The police release a report on Pete Hegseth

The Monterey Police Department released a report in which a woman accused Pete Hegseth, Donald Trump’s nominee for defence secretary, of drugging and sexually assaulting her. Mr Hegseth has claimed that the encounter was consensual and denies wrongdoing, but says that he did pay the woman as part of a non-disclosure agreement. No charges against him were filed.

Republicans on the House of Representatives ethics committee blocked the release of a report into alleged misconduct by Matt Gaetz. Mr Trump’s pick for attorney-general, who resigned as a congressman last week, is alleged to have paid two women for sex, among other questionable behaviour. Mr Gaetz, whose appointment could be blocked by the Senate, has repeatedly denied all allegations.

Mr Trump tapped Matthew Whitaker to be ambassador to NATO. Mr Whitaker, who was the president-elect’s acting attorney-general in his previous administration, has little experience of foreign policy. Mr Trump said his pick was a “strong warrior and loyal patriot” who would “strengthen relationships” with other members of the alliance.

The Justice Department asked a federal judge to approve the break-up of Google. It wants to force the tech giant to divest its Chrome web browser, among other things. In August a district court ruled that Google had maintained a monopoly over search for a decade. Google handles around 90% of America’s search queries, helping it become the world’s largest advertising business.

Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy laid out plans for their new Department of Government Efficiency in the Wall Street Journal. The pair said they would correct the “executive overreach” of regulations created by agencies rather than Congress, thereby allowing “mass head-count reductions”. They also promised to overhaul the government’s procurement process and to eliminate “waste, fraud and abuse” with “pinpoint executive actions”. An “expiration date” for DOGE was set: July 4th 2026.

Jose Ibarra, a Venezuelan illegal migrant, was convicted of the murder of Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student at the University of Georgia, and sentenced to life in prison. Republicans have repeatedly cited Ms Riley’s murder as an example of the Democrats’ failed border policies. In a social-media post, Mr Trump promised to “remove these criminals and thugs from our country”.

That the government should stay out of Americans’ fridges and leave them to eat whatever they want is a cherished belief of many Republicans. Robert F. Kennedy junior, Mr Trump’s pick for secretary of health, challenges these orthodoxies. He and his merry band of followers—including Mehmet Oz, a television doctor known for promoting pseudoscience—could do a lot of harm. But read why they may also do some good.

Africa “has benefited immensely from China’s largesse” in recent years, wrote Chimwemwe Mwanza in the Lusaka Times, a Zambian newspaper. “In addition to trade”, African countries have gained from “Chinese-funded infrastructure projects”. A trade war with America would slow China’s growth, and “Zambia, like many countries in sub-Saharan Africa, can ill afford to trade with a weakened China.”

15%, the corporate-tax rate most pundits think Mr Trump would prefer. Read our story to find out about the tax bonanza America Inc is hoping for, and why it may be disappointed.

Every week YouGov polls Americans on behalf of The Economist. This week we asked about five of Mr Trump’s choices for top jobs. All of his picks enjoyed net favourable ratings except Mr Gaetz, who was selected to be attorney-general. But young people were notably more enthusiastic about Mr Trump’s selection than older Americans.

From Monday to Thursday we’ll quiz you on all things American. This week’s questions are on presidential appointments that were rejected by the Senate.

Thursday: Dwight Eisenhower’s pick for commerce secretary, Lewis Strauss, was rejected by a vote of 49 to 46 in 1959. In which recent film was his failed nomination a major plot point?

Tuesday: In 1989 the Senate refused to confirm George H.W. Bush’s pick for secretary of defence. Who was it?

See how to take part in the quiz at the bottom of this page.

If you enjoyed this week’s questions, play a special US election edition of Dateline, The Economist’s history game.