What to know today
- Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. faced a grilling from Republicans and Democrats alike about vaccines, fluoride and DOGE cuts during two congressional hearings. He also testified on the White House's budget request.
- President Donald Trump met with Syrian leader Ahmad al-Sharaa in Saudi Arabia this morning and urged him to recognize Israel's statehood. Trump then left for Qatar, the second leg of his Middle East trip, where he attended an arrival ceremony at the Amiri Diwan Royal Court and took part in a bilateral meeting. The White House said that the president signed a $1.2 trillion economic deal with Qatar, though it did not provide documentation to support that figure.
- Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy also received bipartisan pushback today on reductions in his department's programs and staff during his testimony at a separate House hearing on the administration's budget.
- The incoming director of the Justice Department's "Weaponization Working Group" revealed he was under investigation by D.C.'s Office of Disciplinary Counsel, accusing the official in charge of investigating bar complaints of "weaponizing his role."
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Trump says 'unified' Republicans will pass 'big, beautiful' bill despite ongoing tensions
Trump told Fox News' Sean's Hannity that congressional Republicans will be able to pass a sweeping package that would deliver on several of his administration's priorities despite ongoing divisions and a slim margin to do so.
"I think that the Republicans are very unified, and something would happen where they will get this vote," Trump said in an interview taped Monday that aired tonight.
Trump suggested the bill — which would extend his tax cuts, raise the debt limit and boost funding for immigration enforcement — could get Democratic support.
Trump's comments came as divisions among a handful of House Republicans over the SALT tax risk derailing the bill's passage given the party's narrow majority in the chamber. Trump acknowledged the tall task that Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., and House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., have in trying to advance the legislation.
"Johnson and Thune have been unbelievable. They’ve done a great job. Their soul is into this, their whole heart and soul, and they’re working so hard," Trump said.
GOP Sen. Bill Cassidy, who wavered over confirming RFK Jr., says he’s ‘lived up’ to his promises on vaccines
Sen. Bill Cassidy helped clinch Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s bid to lead the Department of Health and Human Services months ago after securing commitments from Kennedy to, among other things, avoid undercutting public faith in vaccinations. Now, the Louisiana Republican says the secretary has “lived up to” those promises — even as critics accuse Kennedy of trying to poison the well of faith in vaccines.
Ahead of Kennedy’s testimony today in front of the Senate committee Cassidy chairs, the senator told NBC News that he has a “good working relationship” with Kennedy. And asked whether the secretary has lived up to his commitment not to sow distrust in vaccines, Cassidy replied: “All I’ll say about the commitment is, so far, he’s lived up to them.”
Later in the hearing, Kennedy, the former chair of an anti-vaccine group that has long spread unfounded claims about immunizations, sparred with Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., over vaccines. Murphy accused Kennedy of deciding to “repeatedly undermine the [measles] vaccine with information that is contested by public health experts,” adding that “if I were the chairman, [Cassidy], who believes in vaccines and voted for you because he believed what you said about supporting vaccines, my head would be exploding.”
“If I advised you to swim in a lake that I knew there to be alligators in, wouldn’t you want me to tell you there were alligators in there?” Kennedy said in response to Murphy’s criticisms.
Tulsi Gabbard fires intel officials who oversaw memo contradicting White House claims on Venezuelan gang
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has fired two top intelligence officials who oversaw a recent intelligence assessment which contradicted Trump’s assertions that the gang Tren de Aragua is operating under the direction of the Venezuelan regime, two officials said today.
The assessment undermined the rationale for Trump invoking a rarely used 1798 law, the Alien Enemies Act, to allow suspected Tren de Aragua (TdA) gang members in the U.S. to be summarily deported without standard due process.
Gabbard dismissed Michael Collins, the acting chair of the National Intelligence Council, and council vice chair Maria Langan-Riekhof, both career officials with decades of experience in intelligence analysis, two officials said.
“She dismissed these individuals because they were unable to provide unbiased intelligence,” one of the officials said, without elaborating.
Milwaukee judge accused of obstructing ICE from detaining undocumented immigrant seeks to dismiss case
Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan is seeking to dismiss the federal charges against her for allegedly obstructing Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials from detaining an undocumented immigrant in her court room.
In a motion filed today, attorneys for Dugan argued that the "government has no basis in law to prosecute her," given her judicial immunity, calling the attempt "virtually unprecedented and entirely unconstitutional."
"The problems with this prosecution are legion, but most immediately, the government cannot prosecute Judge Dugan because she is entitled to judicial immunity for her official acts," the filing states.
Dugan's attorneys pointed to a Supreme Court ruling last year establishing immunity for some of Trump's actions in office in arguing for protections they say the government must afford her.
"Immunity is not a defense to the prosecution to be determined later by a jury or court; it is an absolute bar to the prosecution at the outset," Dugan's attorneys wrote. "Judges are entitled to absolute immunity for their judicial acts, without regard to the motive with which those acts are allegedly performed."
Dugan was arrested last month and charged with obstructing or impeding a proceeding before a department or agency of the United States, and concealing an individual to prevent his discovery and arrest.
The maximum penalty for the counts is a total of 6 years in prison and up to $350,000 in fines.
