Trump Cabinet confirmation hearings **live commentary thread**

[The Other Castro]

Trump to nominate former House Intel Chair Pete Hoekstra as Ambassador to the Netherlands.

https://twitter.com/markknoller/status/889632990745292803?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etweet

[Attorney General, LGC Speaker, and Former PPT Dwarven Dragon]

At 5:30 p.m tomorrow, the Senate will VOTE on cloture on Exec. Cal. #172, Kevin Newsom, to be U.S Circuit Court Judge.

[Attorney General, LGC Speaker, and Former PPT Dwarven Dragon]

Newsom passes CLOTURE 68-26:


NAYs ---26
Baldwin (D-WI)
Bennet (D-CO)
Booker (D-NJ)
Brown (D-OH)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Carper (D-DE)
Coons (D-DE)
Cortez Masto (D-NV)
Franken (D-MN)
Gillibrand (D-NY)
Harris (D-CA)
Heinrich (D-NM)
Kaine (D-VA)
King (I-ME)
Manchin (D-WV)
Markey (D-MA)
Murray (D-WA)
Reed (D-RI)
Sanders (I-VT)
Schatz (D-HI)
Schumer (D-NY)
Udall (D-NM)
Van Hollen (D-MD)
Warren (D-MA)
Whitehouse (D-RI)
Wyden (D-OR)

Not Voting - 6
Burr (R-NC)
Graham (R-SC)
McCain (R-AZ)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Merkley (D-OR)
Peters (D-MI)

FINAL VOTE on Newsom tomorrow.

[The Other Castro]

Christopher Wray confirmed as FBI Director by a 92-5 vote.

Nos: Warren, Markey, Merkley, Gillibrand, Wyden

[Attorney General, LGC Speaker, and Former PPT Dwarven Dragon]

Christopher Wray confirmed as FBI Director by a 92-5 vote.

Nos: Warren, Markey, Merkley, Gillibrand, Wyden

Not Voting - 3
Burr (R-NC)
Franken (D-MN)
McCain (R-AZ)

[Attorney General, LGC Speaker, and Former PPT Dwarven Dragon]

Newsom confirmed 66-31:

NAYs ---31
Baldwin (D-WI)
Bennet (D-CO)
Booker (D-NJ)
Brown (D-OH)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Cardin (D-MD)
Carper (D-DE)
Coons (D-DE)
Cortez Masto (D-NV)
Duckworth (D-IL)
Durbin (D-IL)
Gillibrand (D-NY)
Harris (D-CA)
Heinrich (D-NM)
Hirono (D-HI)
Kaine (D-VA)
King (I-ME)
Manchin (D-WV)
Markey (D-MA)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Merkley (D-OR)
Murray (D-WA)
Reed (D-RI)
Sanders (I-VT)
Schatz (D-HI)
Schumer (D-NY)
Udall (D-NM)
Van Hollen (D-MD)
Warren (D-MA)
Whitehouse (D-RI)
Wyden (D-OR)

Not Voting - 3
Burr (R-NC)
Franken (D-MN)
McCain (R-AZ)

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

White House just officially announced that Trump intends to nominate Jon Huntsman as ambassador to Russia.

I'm a little surprised Huntsman would willingly tie himself to this dumpster fire of an administration.

Huntsman has always been more service before self oriented but it helps him in a future potus run. Also good for triangulation between US-Russia-China. He was the former ambassador to China.

Because he speaks fluent Mandarin and has focused a lot of his career on China and ethnic Chinese countries, though. In addition to being ambassador to China, he was also ambassador to Singapore and worked in the Commerce Department on East Asia trade issues under George H.W. Bush and was a Mormon missionary in Taiwan as a young adult. Odd choice for Russia, really. He has no Russia expertise.

His time in China has catapulted him into the "global elite." Notice how The Atlantic and Fareed Zakaria and the Wilson Center worship him? He's clearly marked himself as "in" to the extent that though he has no expertise in Russian culture, he still has the global connections to make a decent Ambassador who is more than qualified.

I think he's one of the few Trump friends among the globalist powers that be. That is a plus. Note that he never went out of his way to attack Trump like other Republican internationalists did.

[NewYorkExpress]

Christopher Wray confirmed as FBI Director by a 92-5 vote.

