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President Donald Trump's Cabinet is filling up.
After several weeks of high-profile hearings, many of the president's 22 Cabinet or Cabinet-level nominees have had a smooth pathway to confirmation in the Senate. Pete Hegseth, one of Trump's most controversial picks, got key Republican senators to swing in his favor despite early hesitation about his nomination for defense secretary.
Coming up as the caboose are two Cabinet picks whose hearings this week also have major questions looming over their nominations.
All times listed below are Eastern and are subject to change. We will update the list as proceedings get underway.
Thursday, Feb. 13
Linda McMahon, education secretary
Watch the hearing in the player above.
10 a.m. — McMahon, who led the Small Business Administration during Trump's first term, testifies before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.
A limited background in education. The former wrestling executive served as administrator of the Small Business Administration during Trump's first term. McMahon has little background in education policy, serving about a year on the Connecticut State Board of Education, part of what led the National Education Association to oppose her nomination.
Will the education department be dissolved? McMahon's testimony comes as the Trump administration and efficiency czar Elon Musk are moving forward with plans to dismantle the department she would lead if confirmed. A few dozen of the department's roughly 4,400 employees were put on administrative leave in recent weeks after Trump's executive order against diversity, equity and inclusion. Congressional Democrats opposed the administration's actions and were denied access to the building while protesting outside the department last week. The president is reportedly considering executive action to gut the department and supports eliminating it altogether, though that would require an act of Congress. "I want Linda to put herself out of a job," Trump said last week. Expect Trump's executive actions — and McMahon's support for them — to be central questions during her hearing.
What does the Education Department do? Many of the agency's core functions are also established by congressional statute, chief among them its mandate to support low-income families and students with disabilities. The department also oversees tens of billions of dollars of federal student loan disbursements each year.
Wednesday, Feb. 19
Lori Chavez-DeRemer, labor secretary
Watch the hearing in the player above.
10 a.m. — Chavez-DeRemer, a union-friendly Republican, testifies before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. This hearing was originally scheduled for Feb. 12.
A pro-union Republican. Chavez-DeRemer's bona fides as a union-friendly lawmaker are professional and personal. The former Oregon congresswoman was raised in a Teamsters family and likes to tout that she has a strong backing from labor groups. She was one of a handful of Republicans who pushed for the "Protecting the Right to Organize," or PRO Act, which would have made it easier for workers to form unions. The bill didn't ultimately prevail in Congress, but this kind of past union-friendly stance has been a point of contention among her fellow Republicans.
READ MORE: Who are Trump's Cabinet picks? Here's every name so far
An unorthodox pick. How much this stance matters to Senate Republicans and business groups remains to be seen. While the Democratic Party has traditionally embraced organized labor, this may be Trump's opportunity to make inroads with labor unions. Though other nominees have faced initial skepticism on their path to confirmation, things eased by the end of the process. Plus, not every Senate Republican is wary of Chavez-DeRemer.
What does the Labor Department do? The labor head would oversee laws and regulations that focus on workplace conditions. (Think wages, working conditions, unemployment benefits, etc.) Chavez-DeRemer may have a more union-friendly record than Trump, but if confirmed, a more pro-union labor secretary doesn't necessarily mean more pro-worker policies.
Past hearings
Pete Hegseth, defense secretary
Watch the hearing in the player above.
Pete Hegseth, a military veteran and conservative media personality, testified before the Senate Committee on Armed Services.
Notable moments from the hearing:
- Hegseth's full opening statement
- Lawmakers question Hegseth on his views about women in the military
- Sen. Wicker calls Hegseth a "top-shelf communicator"
- 'I do not believe you are qualified,' Sen. Reed tells Hegseth
- Sen. Hirono asks Hegseth whether he'd follow unlawful orders from Trump
- Sen. Cramer asks Hegseth about his Jerusalem cross tattoo
Pam Bondi, attorney general
Watch Bondi's first hearing in the player above.
Pam Bondi, the former attorney general of Florida, testified twice before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Watch the second hearing here.
Notable moments from the hearings:
- Bondi's full opening statement
- Lawmakers question Bondi about potential weaponization of Justice Department
- Bondi doesn't directly answer whether she believes Biden won the 2020 election
- Bondi claims crime is "gonna go through the roof" in California after wildfires
- Bondi says there will "never be an enemies list" at Justice Department
Marco Rubio, secretary of state
Watch the hearing in the player above.
