The Latest: Goldman Sachs exec is pick for economics post
[...] he's now chosen three people with ties to the bank for his administration, including Steven Mnuchin, the Treasury secretary nominee, and Steve Bannon, Trump's chief strategist and senior counselor.
The White House is shooting down the notion floated by one of President-elect Donald Trump's potential State Department picks that the Obama administration may have framed Russia with false hacking allegations.
White House spokesman Josh Earnest says that adhering to a policy of one China has allowed for a close trading partner in Taiwan and a "constructive relationship" with China.
Earnest says efforts to curb global warming and prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon could not have occurred without China's help.
Hillary Clinton's campaign is backing an effort by members of the Electoral College to request an intelligence briefing on foreign interference in the presidential election.
GOP leaders in both chambers say that committees will be looking into cyber threats, even as President-elect Donald Trump has said the recent CIA assertion that Russian hacking had sought to help his candidacy was "ridiculous."
White House spokesman Josh Earnest says that one of the goals of an intelligence review ordered by President Barack Obama is to compile information that can be presented to Congress.
Earnest is also praising intelligence officials, saying the men and women in the intelligence community are "patriots" and that the president has benefited enormously from their expertise.
House Speaker Paul Ryan says the House Intelligence Committee will look into cyber threats such as hacking by Russia of the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign.
Ryan's statement came after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell also called for a continuing probe into charges that the Russian government hacked into the DNC and Hillary Clinton's campaign chairman John Podesta's email account.
A handful of members of the Electoral College are demanding an intelligence briefing on whether the government is investigating links between Trump's campaign and Russia.
Ten electors released an "open letter" to Director of National Intelligence James Clapper requesting information about ongoing investigations on ties between Trump and any Russian government interference in the election.
[...] signing the letter is Chris Suprun, a Texas Republican who says he won't vote for Trump, citing a Federalist paper by Alexander Hamilton that says electors must determine that the president is qualified and independent from foreign influence.
Donald Trump says he'll reduce the costs of the Pentagon's most expensive weapons program — Lockheed Martin's F-35 Joint Strike Fighter — after he takes office.
The tweet comes the same day Defense Secretary Ash Carter visited Israel as it prepared to receive the first two next-generation F-35 fighter jets intended to help preserve the country's military edge in the volatile Mideast.
Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain, who joined Senate Democrats Sunday to call for an immediate bipartisan investigation, said Monday on "CBS This Morning" that probes are essential because hacking could be a new form of warfare.
A top adviser to Donald Trump says the CEO of Exxon Mobil is an attractive candidate for secretary of state in part because he's done business deals with Russia.
Lawmakers are seeking to investigate purported Russian interference in the November election and question the incoming president's potential pick for secretary of state.