Axios

Marco Rubio, the most skeptical GOP questioner, scored when asking Tillerson's opinion on the extrajudicial killings of suspected drug dealers in The Philippines:

Tillerson: I'm not disputing anything you're saying because I know you have access information that I do not have.Rubio: That's from the Los Angeles Times.Tillerson: Well, I'm not going to rely on solely what I read in the newspapers.

When pressed by Ed Markey on Trump's prior statements seemingly supportive of nuclear proliferation in East Asia:

Tillerson: I do not agree . . . I don't think anyone advocates for more nuclear weapons on the planet.

Though Tillerson said he believes Islam is a "great faith" that doesn't necessitate a "blanket rejection" on entering the U.S., he was noncommittal when pressed by Jeanne Shaheen about Trump's proposed Muslim ban…

Tillerson: I would need to have a lot more information around how such an approach would even be constructed.

As the only nominee who has served at the cabinet-level and in the private sector (and the wife of the Senate majority leader), Elaine Chao's confirmation hearing for transportation secretary was breezy as expected. Here's what you need to know.

Chao called Trump's infrastructure plan "ambitious" and said the government alone couldn't fund it.

As mentioned, the government does not have the resources to address all the infrastructure needs within our country. So all of us need to put our best thinking forward as to how to fund the aging infrastructure.

Tech alert: Although Chao said there are some concerns with the development of autonomous vehicles and drones, she said DOT should "not dampen the basic creativity and innovation of our country."

Chao sidestepped questions about implementing positive train control, saying she "hoped to get briefed" on it, and FAA privatization, by joking that she wanted to get confirmed before detailing her position.

Smooth sailing. Roger Wicker's take: "Most members of this committee are delighted that you have been chosen for this position. I think you'll be confirmed with a nice bipartisan vote."

Rex Tillerson, Trump's pick for Secretary of State, is spending his day getting grilled by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. The big takeaways from his morning of testifying:

Marco Rubio pushed him on Russian involvement in Syria…

Rubio: Is Vladimir Putin a war criminal?Tillerson: I would not use that term.

In response to Ben Cardin's query on defending NATO allies…

Tillerson: I think what Russian leadership would have understood is a powerful response that indicated — yes, you took Crimea, but this stops right here.

Getting testy with Tim Kaine on Exxon-Mobil's muddying of climate research…

Kaine: Do you lack the knowledge to answer my question or do you refuse to answer my question?Tillerson: A little of both.

CNN has a lengthy new report by a group of reporters — including Jake Tapper, Evan Perez, Carl Bernstein and Jim Sciutto — claiming that U.S. intelligence officials have warned Trump that Russia is trying to compromise him.

What's new:

1. Trump and Obama were briefed last week on a two-page synopsis of a report compiled by a former British spy at the behest of opposition researchers.
2. The briefers were the heads of the four main intelligence agencies: The FBI, CIA, NSA and Director of National Intelligence.
3. The briefing was on "allegations that Russian operatives claim to have compromising personal and financial information about Mr. Trump..."

• Encryption and surveillance: Sessions wants to expand the government's surveillance apparatus, an unpopular position in Silicon Valley. He criticized Apple during the company's scuffle with the FBI last year and has worked in Congress to expand law enforcement access to digital data.
• Antitrust: Donald Trump has pledged to kill AT&T's mammoth purchase of Time Warner. Justice's role as the main agency looking at the deal will put Sessions' views on antitrust law in the spotlight. They are all the more significant with buzz around a possible merger of Sprint and T-Mobile.
• Immigration: Sessions, as Politico noted in November, doesn't have a problem criticizing Silicon Valley darlings for their use of the H1-B visa program for high-skilled workers.

The bigger picture: Don't expect tech's concerns to be front and center at this one. Sessions' record on issues related to race is going to be the major theme of the hearing. The immigration discussion will more likely focus on undocumented immigrants living in the United States than the H1-B program, which Justice doesn't administer.

What's next: Transportation Secretary nominee Elaine Chao has her hearing Wednesday. Commerce nominee Wilbur Ross goes on Thursday.

A bipartisan Senate group is prepping a fresh new round of Russia sanctions, per Politico. There are 10 co-sponsors, including Lindsey Graham, Marco Rubio, John McCain, Ben Cardin, Ben Sasse and Rob Portman.

The new sanctions would:

• Freeze assets and impose visa bans on hackers and those deemed to be tied to hackers
• Impose sanctions on bank transactions with the Russian defense and intelligence sectors.
• Put Obama's 2014 Russia sanctions into formal law.
• Ban any recognition of Russian sovereignty over Crimea.
• Authorize $100 million for the U.S. government to counter "fake news," among other provisions.

Why it matters: Trump and his Secretary of State nominee, Rex Tillerson, have signaled they'll be friendlier to Russia than the Obama administration. This is a sign that Trump will have to battle Congress to make that happen.