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FORT PROVIDENCE, NT , Dec. 6, 2024 /CNW/ - The federal government is contributing $7.18 million through the Indigenous Shelter and Transitional Housing Initiative (ISTHI), towards a new emergency shelter for Indigenous women, their children and 2SLGBTQI+ persons fleeing gender-based violence in Fort Providence . A subsidy from Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) is also being provided for ongoing operations and support. The announcement was made by Michael McLeod , Member of Parliament for the Northwest Territories and Michael Vandell , Chief of Deh Gáh Got'ı̨ę First Nation. The shelter will have 20 units and 60 beds. It will also have services available designed to foster overall well-being and improve long-term outcomes for residents. They also announced federal funding of $4.9 million for three infrastructure projects in Fort Providence , Simpson Island and Yellowknife . One will help build a new water treatment facility and a drinking water reservoir for Fort Providence , which will replace the aging system. The camp will include one-bedroom and family cabins, a main lodge with kitchen and dining areas, a firepit with seating, and an arbor gathering area by the water. Finally, a new chiller unit for is being installed in the Legislative Assembly in Yellowknife . Quotes: "We know that the experiences of Indigenous women and gender-diverse individuals experiencing homelessness are unique and different, and so they require a more compassionate and tailored experience for their well-being. The federal government recognizes these distinct needs and has committed to supporting inclusive and equitable solutions, ensuring that all individuals, regardless of gender identity, have access to safe resources and services. Additionally, we will continue to invest in infrastructure to eliminate the gaps in services that northerners experience. Today's announcement will ensure continued and improved water quality and access for residents in Fort Providence , a much needed gathering camp for the Metis community in Fort Resolution to be able to connect with their culture, and improved air quality for all who work in and visit our Territorial Legislative Assembly. We will continue to work with northerners on their priorities for their communities." – Michael McLeod , Member of Parliament for Northwest Territories , on behalf of the Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities "Everyone deserves to live free from violence. Yet, far too often, Indigenous women, their children, and 2SLGBTQI+ people face disproportionate risks simply because of their gender or identity. That's why the opening of Providence Shelter is so important. With 60 rent-free beds, this shelter will offer a safe haven for those escaping violence, providing critical support in times of need. This project reflects our plan to address the national tragedy of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, and 2SLGBTQI+ people. It's a step toward healing, undoing generational harms, and ensuring that everyone has the safety and dignity they deserve." – The Honourable Patty Hajdu, Minister of Indigenous Services "These investments in our NWT communities show a commitment from all levels of government to provide clean, sustainable drinking water, and supports shelters for those in need. Cultural camp funding builds our communities and strengthens our residents by providing a venue for traditional activities. We will continue to find unique investments that meet the needs of our communities, and our residents." – Vince McKay , Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, Government of the Northwest Territories "Infrastructure Canada's Investment funding program has provided an opportunity for enhancements to the communities dated and deteriorated system for treating and distribution of drinking water. Providing a dependable water source and upgrades to the Water Treatment Plant ensures safe drinking water for all Hamlet of Fort Providence residents for many years to come." – His Worship Danny Beaulieu, Mayor of Hamlet of Fort Providence "Today's announcement marks a significant step forward for our resilient community. The shelter will serve as a safe haven, addressing the unique needs of Indigenous women, children, and the 2SLGBTQ+ community. By empowering and supporting our most vulnerable members, we strengthen the entire community. Together, we are dedicated to creating an environment where everyone feels protected, supported, and inspired to thrive." – Michael Vandell , Chief of Deh Gáh Got'ı̨ę First Nation Quick facts: Funding for today's announcement is as follows: Providence Shelter project: $7,183,279.78 from the federal government through the Indigenous Shelter and Transitional Housing Initiative (ISTHI) delivered by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The Fort Providence Water Treatment Plant and Reservoir: $3,580,875 from the federal government through the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program (ICIP). the Simpson Islands Métis All-Season Cultural Gathering Camp: $1,083,05 from the government through the ICIP. the Legislative Assembly Chiller Unit project: $305,578 from the federal government through the ICIP. Canada's National Housing Strategy (NHS) is a 10-year, $115+ billion plan that will give more Canadians a place to call home. The NHS is built on strong partnerships between the federal, provincial, and territorial governments, and continuous engagement with municipalities, Indigenous governments and organizations, and the social and private housing sectors. It was created after consultations with Canadians from all walks of life, including those who have experienced housing need. All NHS investments delivered by the federal, provincial and territorial governments will respect the key principles of NHS that support partnerships, people and communities. The $420 million Indigenous Shelter and Transitional Housing Initiative (ISTHI) was launched in November 2021 to support the construction of additional shelters and transitional homes for Indigenous women, children, and 2SLGBTQI+ individuals fleeing gender-based violence, including in urban areas and in the North. The funding is part of the $724.1 million budget for a comprehensive Violence Prevention Strategy, as announced in the 2020 Fall Economic Statement, of which: Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) is allocating $420 million over 5 years to support the construction of new shelters and transitional housing. Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) is investing $304 .1 million over five years, and $96 .6 million annually to support the operational costs of new shelters and transition homes and expand funding for culturally relevant violence prevention activities. CMHC and ISC sought input from Indigenous organizations and subject matter experts to form committees and develop the evaluation process. Eligible applications are evaluated by Indigenous-led committees comprised of representatives from CMHC, ISC, Indigenous organizations, subject matter experts in shelters and housing delivery, as well as people with lived experience. This ensures selected projects are culturally appropriate and meet the needs of clients. The committees provide overall direction and prioritization, as well as review and score proposals. The Federal Pathway is Canada's contribution to the broader 2021 Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and 2SLGBTQQIA+ People National Action Plan developed in partnership with provincial and territorial governments, Indigenous Peoples, survivors, families, and Indigenous women's organizations in response to the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. Call for Justice 4.7, 16.19 and 18.25 of the Final Report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls call for all governments to support the establishment and funding of shelters, safe spaces, transition homes, second-stage housing, and services for Indigenous women, girls, and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people. The Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls Crisis Line is available to provide emotional support and crisis referral services to individuals impacted by the issue of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people. Call the toll-free Crisis Line at 1-844-413-6649. This service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Associated Links: Visit Canada.ca/housing for the most requested Government of Canada housing information. As Canada's authority on housing, CMHC contributes to the stability of the housing market and financial system, provides support for Canadians in housing need, and offers unbiased housing research and advice to all levels of Canadian government, consumers and the housing industry. CMHC's aim is that everyone in Canada has a home they can afford and that meets their needs. For more information, please visit cmhc.ca or follow us on X , Instagram , YouTube , LinkedIn and Facebook . To find out more about the National Housing Strategy, visit: www.placetocallhome.ca . More information about the Indigenous Shelter and Transitional Housing Initiative can be found here: ISTHI Visit Housing for Indigenous Peoples for more information on Programs and subsidies that support the building and management of housing for Indigenous Peoples Check out the National Housing Strategy Housing Funding Initiatives Map to see affordable housing projects that have been developed across Canada. Information on the Family Violence Prevention Program is available at: Family Violence Prevention Program (sac-isc.gc.ca) More information about the Government of Canada's work with partners to end violence against Indigenous women, girls and 2SLGBTQI+ people can be found here: Backgrounder: Federal Pathway to Address Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ People The Federal Pathway to Address Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ People 2021 Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ People National Action Plan Reclaiming Power and Place: The Final Report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls SOURCE Government of Canada View original content to download multimedia: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/December2024/06/c7355.html © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.Storm dumps record rain and heavy snow on Northern California. 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Worksport's AL4 Premium Cover, SOLIS, and COR Systems Scheduled to Take Center Stage in Front of an Audience Projected to Exceed One Million Live Viewers This Weekend West Seneca, New York, Dec. 06, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Worksport Ltd. (NASDAQ: WKSP) ("Worksport” or the "Company”), a U.S.-based manufacturer and innovator of hybrid and clean energy solutions for the light truck, overlanding, and global consumer goods sectors, is thrilled to announce its upcoming appearance on FOX & Friends , ranked as the nation's most-watched cable news morning show according to data shared by FOX News. Scheduled for Sunday, December 8th, 2024, at 7:30 AM ET (scheduling changes subject to the studio's discretion), this marks a pivotal moment for Worksport as it presents its cutting-edge products to millions of viewers nationwide. The live broadcast will feature Worksport Chief Executive Officer Steven Rossi showcasing the Company's innovative product lineup, including the premium AL4 tonneau cover, the Solis solar cover , and the COR portable energy system . Two pickup trucks, equipped with these state-of-the-art solutions , will be driven to the FOX Plaza in Manhattan, New York City, offering audiences a first-ever televised glimpse of Worksport's advanced technology in action. "This opportunity to present our products on a platform like FOX & Friends