About 30 minutes after his education secretary was sworn into office Tuesday, President Donald Trump complained about the lack of action on the rest of his nominees.
Vice President Mike Pence had to cast the deciding vote to confirm Betsy DeVos as education secretary after two Republican senators — Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine — broke ranks. It was the first time a vice president has had to break a tie on a Cabinet nominee.
It may not be the last.
Still awaiting confirmation are Jeff Sessions as attorney general, Tom Price to head Health and Human Services, Steven Mnuchin as treasury secretary, Andrew Puzder as labor secretary, Mick Mulvaney to lead the Office of Management and Budget, Ryan Zinke as interior secretary, Wilbur Ross as commerce secretary, Sonny Perdue as agriculture secretary, David Shulkin to head Veterans Affairs and Scott Pruitt to head the Environmental Protection Agency.
Puzder and Perdue have yet to appear for their confirmation hearings.
Trump said it was a “disgrace” that the Senate had yet to approve all of his nominees.
Aside from DeVos, Rex Tillerson has been sworn as secretary of state, John Mattis as defense secretary, John Kelly as secretary of Homeland Security, Nikki Haley as U.N. ambassador, Mike Pompeo as CIA director and Elaine Chao as transportation secretary.
In contrast, 12 of former President Barack Obama’s Cabinet members had been approved by this point in the administration, 10 in the first 10 days, and 16 of George W. Bush’s.
Democrats have been delaying votes, employing everything from boycotting scheduled votes to staging a 24-hour talkathon. They announced in January they would target eight of Trump’s nominees because of their lack of government experience and positions on issues.
Of the remaining nominees, Puzder likely will face the stiffest opposition. The fast-food CEO opposes a $15 minimum wage, a cause dear to Democrats.
Puzder admitted Monday he had hired an undocumented immigrant as a housekeeper, an admission that has sunk the nominations of previous Cabinet hopefuls in past administrations. Puzder said he was unaware of the housekeeper’s immigration status, and when he learned of it, terminated her employment and offered help in gaining legal status.
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