect’s attention, according to three people familiar with the discussions.

One major factor that’s delayed the decision is the amount of control Lutnick has exerted in determining what information flows up to the president-elect, two of the sources said. Bessent is meeting with Trump at Mar-a-Lago on Friday, The Washington Post reported.

The jockeying between Lutnick, the head of New York investment bank Cantor Fitzgerald, and Bessent, a former George Soros protege who now leads his own hedge fund, has left Treasury as one of the biggest remaining question marks in the Trump 2.0 cabinet.

The Treasury secretary is a powerful position whose jurisdiction includes financial markets, the issuance of U.S. debt, economic national security matters, tax policy and the strength of the dollar. Donald Trump’s choice for the job is also expected to have a hand in selecting other top positions with a say in setting economic policy and Wall Street regulation.

Bessent, the founder of the investment firm Key Square Group, had widely been viewed as the front-runner until Lutnick began to make his own case to lead Treasury, according to the people. Lutnick’s empire includes Cantor Fitzgerald as well as FMX Futures, which is a new competitor to the exchange behemoth CME Group.

But Bessent, who was little known in Washington policy circles prior to the campaign, gained prominence on the national stage after emerging as one of Trump’s top economic advisers. The former chief investor for Soros’s company has assuaged the concerns of some far-right Trump loyalists — including Steve Bannon and Roger Stone — while maintaining connections with Wall Street traditionalists.

Three people familiar with the transition say the door is still open for another candidate, such as former National Economic Council Director and Fox Business host Larry Kudlow, who remains close to the president.
Other contenders who are said to be in consideration include Robert Lighthizer, Trump’s former U.S. trade representative, former Goldman Sachs executive and Trump adviser Gary Cohn, and Marc Rowan, the head of Apollo Global Management.

“President-Elect Trump is making decisions on who will serve in his second Administration. Those decisions will be announced when they are made,” transition spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said in a statement.

Lutnick’s role as one of Trump’s advisers on the transition has provided him with more access to the president-elect than other Treasury candidates as speculation mounted about his emergence as a top contender for the role. Meanwhile, Bessent has embarked on a media campaign that included appearances on Fox News and Bannon’s podcast, as well as an op-ed defending the use of tariffs that was published on Fox’s website on Friday morning.

One source said Bessent’s frequent appearances in the media were indicative of how difficult it has been to capture Trump’s attention as Lutnick helped the president with policy and personnel decisions. Lutnick allies say the Cantor CEO hasn’t been in a position to run a public campaign because of his role at the helm of the transition.

Bessent, Lutnick and Kudlow did not respond to requests for comment.

The new member: Rep.-elect Brian Jack (R-Ga.)

How they got here: Jack defeated Democratic nominee Maura Keller 66 percent to 34 percent in this deep red district in western Georgia.

Inside the campaign: Jack, a longtime aide of President-elect Donald Trump, entered the race with the former president’s strong backing and linked his agenda to Trump’s throughout the contest.

Trump’s backing helped Jack emerge from a crowded GOP field and defeat former GOP state Senate leader Mike Dugan in a primary runoff in this ruby red patch of the Peach State.

The issues they’ll focus on: Jack ran on familiar Trump issues: the southern border, addressing crime in urban centers and strengthening the economy. However, he also made the extension and expansion of the tax package enacted during Trump’s first term a major focus of his campaign.

Background: The 36-year-old Peachtree City native worked on Trump’s successful 2016 campaign and then served as political director in the White House before later working for then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

Jack then took on a senior role in the nascent Trump 2024 presidential campaign. His close proximity to the president-elect gives him uncommon insight and access for a freshman member of Congress, as well as extensive familiarity with the levers of power in Washington.

Campaign ad that caught our eye: His attempts to link arms tightly with Trump were evident. This ad features the president-elect saying his name repeatedly at one point joking, “You can do it either way: Jack Brian or Brian Jack.”

Fun fact: Jack is a member of the Georgia Historical Society and major fan of all Georgia sports, and recently celebrated new minor league baseball team the Columbus Clingstones.

Lawmakers anticipate the Biden administration will send them a disaster aid request next week outlining needed relief following hurricanes Helene and Milton, according to the House’s top two appropriators.

Congressional leaders aim to then finalize and pass a bipartisan assistance package sometime after Thanksgiving that could total more than $100 billion, boosting aid to communities hit by the two hurricanes this fall, as well as a yearslong, nationwide backlog of recovery work for disasters like severe flooding, wildfires and landslides.

House Appropriations Chair Tom Cole (R-Okla.) and his Democratic counterpart, Connecticut Rep. Rosa DeLauro, both said they expect broad bipartisan support for clearing disaster aid in the coming weeks, even as the separate task of funding the government next month is complicated by the Hill’s changing balance of power.

