President Donald Trump is reiterating plans to hit Canada and Mexico with 25% tariffs starting Saturday.
“We have to do that because we have very big deficits with those countries,” Trump told reporters Thursday, adding that the tariffs “may or may not rise with time.” Trump also complained that both countries had not done enough to curb illegal migrants and fentanyl coming across the U.S. border.
Trump has previously said he is considering 10% tariffs on China to begin the same day. “China’s going to end up paying a tariff … and we’ll make that determination of what it’s going to be,” he said Thursday.
Some Republicans uncommitted on RFK Jr.
After two public appearances on Capitol Hill, some Republicans still appear uneasy about confirming Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead the Department of Health and Human Services.
One of them is Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., a gastroenterologist who chairs the Health, Education Labor and Pensions Committee, which held its hearing Thursday. He repeatedly pressed Kennedy to say measles vaccines do not cause autism. But Kennedy continued to dodge this and similar questions related to the safety of immunizations, repeatedly saying he would review the evidence.
After asking Kennedy to “convince him” that he would be a supporter of public health, Cassidy said during his concluding statement that he was still struggling with this nomination. He added that Kennedy may receive further questions from his office over the weekend.
“My responsibility is to learn, try to determine if you can be trusted to support the best public health,” Cassidy said. “Or to undermine it, always asking for more evidence and never accepting the evidence that is there.”
Republican Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine are other members to watch, as they’ve voted against other Trump nominees.
After the hearing, Murkowski did not indicate which way she may vote. "I think that there were some questions that were particularly telling — that when the science has been out there for a long time and has been proven, do you need to continue being the skeptic?” Murkowski told reporters.
Assuming all Democrats vote against him, Kennedy can only afford to lose three Republicans in the full Senate. The Senate Finance Committee has primary jurisdiction and can report the nomination favorably, unfavorably or with no recommendation. The committee hasn’t scheduled a vote.
By the way: During Thursday’s hearing, Kennedy said he would support avian flu vaccine development for humans and criticized the food industry. He also said "there's illness all over the farm community, and it's undoubtedly related to the intensity of chemical pesticides."
Read more from our coverage of the Senate HELP Committee hearing.
USDA sets first deadlines for return to office
The new administration has set deadlines for many USDA employees to be in the office five days a week. Senior leaders, including those in the senior executive service, must be on site every day starting Monday, according to a memo obtained by Agri-Pulse. Managers and supervisors who have assigned duty stations and a desk at a USDA office must be in the office full time starting Feb. 10.
Employees on telework agreements in the national capital region must return to office full time by Feb. 18, assuming they’re not covered by a collective bargaining agreement. Additional guidance is coming for other workers, the memo says.
OMB nominee advances
Trump’s pick to run the Office of Management and Budget, Russ Vought, is a step closer to Senate confirmation. Republicans on the Senate Budget Committee voted to approve Vought after Democrats boycotted the meeting in protest of this week’s funding freeze.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Vought “will try again to illegally seize funds” once he’s confirmed as OMB director.
Budget Chair Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., posted on X, “My Democratic colleagues decided to boycott, which is their right. The markup was short and pleasant. They were missed… Sort of.”
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Lack of new farm bill could require additional economic farm aid, Thompson says
House Ag Committee Chair Glenn “GT” Thompson, R-Pa., says farm country will need to “come back to the table for more economic aid,” if Congress doesn’t pass a new farm by this fall.
“Now, we can avoid that,” he says on Agri-Pulse Newsmakers this week. “But the way we avoid that is getting the farm bill done because the improvements we’ve made to the safety net programs will just prevent having to do that [economic aid payments] in the future.”
House Ag Committee ranking member Angie Craig, D-Minn., also joins the program to discuss her outlook for the panel, including her concerns about GOP cuts to nutrition assistance. “If those instructions include to cut SNAP, what ends up happening in my mind is, you’re cutting farm income,” Craig says.
Democrats could back Lutnick’s Commerce nomination
Trump’s pick for commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, could secure some Democratic support when the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee votes on advancing his candidacy next Wednesday.
Although Lutnick sparred with some Democrats during his hearing this week, others across the aisle are considering backing him for the job.
“I think I might find a way to ‘yes,’” Colorado Democrat Sen. John Hickenlooper told Agri-Pulse. Hickenlooper said he was impressed by the Cantor Fitzgerald CEO’s clarity and directness in his hearing. “I think he's straightforward,” Hickenlooper added.
Sen. Andy Kim, D-N.J., also said he was open to voting for Lutnick but wants more information on his tariff stance before deciding.
Wing consumption expected to increase during this year's Super Bowl
Americans are expected to increase their Super Bowl chicken wing consumption an estimated 1.5% this year, gobbling roughly 20 million more wings than last, according to the National Chicken Council.
Football fans will eat an estimated 1.47 billion wings during the upcoming contest between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles.
“Matthew McConaughey was right: Football is for food,” NCC spokesperson Tom Super said in a release, referring to the Hollywood actor and pitchman. “Sure, there will be pizza, guacamole, chips and dips, but when it comes to the Super Bowl, chicken wings rule the roost."
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