Wednesday morning news: January 15, 2025

Wednesday confirmation hearings » On Capitol Hill … cameras and microphones will be packed into Senate hearing rooms this morning … with more than a half-dozen confirmation hearings scheduled today for President-elect Trump’s cabinet picks.

Those will include secretary nominees: Kristi Neom for Homeland Security, Sean Duffy for Transportation, Chris Wright for Energy, and Marco Rubio for Secretary of State.

RUBIO:  It's a tremendous honor, uh, to the president would place his confidence in me in a position of such importance. Um, it's also a tremendous responsibility.

Other nominees on the hot seat today include attorney general nominee Pam Bondi and John Ratcliffe for CIA Director.

Hegseth hearing » Yesterday in the Senate …

WHITTIKER: Good morning, the committee will come to order. [gavel strike] The Committee on Armed Services has convened this hearing to consider the pending nomination of Mr. Pete Hegseth to be Secretary of Defense.

Hegeseth, a veteran of both the Iraq and Afghanistan wars … said Trump chose him to get politics out of the Pentagon.

HEGSETH:  It's time to give someone with dust on his boots, the helm, a change agent, someone with no vested interest in certain companies or specific programs or approved narratives.

Hegseth vowed that his only special interest … will be the war fighter. But the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, Jack Reed, countered …

REED:  And your goal, as I see emerging, is to politicize the military in favor of your particular positions, which you've outlined extensively.

Democrats have accused him of holding discriminatory views against women … after his past remarks about women serving specifically in combat roles.

Hegseth assured lawmakers that he respects every female service member … and said all troops will be treated equally.

HEGSETH: Yes, women will have access to ground combat roles, given the standards remain high.

He said his only concern is that physical standards for specific roles are not lowered in the name of inclusivity.

We’ll have much more on that hearing later in the program.

LA fires » Firefighters around Los Angeles are preparing to attack flare-ups or new blazes.

The National Weather Service issued a rare warning that dry winds combined with severely dry conditions created a “particularly dangerous situation.” And authorities warn that any new fire could quickly explode in size.

Los Angeles City Fire Chief Kristin Crowley

CROWLEY:  We are carefully managing our operations to ensure that we can quickly respond to any new fires, in addition to the increased call volume across the city of Los Angeles. I urge, and everybody here urges you to remain alert, as danger has not yet passed.

That warning comes a week after two massive fires broke out … which have now destroyed thousands of homes and killed at least 24 people.

LA County Sheriff Robert Luna said crews have had the grim task of searching for human remains.

LUNA:  We have searched approximately 3, 654 properties in the Altadena area thus far. Yesterday, we searched 1, 800 properties in Eaton.

LA fires/Law enforcement » Luna also said authorities have also arrested dozens of people for curfew violations, looting, and illegally flying drones in impacted areas … which can interfere with emergency operations.

And Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell told reporters …

MCDONNELL:  Officers responded to a radio call of an arson suspect at the location who had ignited a nearby trashcan, uh, which was extinguished by the L. A, uh, City Fire Department. Citizens directed the officers to the suspect location where he was then taken into custody without incident.

McDonell said police have arrested three people since Sunday for deliberately starting fires.

Mencer/Blinken on ceasefire talks » In the Middle East, negotiators say they’re closer than ever to a ceasefire deal between Israel and the terror group Hamas...

U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken:

BLINKEN: The United States, Qatar, and Egypt, put forward a final proposal. The ball is now in Hamas' court. If Hamas accepts, a deal is ready to be concluded and implemented.

Under the latest ceasefire framework, Hamas would release dozens of hostages.

Israel believes the terror group may still be holding more than 100 hostages in Gaza.

South Korea Yoon » In South Korea, hundreds of law enforcement officials entered the residential compound of impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol just hours ago. WORLD’s Kristen Flavin has more.

KRISTEN FLAVIN: This was the government’s second attempt to detain Yoon over his imposition of martial law last month. Hundreds of anti-corruption investigators and police officers could be deployed in a potentially multi-day operation to apprehend him.

The impeached president has been holed up in his residence for weeks … with his security forces and lawyers resisting law enforcement.

Prior to his removal from office, Yoon justified his declaration of martial law. He said pro-communist "lawmakers with loyalties to North Korea" had infiltrated the government.

For WORLD, I’m Kristen Flavin.

I"m Kent Covington.

Straight ahead: more on Tuesday’s confirmation hearing with Pete Hegseth. Plus, one family’s loss in the Pacific Palisades fire.

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