Sen. Marco Rubio and former Florida Lawyer Basic Pam Bondi cruised by way of the beginning of Senate affirmation hearings Wednesday as President-elect Trump’s key cupboard nominees transfer ahead with few obvious main snags.
Rubio, who’s well-regarded by each Republicans and Democrats alike, seems to be on a glide path to profitable affirmation as secretary of state from his present Senate colleagues whereas Bondi appears to be like poised to turn into the nation’s high legislation enforcement official.
Rubio vowed in his affirmation listening to to implement Trump’s “America First” imaginative and prescient as secretary of state.
“Placing our core national interests above all else is not isolationism,” Rubio informed the Senate Overseas Relations Committee. “It is the commonsense realization that a foreign policy centered on our national interest is not some outdated relic.”
Bondi, who was tapped for the legal professional normal submit after ex-Rep. Matt Gaetz’s nomination imploded, sought to keep away from confrontational statements in her listening to on the Judiciary Committee.
“The Justice Department must be independent and must act independently,” Bondi stated. “The No. 1 job is to enforce the law fairly and even-handedly. And that’s what will be done if I am confirmed as the attorney general.”
4 different Trump cupboard nominees additionally confronted Senate affirmation hearings, together with Rep. John Ratcliffe to steer the Central Intelligence Company, Sean Duffy for the Division of Transportation, Chris Wright for the Division of Vitality and Russell Vought for the Workplace of Administration and Finances.
Pete Hegseth picked up the endorsement of pivotal Republican Sen. Joni Ernst Wednesday as he edged nearer to profitable approval as the subsequent secretary of protection after a assured efficiency at his personal listening to a day earlier.
All of Trump’s presidential nominees want not less than 50 votes to win Senate affirmation, which means they’d seemingly be capable of lose not more than three GOP votes if Democrats are united in opposition.
Most are anticipated to simply win approval, however the jury continues to be out on controversial picks like Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to be Secretary of Well being and Human Providers, FBI Director nominee Kash Patel and Tulsi Gabbard as Director of Nationwide Intelligence.
Bondi endured some tough moments as her listening to kicked off, together with repeatedly dodging what she known as hypothetical questions on whether or not she would resist doubtlessly unlawful or improper calls for from Trump for retribution towards his enemies.
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) informed her it’s vital that any legal professional normal nominee be “committed first and foremost to theques Constitution and the American people — not the president and his political agenda.”
Bondi principally caught to the MAGA script, echoing Trump’s claims that he was wrongly prosecuted by the Justice Division for political functions.
“They targeted Donald Trump,” she stated. “That will not be the case if I am attorney general, I will not politicize that office.”
Bondi stated she would advise Trump “on a case by case basis” relating to his pledge to pardon defendants prosecuted for his or her involvement within the Jan. 6, 2021 assault on the Capitol.
She wouldn’t say if she agreed with Trump’s pledge to pardon some rioters convicted of crimes however insisted that she condemns “any violence on a law enforcement officer in this country.”
In an indication of his confidence, Rubio joked along with his colleagues that each mates and foes alike would possibly discover good causes to help his nomination.
“I hope I can earn your support, whether it’s because you believe I would do a good job, or because you want to get rid of me,” the Florida Republican stated.
“Either way, the results are the same,” Sen. James Risch (R-Idaho), the committee’s GOP chair, joked again.
