MNI POLITICAL RISK- Hegseth Clears Path For Trump Cabinet Noms

Executive summary:

• President-elect Donald Trump’s Defense Secretary nominee, Pete Hegseth, encountered little Republican resistance during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing yesterday. The hearing, seen as a litmus test for Trump’s unconventional nominees, suggests that all of Trump’s Cabinet nominees are now favoured to pass confirmation.
• Secretary of State nominee Marco Rubio, Energy Secretary nominee Chris Wright, and OMB Director nominee Russ Voight are among six Cabinet picks facing the Senate today.
• Rubio, a China hawk with broad bipartisan support, is expected to deliver a stern critique of China’s foreign and industrial policy in his statement to the Foreign Relations Committee.
• House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) outlined an ambitious timeline for legislating the Republican party’s complex agenda over the coming months.
• President Biden will defend the achievements of his administration in his prime-time farewell address from the Oval Office.
• Senate Banking Committee Chair, Senator Tim Scott (R-SC), will outline his legislative priorities in an address to the Exchequer Club of Washington this afternoon.
• Treasury Secretary Janet will reflect on her tenure at the Treasury in remarks at the New York Association for Business Economics.
• Trump said he create a new agency known as the ‘External Revenue Service’ to collect tariff revenue from foreign sources.
• Biden plans to unveil more regulations restricting China's access to advanced chips.
• Chart of the Day: Trump will begin his presidency in a delicate position, with voters sceptical of his tariff plans. 

Please find the full article attached below: US Daily Brief