Once Congress receives a disaster aid request, it typically takes several weeks for lawmakers to write bill text and pass an emergency funding measure through both chambers. After Hurricane Sandy in 2012, it took exactly three weeks to clear the aid package for the president’s signature once the White House request arrived.

“We want to make sure the estimates are right,” Cole said, using Hurricane Sandy as an example of the “enormously complex” task of calculating recovery costs.

Top lawmakers and congressional aides have already been working behind the scenes this fall to size up funding needs since Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida more than seven weeks ago, including travel to affected communities. Beyond FEMA, dozens of other federal agencies are estimated to need tens of billions of dollars to assist in recovery efforts, including support for massive infrastructure projects like rebuilding water systems in North Carolina, where water remains undrinkable in cities like Asheville.

The goal is to try to clear a disaster package “as quickly as possible,” DeLauro told reporters Friday. “There’s been so many natural disasters and fires,” she added. “People are suffering.”

Since FEMA still has several billion dollars in its disaster relief fund, the basic recovery work the agency supports is unlikely to be significantly delayed if Congress clears an assistance package in December. But the Small Business Administration has been out of money for a month to cover loans to homeowners and businesses in disaster-wrought communities.

Lawmakers from states struck by the hurricanes are trying to fast-track a bill that would refill the disaster loan program now, rather than wait weeks for lawmakers to turn the White House’s broader aid request into law. But Sen. Rand Paul blocked a request this week to quickly pass a bill to that end, as the Kentucky Republican insists the Senate cover the cost by clawing back other unrelated funding.

“I’m willing to let the bill pass,” Paul said on the floor. “But take some of the fluff and boondoggle subsidies from the Green New Deal and put it into here.”

This week, the Small Business Administration told appropriators that more than 10,000 applications for disaster loans are already on pause, and that number is growing by the day. People awaiting loans to make their homes livable or keep their restaurants from going bankrupt are now hearing by phone or email from the agency that the program is out of cash and awaiting action from Congress.

Passing disaster aid is when lawmakers “cut the crap and do our jobs,” Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) said this week before Paul blocked his request to pass a bill to fund the disaster loan program.

“A lot of these people lost loved ones who owned businesses,” Tillis said. “Now they’re just trying to keep their business afloat while they’re going to funerals. And we tell them: ‘Well, we’ve just got to wait for Congress before we can send you a check?’ Because for the first time in this body, we’re going to demand a pay-for for disaster recovery?”

Speaker Mike Johnson said he does not think the House Ethics report into Matt Gaetz should be released, as the former representative faces a Senate confirmation for attorney general.

“I’m going to strongly request that the Ethics Committee not issue the report, because that is not the way we do things in the House,” Johnson said. “And I think that would be a terrible precedent to set.”

Johnson said he plans to talk to House Ethics Chair Michael Guest (R-Miss.), but does not know when yet, adding that he got back from Mar-a-Lago at about 3 a.m.

“The rules of the House have always been that a former member is beyond the jurisdiction of the Ethics Committee,” Johnson said, when asked if the public has a right to see the report. “And so I don’t think that’s relevant.”

The Ethics panel was previously scheduled to meet on Friday in regards to the report, but Guest said that the meeting had been postponed, though not canceled.

Donald Trump announced on Wednesday he would nominate Gaetz to be attorney general, and Gaetz quickly announced his resignation from Congress shortly after. The Ethics Committee has been investigating Gaetz for several allegations, including that he engaged in sex with a minor. The position would put Gaetz atop the Justice Department, which previously investigated Gaetz for the same allegations.

Senators have acknowledged Gaetz faces an uphill battle to be confirmed, and many also said they wanted to see the Ethics report as part of his confirmation hearing.

“I think it’s a terrible breach of protocol and tradition,” Johnson said, later adding that he is going to request that it not be released.

Olivia Beavers contributed to this report.

Former Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein is offering effusive praise for two of President-elect Donald Trump’s choices for leadership roles at the Justice Department — while remaining conspicuously silent about Trump’s plan to nominate former Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz as attorney general.

“Critics of unfit appointees should applaud when the President picks qualified people with integrity,” Rosenstein wrote on X Friday. “As Deputy AG, Todd Blanche and Emil Bove won’t allow partisanship to sway DOJ prosecutions. The rule of law prevails.”

Rosenstein, who served as No. 2 at DOJ during Trump’s first term, declined to comment when asked by POLITICO about Trump’s controversial decision to tap Gaetz as AG and did not explain how Blanche and Bove would be able to overrule their boss.

Gaetz and Blanche require Senate confirmation for their jobs. Bove, whom Trump picked to be principal associate deputy attorney general, would not need Senate approval. Trump also said he wants Bove to serve as DOJ’s acting No. 2 until Blanche is confirmed, but it’s unclear whether federal law permits that.

To get confirmed as HHS secretary, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will first need to get through the Senate Finance Committee.