is monumental ,” said Steven Rossi, Chief Executive Officer of Worksport. "We're bringing the story of Worksport's innovation to over a million viewers, while highlighting how our products solve real-world problems. Beyond just this appearance, we see this as a gateway to even greater media exposure, potentially reaching tens of millions more in the future.” Worksport's Product Line: Innovation Meets Opportunity The FOX & Friends segment will focus on Worksport's current growth story and upcoming innovative product lineup, making this a momentous occasion to connect with viewers during the holiday shopping season. Each product below will be targeting a multi-billion dollar and growing market and will be the key to Worksport's 2025 growth. Worksport will also offer an exclusive, limited time FOX & Friends discount code for purchases made on the Company's e-commerce platform, www.worksport.com . Featured Products: FOX & Friends remained cable news' most-watched morning shows throughout the third quarter of 2024. The channel regularly features high profile special guests, such as President Donald Trump . The weekend show boosts a massive audience, delivering an average of 1.2 million viewers per episode. Worksport's appearance places its innovative products in front of millions of potential customers, further increasing its brand presence and brand reputability. This national broadcast represents a strategic milestone for Worksport as the Company continues its rapid expansion into new markets. Worksport's mission to revolutionize the tonneau cover and portable energy sectors is bolstered by this exposure, which is expected to significantly enhance consumer awareness and investor confidence . Key 2024 Press-Releases About Worksport Worksport Ltd. (Nasdaq: WKSP), through its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and owns the intellectual property on a variety of tonneau covers, solar integrations, and NP (Non-Parasitic), hydrogen-based true green energy solutions for the sustainable, clean energy, and automotive industries. Worksport has an active partnership with Hyundai for the SOLIS Solar cover. Additionally, Worksport's hard-folding cover, designed and manufactured in-house, is compatible with all major truck models and is gaining traction with newer truck makers including the EV sector. Worksport seeks to capitalize on the growing shift of consumer mindsets towards clean energy integrations with its proprietary solar solutions, mobile energy storage systems (ESS), and NP (Non-Parasitic), Hydrogen-based technology. Terravis Energy's website is terravisenergy.com . For more information, please visit investors.worksport.com . Connect with Worksport Please follow the Company's social media accounts on X (previously Twitter) , Facebook , LinkedIn , YouTube , and Instagram (collectively, the "Accounts”), the links of which are links to external third party websites, as well as sign up for the Company's newsletters at investors.worksport.com . The Company does not endorse, ensure the accuracy of, or accept any responsibility for any content on these third-party websites other than content published by the Company. YouTube Link to Newsletter The Company does not selectively disclose material non-public information on social media. If there is any significant financial information, the Company will release it broadly to the public through a press release or SEC filing prior to publishing it on social media. For additional information, please contact: Investor Relations, Worksport Ltd. T: 1 (888) 554-8789 -128 W: investors.worksport.com W: www.worksport.com E: [email protected] Forward-Looking Statements The information contained herein may contain "forward‐looking statements.” Forward‐looking statements reflect the current view about future events. When used in this press release, the words "anticipate,” "believe,” "estimate,” "expect,” "future,” "intend,” "plan,” "project,”, "envisioned”, "should," or the negative of these terms and similar expressions, as they relate to us or our management, identify forward‐looking statements. These statements are neither historical facts nor assurances of future performance. Instead, they are based only on our current beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the future of our business, future plans and strategies, projections, anticipated events and trends, the economy and other future conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of which are outside of our control. Our actual results and financial condition may differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Therefore, you should not rely on any of these forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause our actual results and financial condition to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements include, among others, the following: (i) supply chain delays; (ii) acceptance of our products by consumers; (iii) delays in or nonacceptance by third parties to sell our products; and (iv) competition from other producers of similar products. More detailed information about the Company and the risk factors that may affect the realization of forward-looking statements is set forth in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC”), including, without limitation, our Annual Report on Form 10-K and our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. Investors and security holders are urged to read these documents free of charge on the SEC's web site at www.sec.gov . As a result of these matters, changes in facts, assumptions not being realized or other circumstances, the Company's actual results may differ materially from the expected results discussed in the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. The forward-looking statements made in this press release are made only as of the date of this press release, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update them to reflect subsequent events or circumstances.

