Three confirmation hearings for President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet nominees on Thursday focused on the president’s domestic and economic policies, which will dominate the debates on Capitol Hill this year.
None of the nominees who appeared before the Senate on Thursday, Treasury’s Scott Bessent, Interior’s Doug Burgum and Environmental Protection Agency’s Lee Zeldin, appear to be in danger of not being confirmed by the Senate. . But their hearings were a harbinger of the upcoming battles the Trump administration will fight this year to implement the president-elect’s agenda on taxes, spending, tariffs and the environment.
Here are some key takeaways from Thursday’s hearing.
Bessent says Trump tax cuts should be made permanent: Bessent, the hedge fund manager who was tapped to head the Treasury Department, calls President Trump’s economic policies “invigorating all Americans” and “a new economic gold.” It was pitched as a way to “unleash the era.” He said his agenda includes making the 2017 tax cuts permanent.
Extending the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, one of the hallmark accomplishments of Mr. Trump’s first term, is a top priority for the incoming administration and the congressional Republicans who control Capitol Hill. Significant personal and estate tax cuts, including lower personal income tax rates, doubling the child tax credit and nearly doubling the standard deduction, are set to expire at the end of the year. Most of the law’s corporate tax cuts are permanent.
Burgum vows to follow law and Constitution: Burgum told the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Thursday, when asked whether he would comply with President Trump’s request, that he would “obey the law and the Constitution” if confirmed. .
Zeldin says he believes ‘climate change is real’: Zeldin, a former New York state congressman running for governor in 2022, said during his confirmation hearing Thursday that he sees climate change as a threat. while defending the president-elect’s position on the issue.
“I believe climate change is real,” Zeldin said in response to Vermont independent Sen. Bernie Sanders.
Read more highlights from Day 3 of confirmation hearings here.
