“A lot of people are going to get brutally scammed… Scamming people like that is what his whole life has been around.”

— Paul Krugman, talking about the incoming Trump administration on The Daily Blast.

Politico: “Transition officials plan to install several longtime GOP allies in senior roles across the health department, filling out key parts of Kennedy’s leadership team well before he could be confirmed…”

“The push aims to surround Kennedy with conservative policymakers who can compensate for his lack of government experience and MAGA credentials — while also ensuring the White House can keep close tabs on an HHS nominee who many Trump aides still don’t fully trust.”

“Aides to President-elect Donald Trump have asked three senior career diplomats who oversee the U.S. State Department’s workforce and internal coordination to step down from their roles, in a possible signal of deeper changes ahead for the diplomatic corps,” Reuters reports.

A new AP-NORC poll finds just 19% of Americans approve of Pete Hegseth being nominated as the secretary of defense.

President-elect Donald Trump “is being inundated with so much money from corporations and wealthy donors that his team expects to raise about $500 million by summer — even though he can’t run again,” Axios reports.

“By stockpiling so much cash, Trump is signaling he doesn’t want to be seen as a lame duck in his second term, and is ready to help political allies, punish opponents and help Republicans keep full control of Congress in 2026.”

Said one Trump adviser: “The money is just pouring in at Mar-a-Lago. Trump doesn’t have to lift a finger. Everyone’s coming to him.”

“As Donald Trump prepares to once again assume the office of the presidency, a new NPR/PBS News/Marist poll finds that, despite his claims of an ‘unprecedented and powerful mandate,’ Trump may have to be careful about how far he decides to go with what he wants to do.”

“More people hold an unfavorable than favorable view of him, most are against pardoning those convicted of attacking the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and they’re split on whether to mass deport immigrants who are in the U.S. without legal status.”

“Perhaps most importantly, Americans have high expectations that their personal financial situations will improve under Trump, but more think tariffs will hurt rather than help the economy.”

Mark Zuckerberg is hosting an inaugural ball reception for Donald Trump and J.D. Vance with Miriam Adelson, Todd Ricketts and Tilman Fertitta, Puck reports.

Politico: “The agencies’ concerns reflect the heightened political — and potentially violent — environment in which Trump will assume power.”

“President-elect Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis are meeting over a round of golf on Tuesday, as key decisions loom in the state they both call home,” Politico reports.

“The meetup is taking place as Trump backed DeSantis’ recent call for a special session in Florida to address illegal immigration — despite reticence from Republican leaders in the Legislature — and as the governor is getting closer to unveiling his pick for Senate to replace Trump administration-bound Marco Rubio.”

“I think these days of thunder starting next week are going to be incredibly, incredibly intense.”

— Steve Bannon, quoted by Politico, on the start of Donald Trump’s second term.

An ex-Democratic National Committee official who helped finance Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign told the Daily Mail that she’s now fundraising for President-elect Donald Trump.

Said Lindy Li: “My real friends are all supportive, but my political friends, it’s just been really bad. It’s a cult. The way that they’ve treated me is difficult.”