While the inaugural pomp and circumstance continues — with President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance at Capital One Arena to oversee the wrap-up of the parade and for Trump to sign a series of executive orders — the Senate has gotten down to work Monday afternoon.
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First, the Senate Armed Services Committee has voted Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, out of committee. It was a narrow vote — 14-13, along party lines — but Hegseth will now be voted on by the full Senate.
Armed Services Committee votes 14-13 to send Hegseth nomination to the floor.
— Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) January 20, 2025
Hegseth had a rather…spirited hearing before the committee last week but handled it well and emerged from it unscathed and likely with improved odds of confirmation.
Pete Hegseth Brings His ‘A’ Game and Gets the Job Done
Even further, the Senate is geared up to advance the nomination quickly.
Senators on the Armed Services panel also voted to waive the seven-day rule that usually requires at least a week to elapse between a nominee’s confirmation hearing and a vote to discharge from committee.
Senate Republicans then held a separate vote to advance Hegseth’s nomination.
That development was accompanied by the announcement that the Senate Foreign Relations Committee had advanced the nomination of their fellow senator, Marco Rubio (R-FL), out of committee unanimously.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee just voted unanimously in a 22 to 0 vote to advance Marco Rubio’s nomination to the full Senate. Rubio will likely be confirmed as Secretary of State by the end of the day.
— Jerry Dunleavy IV 🇺🇸 (@JerryDunleavy) January 20, 2025
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The Senate Foreign Relations Committee just voted unanimously in a 22 to 0 vote to advance Marco Rubio’s nomination to the full Senate. Rubio will likely be confirmed as Secretary of State by the end of the day.
Additionally, John Ratcliffe, nominee for Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, was voted out of the Senate Intelligence Committee. While not unanimous, the vote for Ratcliffe was bipartisan, with 14 senators voting to advance his nomination, three voting against it.
The Senate Intelligence Committee just voted overwhelmingly in a 14 to 3 vote to advance John Ratcliffe’s nomination to the full Senate. Ratcliffe will now almost certainly be the next CIA Director.
— Jerry Dunleavy IV 🇺🇸 (@JerryDunleavy) January 20, 2025
The expectation is that Rubio may be voted on by the full Senate as early as Monday evening, with votes on Ratcliffe and Hegseth to come later in the week.
