Key Republican senators promised on Monday that President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the FBI, Kash Patel, will be vetted through the confirmation process.
At the same time, two incoming committee chairs suggested openness to Patel and Trump’s other nominees not undergoing full FBI background checks as has traditionally been done.
CNN has reported that Trump’s transition team is bypassing traditional FBI background checks for at least some of his Cabinet picks. Trump and his allies believe the FBI system is slow and plagued with issues that could stymie the president-elect’s plan to quickly begin the work of implementing his agenda, people briefed on the plans said.
“My job is to make sure that the nominees have a thorough, fair process, and ultimately, you know, our members will decide,” said Sen John Thune, the incoming Senate Majority Leader, when asked if he has any concerns about Patel.
Thune said, “historically, the best place to get that done has been through the FBI,” but he acknowledged Trump has some “alternatives” in mind for background checks and the committee chairs will have to trust that nominees before them have been thoroughly examined.
Republican Sen. Michael Crapo, who will chair the Senate Finance Committee that will hold confirmation hearings for several positions, including Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to be the Department of Health and Human Services secretary, said he will accept whatever Trump wants.
“No, I’ll let that be a decision that President Trump makes,” he said when asked if he will insist on background checks performed by the FBI. “My position is what President Trump decides to do is what I will support.”
It’s unclear how many Republican senators would be open to not having FBI background checks for nominees, and other key senators have already affirmed the importance of background checks.
Asked on Monday if she is concerned about new allegations that have emerged publicly about Trump’s pick for Defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, GOP Sen. Susan Collins, a key potential swing vote, said, “I haven’t read about them, but it’s why we need FBI background check on nominees, so that we can sort out issues like that.
The New Yorker reported Sunday that Hegseth was pushed out as the head of two veterans’ advocacy organizations amid internal allegations of mismanagement and personal misconduct. It comes on the heels of reports detailing a sexual assault allegation from 2017, which Hegseth has denied and in which no charges were filed.
Asked by CNN for comment about the magazine’s reporting, a Hegseth adviser said, “We’re not going to comment on outlandish claims laundered through the New Yorker by a petty and jealous disgruntled former associate of Mr. Hegseth’s. Get back to us when you try your first attempt at actual journalism.”
Hegseth met with around a dozen Senate Republicans in the Capitol on Monday evening, including Sens. Mike Lee, Bill Hagerty, Rick Scott, Ted Cruz and Cynthia Lummis.
Speaking to reporters, Lummis dismissed concerns about Hegseth’s alleged actions, saying that soldiers can be “wild childs.”
“They’re throwing disparaging remarks at someone who has earned a great deal of credibility,” she said. “Are soldiers sometimes wild childs? Yeah, that can happen, but it is very clear that this guy is the guy who, at a time when Americans are losing confidence in their own military and our ability to project strength around the world, that Pete Hegseth is the answer to that concern.”
Cruz would not rule out voting for a nominee who hasn’t received an FBI background check.
When he was first asked about background checks on the nominees, Cruz told reporters, “Look, there will be background checks on nominees and that that’s always been an important part of the process,” but when pressed on if he needs to see FBI background checks, the Texas Republican said, “We’re going to let each committee resolve those issues.”
Asked if he’d be willing to vote on a nominee who hasn’t received an FBI background check, Cruz repeated, “As I said, that’s going to be for each committee to decide.”
GOP Sen. Roger Wicker, who will chair the Senate Armed Services Committee that will hold confirmation hearings for Hegseth to be Secretary of Defense, said “I would prefer a full background check” but stopped short of saying he would insist on it.
“I haven’t said that,” he responded to CNN.