Trump’s ‘weaponization’ chief accuses D.C. disciplinary counsel investigating him of weaponization
The incoming director of the Justice Department’s “Weaponization Working Group” revealed today he was under investigation by D.C.’s Office of Disciplinary Counsel, accusing the official in charge of investigating bar complaints of “weaponizing” his role, according to an letter viewed by NBC News.
Outgoing Interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Ed Martin, in a going-away email to his staff, complained about the actions of Disciplinary Counsel Hamilton P. “Phil” Fox III, who serves as chief prosecutor for disciplinary matters for attorneys who are members of the D.C. Bar.
“Please know that I will continue to fight against the systemic abuse of our prosecutors by [Public Defender Service], the Judges, and especially the DC Disciplinary Counsel,” Martin wrote in the email to staff. “It is an outrage how they treat us and I will continue the fight against the weaponization of our law licenses against us. Please see the attached — I am taking on Mr. Fox head on. His conduct is personally insulting and professionally unacceptable.”
Several outside organizations and members of Congress have sought investigations into Martin over his actions while he was U.S. attorney, and Fox had previously declined to take further steps on at least one of the requests. Most requests sent to Fox’s office are turned away, but Martin’s letter indicted that at least one probe was moving forward, which has been given a disciplinary docket number: 2025-D047.
Republican tensions escalate to a boiling point on ‘SALT’ tax fight in Trump’s big bill
House Republicans are locked in a tense standoff over how to tackle the federal deduction for state and local taxes, or SALT, a sticky issue that could make or break the party’s big bill for Trump’s agenda.
The ongoing fight has not only pitted Rep. Jason Smith, R-Mo., the chair of the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee, against a determined bloc of House Republicans from high-tax blue states; it has also created divisions between the pro-SALT Republicans, undercutting their negotiating leverage and complicating the path to a deal.
While some of them are willing to accept an offer from Smith to raise the cap to $30,000, another faction flatly rejects that figure as insufficient. And they’ve grown increasingly frustrated with some of their colleagues for, in their view, settling for a low-ball offer.
Those tensions came to a boiling point yesterday when pro-SALT Republicans met in Speaker Mike Johnson’s office to discuss strategy, and asked Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y. — a member of the Ways and Means panel who’s supportive of the $30,000 cap — to leave, according to two sources in the room.
Like 'church': Lawmakers defend napping during proceedings
After going viral for getting caught falling asleep while pulling an all-nighter during a committee markup, Rep. Blake Moore, R-Utah, told reporters, "I feel good."
Told his nap during the House Ways and Means Committee markup was very relatable, Moore said, “I think so."
"My wife said it’s like yeah, it’s no different than him at church. So, you know, this is definitely not first time she’s seen it,” he said.
Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., who was also caught on camera with her eyes closed during a marathon House Energy and Commerce markup of the GOP reconciliation bill, said she'd been burning the candle at both ends.
"I was awake all night. I was one of the most active members of the committee," she said. "I’ve been up since 4 a.m. yesterday morning. That’s how many hours. So, you know it’s I’ll take, I would invite anybody to spend the day with me and keep up with me here or in Michigan."
Asked if the next step for her was sleep, she said, "Yes. Real sleep."
HHS backtracks on firing hundreds of federal health workers
The Department of Health and Human Services yesterday reinstated 328 federal employees who faced terminations, including those involved in screening for “black lung” disease in coal miners and for health issues in 9/11 first responders.
The reinstated employees are part of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), a division of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that is focused on preventing and responding to work-related illnesses.
The Trump administration previously aimed to eliminate the majority of NIOSH’s more than 1,300 employees, part of a broader plan to downsize the federal workforce.
Hundreds of NIOSH staffers received termination letters in April and May, though some were temporarily brought back to complete certain tasks, while their terminations remained in effect for June. HHS’ acting chief human capital officer, Tom Nagy, told some employees yesterday that their terminations were “hereby revoked,” according to a memo obtained by NBC News.
Qatari prime minister says his country 'will not do anything illegal' regarding luxury jet
Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said during a CNN interview that Qatar would "not do anything illegal" when asked about giving a luxury jet to Trump that the president plans to use as Air Force One.
Al Thani was asked during the interview if the offer would be withdrawn if it was deemed illegal. He responded: “Yeah, of course. I mean, we will not do anything illegal.”
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi has said that the $400 million jet would be “legally permissible,” a conclusion that has been challenged by some Democrats.
Al Thani also pushed back on claims of foreign influence during the interview.
"It is a government-to-government transaction, it has nothing to do with personnel," Al Thani said. "Why would we buy influence in the United States? If you look just, you know, in the last 10 years of the U.S.-Qatar relationship, Qatar has been always there for the U.S."
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has condemned the jet, writing in a post on X after news of the jet became public that it's an example of “premium foreign influence with extra legroom."
House Democrat backs off forcing impeachment vote after objections from party leaders
Rep. Shri Thanedar, D-Mich., backed off his threat to force a vote today on his resolution to impeach Trump, acceding to Democratic leaders who had warned the effort served as a distraction.
Thanedar said he still believed that Trump has committed impeachable offenses, including planning to accept a $400 million luxury jet from Qatar.
But in a statement, he added: “[A]fter talking with many colleagues, I have decided not to force a vote on impeachment today. Instead, I will add to my articles of impeachment and continue to rally the support of both Democrats and Republicans to defend the Constitution with me.”
