December 17th, 2025

Let’s dive in.

1. INTERVIEW: South Dakota’s Attorney General discusses AI and his campaign for Congress

2. Heard on the Hill

3. EXCLUSIVE: Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on non-domiciled CDLs and Amtrak union employees’ Christmas bonus

4. EXCLUSIVE: Sen. Tom Cotton, Rep. Andy Harris, and AG Tim Griffin commend hemp ban, say overturn unlikely

5. SCOOP: NRCC, DCCC chairs lay out road maps for 2026

6. EXCLUSIVE: President Trump’s former physician backs Andy Barr in his Senate run

7. OPINIONATED: Rep. Carolyn Bourdeaux on why bank CEOs are sounding the alarm on the federal debt and Jared Whitley on TrumpRx

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INTERVIEW: South Dakota’s Attorney General discusses AI and his campaign for Congress

by Matthew Foldi

South Dakota’s Attorney General Marty Jackley, who has spent almost his whole career in South Dakota, is hoping for a change next year — as Rep. Dusty Johnson (R., S.D.) vacates the state’s at-large congressional district, Jackley is setting his sights on Washington, D.C.

“What I’ve seen as a U.S. Attorney and as Attorney General and in the leadership roles I’ve played as Attorney General is that the fight really is in Washington,” he told the Washington Reporter in an interview. “The things that are near and dear to us in South Dakota — the things that we care about, the individual freedoms, the importance of being not just safe and secure in our homes, but economic security, all have to do with D.C.”

Jackley, a four-term attorney general, is particularly interested in joining the Judiciary and Agriculture Committees, should he win next year. He told the Reporter that he’s already told both Speaker Mike Johnson (R., La.) and Rep. Jim Jordan (R., Ohio) about his interests.

“Certainly I don’t want to put the cart before the horse; I’m working hard to get elected. I’m up 57 to five in the Mason Dixon public poll, but I’m taking it serious,” he said. “Agriculture is so important to me personally, being a landowner of a ranch and a farm, as well as to my constituents, and the desire to see not just producers and our farmers taken care of, but seeing value added is important.”

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Heard on the Hill

• OFF THE HILL LEADERS: Expect our first profile as part of the Washington Reporter’s new “Off the Hill Leaders” series later this week of a major executive at a technology company. Reach out to us if you have suggestions for who we profile next.

• SNAP AND STATES: The White House celebrated 18 states banning junk food and soda from purchase with SNAP benefits, a top priority of both HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy and Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins. Expect more action from the Administration in the lead of the 2026 midterms, as Republican policymakers consider this both sound policy and good politics.

• MARSHALL AND HEALTHCARE: Sen. Roger Marshall (R., Kansas) has been pushing comprehensive legislation to lower healthcare costs with a package he’s called the “Marshall Plan.” Marshall’s plan primarily focuses on transparency in prices. Hill sources tell us that it is unlikely, to say the least, that Republicans will unite on any comprehensive healthcare legislation. But Marshall’s bill, and Doc Marshall as the salesperson for it, might be the best chance Republicans have. Marshall is at his best when he’s explaining the problems with healthcare and how to fix them.

• GUESS WHO’S BACK: Rep. Andy Harris (R., Md.) was reelected as chairman of the House Freedom Caucus.

• CHRISTMAS WARNING: Save Our States hosted an open banking reception this week featuring the group’s Capitol Hill and White House allies. The group handed out fliers with a simple message: “don’t let big banks steal Christmas.”

• CONGRATULATIONS: Kiersten Pels, the national press secretary for the Republican National Committee, and Joey Cipollone, a law clerk at the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, got engaged over the weekend. Pels is also an alum of Sen. Ron Johnson (R., Wis.) and Cipollone is a veteran of the House’s COVID Select subcommittee.

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EXCLUSIVE: Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on non-domiciled CDLs and Amtrak union employees’ Christmas bonus

by Matthew Foldi

The Department of Transportation (DOT) is cautioning blue states like New York against enforcing policies that give non-domiciled commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) to unqualified drivers, many of whom are illegal immigrants.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced a bombshell finding that the New York Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has routinely issued CDLs to foreign drivers illegally. “The federal audit exposed a shocking 53 percent failure rate in the records sampled, indicating a total collapse in the administration of New York’s CDL program,” DOT said.

But it’s not only New York, Duffy told the Washington Reporter. “California and New York account for half of the non-domiciled CDLs that were issued in the country,” he said. “I can’t get in their heads as to why they would allow individuals to get these licenses, especially when they’re not well-qualified. But it’s what’s happening.”

While both California and New York, under Govs. Gavin Newsom (D., Calif.) and Kathy Hochul (D., N.Y.), are sanctuary states with sanctuary jurisdictions, Duffy explained that the federal government has a role to play because “you don’t just drive in New York if you get a New York commercial driver’s license. You drive around the country.”

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A message from our sponsor.

Americans want clear, transparent information, expert guidance, and real access – not government-restricted options.

Cut through the noise and listen to the overwhelming majority.

America is stronger with the freedom to protect our health.

Learn more: fightinfectiousdisease.org

EXCLUSIVE: Sen. Tom Cotton, Rep. Andy Harris, and AG Tim Griffin commend hemp ban, say overturn unlikely

by Holly Spear

Although some hemp supporters have made repeated efforts to reverse Congress’s recently passed provision that restricts intoxicating hemp products. Republican leaders on Capitol Hill tell the Washington Reporter that the likelihood of undoing the ban is low.

