The Senate will gain votes over the weekend to accelerate confirmation of one of President Donald Trump’s key Cabinet nominees.
Lawmakers will meet for a rare Saturday session to see if South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem will confirm Trump’s choice to lead the Department of Homeland Security.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, Rs.D. indicated earlier in the week that the Senate would move forward with the confirmation process to stay over the weekend if Democrats blocked the vote effort.
“Do you want to vote for these people on Tuesday, or do you want to vote on Friday, Saturday, Sunday? Because that’s what we’re going to do,” said Trump’s CIA director nominee, John Ratcliffe, a Democrat. Thune said after blocking the confirmation vote. Someone with bipartisan support. “Sometimes this is easy and sometimes it is difficult.”
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South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem is sworn in during a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing on her nomination for Secretary of Homeland Security on January 17, 2025 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC.
“It’s not going to happen because this is about America’s national security interests and we’re stagnant,” Thune said.
Noem took questions from lawmakers on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee during her confirmation hearing earlier in the week.
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The Department of Homeland Security handles national security and immigration issues, and Trump has Noem’s confirmation in mind as he makes the crisis at the southern border a priority in his second term.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, Rs.D. , Thune indicated earlier in the week that the Senate would push through the confirmation process to stay over the weekend if Democrats blocked the vote effort. (Getty Images)
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Several of Trump’s nominees remain unconfirmed after the 47th president’s first inauguration. However, while speaking on the Senate floor Friday, Thune pledged to “continue to ensure that the Senate works as quickly as possible to secure President Trump’s team.”
Fox News’ Elizabeth Prickett contributed to this report.
Aubrie Spady is a writer for Fox News Digital.
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