Good morning and welcome to way too early. The show that's going to have plenty of questions for lawmakers heading in and out of today's hearings. Oddly enough, they don't let me ask the questions during them, but I've got plenty for after. We're going to see you from Capitol Hill. I'm Ali Vitale on this Tuesday, May 12th. We're going to start with the news right there on my beat because it's going to be a very busy day in Congress. This morning, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Dan Cain will testify before lawmakers in both the House and Senate. The pair will go before the House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee at 8 a.m. Eastern, then at 1030, give it to the Senate side. Secretary Hegsgeseth and Kane will face the Senate Appropriations

Defense Subcommittee there. That's where they could get some pushback from Republican lawmakers,

including Appropriations Chair Susan Collins of Maine, who voted last month in favor of a war

powers resolution that would have forced the withdrawal of U.S. forces unless Congress gave

approval for a war with Iran.

Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska called for a vote last week on the authorization for use

of military force. And then there's subcommittee chair Mitch McConnell of Kentucky,

who's been critical of the Pentagon for sitting on $400 million of aid for Ukraine.

That funding was released after the senator wrote an op-ed for the Washington Post,

but this has been a central focus for McConnell as he finishes his final term in the Senate.

Also happening this morning, House Oversight Committee Democrats are set to hold a field hearing

in Palm Beach County, Florida as part of the congressional investigation into the late

sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. That hearing is set to begin at 10 a.m. Eastern with a number of lawmakers and attendance,

and it's going to include testimony from Epstein survivors and witnesses in that investigation.

Ranking member, Congressman Robert Garcia, first announced the hearing in February,

calling out President Trump after his name appeared thousands of times in the files released by the DOJ. Garcia added, quote, if Trump has nothing to hide, he should join us in his hometown of Palm Beach. I want to bring it on set with me, Capitol Hill reporter Julie Grace, Broughke. Julie Grace, the president is not going to Palm Beach County. We will get to that in just a moment. But I think one of the central focuses today is the way is that it's appropriation season. So all of these cabinet secretaries

are set to come up to Capitol Hill. But timing really is everything because there's so many

questions for the Secretary of War, Pete Heggseth, and then of course General Dan Kane.

So what are you anticipating from Republicans who I actually do think have some discomfort around the way that the Iran war is dragging on? Absolutely. I mean, especially on the Senate side, I think with Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski, I think there could be some fireworks there. Over on the House side, I've talked to a number of lawmakers that said the 8 a.m. timing on that may have been intentional to keep attendance down so there'd be

less fireworks on that side. Lawmakers don't love an early morning? I mean, who among us, but we are here.

We love being up way too early. I mean, I definitely think the war power situation is going to be

something. And I think some of these high profile firings that have happened in recent weeks will be

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