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Students: We're Mr. Geisler's sixth-grade social studies class from Columbia Middle School, Aurora, Colorado, and Channel One starts now!

Arielle: Thanks to Columbia Middle School for starting us off this Friday. Now, it has been a busy week in Washington, D.C., as several of President-elect Donald Trump’s picks for his cabinet have been lining up and answering tough questions to see if they will be approved or not.

A president's cabinet makes up some of his closest advisors that head up the different departments in the executive branch. Now, before we update you on who his nominees are, we want to see just how much you know about the process with a pop quiz.

Who approves cabinet nominees?

a. the Senate

b. the House of Representatives

c. both the Senate and the House or

d. the Supreme Court

Take 10 seconds.

Okay, time is up. The answer is a. The Senate confirms presidential cabinet nominees by a simple majority.

The cabinet's role is to advise the president on anything that relates to the different departments under the executive branch. George Washington only had four cabinet departments: state, war, treasury and attorney general. Today, there are 15 cabinet departments.

Now Demetrius is here with the latest on Trump's nominees.

Demetrius: This week, the U.S. Senate has got no time for fooling around. It has got back-to-back meetings and overlapping hearings, grilling the president-elect's nominees for some of the most important cabinet positions.

Yesterday, Congress held three confirmation hearings at the same time: Congressman Mike Pompeo, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to head the CIA…

Senator Dianne Feinstein: If you were ordered by the president to restart the CIA’s use of enhanced interrogation techniques, would you comply?

Representative Mike Pompeo: Senator, absolutely not.

Demetrius: …retired General James Mattis for secretary of defense and retired neurosurgeon and former presidential candidate Ben Carson for secretary of Housing and Urban Development.

Yesterday’s questioning was tame compared to Wednesday's hearings.

Senator Benjamin Cardin: Mr. Tillerson, I'm sure you can understand why I and many of my colleagues have deep concerns about your relationship with Mr. Putin.

Demetrius: Rex Tillerson, the CEO of ExxonMobil, developed a personal relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin. And now he is up for the powerful cabinet position secretary of state. Tillerson assured senators that, if confirmed, he would not be afraid to punish Russia if necessary.

In another hearing room — a historic move.

Senator Cory Booker: I'm breaking with Senate tradition to testify on the nomination of one of my colleagues.

Demetrius: Senator Cory Booker and Congressman John Lewis testified against their colleague Senator Jeff Sessions, who is up for attorney general. 

Booker: Senator Sessions has not demonstrated a commitment to a central requisite of the job: to aggressively pursue the congressional mandate of civil rights, equal rights and justice for all of our citizens.

Demetrius: But others testified that Sessions is an honest man who will uphold the law.

Now, Republicans hold a majority in the Senate, and Trump's cabinet picks will likely be confirmed if senators vote along with their party affiliation.

Arielle: Thanks, Demetrius.

All right, after the break, what made our vice president tear up? The answer — coming up.

Arielle: Okay, now let's get a roundup of headlines. The U.S. Justice Department is moving forward to see if the FBI broke any rules during the 2016 election. It all stems from the review of Hillary Clinton's emails.

Director James Comey: Our judgment is that no reasonable prosecutor would bring such a case.

Arielle: It all started when FBI Director James Comey held a news conference in July to discuss Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server during her time as secretary of state. At the time Comey said he would not charge Clinton with any crime. But months later, just 11 days before the election, Comey sent a letter to Congress saying he was reopening the investigation into Hillary Clinton's emails.

One day before the election, Clinton was once again cleared, but now the Justice Department says it wants answers to see if Comey violated rules that prohibit the FBI from releasing information that might influence an election. The Clinton campaign blames Comey and his last-minute letter to Congress for undoing her chances to win the presidency.

Okay, next up, we are moving to California. First, there wasn't enough rain, creating a five-year drought. Now there is too much rain — seems like the Golden State just can't get it right.

