Forceful and Resourceful

In the past decade, I’ve interviewed four men President-elect Trump just nominated for top cabinet positions. Here’s what they said then on issues relevant to the US-Israel relationship, how they fit in with Trump, and what we can expect from them if they win Senate confirmation.

Once the 119th Congress is gaveled into session on January 3, the Senate will begin confirmation hearings for President-elect Trump’s 15 top cabinet choices.

Republicans will hold a 53-47 majority in the incoming Senate, including majority control of the committees that will probe Trump’s nominees, but that doesn’t mean his picks are shoo-ins.

The Constitution grants the Senate “advice and consent” powers over cabinet appointments. Each nominee will undergo a rigorous vetting process by a relevant Senate committee. For example, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee holds hearings for the nominee for secretary of state while the Armed Services Committee takes testimony from Trump’s pick for defense secretary.

Senators traditionally take this constitutional duty to heart and act like lions, not lambs. Staffers and other federal agencies conduct background checks on nominees’ financial affairs and prior job and life experience. Nominees testify under oath, so the hearings are much more than a glorified job interview. Many of Trump’s picks lack federal experience and will face pressure to convince senators they are up to the task of managing a federal bureaucracy with budgets of hundreds of billions of dollars and employing tens of thousands of people.