The restriction was included in the government funding legislation signed by President Donald Trump in November. That law fundamentally narrows the federal definition of “hemp,” banning consumable hemp products controversially sold in gas stations.

Rep. Andy Harris (R., Md.), a former GOP Doctors Caucus co-chair, told the Washington Reporter that “closing the hemp loophole that has resulted in the spread of unregulated intoxicating hemp-derived products that are being sold online and in gas stations and corner stores across the country is a good thing.”

Harris pointed out the risk of such products to children, adding that “many of these products are accessible and attractive to children, resulting in thousands of calls to U.S. poison control centers, with more than 30 percent involving children ages 5 years and younger. The provision is supported by 39 State Attorneys General and over 81 national and state public health, medical, law enforcement, and other organizations.”

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SCOOP: NRCC, DCCC chairs lay out road maps for 2026

by Matthew Foldi

The chairs of the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) predict that their respective parties will control the House of Representatives after next year’s midterm elections.

“I’m confident we are going to win the House,” Rep. Richard Hudson (R., N.C.) said at the latest Puck Power Breakfast, moderated by Puck’s Leigh Ann Caldwell. Before the event, Hudson told the Washington Reporter that the Democrats’ messaging going into 2026 is disingenuous.

“Their argument is that Republicans need to fix what they broke,” he said. The Republican party, he lamented, is often judged by outcomes, whereas Democrats are judged by intentions.

Hudson predicted that Republicans would “hold the House” even if the economy doesn’t markedly improve. He cited President Donald Trump, who is a “net positive everywhere” as one of their top selling points; he “definitely” wants campaigning in swing districts, Hudson added.

“We’re going to defy history” in part because “we’ve got some of the best candidates we’ve ever had.” Hudson specifically singled out Kevin Lincoln, the former mayor of Stockton, as a candidate to watch. Lincoln “will upset Adam Gray” next year, Hudson predicted.

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EXCLUSIVE: Why President Trump’s former physician backs Andy Barr in his Senate run

by Matthew Foldi

One of President Donald Trump’s closest allies in Congress is supporting Rep. Andy Barr (R., Ky.)’s Senate bid, the Washington Reporter can exclusively confirm.

Rep. Ronny Jackson (R., Texas), who before serving in Congress was Trump’s physician, is backing Barr’s campaign to represent Kentucky in the state’s open Senate race.

“We need more MAGA patriots in the U.S. Senate to support President Trump and the America First agenda. Kentucky could send no one better into the fight than my friend Andy Barr,” Jackson said. “With Andy in the Senate, we will have one more champion to work with who will always have President Trump’s back and help us deliver the agenda we promised to the millions of Texans and Kentuckians who supported this historic MAGA movement. I’m behind Andy Barr all the way.”

Barr added that “as a Congressman and decorated Navy Admiral, Dr. Jackson has always served with distinction and put America First. There is no one with a greater pulse on the MAGA movement than Dr. Jackson, who has done so much to support President Trump in the White House and in Congress. I’m honored to have his endorsement.”

The two have worked on a series of bills together in Congress that advance and complement Trump’s agenda, including the Enhanced Iran Sanctions Act of 2025 and the Dismantle DEI Act.

If Barr wins Kentucky’s GOP primary, he may face off in a general election against Amy McGrath, a Democrat Barr defeated in 2018, an otherwise disastrous year for his party.

Throughout his campaign for Senate, Barr has received almost 200 “major endorsements” from Republicans in Kentucky and from around the country. Joining Jackson in backing Barr are Reps. Steve Scalise (R., La.), Elise Stefanik (R., N.Y.), and over half of his House GOP colleagues. At the end of the most recent quarter, Barr also had almost $7 million cash on hand.

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OPINIONATED

Op-Ed: Rep. Carolyn Bourdeaux: Bank CEOs are right to sound the alarm on the federal debt

by Rep. Carolyn Bourdeaux

One of the challenges involved in educating voters about the impact of the federal debt is that the numbers are unfathomable: $38 trillion and counting. More than $112,000 for every person in the country. A stack of $100 bills reaching from Washington, D.C. to far outer space.

But what really matters is what the debt means for the American people today. We are already seeing the short-term impact of the mounting debt, putting upward pressure on interest rates, which makes buying a house, a car, or using a credit card more expensive. Over the long term, the growing national debt increases the risk of a significant economic crisis.

That’s why a growing chorus of global bank CEOs, former Federal Reserve Presidents, investors and economists are raising an alarm about what a debt-driven economic crisis would look like, and how it would harm regular people.

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Op-Ed: Jared Whitley: TrumpRx puts power back where it belongs — with the consumer

by Jared Whitley

One of the challenges for conservatives trying to fix broken systems with proven free-market principles is when the system itself is so broken as to be impervious to the free market. How do we get choice, transparency, and competition into systems like Medicare and Medicaid that are virtual government monopolies?

A little over 20 years ago, the Bush administration tried this with Medicare Part D, which offered competing plans for seniors’ prescription drug plans to mostly successful results. The question is now, can we replicate the similar outcomes for the broader healthcare market?

How do we improve our healthcare system with transparency and market competition to lower costs rather than price controls which will end up doing more harm than good in the long run?

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