Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) argued that “no one should be surprised” that all of President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet nominees will be confirmed by the Senate, which will be controlled by the Republican Party come Jan. 3, 2025.
Ahead of Trump’s inauguration, some of the president-elect’s nominees, including defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth, have faced pushback over their nominations. Despite concerns that Hegseth and other nominees could fail to get confirmed, Cotton assured that the Republican Senate would be on Trump’s side, detailing the meetings he has done ahead of the confirmation vote.
“I had a good meeting with Pete Hegseth and with Pam Bondi,” Cotton said on Fox News’s Fox & Friends. “I know many of these nominees — two Arkansans have been nominated as ambassadors — Marco Rubio, Kelly Loeffler, Doug Collins, and I served together. In fact, if you go back 32 years to Bill Clinton’s transition, there are only two nominees out of 72 Cabinet secretary nominees in which senators of the president-elect’s party voted against them. So no one should be surprised that a Republican Senate is going to confirm the Republican president-elect’s Cabinet secretaries.”
Cotton reiterated his confidence on social media, writing on X that the Republican Senate would cooperate with Trump in confirming his Cabinet nominees.
I expect our Republican Senate is going to confirm all of President Trump's nominees.
— Tom Cotton (@TomCottonAR) December 9, 2024
Ahead of the vote, Hegseth has vowed to abstain from alcohol should he successfully get confirmed for the role of defense secretary, a bid to quell concerns over his alleged past excessive drinking. In an appearance on The Megyn Kelly Show, Hegseth cited General Order No. 1, which bans military personnel from drinking alcohol while deployed, and said he would view the rule as applicable in serving as defense secretary.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
In the event that Hegseth is not confirmed, others who could emerge as Trump’s defense secretary include Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA), and Rep. Wesley Hunt (R-TX).
The only Trump Cabinet nominee to withdraw from consideration is former Rep. Matt Gaetz, who had been nominated for attorney general. The president-elect has since nominated former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi.