Principals

1. US Syria policy
2. Trump’s FTC plans
3. Blinken testifies
4. Capitol Police chief on the Hill
5. What’s next for outbound
6. Inflation report

PDB: McConnell’s fall

House considers NDAA … CNN: How suspected UnitedHealth CEO killer was caught … Bloomberg: Russia encouraged Assad to leave Syria

US seeks to influence Syria’s future

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan arrives in Israel today, seeking common ground on Syria and making a final push to achieve a Gaza ceasefire before President Biden leaves office. Sullivan’s trip follows hundreds of Israeli airstrikes in Syria that sought to decimate the country’s weapons arsenal; the White House’s John Kirby noted the Israelis have indicated the strikes will not be part of a long-term campaign, adding that the US doesn’t want to see any actor make “it harder for the Syrian government to get at legitimate governance.” Meanwhile, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the US would support a new Syrian government that arises from an “inclusive and transparent process.” Such a move would potentially be a boon for a new Syrian government, if it paves the way for sanctions relief.

Trump FTC pick signals crackdown on big tech

Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Federal Trade Commission, Andrew Ferguson, has something in common with outgoing chair Lina Khan: They both want to crack down on big tech companies. However, Ferguson, who is one of two existing GOP commissioners on the FTC and will not need to be confirmed by the Senate, comes at the issue from a different direction and will likely look to crack down on tech companies that conservatives accuse of stifling political speech. “The Commission must use the full extent of its authority to protect the free speech of all Americans,” he wrote in a statement earlier this month. In addition to elevating Ferguson, a former chief counsel for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Trump also selected Mark Meador, a former aide to Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, to be confirmed as the third Republican on the FTC.

Blinken faces questions on Afghanistan

Secretary of State Antony Blinken will face a hostile panel of House lawmakers later today when he finally sits down before the Foreign Affairs Committee to testify on the US withdrawal from Afghanistan. Blinken will discuss the withdrawal “in the context of a two-decades-long war that took the lives of 2,500 Americans and cost more than $2 trillion,” a source familiar with his testimony said, noting that he will criticize the Trump-era Doha agreement for leaving the Taliban in a stronger position than it had been since 2001. Blinken will also commend officials who have worked to resettle thousands of Afghan allies in the US. House Republicans on the committee, who accused the administration of misleading the public about the withdrawal in a September report, recommended the top US diplomat be held in contempt of Congress for failing to appear following a subpoena.

— Morgan Chalfant

Capitol Police chief on the Hill

Sen. Amy Klobuchar chairs her last Rules Committee hearing today before handing the gavel to incoming chair Sen. Mitch McConnell — with a very important guest. The Minnesota Democrat’s panel will host US Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger, and she expects Manger will say he’s implemented all of the Senate’s 103 bipartisan recommendations to shore up the Capitol after the security lapses on Jan. 6. “It’s a culmination of a lot of hard work,” Klobuchar told Semafor. “It was an all-out reform of some of these systems.” Among the big changes: Hiring hundreds more police officers (including Manger, who came out of retirement), installing a new architect of the Capitol, and boosting police morale. The changes “have put us in a better place, not just for January 6s, but for any large-scale event,” Klobuchar said.

— Burgess Everett

What’s next for China investment restrictions

Legislation that would limit US investment in China still might hitch a ride on a short-term government funding bill this month. Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries objected to including the language in a defense bill out of opposition to that bill’s restrictions on transgender health care, baffling backers of the bipartisan China measure. Jeffries’ office told Semafor that “everyone remains at the table” but added that “nothing is agreed to until everything is agreed to.” House Speaker Mike Johnson sounded more optimistic: “I think we have an agreement on outbound,” he said. Proponents are keeping up the pressure: Rosa DeLauro, the top Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, spoke with Jeffries’ office over the weekend to push for the measure’s inclusion in the funding bill when it was clear it would fall out of the defense bill, a person familiar with the conversation said.

— Morgan Chalfant and Kadia Goba

Inflation data to guide Fed move

Wall Street has its eye trained on key inflation data that the federal government will release today ahead of the Fed decision on rates next week. The Labor Department will release the consumer price index for November this morning, which is expected to show headline inflation rising slightly to 2.7%. “Markets want to see a number that won’t be too disruptive to the Fed next week,” the head of investment strategy at Edward Jones told Reuters. The producer price index, another inflation gauge, is due on Thursday. The Federal Reserve is widely expected to cut interest rates by another quarter point on Dec. 18.

