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Today’s top stories

President-elect Donald Trump has begun selecting members of his staff; however, it is uncertain how much power his party will have in Congress. Republicans have won the Senate and will elect their leader this week. There is one seat available. The party could also have a narrow majority in the House of Representatives. Currently, the Republican Party has 213 seats in the House of Representatives, while the Democrats have 203. To gain a majority, a party needs 218 seats.

An exterior view of the U.S. Capitol on September 9 in Washington, DC

Kent Nishimura/Getty Images

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Kent Nishimura/Getty Images

• 🎧 There are 19 seats left to be called in the House, but it could take days before there is a ruling in those racestells NPR’s Danielle Kurtzleben Up first. Half of the House districts are in California, where it takes some time to count votes due to the certification process of same-day, mail-in ballots in such a large state. In the meantime, Trump posted on Truth Social overnight that he will appoint Tom Homan as his “border czar,” who will be in charge of the mass deportations. Last weekend he also said that he will not invite Mike Pompeo and Nikki Haley to his cabinet.

Ousted Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told relatives of Israeli hostages in Gaza that there is nothing left that the Israeli army must reach in Gaza. He also says Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is responsible for maintaining a ceasefire deal in July that could have ended the war and brought the remaining hostages home. Netanyahu fired Gallant last week, citing that trust between them had “eroded” and that “significant disagreements” had arisen between them over how to proceed in the war. Gallant discussed his views on the Israeli military during a closed-door meeting on his last day on the job.

• 🎧 Gil Dickman, who attended the meeting and had a cousin who was taken hostage and killed by Hamas in Gaza, tells NPR’s Kat Lonsdorf that he felt that Gallant could speak more freely than at similar meetings in the past. Since July, thousands of Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli army, bringing the death toll to more than 43,000, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health. There are still 101 Israeli hostages, some of whom are already dead. Many Israelis see Gallant’s dismissal as an example of Netanyahu trying to get rid of anyone who disagrees with him, Lonsdorf said. Some say they feel their democracy is at stake.

An NPR investigation found that a VA home loan program was intended to help veterans Ultimately, thousands of people were forced to take out expensive mortgages. Documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act show that at least 1,300 veterans faced monthly payment increases of more than 50%. Although a rescue plan is now being implemented by the Department of Veterans Affairs, many who need help are being excluded.

Special series

Jake Lang, center, and other Trump supporters clash with police and security forces as people attempt to storm the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021 in Washington, DC.

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Brent Stirton/Getty Images

Each day this week, Morning Edition will take a deep dive into one of the promises newly elected President Donald Trump made for the first day of his administration.

Trump has pledged to pardon those convicted in connection with the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Is that a promise he can keep? In March, he wrote on Truth Social that one of his first acts if elected president would be to free people he calls “hostages” on January 6, whom he claims are wrongly imprisoned. Kim Wehle, who wrote the book Pardon Power: How the Pardon System Works – and Whyspeaks with NPR’s Leila Fadel about the limitations of presidential pardons, whether pardons can be challenged, and the checks and balances on this presidential power.

From our hosts

President-elect Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally at Santander Arena on November 4 in Reading, Penn.

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

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Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

This essay was written by Steve Inskeep, Morning Edition and Up First host

Demography is not destiny.

The twenty-first century has not turned out the way many Democrats expected. A decade ago, some Democrats believed that an increasingly diverse population assured them of a governing majority. This would be a bit like California: a big, rich, super-diverse state that Democrats have dominated for decades, with the sole exception of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s governorship.

Nationally, the percentage of the population identifying as white declined; the percentage identifying as non-white continued to rise, mainly due to immigration. That put the Republican Party’s predominantly white coalition at a disadvantage. Demography was destiny, some analysts thought.

Instead, the Democratic coalition cracked. According to exit polls (which are not reliable, but they are what we have), the percentage of white voters has increased in this election. Republicans have expanded their coalition to include many people of colorr – without abandoning the rhetoric that has seemed to drive away non-white voters in the past – and certainly without abandoning Donald Trump.

We can have a long discussion about why this happened. What is clear is that changing demographics did not shape the election, at least not in the simple way some would have assumed. It’s up to Democrats to absorb this reality — and Republicans to seize power this time.

3 things you need to know before you go

Tuskegee University’s campus is pictured in 2023. A shooting on campus left one person dead and more than a dozen injured.

2C2K Photography/Flickr Creative Commons

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2C2K Photography/Flickr Creative Commons

1. Jaquez Myrick, 25, has been arrested in connection with yesterday morning’s shooting According to police, one person was killed and sixteen were injured at Tuskegee University in Alabama.
2. In 1971, 18-year-old Betsy Cornwell was stranded overnight when her key broke off in the ignition of her car. A car thief became her unlikely unsung hero when he went out of his way to make sure she got home safely.
3. H5 bird flu has reportedly been diagnosed in a human a first in Canada, according to health officials. The test is sent to another laboratory for confirmation.

This newsletter has been edited by Suzanne Nuijen.