Senate Confirms Russell Vought as Director of Office of Management and Budget Amidst Democratic Protests
The Senate has confirmed Russell Vought to lead the Office of Management and Budget despite lengthy protests from Democratic Senators questioning his past actions and views on various legislative issues.
Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., provided an update on the confirmation hearing process on 'The Story.'
Despite Democratic tactics to delay the confirmation vote, the Senate confirmed Russell Vought to lead the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
Republicans backed Vought's nomination, arguing he proved a qualified candidate for the role since he previously held the position during President Donald Trump's first term. Democrats, however, raised multiple concerns about his nomination and stated his views on the Impoundment Control Act, which reinforces that Congress holds the power of the purse, disqualified him from the role.
Democrats held a 30-hour-long protest against Vought's nomination, delivering speeches in the middle of the night on Wednesday in an attempt to delay the confirmation vote.
The Senate, in a chaotic final floor vote on Thursday evening, voted to confirm Vought to lead the OMB.
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Democratic Senators repeatedly injected themselves during the confirmation vote, protesting the nomination until the last second.
"No debate is permitted during a vote," Republican Sen. Ashley Moody told the lawmakers.
The Office of Management and Budget is responsible for developing and executing the president's budget, as well as overseeing and coordinating legislative proposals and priorities aligned with the executive branch.
Vought appeared before the Senate Budget Committee and the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee for confirmation hearings, where he defended his statements asserting that the Impoundment Control Act is unconstitutional.
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The law, adopted in 1974, stipulates that Congress may oversee the executive branch's withholdings of budget authority. But Vought encountered criticism from Democrats for freezing $214 million in military aid for Ukraine in 2019 -- a decision that ultimately led to Trump's first impeachment.
"You're quite comfortable assuming that the law doesn't matter and that you'll just treat the money for a program as a ceiling ... rather than a required amount," stated Senate Budget Committee ranking member Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., on Wednesday. "Well, the courts have found otherwise."
In the 1975 Supreme Court ruling Train v. New York, the court determined the Environmental Protection Agency must use full funding included in the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972, even though then-President Richard Nixon issued orders not to use all the funding.
Even so, Vought told lawmakers that Trump campaigned on the position that the Impoundment Control Act is unconstitutional -- and that he agrees with that.
Vought's statements on the issue left Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., "astonished and aghast" during one confirmation hearing.
"I think our colleagues should be equally aghast, because this issue goes beyond Republican or Democrat," Blumenthal expressed on Jan. 15. "It's bigger than one administration or another. It's whether the law of the land should prevail, or maybe it's up for grabs, depending on what the president thinks."
Vought also faced questioning from Democrats regarding his views on abortion as an author of Project 2025, a political initiative released in 2023 by the conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation, which called for policy changes that would implement a national ban on medication abortion.
Other proposals included in Project 2025 include eliminating the Department of Education, cutting diversity, equity and inclusion programs, and reducing funding for Medicare and Medicaid.
"You have said that you don't believe in exceptions for rape, for incest, or the life of the mother," said Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., during a confirmation hearing on Wednesday. "Is that your position?"
"Senator, my views are not important," Vought responded. "I'm here on behalf of the president."
Trump has repeatedly stated that he backs abortion in certain instances and declared that "powerful exceptions" for abortion would remain in place under his administration.
