I’m Margaret Brennan in Washington. This week on Face the Nation we examine the Trump transition’s rush of cabinet and senior White House picks — who they are, how senators are reacting, and what their confirmation fights mean for health, finance and national security.
Transition snapshot
The incoming team unveiled nearly a dozen nominees for key posts, from Treasury to health agencies and national security roles. As candidates travel to Capitol Hill for meetings with senators, the process has already produced a high‑profile withdrawal, a rapid replacement and heightened scrutiny of a few controversial selections. Public polling shows mixed support for many familiar names, while critics point to gaps in experience and troubling policy views on issues like vaccines and national security.
Sen. Rand Paul: vaccines, immigration and fiscal restraint
Senator Rand Paul, who will chair the Homeland Security Committee and sits on Health, framed his approach as rooted in restoring public trust. A physician by training, he says he supports vaccination broadly but blamed government messaging and politicized guidance during COVID for growing vaccine hesitancy. To rebuild confidence, Paul favors removing mandates, ensuring transparent information about risks and benefits, and protecting individual choice.
On immigration, Paul warned against using the U.S. military for large‑scale deportations, calling such moves unlawful and risky because they could militarize domestic policing. He prefers law‑enforcement tools — FBI, ICE, Border Patrol — focused on dangerous individuals and insists operations follow legal process. Deputizing the National Guard, he says, raises murky legal questions.
Economically, Paul opposes tariffs as taxes on consumers and supports free trade as a driver of prosperity. He expressed overall support for Scott Bessent at Treasury but plans to press nominees on tariffs and fiscal discipline, advocating pay‑as‑you‑go rules and spending cuts to accompany tax reductions.
Sen. Tammy Duckworth: competence, character and Israel
Senator Tammy Duckworth, a combat veteran who lost both legs in Iraq, argued that the military is stronger when women are judged by merit rather than gender. She criticized remarks by Pentagon candidate Pete Hegseth opposing women in combat and raised concerns about his lack of senior command experience and past allegations of sexual assault — matters she says should be aired and weighed in confirmation proceedings.
On Israel and Gaza, Duckworth described troubling tactics by the Netanyahu government and said she has pushed for stronger mechanisms to investigate civilian harm where U.S. weapons are used. While she voted against specific resolutions that would have paused offensive weapon shipments — citing potential risks to U.S. troops and limited practical effect — she has cosigned letters pressing for better accountability and will judge nominees on competence, independence and whether they protect service members’ and civilians’ rights.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen: congressional priorities and using leverage on Israel
Senator Chris Van Hollen laid out Congress’s immediate to‑do list: disaster relief, the annual defense authorization, extensions for farm policy, confirmation of judges and addressing urgent infrastructure needs such as recovery funding for Baltimore’s Key Bridge. He emphasized the urgency of getting aid to communities hit by hurricanes and other disasters.
On the Middle East, Van Hollen argued that the U.S. has not done enough to press Israel to permit humanitarian aid and investigate civilian harm. He supports pausing some weapons shipments until compliance with U.S. law is demonstrable, saying that enforcing legal standards is compatible with supporting Israel and that American leverage should be used to insist on stronger mechanisms to assess and prevent civilian casualties.
Gen. H.R. McMaster: a perilous strategic landscape
Retired Lieutenant General H.R. McMaster, who served as national security advisor, warned that the world facing the incoming administration is dangerous and interconnected. He backed continued U.S. support for Ukraine, including longer‑range munitions, and cautioned that any signal of reduced commitment could damage Ukrainian morale and invite Russian gains. McMaster argued that adversaries — Russia, China, Iran and North Korea — are increasingly coordinating or indirectly reinforcing each other’s agendas, and that U.S. strength and clarity of purpose are needed to deter further aggression.
He urged senators to vet nominees aggressively, ensuring they will provide independent, candid analysis rather than simply echo presidential preferences. Nominees, McMaster said, should be asked how they would assess adversary motives and present real options to the president.
Rep.-elect Sarah McBride: caregiving, economic priorities and pushing back on distractions
Representative‑elect Sarah McBride, the first openly transgender person chosen for Congress, described caregiving for her husband during his cancer battle as a major motivation for running. Her priorities include lowering costs for working families — health care, housing, child care and paid family leave — and delivering practical results rather than symbolic fights.
McBride said she will work across the aisle where possible but will vigorously oppose policies that harm constituents. She urged Democrats not to let attacks on vulnerable communities — culture‑war distractions — pull focus from economic issues that affect ordinary voters.
What comes next
The closing weeks of the current administration and the transition team’s early nominations set up consequential fights for the Senate: funding bills, the National Defense Authorization Act, disaster relief, judicial confirmations and votes over weapons, humanitarian law compliance and Ukraine aid will test lawmakers’ priorities and the limits of executive preference. Face the Nation’s conversations aimed to probe nominees’ qualifications, how senators intend to exercise advice and consent, and how these choices will shape U.S. policy on public health, the economy and international security in the months ahead.