Russ Vought is one step closer to returning to the helm of the Office of Management and Budget, which threw Washington into confusion this week with sweeping orders to freeze federal grants and loans.
President Donald Trump’s pick to run the powerful White House budget office will head to the Senate floor soon for a confirmation vote, after the Senate Budget Committee advanced Vought’s nomination along party lines on Thursday.
The panel voted 11-0 to move Vought’s nomination to the floor — a vote made up entirely of Republicans, as Democrats less than an hour before the scheduled markup announced they would be boycotting the meeting.
Democrats tried unsuccessfully to postpone the committee vote to get answers from Vought in writing about what transpired at the OMB this week, where an order for a sweeping freeze of federal assistance created a state of chaos — exacerbated by the Budget office then adjusting the guidance and before ultimately rescinding it.
The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, which has joint jurisdiction over the OMB nomination, advanced Vought hours after Trump was sworn into office.
