Chris Klomp, nominated as deputy health secretary under Robert F. Kennedy Jr., confronts Senate scrutiny as Democrats challenge his role. The hearings coincide with a Senate subcommittee investigation alleging Biden administration officials ignored early COVID-19 vaccine safety warnings.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche faced tough questioning from both Republican and Democratic senators during his confirmation hearing, with lawmakers pressing him on a controversial IRS settlement granting President Trump tax immunity, the rollout of Epstein files, and a $1.8 billion 'anti-weaponization' fund.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche appears before the Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday for his confirmation hearing, facing scrutiny over his role as Donald Trump's former private attorney and a recent judge's scathing criticism related to a Justice Department deal over leaked presidential tax returns. Despite the controversies, Republican insiders expect him to win confirmation before the August recess.
Senator Bill Cassidy, Republican chair of the Senate health committee, blamed the Trump administration's vaccine-skeptical policies for recent measles deaths in Pennsylvania during a confirmation hearing for surgeon general nominee Dr. Nicole Saphier. Cassidy pressed Saphier to state that vaccines do not cause autism and to distance herself from HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s anti-vaccine positions, which she declined to fully do.