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — 2024 was a brutal year for the Amazon rainforest, with rampant wildfires and extreme drought ravaging large parts of a biome that’s a critical counterweight to climate change. A warming climate fed drought that in turn fed the worst year for fires since 2005. And those fires contributed to deforestation, with authorities suspecting some fires were set to more easily clear land to run cattle. The Amazon is twice the size of India and sprawls across eight countries and one territory, storing vast amounts of carbon dioxide that would otherwise warm the planet. It has about 20% of the world’s fresh water and astounding biodiversity, including 16,000 known tree species. But governments have historically viewed it as an area to be exploited, with little regard for sustainability or the rights of its Indigenous peoples, and experts say exploitation by individuals and organized crime is rising at alarming rates. “The fires and drought experienced in 2024 across the Amazon rainforest could be ominous indicators that we are reaching the long-feared ecological tipping point,” said Andrew Miller, advocacy director at Amazon Watch, an organization that works to protect the rainforest. “Humanity’s window of opportunity to reverse this trend is shrinking, but still open.” There were some bright spots. The level of Amazonian forest loss fell in both Brazil and Colombia. And nations gathered for the annual United Nations conference on biodiversity agreed to give Indigenous peoples more say in nature conservation decisions. “If the Amazon rainforest is to avoid the tipping point, Indigenous people will have been a determinant factor,” Miller said. Wildfires and extreme drought Forest loss in Brazil’s Amazon — home to the largest swath of this rainforest — compared to the previous year, the lowest level of destruction in nine years. The improvement under leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva contrasted with deforestation that hit a 15-year high under Lula’s predecessor, far-right leader Jair Bolsonaro, who prioritized agribusiness expansion over forest protection and weakened environmental agencies. In July, Colombia in deforestation in 2023, driven by a drop in environmental destruction. The country’s environment minister Susana Muhamad warned that 2024’s figures may not be as promising as a significant rise in deforestation had already been recorded by July due to dry weather caused by El Nino, a weather phenomenon that warms the central Pacific. Illegal economies continue to drive deforestation in the Andean nation. “It’s impossible to overlook the threat posed by organized crime and the economies they control to Amazon conservation,” said Bram Ebus, a consultant for Crisis Group in Latin America. “Illegal gold mining is expanding rapidly, driven by soaring global prices, and the revenues of illicit economies often surpass state budgets allocated to combat them.” In Brazil, large swaths of the rainforest were from fires raging across the Amazon, Cerrado savannah, Pantanal wetland and the state of Sao Paulo. Fires are traditionally used for deforestation and for managing pastures, and those man-made blazes were largely responsible for igniting the wildfires. For a second year, the , leading some countries to declare a state of emergency and distribute food and water to struggling residents. The situation was most critical in Brazil, where one of the Amazon River’s main tributaries Cesar Ipenza, an environmental lawyer who lives in the heart of the Peruvian Amazon, said he believes people are becoming increasingly aware of the Amazon’s fundamental role “for the survival of society as a whole.” But, like Miller, he worries about a “point of no return of Amazon destruction.” It was the worst year for Amazon fires since 2005, according to nonprofit Rainforest Foundation US. Between January and October, an area larger than the state of Iowa — 37.42 million acres, or about 15.1 million hectares of Brazil’s Amazon — burned. Bolivia had a record number of fires in the first ten months of the year. “Forest fires have become a constant, especially in the summer months and require particular attention from the authorities who don’t how to deal with or respond to them,” Ipenza said. Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, and Guyana also saw a surge in fires this year. Indigenous voices and rights made headway in 2024 The United Nations conference on biodiversity — this year known as COP16 — was hosted by Colombia. The meetings put the Amazon in the spotlight and a historic agreement was made to give Indigenous groups more of , a development that builds on a growing movement to recognize Indigenous people’s role in protecting land and combating climate change. Both Ebus and Miller saw promise in the appointment of Martin von Hildebrand as the new secretary general for the Amazon Treaty Cooperation Organization, announced during COP16. “As an expert on Amazon communities, he will need to align governments for joint conservation efforts. If the political will is there, international backers will step forward to finance new strategies to protect the world’s largest tropical rainforest,” Ebus said. Ebus said Amazon countries need to cooperate more, whether in law