NOAA nominee questioned on weather service staffing; Senate nears Russia sanctions
by The Hill Staff
President Trump’s nominee to lead the nation’s top scientific agency focused on climate and weather said in his confirmation hearing on Wednesday one of his “top” priorities would be National Weather Service staffing levels.
Neil Jacobs, nominated to be the next leader of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, is testifying in the Senate Commerce panel just days after a devastating flood in Texas killed dozens of people. Scrutiny has fallen on how forecast warnings were alerted to people in the area.
A Senate vote on a bill that would sanction Russia for its war with Ukraine could happen soon, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) said Wednesday on the floor. The veto-proof legislation, sponsored by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), would also punish buyers of Russian oil, like China and India.
Trump on Wednesday will host leaders from several African nations, looking to shore up relationships, even as the State Department has scaled back its presence on the continent. West African leaders will join Trump for a White House lunch to discuss areas of economic cooperation, security and democracy, according to the Liberian Embassy. Liberia, Senegal, Gabon, Mauritania and Guinea-Bissau will be represented.
In the House, former President Biden’s doctor, Kevin O’Connor, would not answer questions in a closed-door interview with the Oversight Committee, which is investigating Biden’s mental acuity while in office.
Also in the news:
Jewish Democrats in Congress sound the alarm on Mamdani
GOP lawmakers dismayed by lack of progress on trade deals
Follow along all day for updates.
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2 minutes ago
Baldwin asks Jacobs for reassurance on NOAA staffing, satellite data
kwadington
Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) grilled Neil Jacobs on both NOAA staffing and data availability, asking him if he would “commit to reversing the gutting of NOAA’s weather resources by restoring satellite surfaces services and staffing, in particular?”
Jacobs reiterated that he would “definitely” ensure “staffing is a top priority. And also, satellite data, both the procurement of it, access to utilization of it is also essential top priority.”
6 minutes ago
South Sudan confirms 8 migrants deported from US now in its custody
Filip Timotija
South Sudan confirmed this week that eight convicted criminals, who were deported by President Trump’s administration, are now in its custody.
South Sudan’s foreign ministry said on Tuesday that the eight migrants — who hail from countries such as Cuba, Mexico, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam — landed in Juba, the country’s capital city, on Saturday. The men have no connection to the African country.
The foreign ministry’s spokesperson Apuk Ayuel said to reporters on that the eight men landed at Juba International Airport following “standard deportation procedures undertaken” by the Trump administration.
Ayuel said, according to The Associated Press (AP), that the migrants are “under the care of the relevant authorities who are screening them and ensuring their safety and well-being.”
Read the full story here.
13 minutes ago
Asked about climate, NOAA nominee cites both ‘human influence’ and ‘natural signals’
Rachel Frazin
Asked whether he agreed that climate change was caused by human activities, especially greenhouse gas emissions, caused climate change, NOAA nominee Neil Jacobs gave a middling answer.
“Obviously there’s a lot of natural signals that are mixed in there too and so in the absence of any natural signals that might dominate that, yes there’s human influence,” Jacobs said.
Sen. Andy Kim (D-N.J.) followed up and asked if human influence was “part of the concern” about climate change, Jacobs responded “yes, there’s influence.”
Human activities that emit greenhouse gases are the main driver of climate change.
NOAA is the nation’s agency that is in charge of weather and climate research. The Trump administration has proposed to gut its climate research.
43 minutes ago
Thune indicates vote this month on Russia sanctions
kwadington
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) said Wednesday on the Senate floor that a vote on a Russia sanctions bill could occur before the chamber’s August recess.
He said the chamber has “made substantial progress” on the bipartisan bill, sponsored by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), which he said would “enhance President Trump’s leverage at the negotiating table and helpend bloodshed in Ukraine.”
Thune said he expects it could be ready for a floor debate “this work period.”
44 minutes ago
NOAA nominee says weather service staffing will be a ‘top priority’
Rachel Frazin
In his confirmation hearing Wednesday, President Trump’s pick to lead the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said that staffing at the National Weather Service will be a “top priority.”
“If confirmed, I will ensure that staffing the weather service offices is a top priority. It’s really important for the people to be there because they have relationships with the people in the local community,” said nominee Neil Jacobs.
His comment comes amid questions about the agency’s staffing levels after weather service employees were among those who were laid off or took buyouts as the Trump administration has sought to reduce the size of the federal workforce.
A memo earlier this year warned that some offices were “critically understaffed.”
an hour ago
Linda Yaccarino stepping down as X CEO
Julia Shapero
X CEO Linda Yaccarino said Wednesday that she is leaving her role at Elon Musk’s social media company after two years.
“When @elonmusk and I first spoke of his vision for X, I knew it would be the opportunity of a lifetime to carry out the extraordinary mission of this company,” she wrote in a post on the platform.
“I’m immensely grateful to him for entrusting me with the responsibility of protecting free speech, turning the company around, and transforming X into the Everything App,” she added.
Yaccarino joined X, then known as Twitter, in 2023, about six months after Musk’s tumultuous takeover of the platform. She came from NBCUniversal Media, where she had been serving as the chair of the company’s global advertising and partnerships.
an hour ago
Mike Waltz confirmation hearing set for U.N. ambassador post
Laura Kelly
Senator Democrats will get a chance to scrutinize President Trump’s former national security adviser over his mishandling of sensitive military operations during his confirmation hearing to the post of U.S. ambassador to the U.N., scheduled for July 15.
