Senate Republicans have followed President-elect Donald Trump’s lead and are preparing to expedite his Cabinet and lower-level nominees once his second term begins in January.
“The American people gave President Trump a mandate, and it is critical that Senate Republicans confirm his nominees quickly,” Republican Sen.-elect Bernie Moreno of Ohio said in a recent statement expressing his support for Trump’s nominees.
“Our Republican majority must unite and deliver a strong Cabinet so we can begin implementing the America-First agenda as soon as possible.”
This opinion was shared by other Republicans when they discussed Trump’s nominations for critical positions.
Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., recently told reporters, “Ideally, let’s get through this process. Let us conduct our due diligence, figure out what we need to do, and complete it quickly and effectively.”
In the days since his election, Trump has announced more than a dozen Cabinet appointments and other positions in his government.
With Republicans reclaiming the Senate majority in the new year, the confirmation process for Trump’s nominees is likely to proceed smoothly, with the exception of a couple of the more contentious picks. However, nominees who may lack the necessary votes could withdraw before the question arises, as former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., did.
“While the momentum was strong, it is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction from the critical work of the Trump/Vance Transition,” Gaetz, who was appointed by Trump as his attorney general, wrote on X.
According to Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., “Priority number one for the new Senate GOP majority is to confirm Trump’s team as quickly as possible when we take back the gavels in January.”
Sen. Bill Hagerty, R-Tennessee, echoed this in his own post to X, writing, “President Trump’s Cabinet should be confirmed quickly and without delay.”
Not only will Republicans control the Senate and the White House, but they will also have a majority in the House. With this in mind, Republicans are planning to advance as much of Trump’s program as possible through the legislature.
Republicans lack the 60 votes needed to overcome a cloture vote in the Senate, but they are preparing to circumvent the roadblock by using budget reconciliation to enact several of Trump’s economic and tax proposals.
Notably, Trump is only eligible for one more term. In 2028, he is ineligible to run again. The next president might be a Democrat, or even a Republican with opposing policy aims or priorities. Such intelligence could fuel Republicans’ desire to complete Trump’s objectives.