enforcement, deploying joint emergency teams to combat forest fires, or providing health care in remote Amazon borderlands. But they need help from the wider world, he said. “The well-being of the Amazon is a shared global responsibility, as consumer demand worldwide fuels the trade in commodities that finance violence and environmental destruction,” he said. Next year marks a critical moment for the Amazon, as Belém do Pará in northern Brazil hosts the first United Nations COP in the region that will focus on climate. “Leaders from Amazon countries have a chance to showcase strategies and demand tangible support,” Ebus said. ___ The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at . Steven Grattan, The Associated PressFamilies enjoy unique programming at Ottawa museums over holiday break

By JILL COLVIN and STEPHEN GROVES WASHINGTON (AP) — After several weeks working mostly behind closed doors, Vice President-elect JD Vance returned to Capitol Hill this week in a new, more visible role: Helping Donald Trump try to get his most contentious Cabinet picks to confirmation in the Senate, where Vance has served for the last two years. Vance arrived at the Capitol on Wednesday with former Rep. Matt Gaetz and spent the morning sitting in on meetings between Trump’s choice for attorney general and key Republicans, including members of the Senate Judiciary Committee. The effort was for naught: Gaetz announced a day later that he was withdrawing his name amid scrutiny over sex trafficking allegations and the reality that he was unlikely to be confirmed. Thursday morning Vance was back, this time accompanying Pete Hegseth, the “Fox & Friends Weekend” host whom Trump has tapped to be the next secretary of defense. Hegseth also has faced allegations of sexual assault that he denies. Vance is expected to accompany other nominees for meetings in coming weeks as he tries to leverage the two years he has spent in the Senate to help push through Trump’s picks. Vice President-elect JD Vance, still a Republican senator from Ohio, walks from a private meeting with President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to be attorney general, former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to be attorney general, former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., center, and Vice President-elect JD Vance, left, walk out of a meeting with Republican Senate Judiciary Committee members, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis) FILE – Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, departs the chamber at the Capitol in Washington, March 15, 2023. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File) FILE – Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, center speaks during a Senate Banking Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, March 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File) FILE – Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, right, speaks with Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, before testifying at a hearing, March 9, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf, File) FILE – Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, arrives for a classified briefing on China, at the Capitol in Washington, Feb. 15, 2023. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File) FILE – Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, arrives for a vote on Capitol Hill, Sept. 12, 2023 in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File) FILE – Sen. JD Vance R-Ohio speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Feb. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File) Vice President-elect JD Vance, still a Republican senator from Ohio, walks from a private meeting with President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to be attorney general, former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) The role of introducing nominees around Capitol Hill is an unusual one for a vice president-elect. Usually the job goes to a former senator who has close relationships on the Hill, or a more junior aide. But this time the role fits Vance, said Marc Short, who served as Trump’s first director of legislative affairs as well as chief of staff to Trump’s first vice president, Mike Pence, who spent more than a decade in Congress and led the former president’s transition ahead of his first term. ”JD probably has a lot of current allies in the Senate and so it makes sense to have him utilized in that capacity,” Short said. Unlike the first Trump transition, which played out before cameras at Trump Tower in New York and at the president-elect’s golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, this one has largely happened behind closed doors in Palm Beach, Florida. There, a small group of officials and aides meet daily at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort to run through possible contenders and interview job candidates. The group includes Elon Musk, the billionaire who has spent so much time at the club that Trump has joked he can’t get rid of him. Vance has been a constant presence, even as he’s kept a lower profile. The Ohio senator has spent much of the last two weeks in Palm Beach, according to people familiar with his plans, playing an active role in the