Trump Cabinet confirmation hearings **live commentary thread**

[Klartext89]

How is it possible that highly incompetent persons like Gilliband and Harris are on such important commitees??? I'm deeply shocked by the scale of silliness in their questions. Pure ideology, not a single piece of understanding for what Mattis/Pompeo have to do. Simply crazy...

[Klartext89]

Murkowski and Collins leaning on voting no for DeCon:

Manu Raju ✔ @mkraju
MURKOWSKI warns that she may NOT support DeVos on the floor. "I would not advise yet that she can count on my vote," via @tomlobianco

https://twitter.com/mkraju/status/826476692214542336?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Tom LoBianco ✔ @tomlobianco
.@senatorcollins says she will support DeVos in committee, but still deciding on final vote
11:18 AM - 31 Jan 2017

https://twitter.com/tomlobianco/status/826464612031877126?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Pence would be needed to break the tie.

Manchin will approve, he said he will vote for all nominees. No big deal.

[Klartext89]

Final vote on Elaine Chao 93-6.

Who were the 6 voting no?

Gillibrand, Merkley, Sanders, Schumer, Warren and Booker. McConnell voted Present.

If even Al Franken is voting Aye... But yeah, Boooker is veeeeeeeeery moderate and a veeeeeeery strong candidate.  

[Klartext89]

Murkowski and Collins leaning on voting no for DeCon:

Manu Raju ✔ @mkraju
MURKOWSKI warns that she may NOT support DeVos on the floor. "I would not advise yet that she can count on my vote," via @tomlobianco

https://twitter.com/mkraju/status/826476692214542336?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Tom LoBianco ✔ @tomlobianco
.@senatorcollins says she will support DeVos in committee, but still deciding on final vote
11:18 AM - 31 Jan 2017

https://twitter.com/tomlobianco/status/826464612031877126?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Pence would be needed to break the tie.

Manchin will approve, he said he will vote for all nominees. No big deal.

Im pretty sure all dems are united against DeVos, including Manchin.

Ok, we'll see. But I wouldn't be mad if Pence could get his big moment, love the tie breaking vote :-D

[Klartext89]

@manchin:
http://edition.cnn.com/2017/01/18/politics/joe-manchin-tom-price-betsy-devos/index.html

Well... Now we're even more unsure about Manchin than before lol.

[Klartext89]

Final vote on Elaine Chao 93-6.

Who were the 6 voting no?

Gillibrand, Merkley, Sanders, Schumer, Warren and Booker. McConnell voted Present.

If even Sanders and Al Franken are voting Aye... But yeah, Boooker is veeeeeeeeery moderate and a veeeeeeery strong candidate.  

Sanders didn't vote aye.  He was one of the 6 no votes, as shown above.

I do wonder if Booker and Gillibrand (and maybe even Warren) still would have voted no on Chao if they weren't running for president.

You're right, excuse me. Changed it. I should stop being in 10 threads at the same time, chatting on twitter and eating meanwhile. Sorry.

[Klartext89]

https://twitter.com/KT_thomps/status/826805797304823808

Mnuchin and Price approved in the Committee after rule Change without Dems present. Hardball. Was about time.

"Finance Committee members have wrapped up after dropping a “mini-nuke”. At the hearing for DeVos yesterday, Democratic members objected to Senator Hatch’s vote by proxy. Between the no-show yesterday and that, Hatch apparently had it."

LOL

[Klartext89]

Extremists, promoting violence in their signatures, are calling somebody "unqualified" and "out of mainstream". Very funny. Let's get help, guys!

DeVos will get confirmed. I'll love the meltdown after Pence is breaking the tie.

I'm not angry towards Collins, but Murkowski should be out... Joe Miller...

[Klartext89]

Would be more damaging for GOP Senators regarding their re-election chances to vote against Trump then to support his nominees.

These liberals and far-left activists opposing DeVos will never vote for a GOP Senators regardless of his vote on her confirmation. Way easier to lose support from the GOP base than gaining support from Dems.

[Klartext89]

Would be more damaging for GOP Senators regarding their re-election chances to vote against Trump then to support his nominees.

These liberals and far-left activists opposing DeVos will never vote for a GOP Senators regardless of his vote on her confirmation. Way easier to lose support from the GOP base than gaining support from Dems.

Doesn't explain why someone like Murkowski is voting nay- she said it's because of phone calls/letters. There's hardly a devout far left base in Alaska is there...

I doubt that it came from Alaska exclusivly. In my eyes, these are just weasel words.

What amuses me is that two Republican women are trying to bring down a female nominee (after we heard that Trump nominated not enough women).

Btw, I'm watching the Senate Session. It's boring... Now Pocahontas is yelling lol.

[Klartext89]

Would be more damaging for GOP Senators regarding their re-election chances to vote against Trump then to support his nominees.

These liberals and far-left activists opposing DeVos will never vote for a GOP Senators regardless of his vote on her confirmation. Way easier to lose support from the GOP base than gaining support from Dems.

Doesn't explain why someone like Murkowski is voting nay- she said it's because of phone calls/letters. There's hardly a devout far left base in Alaska is there...

I doubt that it came from Alaska exclusivly. In my eyes, these are just weasel words.

What amuses me is that two Republican women are trying to bring down a female nominee (after we heard that Trump nominated not enough women).

I don't want to interrupt your shameless hackery but staffers tend to ask where callers are from/monitor calls so they know if it's an in state person or not.

LOL, I'm not a computer expert, but I know that it's possible to change the location ;-) Whatever.