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The Big Picture
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This week’s actions show two parallel moves: the administration is reshaping federal law enforcement and the courts by sending 14 nominees to the Senate (on January 5, 2026) — including seven U.S. Attorneys (four‑year terms), six U.S. district judge nominees (lifetime if confirmed), and one Assistant Attorney General — while the Department of Health and Human Services on the same day proposed rolling back four child‑care funding rules added in March 2024. Those proposed regulatory changes would remove a 7% cap on family co‑payments, relax set‑aside requirements for infants, toddlers and children with disabilities, and allow states to change how and when providers are paid; comments on the proposal are due February 4, 2026, and any final rule would take effect 60 days after publication. Meanwhile, the Senate on January 5 also passed two reauthorizations for earthquake and landslide programs with amendments that restrict how money can be used and add deficit‑reduction measures, and confirmed an Assistant Secretary of Defense by a 50–35 vote — showing both personnel and policy moves are happening at once.
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Why this matters: if the nominees are confirmed, they will directly affect which federal crimes are prosecuted and how trials run, and district judges will shape case law for decades. If HHS finalizes its proposal, states and tribal agencies running the Child Care and Development Fund — which supported about $12.3 billion in 2025 and served over 1.4 million children per month — will have more flexibility to set co‑payments and payment rules, likely changing out‑of‑pocket costs for families and payment certainty for providers. The Senate actions also signal a tilt toward tighter control over federal spending on safety programs and a focus on limiting deficit impact. All of these changes have concrete near‑term triggers: Senate confirmation votes for the nominees, the February 4 comment deadline and the 60‑day implementation window for any finalized HHS rule, and further floor or conference action to convert the program reauthorizations into law.
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Pattern to Watch
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A coordinated push toward personnel changes plus deregulatory and budget‑constraining moves is emerging. Indicators include the cluster of high‑impact nominations sent to the Senate on January 5, 2026 (targeting prosecutors, judges, and a Justice Department leader), the HHS proposal that would undo four March 2024 child‑care protections (comments due February 4, 2026; 60‑day implementation after final publication), and Senate amendments that restrict program spending while aiming to reduce deficits. If this pattern continues, expect more confirmation fights, additional rollbacks or reinterpretations of pandemic‑era or Obama/Biden‑era rules, and legislative riders or amendments that narrow how federal funds are used. Concrete signs of escalation would be rapid confirmation of the nominees, publication of a final HHS rule that removes the CCDF requirements, more regulatory proposals targeting other federal programs, or a stretch of appropriations and reauthorization bills returned to the floor with similar deficit‑limiting language.
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