And though Republicans will have an edge, it will take only a few defectors to sink his nomination if Democrats, as expected, oppose him in unison. Republicans have rushed to applaud some of Trump’s more conventional other Cabinet picks, but the lack of public enthusiasm for RFK among some on the committee suggests some may be skeptical.

Here’s where committee Republicans stand on Kennedy, so far:

Mike Crapo, Idaho: The top Republican on the committee said in a statement that Kennedy has “prioritized addressing chronic diseases through consumer choice and healthy lifestyle. American patients, providers and taxpayers deserve a health care system that is efficient, effective and affordable. I look forward to considering his nomination before the Finance Committee.”

Crapo attended a recent roundtable hosted by Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.) and Kennedy that focused on the dangers of processed foods and alternative diets. Crapo has said his nascent interest in “healthy eating” led him to attend the event and was supportive of much of what was discussed. However, before Kennedy was chosen, Crapo said he doesn’t know if Kennedy could win enough support in the Senate to be confirmed.

Chuck Grassley, Iowa: A spokesperson for the senator declined to comment. In an interview with AgriTalk Radio in October, however, Grassley said there are ways to “make America Healthy Again” without “upsetting the way we produce food.”

“Whatever ideas he has about making lives … more healthy, it’s got to be compromised with producing enough food so everyone doesn’t die,” Grassley said.

John Cornyn, Texas: Cornyn, who was the runner-up in the race for Senate majority leader, said Kennedy will be treated like all other nominees.

“I don’t have any preconceived notion about it,” Cornyn said. When asked whether vaccine positions might make confirmation difficult: “I’m sure it will come up.”

John Thune, South Dakota: The incoming Senate majority leader said he won’t make judgments on any nominees “at this point.”

“There’s a confirmation process that we have to adhere to,” Thune said. “Constitutionally, there are committees that are going to be conducting hearings and there’ll be plenty of scrutiny of these nominees’ records when the time comes.”

Tim Scott, South Carolina: A spokesperson for Scott declined to comment. But before the election, Scott deflected when asked by CNN’s Dana Bash about Kennedy’s plans to remove fluoride from public water. He said then that he doesn’t have a personal relationship with Kennedy but is confident that the administration will choose “competent” and “qualified” nominees.

Scott introduced legislation with fellow Finance Committee member Bill Cassidy (R-La.) in 2018 backing water fluoridation.

Bill Cassidy, Louisiana: Cassidy, who will chair the Senate HELP Committee, expressed openness to Kennedy in a statement.

“RFK Jr. has championed issues like healthy foods and the need for greater transparency in our public health infrastructure,” Cassidy said. “I look forward to learning more about his other policy positions and how they will support a conservative, pro-American agenda.”

Todd Young, Indiana: A spokesperson for Young — who said he would not support Trump in 2024 — declined to comment.

John Barrasso, Wyoming: A spokesperson for Barrasso didn’t return a request for comment. But in an interview with NBC News before Kennedy was selected, Barrasso said Trump should have the latitude to make picks and declined to weigh in on Kennedy.

Ron Johnson, Wisconsin: Johnson praised Kennedy in a post on X.

“I could not be happier that [Trump] has selected [Kennedy],” Johnson wrote. “He’s a brilliant, courageous truth-teller whose unwavering commitment to transparency will make America a healthier nation.”

Marsha Blackburn, Tennessee: Blackburn supported the pick in a post on X.

“[Kennedy] will honor his commitment to put the health of Americans first. Another great choice by President Trump,” Blackburn wrote.

Others: Spokespeople for Republican Sens. James Lankford of Oklahoma, Steve Daines of Montana and Thom Tillis of North Carolina did not respond to requests for comment.

Mike Pence is urging Senate Republicans to not confirm Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. as Health and Human Services secretary, calling his nomination by President-elect Donald Trump “deeply concerning.”

“I believe the nomination of RFK Jr. to serve as Secretary of HHS is an abrupt departure from the pro-life record of our administration and should be deeply concerning to millions of Pro-Life Americans who have supported the Republican Party and our nominees for decades,” Pence said in a statement Friday on behalf of his conservative nonprofit Advancing American Freedom.

During his own bid for president, Kennedy repeatedly emphasized he believes in “a woman’s right to choose” and does not support legislation banning abortion. Kennedy is a “firm supporter” of Roe v. Wade, according to his campaign website, which says “If the courts do not overturn Dobbs v. Jackson and restore abortion rights, he will support legislation to accomplish the same.”

Pence served as Trump’s vice president during his first administration, but their relationship soured after the Indiana Republican moved to certify the 2020 election for President Joe Biden. Since then, he has publicly disagreed with Trump and the Republican party on policy positions, especially leaving abortion up to the states instead of favoring a national ban.

In the statement, Pence said the agency Trump tapped Kennedy to lead makes “hundreds of decisions” daily “that either lead our nation toward a respect for life or away from it.”

“If confirmed, RFK, Jr. would be the most pro-abortion Republican appointed secretary of HHS in modern history,” Pence said in the statement.