Beltway Newsletters

Punchbowl News: House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers, R-Ala., took issue with House Speaker Mike Johnson’s inclusion of a provision restricting transgender health care for children of military families in the defense bill. Donald Trump “is going to stop all these social, cultural issues from being embedded as policies. So my point is, I don’t know why this is going to be in the bill when on Jan. 20, it’s a moot point,” he said.

Playbook: Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., edged out Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, to claim the gavel of the Senate Intelligence Committee, despite suggestions Cornyn should get the position “as a consolation prize after his failed leader bid.”

WaPo: Pete Hegseth’s chances of getting confirmed to the top Pentagon post seem to be rising this week, but he’s still seen on the Hill as the most difficult to confirm along with Tulsi Gabbard, Trump’s pick for director of national intelligence.

Axios: The US public is still more trusting of Anthony Fauci than they are of Trump and his health team when it comes to medical information.

Blindspot

Stories that are being largely ignored by either left-leaning or right-leaning outlets, curated with help from our partners at Ground News.

What the Left isn’t reading: Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, recommended Daniel Penny sue Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg after he was acquitted of criminally negligent homicide in the death of Jordan Neely.

What the Right isn’t reading: President Biden designated a new national monument at the campus of a former Native American boarding school in Pennsylvania.

White House

• President Biden is expected to block the proposed Nippon Steel acquisition of US Steel later this month. — Bloomberg
• Biden threatened to veto legislation that would add 66 new federal judicial seats over time, calling it “unnecessary to the efficient and effective administration of justice.”

Congress

• Outgoing GOP Leader Mitch McConnell fell after the Republican lunch on Tuesday, missing the party’s traditional news conference. A spokesman said he was quickly cleared to resume his schedule and suffered a cut to the face and a sprained wrist.
• A man was arrested after Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., said she was “physically accosted.”
• Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., said his term beginning next month will likely be his last. — Politico

Transition

• Donald Trump vowed to expedite permits for investors sinking $1 billion or more into the US.
• Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said she spoke with Trump’s pick for the top spot at Treasury, Scott Bessent, and told him she “thought he would find this an extremely interesting and challenging job.” — WSJ
• At least three Republican senators are noncommittal about confirming Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Department of Health and Human Services secretary. — Politico
• Trump named former ambassador to El Salvador Ron Johnson to be ambassador to Mexico. He also tapped Kimberly Guilfoyle to be ambassador to Greece and Tom Barrack as ambassador to Turkey.

Outside the Beltway

• Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is getting calls from Michigan Democrats urging him to run for governor of the state in 2026 to replace Gretchen Whitmer. — AP
• Anthony Weiner is running for New York’s city council.

Business

• A federal judge blocked the proposed $25 billion Kroger-Albertsons merger, handing a win to the FTC.
• Walgreens is in negotiations to sell itself to PE firm Sycamore Partners. — WSJ

Courts

• The Justice Department unsealed an indictment charging two former Syrian Air Force intelligence officials with committing war crimes against US citizens and others during the Syrian civil war.
• Manhattan prosecutors proposed permanently pausing Donald Trump’s hush money case but preserving the conviction.

National Security

• The Justice Department under Donald Trump’s first administration obtained phone records belonging to members of Congress and staffers, including Trump’s newly announced pick to lead the FBI, during a leak investigation. — CNN

Foreign Policy

• The Biden administration is considering harsher sanctions against Russia’s oil industry. — Bloomberg

• The Treasury Department disbursed a $20 billion loan to Ukraine that will be paid for by windfall profits from frozen Russian assets.

Media

• A federal judge ruled against the sale of Alex Jones’ Infowars to The Onion, saying the auction was flawed and “left a lot of money on the table” for the families of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre victims.

Principals Team

• Editors: Benjy Sarlin, Elana Schor, Morgan Chalfant
• Reporters: Burgess Everett, Kadia Goba, Shelby Talcott, David Weigel

Beth Van Duyne is a Republican congresswoman from Texas. She is participating in an interview with Semafor’s Senior Washington Editor Elana Schor this morning. RSVP to join us in person here or watch virtually here.

A year into his presidency, Javier Milei has reined in Argentina’s soaring inflation rates and slashed a yawning budget deficit, but challenges remain, Semafor’s Mizy Clifton noted in an analysis.

Analysts warned that with poverty rates surpassing 50%, Argentines could rapidly sour on the populist president unless Milei changes tack.