Six days and counting — the rain just won't stop. Flooding triggered evacuations in Northern California; some had to be rescued by boat.

Cesar Rojas: You expect a little puddle of rain, but you walk out, and you step into a swimming pool, you know.

Arielle: Further east, storms in the Sierra Nevada Mountains brought down power lines and trees. Snow in South Lake Tahoe made driving a pretty bad idea.

Lilian Borunda: I knew as soon as I came out on my street here, like, I should not be driving.

Arielle: The good news is that 40 percent of California is no longer in a drought.

All right, now, it is the most famous bromance in the country — President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden. And yesterday, the president surprised his second-in-command with a good-bye party with plenty of jokes and tears.

The man everyone calls Joe could not hold back his tears and gratitude as President Obama gave him the highest civilian honor — the Medal of Freedom. It was all a surprise, and the vice president was humbled.

Vice President Joe Biden: I don't deserve this, but I know it came from the president’s heart.

Arielle: There was even some joking around.

President Barack Obama: This also gives the internet one last chance to talk about our bromance.

Arielle: President Obama called Biden a lion of American history, referring to him as a brother. In just a matter of days, the two men will become private citizens.

Now, as President Obama is also ready to say good-bye, we wanted to know what you thought about the job he did over the last eight years. We asked you, do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama handled his job as president? Sixty-two percent of you said yes — you approve, and 38 percent said you disapprove.

Victoria B. said, “I approve because he inherited the worst economic situation since the Great Depression, made it possible for everyone to have health insurance and even championed equal rights for LGBTQ."

Josh said, "I disapprove of the way he did his job as president. He doubled the country’s debt during his time in office, and I believe this will cause problems in the future for the United States."

Mrs. Figueroa's fifth-grade social studies class said, "President Obama is the ‘people's president.’ He is real, genuine and treats others with dignity, respect and care. His legacy of leadership will continue on in those of us who truly care about our fellow human beings. Thank you, President Obama!”

Thanks for weighing in, guys.

All right, up next, one football player passes along a helping hand to those without a home. 

Arielle: Okay, Emily is here, just in time for our Feel-Good Friday, and this week, it is all about giving back to your community.

Emily: Yes, Arielle, they say there is no better feeling than the act of giving, and today, we have got one college football player who used his tough past to build a future for those in need. Check it out.

It was a dream-come-true ending for Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson: a touchdown pass on the last play to win college football's National Championship.

Deshaun Watson: I am just thankful for, you know, the people I have around me, just believing in me.

Emily: But actually, Watson's dream came true long before this. In 2006, when he was 11, his family was able to move out of low-income housing — often called the projects.

Watson: I was in, you know, government apartments where, you know, a lot of bad influence was around. You know, it wasn't, you know, something that, you know, everyone wanted to stay in for the rest of their life.

Emily: Deshaun and his family — that is him in the black hoodie — were one of more than 150 families helped by former pro football star Warrick Dunn's charity. He partners with Habitat for Humanity to make home ownership a reality for single parents. 

Warrick Dunn: I just try to provide an opportunity for stability.

Emily: This is how Dunn honors his mother's memory, an off-duty Baton Rouge police officer killed during a robbery. At age 18 he became the guardian of five siblings, using his mom's life insurance to buy a house for them — learning early about the stability a home can provide.

Dunn: It gives them opportunity to reach for their dreams and to change their outcome, their future.

Emily: A nice story a decade ago became a great story Monday night. 

Watson: My dream came true, and, you know, all the success has been coming and blessings been coming through.

Emily: Just ask the guy living the dream who is now building Habitat houses with his Clemson teammates so others can live theirs.

Emily Reppert, Channel One News.

Arielle: And if you guys want more info on getting involved with Habitat for Humanity or other great organizations, just check out our guide to volunteering over at .

Okay guys, now go out there and make it happen. Remember, we are off on Monday for the Martin Luther King holiday, but we will be right back here on Tuesday.

 

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