Live updates: Patel faces surprising questions in Senate; Bessent pressed on tariffs, $5K dividend

FBI Director Kash Patel is testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee for an oversight hearing on Tuesday morning.

Ahead of the meeting, Patel released a letter sent to panel chair Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) to explain expenditures that have drawn scrutiny. But questioning during the hearing turned to an unexpected topic: Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) grilled Patel as he tried “to understand” a recent change in policy regarding bestiality. The line of questioning was sparked by a shift in FBI hiring practices that lifted longtime bans on selecting new trainees if they have engaged in prostitution or bestiality.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent spent the morning in the House Financial Services hearing, facing questions on tariffs, artificial intelligence and more.

Earlier Tuesday, President Trump upbraided the Supreme Court for its 7-2 ruling against his mail-in ballot restrictions the evening prior.

“These are not the people I interviewed to serve on the United States Supreme Court, they are merely a shell of their original selves, a Court that is costing the United States Trillions of Dollars with shockingly bad rulings that are of such magnitude that it won’t be easily possible for our Country to recover or heal,” Trump posted on Truth Social.

Attorney General Todd Blanche will brief reporters in the Rose Garden on Tuesday, becoming the latest administration official to step in since the departure of former White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.

Trump has an ambassador credentialing ceremony followed by policy meetings.

First lady Melania Trump is in Jefferson, N.C., for an event focused on rehabilitation after the devastation of 2024’s Tropical Storm Helene.