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., a one-time presidential hopeful and former Trump critic, testified before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.
Notable moments from the hearing:
- Rubio's full opening statement
- Rubio hearing offers glimpse into how the department would carry out Trump's agenda
- Rubio won't rule out military force against Mexican cartels
- Rubio says China is "most potent and dangerous" U.S. adversary
- Rubio says NATO allies must contribute more to defense
John Ratcliffe, CIA director
Watch the hearing in the player above.
John Ratcliffe, who served as the director of national intelligence in the final year of Trump's first term, testified before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.
Notable moments from the hearing:
- Ratcliffe's full opening statement
- Ratcliffe says CIA needs to "increase in intensity" on China
Sean Duffy, transportation secretary
Watch the hearing in the player above.
Sean Duffy, a former Wisconsin congressman with a reality TV show background, testified before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation.
- Watch Duffy's full opening statement
Chris Wright, energy secretary
Watch the hearing in the player above.
Chris Wright, a businessman and donor, testified before the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
- Watch Wright's full opening statement
Russell Vought, Office of Management and Budget director
Watch the hearing in the player above.
Russell Vought, a Project 2025 co-author who briefly led OMB at the end of Trump's first term, appears before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Watch his second hearing, before the Senate Budget Committee, here.
Notable moments from the hearing:
- Vought's full opening statement
- Democrats ask Vought about goals of replacing civil servants with appointees
- Vought says Biden's student debt executive order was illegal
- Vought won't commit to funding bipartisan effort to combat opioid crisis
- Sen. Sanders asks Vought if "health care is a human right"
- Sen. Murray asks Vought about following impoundment law
Doug Burgum, interior secretary
Watch the hearing in the player above.
Doug Burgum, a former corporate executive and governor of North Dakota who championed oil and gas drilling, testified before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.
Notable moments from the hearing:
- Burgum's full opening statement
- Burgum says federal rules are weaponized to "block our nation's progress"
- Burgum says federal lands are "America's balance sheet"
- Hirono asks Burgum: Will you protect lands or will you "drill, baby, drill"?
- Sen. Hickenlooper questions Burgum about navigating historic drought
- Sen. Lee questions Burgum about public lands as U.S. assets
Lee Zeldin, Environmental Protection Agency administrator
Watch the hearing in the player above.
Lee Zeldin, a former New York congressman, testified before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.
Notable moments from the hearing:
- Zeldin's full opening statement
- Sen. Lummis asks Zeldin if he'd follow the science or the law as EPA chief
- Zeldin says access to clean drinking water is "extremely important"
- Sen. Sanders asks Zeldin if climate change is a hoax
- Sen. Capito asks Zeldin how he'd address PFAS pollution
- Sen. Markey asks Zeldin if he agrees with RFK Jr.'s stance on pesticides
Scott Turner, Housing and Urban Development secretary
Watch the hearing in the player above.
Scott Turner, a former NFL player and former Texas state legislator, testified before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs.
- Watch Turner's full opening statement
Scott Bessent, treasury secretary
Watch the hearing in the player above.
Scott Bessent, a hedge fund founder, testified before the Senate Committee on Finance.
- Watch Bessent's full opening statement
Kristi Noem, homeland security secretary
Watch the hearing in the player above.
Gov. Kristi Noem, R-S.D., testified before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
Notable moments from the hearing:
- Noem's full opening statement
- Sen. Blumenthal and Noem spar over family separation at the border
- Noem says she will shut down the CBP One app on Day 1
- Sen. Slotkin asks Noem to commit to not politicizing issues
- Sen. Scott questions Noem about refugee admissions, humanitarian parole
- Sen. Kim asks Noem about major foreign terrorist groups
Elise Stefanik, ambassador to the United Nations
Watch the hearing in the player above.
Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., the House Republican Conference Chair, testified before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.
Notable moments from the hearing:
- Stefanik's full opening statement
- Stefanik says she supports giving Trump "maximum flexibility" in ending Ukraine war
- Stefanik condemns "antisemitic rot" at UN
- Stefanik calls for strengthening relationships with allies to fight China's influence
- Stefanik says "Elon Musk did not do those salutes" at Trump inauguration celebration
- Stefanik does not answer whether Palestinian people have the right to self-determination
Doug Collins, veterans affairs secretary
Watch the hearing in the player above.
