WASHINGTON – The powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee was expectedtoday to oppose President Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of state,Mike Pompeo, in an unprecedented rebuke that could unsettle delicate USnegotiations with North Korea.
That vote, scheduled to take place at about 5:00 pm, would not end thenomination, but would put a negative recommendation in the hands of theclosely-divided full Senate — where his approval is not guaranteed.
The White House pressured senators to endorse Pompeo, currently the CIAdirector, with Trump blasting Democrats as “obstructionists” and hisspokeswoman Sarah Sanders accusing them of playing “political games” withthe crucial cabinet post.
But the committee, with 11 Republicans and 10 Democrats, appeared set tovote against the nomination, with Republican maverick Rand Paul set to joinall the Democrats in opposition. “Hard to believe Obstructionists may voteagainst Mike Pompeo for Secretary of State.
The Dems will not approve hundreds of good people,” Trump tweeted earlyMonday. “We certainly hope that some members will change their minds,”Sanders said on Fox News.”At some point, Democrats have to decide whetherthey love this country more than they hate this president.
And they have to decide that they want to put the safety and the securityand the diplomacy of our country ahead of their own political games.”Pompeo would become the first secretary of state-designate on record to berejected by the committee, according to the Senate History Office.
Passage by the full Senate seems likely but not assured: approving arejected nominee on the Senate floor hasn’t happened since 1945. With Paulvoting against Pompeo, and senior Republican Senator John McCain ailing andunable to vote, the White House will need all other Republicans and atleast one Democrat to win the vote.
Last week, Pompeo was on Capitol Hill lobbying for support, and DemocraticSenator Heidi Heitkamp announced she would vote for him. Several otherDemocrats have left open the possibility of supporting Pompeo.
Pompeo, who has served as director of the Central Intelligence Agency sincethe beginning of the Trump administration, has become one of thepresident’s closest advisors.
He would replace Rex Tillerson, the former oil executive who was fired inMarch after a very rocky relationship with the White House and a managementapproach that left the State Department understaffed and demoralized.Pompeo has played a central role in talks with North Korea in whichWashington hopes to persuade Pyongyang to roll back its menacing nuclearweapons programme.
He secretly travelled to Pyongyang around the end of March to meet withNorth Korean leader Kim Jong Un, who is expected to hold a summit withTrump, perhaps in early June. But Democrats have assailed Pompeo for arecord of bellicose statements which they say are at odds with hisprospective job as the top US diplomat, and also have cited anti-Muslim andanti-LGBTQ statements he has made in the past.
“I remain concerned that Dir. Pompeo won’t challenge the president incritical moments,” Democratic Senator Chris Coons, a member of the ForeignRelations Committee, tweeted on Friday. – PTI