President-elect Donald Trump’s first shocking choice for attorney general, Matt Gaetz, was thwarted by Senate Republicans. Despite the doubts of some rank-and-file Republicans, it is uncertain if they will be able to stop any other contentious choices.
The power battle between the president-elect and independent-minded Senate Republicans has been evident in the weeks following Trump’s stunning election triumph. There had been concerns that the newly elected Senate GOP majority will disregard its constitutional role to advice and consent and merely bow to Trump, the party’s most powerful leader.
Rather, a few Republican senators showed off their strength by rejecting Gaetz. As Trump’s dissatisfaction grows and the MAGA camp demands that Republicans support him and swiftly assemble his team, their political resolve will now be put to the test several times.
As they celebrate Thanksgiving, senators are enjoying a small break from inquiries about Trump’s nominations. However, when they return the following week, the attention will be focused on three Cabinet candidates who are causing concern on Capitol Hill and elsewhere:Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for secretary of health and human services; Tulsi Gabbard for director of national intelligence; and Pete Hegseth for secretary of defense.
Some Republican senators acknowledged that now that Gaetz is not the center of attention, Trump’s other troubled choices will be scrutinized. For instance, Hegseth is being questioned on a 2017 incident in which a lady said he had sexually assaulted her after stealing her phone and preventing her from leaving his hotel room. The matter has come up in Hegseth’s talks with members of the Armed Services Committee, whose votes he would require, even though he was not charged and has denied the accusations while affirming that he paid the accuser a confidential settlement.
Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., stated that he supported bipartisan legislation by Sens. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, and Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., to prevent sexual assault in the military, saying, “Well, it’s a pretty big problem, given that we have a sexual assault problem in our military.”
According to Cramer, this is the reason for background checks, hearings, and scrutiny on your part. It’s a rather alarming charge, but I won’t pass judgment on him just yet.
Political capital
The Trump transition team might lose too much political capital arguing for a hopeless Cabinet nominee before the party even starts working on its 2025 legislative agenda, Cramer had warned before Gaetz withdrew his name. According to Cramer and others, the former congressman from Florida had too much baggage from a lengthy ethics investigation into sexual misconduct and Gaetz’s successful campaign to unseat GOP Speaker Kevin McCarthy last year to garner the 51 votes required to be confirmed as the country’s top law enforcement official.
With Vice President JD Vance acting as the tie-breaker, Republicans will only be able to afford three GOP defections on any vote to confirm a nominee or approve legislation because they will hold 53 members in the new Senate.
Gaetz withdrew from the race on Thursday, allowing Trump to appoint former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi to head the Justice Department rather than prolonging the battle for a few more weeks. Republicans applauded Bondi’s selection, and it is anticipated that her route to confirmation will be considerably simpler.
It remains to be seen how much political capital Trump is prepared to spend on other candidates who have their own baggage. Despite the accusations of assault in 2017, some Senate Republicans who voiced some of the harshest condemnation of Gaetz claimed they could coexist with Hegseth.
He was not charged. In this, he wasn’t even somewhat charged. No crime was committed. Everything was left there by the police. Trump supporter and outspoken opponent of Gaetz, Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., stated as much on CNN’s State of the Union on Sunday. Therefore, that doesn’t stop Pete from continuing with this.
Potential red flags
Senators may be wary of Kennedy and Gabbard because of their own prior scandals. Kennedy, who Trump appointed as one of his top health officials, has made a number of untrue or deceptive statements regarding vaccines, fluoride, raw milk, and other topics that, if verified, would fall under his jurisdiction. Kennedy would be in charge of 13 federal agencies as secretary of HHS, including the National Institutes of Health, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, who is on the Senate Health committee that will hold Kennedy’s confirmation hearing, responded to reporters’ questions on RFK Jr.’s stance on vaccines by saying that she would continue to support the advantages of modern medicine as a parent.
A close Trump friend, Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., stated on Fox News Sunday that he has conducted an unofficial whip count on RFK and that, despite hearing reservations, he is confident that the soon-to-be HHS nominee would be confirmed with ease.
Both Democrats and some Republicans have criticized Gabbard, the former Democratic congressman who switched parties and supported Trump, for her positive remarks about Russia and her 2017 visit with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., a decorated Iraq War veteran and member of the Armed Services, stated on CNN Sunday that she believes she has been compromised by Russian-controlled media, which referred to her as a Russian asset.
“I don’t think Gabbard could pass an FBI background check,” she continued.
On NBC’s Meet the Press, Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., retaliated by calling Duckworth’s remarks about Gabbard a slur. He stated that there is no proof that she is a foreign asset.
President Trump is selecting exceptional and highly qualified individuals to serve in his Administration, according to a statement released by Trump communications director Steven Cheung.
No vetting
Executive branch nominees and appointees usually undergo FBI background investigations. However, none of Trump’s choices have yet to be submitted for this kind of scrutiny by the Trump team.
Sen. Bill Hagerty, a Republican from Tennessee, defended the action on Sunday, claiming that Americans don’t care who does the vetting.
The American public doesn’t seem to care who conducts background checks, in my opinion. Hagerty, Trump’s former ambassador to Japan, stated on ABC’s This Week that the American people care about seeing the mandate they voted for fulfilled.
FBI background checks, according to Democrats, might spare Trump and his campaign a great deal of trouble and humiliation.
Sen.-elect Adam Schiff, D-Calif., stated on NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday that he may have still chosen to nominate Matt Gaetz but may have changed his mind if they conducted a comprehensive investigation.
In addition to safeguarding the public interest, the FBI’s screening of possible nominees serves to ensure that the president-elect is not embarrassed by his nomination of someone like Matt Gaetz.
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