Doug Collins, a former Georgia congressman and current chaplain in the U.S. Air Force Reserve Command, testified before the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
Notable moments from the hearing:
- Collins' full opening statement
- Sen. Moran asks Collins about supporting veterans in their transitions to civilian life
- Sen. Murray asks Collins about veterans' access to abortion care
- Sen. Blumenthal asks Collins whether federal hiring freeze would affect veterans benefits
- Sen. King warns Collins against using AI to determine veterans benefits
Brooke Rollins, agriculture secretary
Watch the hearing in the player above.
Brooke Rollins, a returning Cabinet member who previously served as Trump's domestic policy chief during his first term, testified before the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee.
Notable moments from the hearing:
- Rollins' full opening statement
- Rollins says U.S. nutrition supplement programs should be "effective and efficient"
- Sen. Smith asks Brooke Rollins about increasing rural housing and development
- Rollins says mass deportation and supporting migrant-dependent farms are "key priorities"
- Sen. Warnock asks how Rollins would protect farmers from trade wars over Trump tariffs
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., health and human services secretary
Watch the hearing in the player above.
Kennedy, a known promoter of vaccine misinformation whose nomination has prompted concern among health experts, testified before the Senate Committee on Finance. Watch the second hearing, before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, here.
Notable moments from the hearings:
- Kennedy's full opening statement
- RFK Jr. denies being anti-vaccine
- RFK Jr. shares his views on processed foods and kids
- "Every abortion is a tragedy," RFK Jr. says
- RFK Jr. says AI nurse that diagnoses "as good as any doctor" can help rural Americans
- "I'm not scared of vested interest," RFK Jr. says on improving health transparency
- RFK Jr. says he's called a conspiracy theorist to stop him from asking questions
- RFK Jr. "can kill off access to vaccines and make millions," Sen. Warren says
Howard Lutnick, commerce secretary
Watch the hearing in the player above.
Lutnick, a billionaire businessman and co-chair of Trump's transition team, testified before the Senate Committee of Commerce, Science and Transportation.
- Watch Lutnick's full opening statement
Kelly Loeffler, small business administrator
Watch the hearing in the player above.
Loeffler, a former Georgia senator and former chief executive of cryptocurrency trading platform Bakkt, testified before the Senate Committee of Small Business and Entrepreneurship.
Notable moments from the hearing:
- Loeffler's full opening statement
- "I strongly support" Trump's Jan. 6 pardons, Loeffler says
Kash Patel, FBI director
Watch the hearing in the player above.
Patel, a Trump loyalist and "deep state" conspiracy theorist, testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Notable moments from the hearing:
- Patel's full opening statement
- Sen. Grassley reveals internal FBI emails in opening remarks at Patel hearing
- Sen. Tillis says he made a bingo card to track Democrats' arguments against Patel
- "Look at them!" Schiff tells Patel to face Capitol Police officers "if you have the courage"
- Sen. Durbin asks Patel about "cowards in uniform" comment
- Don't "burn down" the FBI but lift it up, Sen. Kennedy tells Patel
- Sen. Klobuchar questions Patel on his disparaging comments about the FBI
- Sen. Britt questions Patel about Redstone Arsenal, high training standards
Daniel P. Driscoll, Army secretary
Watch the hearing in the player above.
Driscoll, an Iraq War veteran who had served as a senior advisor to Vice President-elect JD Vance, testified before the Senate Committee on Armed Services.
- Watch Driscoll's full opening statement
Tulsi Gabbard, director of national intelligence
Watch the hearing in the player above.
Gabbard, a former presidential candidate and Democrat-turned-independent, testified before the Senate Intelligence Committee.
Notable moments from the hearing:
- Gabbard's full opening statement
- Sen. Warner asks Gabbard if she still believes Edward Snowden is "brave"
- Sen. King questions Gabbard about her views on Snowden
- Sen. Cotton defends Gabbard's "unconventional" stance on non-democratic regimes
- Tulsi Gabbard addresses accusations that she is a "puppet"
- Sen. Wyden asks Gabbard about protections for journalists
- Sen. Kelly questions Gabbard's rhetoric about U.S. support of terrorists