Nos: Warren, Markey, Merkley, Gillibrand, Wyden

Warren, Merkley and Gillibrand are clearly running for President after voting no here. Makes you wonder about Wyden and Markey's intentions a bit too...

[Attorney General, LGC Speaker, and Former PPT Dwarven Dragon]

Several Nominees were confirmed by voice vote today:

Richard V. Spencer to be Navy Secretary
Matthew Donovan, as Air Force undersecretary
Ryan McCarthy, as Army undersecretary
Ellen Lord, as undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics
Lucian Niemeyer, as assistant secretary of defense for energy, installations, and environment
Robert R. Hood, as assistant secretary of defense for legislative affairs
Robert Daigle, as director of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation
Elaine McCusker, as a principal deputy undersecretary of defense, comptroller.

[Attorney General, LGC Speaker, and Former PPT Dwarven Dragon]

Marvin Kaplan, who has been nominated to the national labor relations board, has passed CLOTURE 50-48:

NAYs ---48
Baldwin (D-WI)
Bennet (D-CO)
Blumenthal (D-CT)
Booker (D-NJ)
Brown (D-OH)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Cardin (D-MD)
Carper (D-DE)
Casey (D-PA)
Coons (D-DE)
Cortez Masto (D-NV)
Donnelly (D-IN)
Duckworth (D-IL)
Durbin (D-IL)
Feinstein (D-CA)
Franken (D-MN)
Gillibrand (D-NY)
Harris (D-CA)
Hassan (D-NH)
Heinrich (D-NM)
Heitkamp (D-ND)
Hirono (D-HI)
Kaine (D-VA)
King (I-ME)
Klobuchar (D-MN)
Leahy (D-VT)
Manchin (D-WV)
Markey (D-MA)
McCaskill (D-MO)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Merkley (D-OR)
Murphy (D-CT)
Murray (D-WA)
Nelson (D-FL)
Peters (D-MI)
Reed (D-RI)
Sanders (I-VT)
Schatz (D-HI)
Schumer (D-NY)
Shaheen (D-NH)
Stabenow (D-MI)
Tester (D-MT)
Udall (D-NM)
Van Hollen (D-MD)
Warner (D-VA)
Warren (D-MA)
Whitehouse (D-RI)
Wyden (D-OR)

Not Voting - 2
Burr (R-NC)
McCain (R-AZ)

Later Today: FINAL VOTE on Kaplan

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

6 no votes for FBI Director since the Senate started approving them.  5 of the 6 yesterday.  Disgusting.

[KingSweden]

Newsom confirmed 66-31:

NAYs ---31
Baldwin (D-WI)
Bennet (D-CO)
Booker (D-NJ)
Brown (D-OH)
Cantwell (D-WA)
Cardin (D-MD)
Carper (D-DE)
Coons (D-DE)
Cortez Masto (D-NV)
Duckworth (D-IL)
Durbin (D-IL)
Gillibrand (D-NY)
Harris (D-CA)
Heinrich (D-NM)
Hirono (D-HI)
Kaine (D-VA)
King (I-ME)
Manchin (D-WV)
Markey (D-MA)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Merkley (D-OR)
Murray (D-WA)
Reed (D-RI)
Sanders (I-VT)
Schatz (D-HI)
Schumer (D-NY)
Udall (D-NM)
Van Hollen (D-MD)
Warren (D-MA)
Whitehouse (D-RI)
Wyden (D-OR)

Not Voting - 3
Burr (R-NC)
Franken (D-MN)
McCain (R-AZ)

Newsom must be remarkably less controversial than the other circuit court judges nominated so far

[Attorney General, LGC Speaker, and Former PPT Dwarven Dragon]

After the yielding back of remaining debate time, Kaplan was confirmed by a vote of 50 to 48. There were no changes from the CLOTURE vote earlier today.

[FEMA Camp Administrator]

White House just officially announced that Trump intends to nominate Jon Huntsman as ambassador to Russia.

So do we know if/when he'll have a confirmation hearing/vote?

[Attorney General, LGC Speaker, and Former PPT Dwarven Dragon]

At Noon tomorrow, the senate will vote on confirmation of Exec. Cal. #103, Dan Brouillette, to be Deputy Secretary of Energy.