transition, on which he serves as honorary chair. Vance has been staying at a cottage on the property of the gilded club, where rooms are adorned with cherubs, oriental rugs and intricate golden inlays. It’s a world away from the famously hardscrabble upbringing that Vance documented in the memoir that made him famous, “Hillbilly Elegy.” His young children have also joined him at Mar-a-Lago, at times. Vance was photographed in shorts and a polo shirt playing with his kids on the seawall of the property with a large palm frond, a U.S. Secret Service robotic security dog in the distance. On the rare days when he is not in Palm Beach, Vance has been joining the sessions remotely via Zoom. Though he has taken a break from TV interviews after months of constant appearances, Vance has been active in the meetings, which began immediately after the election and include interviews and as well as presentations on candidates’ pluses and minuses. Among those interviewed: Contenders to replace FBI Director Christopher Wray , as Vance wrote in a since-deleted social media post. Defending himself from criticism that he’d missed a Senate vote in which one of President Joe Biden’s judicial nominees was confirmed, Vance wrote that he was meeting at the time “with President Trump to interview multiple positions for our government, including for FBI Director.” “I tend to think it’s more important to get an FBI director who will dismantle the deep state than it is for Republicans to lose a vote 49-46 rather than 49-45,” Vance added on X. “But that’s just me.” While Vance did not come in to the transition with a list of people he wanted to see in specific roles, he and his friend, Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., who is also a member of the transition team, were eager to see former Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. find roles in the administration. Trump ended up selecting Gabbard as the next director of national intelligence , a powerful position that sits atop the nation’s spy agencies and acts as the president’s top intelligence adviser. And he chose Kennedy to lead the Department of Health and Human Services , a massive agency that oversees everything from drug and food safety to Medicare and Medicaid. Vance was also a big booster of Tom Homan, the former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, who will serve as Trump’s “border czar.” In another sign of Vance’s influence, James Braid, a top aide to the senator, is expected to serve as Trump’s legislative affairs director. Allies say it’s too early to discuss what portfolio Vance might take on in the White House. While he gravitates to issues like trade, immigration and tech policy, Vance sees his role as doing whatever Trump needs. Vance was spotted days after the election giving his son’s Boy Scout troop a tour of the Capitol and was there the day of leadership elections. He returned in earnest this week, first with Gaetz — arguably Trump’s most divisive pick — and then Hegseth, who has was been accused of sexually assaulting a woman in 2017, according to an investigative report made public this week. Hegseth told police at the time that the encounter had been consensual and denied any wrongdoing. Vance hosted Hegseth in his Senate office as GOP senators, including those who sit on the Senate Armed Services Committee, filtered in to meet with the nominee for defense secretary. While a president’s nominees usually visit individual senators’ offices, meeting them on their own turf, the freshman senator — who is accompanied everywhere by a large Secret Service detail that makes moving around more unwieldy — instead brought Gaetz to a room in the Capitol on Wednesday and Hegseth to his office on Thursday. Senators came to them. Vance made it to votes Wednesday and Thursday, but missed others on Thursday afternoon. Vance is expected to continue to leverage his relationships in the Senate after Trump takes office. But many Republicans there have longer relationships with Trump himself. Sen. Kevin Cramer, a North Dakota Republican, said that Trump was often the first person to call him back when he was trying to reach high-level White House officials during Trump’s first term. “He has the most active Rolodex of just about anybody I’ve ever known,” Cramer said, adding that Vance would make a good addition. “They’ll divide names up by who has the most persuasion here,” Cramer said, but added, “Whoever his liaison is will not work as hard at it as he will.” Cramer was complimentary of the Ohio senator, saying he was “pleasant” and ” interesting” to be around. ′′He doesn’t have the long relationships,” he said. “But we all like people that have done what we’ve done. I mean, that’s sort of a natural kinship, just probably not as personally tied.” Under the Constitution, Vance will also have a role presiding over the Senate and breaking tie votes. But he’s not likely to be needed for that as often as was Kamala Harris, who broke a record number of ties for Democrats as vice president, since Republicans will have a bigger cushion in the chamber next year. Colvin reported from New York. Associated Press writer Mary Clare Jalonick contributed to this report.Coastal Carolina 48, Georgia St. 27

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