Senate Republicans are launching their race to quickly confirm President Trump’s Cabinet nominees, and they’re starting with his national security team.
The senators began Monday night unanimously affirmative Marco Rubio becomes Secretary of State. Also on Monday, Defense Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth, CIA Director nominee John Ratcliffe and Homeland Security Secretary nominee Kristi Noem all left committees, gaining a lead in the votes.
But any Republican plans to move quickly could fall apart as Democrats work to leisurely the nominations, potentially causing early headaches for Trump and his team as they push to install his top national security officials sooner rather than later.
“We’re going to find out what the traffic can handle,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) told The Hill. “We are prepared to do whatever it takes to get them on the right path.”
With Rubio out of the way, the attention shifts to Ratcliffe, Hegseth and Noem.
Of that group, Ratcliffe is by far considered the most likely to win significant support from Democrats and, with their support, be confirmed quickly. The Senate Intelligence Committee approved his nomination by an overwhelming 14-3 marginwith five Democrats voting in favor, more than those who were in opposition.
Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), the panel’s vice chairman, voted for the former Director of National Intelligence (DNI) but told reporters he was unsure whether Democrats would buy time to quickly advance his nomination .
Noem and Hegseth were also both voted out of committee Monday night, but Democrats are widely expected to force Republicans to take the scenic route to confirming both.
Hegseth progressed on a strictly party-political votebut name received significant bipartisan supportwith a 13-2 lead.
However, Republicans are vowing to apply every tool at their disposal, including the threat of weekend work, to get the Cabinet together.
“We will get through. We just have to do it. We’re just going to lock down the floor,” said Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.). “And we will spend many nights and weekends here. … That’s fine.”
“We’re just getting started,” Cramer continued, adding that he hasn’t received any guidance from Thune about possible work this coming weekend.
It’s unclear who would be next on the Cabinet’s to-do list after the national security foursome, although a number of nominees may leave the committee in the coming days.
Pam Bondi and former Rep. Sean Duffy (R-Wis.) both have votes scheduled in their respective committees on Wednesday. Bondi is Trump’s nominee to head the Justice Department, while Duffy is being considered for transportation secretary.
Former Reps. Doug Collins (R-Ga.) and Lee Zeldin (R-N.Y.) are also scheduled to have committee votes Thursday on their nominations to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Environmental Protection Agency, respectively.
And Russell Vought, Trump’s nominee to lead the Office of Management and Budget, resigned from the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee in a party-line vote on Monday but also has a hearing before the Senate Budget Committee.
What remains unclear is the future of two of Trump’s more controversial nominees: former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (R-Hawaii) will be DNI and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will lead the Department of Health and Human Services.
Gabbard, believed to be the most vulnerable candidate on Trump’s slate, has not yet set a date for a confirmation hearing before the Senate Intelligence Committee. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), a member of the panel, told The Hill that some remaining paperwork issues had delayed their process.
“I don’t know right now when that’s going to happen,” Rounds said. “It should be available shortly.”
Kennedy’s delay is also due to paperwork, with a Senate Republican aide citing his convoluted financial background.
Both could not take place until the middle of next week at the earliest, as the hearings must be announced a week in advance.
Kash Patel, Trump’s decision to lead the FBI was shelved by the Senate Judiciary Committee in favor of Bondi. However, the panel is expected to decide on him in the near future.
“He’s ready,” said Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), who brought in Patel He attended a Senate Republican luncheon last week and is confident in his chances of being confirmed. “He’s almost free [paperwork wise] and he had great meetings with all the Republican members and I think many of the Democratic members.”
But for now, it is the first national security team that is a priority for Republicans as they try to move on the matter as quickly as possible.
“It shows a very rapid continuity of order that is important to the rest of the world,” Rounds said. “The practical side is that you need these people who can make decisions quickly in times of a national emergency, and you can avoid national emergencies if you are prepared.”
“And the way you do that is to get these people in quickly,” he added.