[Attorney General, LGC Speaker, and Former PPT Dwarven Dragon]

Brouillette confirmed 79-17:

NAYs ---17
Booker (D-NJ)
Cortez Masto (D-NV)
Duckworth (D-IL)
Franken (D-MN)
Gillibrand (D-NY)
Harris (D-CA)
Heller (R-NV)
Hirono (D-HI)
Markey (D-MA)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Merkley (D-OR)
Reed (D-RI)
Sanders (I-VT)
Schatz (D-HI)
Van Hollen (D-MD)
Warren (D-MA)
Whitehouse (D-RI)

Not Voting - 4
Burr (R-NC)
Hoeven (R-ND)
Inhofe (R-OK)
McCain (R-AZ)

[Attorney General, LGC Speaker, and Former PPT Dwarven Dragon]

The following nominees were confirmed by voice vote today:

Mira Radielovic Ricardel, to be an Undersecretary of Commerce
Althea Coetzee, to be Deputy Administrator of the Small Business Administration
Neil Chatterjee, to be a member of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
Robert F. Powelson, to be a member of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
David Malpass, to be an Undersecretary of the Treasury
Brent James McIntosh, to be General Counsel for the Department of the Treasury
Andrew K. Maloney, to be a Deputy Undersecretary of the Treasury
Vishal J. Amin, to be an Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator
Robert L. Sumwalt, III, to be a member of the National Transportation Safety Board
Stephen Elliott Boyd, to be an Assistant Attorney General
J. Christopher Giancarlo, to be Chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission
Claire M. Grady, to be an Undersecretary for the Department of Homeland Security
David James Glawe, to be an Undersecretary for the Department of Homeland Security
Mark Andrew Green, to be Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development
David P. Pekoske, to be an Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security
Beth Ann Williams, to be an Assistant Attorney General
John W. Huber, to be United States Attorney for the District of Utah
Justin E. Herdman, to be United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio
John E. Town, to be United States Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama
David J. Kautter, to be an Assistant Secretary of the Treasury
Brooks D. Tucker, to be an Assistant Secretary of Veterans Affairs
Michael P. Allen, to be a Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims
Amanda L. Meredith, to be a Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims
Joseph L. Toth, to be a Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims
Thomas G. Bowman, to be Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs
James Byrne, to be General Counsel, Department of Veterans Affairs
Susan M. Gordon, to be Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence
Kelly Knight Craft, to be Ambassador to Canada
Sharon Day, to be Ambassador to Costa Rica
Nathan Alexander Sales, to be Coordinator for Counterterrorism
George Edward Glass, to be Ambassador to Portugal
Robert Wood Johnson, to be Ambassador to the UK
Luis E. Arreaga, to be Ambassador to Guatemala
Krishna R. Urs, to be Ambassador to Peru
Kay Bailey Hutchinson, to be United States Permanent Representative on the Council of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Lewis M. Eisenberg, to be Ambassador to Italy and San Marino
Ray Washburne, to be President of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation
Kelley Eckels Currie, to be the Representative for the USA on the Economic and Social Council of the UN, and to be an Alternate Representative for the US to the UN General Assembly
Carl C. Risch, to be an Assistant Secretary of State
Richard Ashooh, to be an Assistant Secretary of Commerce
Neal J. Rackleff, to be an Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
Anna Maria Farias, to be an Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
Christopher Campbell, to be an Assistant Secretary of the Treasury
David Steele Bohigian, to be an Executive VP of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation

--------------------------

The Senate now stands adjourned until September 5.

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[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

I hope they can be all sworn it at once or it's going to be a long day for Pence. 

[Kamala]

Kay Bailey Hutchinson is a good choice. She comes from the Competent Center of the Republican Party, but is a little bit more bipartisan than the average member.

[NewYorkExpress]

https://www.voanews.com/a/south-north-korea-victor-cha/4011127.html

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[Atlas Has Shrugged]

I read Cha's book. Sounds like a solid pick.

[Attorney General, LGC Speaker, and Former PPT Dwarven Dragon]

Reminder of Today's session:

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[Attorney General, LGC Speaker, and Former PPT Dwarven Dragon]

Kelly confirmed 94-2. Warren and Gillibrand voted No.

Not Voting - 4
Cochran (R-MS)
Menendez (D-NJ)
Moran (R-KS)
Shaheen (D-NH)

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

Kelly confirmed 94-2. Warren and Gillibrand voted No.

They wouldn't vote for Jesus if Trump nominated him.

[Attorney General, LGC Speaker, and Former PPT Dwarven Dragon]

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