Mike Waltz, former Republican Florida congressman, served for five months as Trump’s national security adviser before being dismissed for his role in mistakenly adding a journalist to a Signal group chat that was discussing attack plans in Yemen. Trump nominated Waltz for UN ambassador after deciding to keep his first nominee, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), in the House because of the GOP’s slim majority.
Waltz was at the center of a firestorm in April for his apparent mistaken inclusion of the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic on the Signal group chat, in which Trump’s most senior advisers detailed attack plans against Houthis in Yemen.
Senate Democrats slammed Waltz and Trump’s national security team, including Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, for the careless handling of sensitive and potentially classified information. Senate Republicans downplayed the scandal. Those differences are likely to play out during Waltz’s confirmation hearing with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
an hour ago
Biden’s White House doctor declines to answer questions in House deposition
Emily Brooks
Former President Biden’s White House doctor, Kevin O’Connor, declined to answer questions during a deposition with the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Wednesday, according to a statement from his legal counsel, citing physician-patient privilege and constitutional rights against self-incrimination.
“Earlier today, Dr. Kevin O’Connor asserted the physician-patient privilege, as well as his right under the Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, in declining to answer questions from the staff of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform regarding his service as Physician to the President during the Biden Administration,” the statement from O’Connor’s legal counsel said.
Read more here.
2 hours ago
Graham says Russia sanctions bill likely ‘next week’
Laura Kelly
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) told The Hill he expects his veto-proof sanctions bill could appear on the floor next week, but deferred to Sen. Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) for the final word.
“I think we’re moving it next week, I think. Sen. Thune will make an announcement today. I’ll let him speak to that.”
Trump has not indicated he favors Graham’s sanctions bill, but is increasingly outspoken in his frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s refusal to stop the war in Ukraine. The sanctions bill would in part punish countries for buying Russian oil.
But Secretary of State Marco Rubio said at the NATO summit last month the sanctions bill would harm efforts to negotiate peace.
3 hours ago
Trump administration subpoenas Harvard for international student information
Sarah Fortinsky
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced on Wednesday it will be subpoenaing Harvard University for “relevant information” on international students, in the latest escalation of the Trump administration’s battle with higher education institutions.
The department said in a press release Wednesday that the administrative subpoenas come after Harvard “repeatedly refused past non-coercive requests to hand over the required information for its Student Visitor and Exchange Program certification.”
3 hours ago
Trump's NOAA nominee figured into ‘Sharpiegate’
Neil Jacobs, a former National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) official involved in the “Sharpiegate” episode during Trump’s first term, will face senators on Wednesday in his bid to lead NOAA.
Jacobs, a onetime World Meteorological Organization scientist, was first confirmed as assistant secretary of commerce for environmental observation and prediction in 2018. He served as acting NOAA administrator from 2020-21 and was nominated as the full-time administrator in 2020, but never received a full Senate vote.
In September 2019, after Trump apparently used a Sharpie to alter the projected path of Hurricane Dorian on a map to depict Alabama in its path, Jacobs was involved in drafting a NOAA statement backing Trump’s projection. The storm did not ultimately make landfall in Alabama.
A 2020 internal NOAA report determined Jacobs and then-NOAA communications director Julie Kay Roberts violated the agency’s scientific integrity policy by issuing the statement.
3 hours ago
Megyn Kelly knocks Trump over response to Epstein question: ‘Good grief’
Dominick Mastrangelo
Conservative pundit Megyn Kelly knocked President Trump for dismissing a question about Jefferey Epstein during a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday.
“Good grief! That was no bueno, guys! That was no bueno, OK? President Trump had the same problem there that Karoline Leavitt had yesterday. The dodge should not be obvious. It should be subtle. It should be deftly worked into a more substantive answer,” Kelly said during an episode of her popular podcast and YouTube show.
Trump interjected on Tuesday when Attorney General Pam Bondi was asked about a Department of Justice memo revealing Epstein kept no “client list,” and did not seek to blackmail powerful people with whom the convicted sex offender was associated with.
3 hours ago
Trump’s ‘big, beautiful bill’ lands in court
Ella Lee
Zach Schonfeld
President Trump’s signature second-term legislative agenda is hitting the courts.
His “big, beautiful bill” is a boon for Second Amendment groups, who say it aids their quest to strike down a 91-year-old gun law requiring many Americans to register their firearms. Meanwhile, a judge already intervened to block one provision of the massive package, protecting Planned Parenthood from cuts.
It has shifted the Trump administration’s legal sagas from a tug of war between the judiciary and the executive to one involving the legislature.
The package’s toplines include key campaign promises like tax breaks for overtime pay and tips and additional funding for immigration enforcement. But packed into the 887-page law is a key change for gun owners.
Read more here, in The Gavel.
3 hours ago
GOP lawmakers dismayed by lack of progress on trade deals
Alexander Bolton
Republicans on Capitol Hill are dismayed that the Trump administration hasn’t made more progress in negotiating trade deals and fear the country is heading for another bout of economic turbulence after President Trump announced a new round of steep tariffs on 14 countries.
Senior Trump administration officials, including Treasury Department Secretary Scott Bessent, had signaled earlier this year that the administration was on track to unveil an array of new trade deals in early July.
Instead, the administration is stepping up tariff threats against major trading partners such as Japan and South Korea — major suppliers of cars, appliances and electronics — and Indonesia, a major exporter of palm oil, furniture and textiles.
“Business hates uncertainty,” said Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), who warned months ago that Republicans would face political headwinds next year if the Trump White House didn’t settle its global trade disputes quickly.
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