The Senate voted 56-43 to move forward with the final vote on President Donald Trump’s nomination of Rex Tillerson, former ExxonMobil CEO, as secretary of state, Reuters reported Monday.
Patricia Zengerle writes the Senate could carry out the final confirmation vote as early as Feb. 1 if senators do not change a planned 30-hour debate time.
The report said all Republican senators agreed to continue with the vote while a majority of the Democrats voted against it.
Sen. Charles Schumer (D-New York) had pushed for the Senate to delay the confirmation vote until lawmakers can question Tillerson further about his opinion on Trump’s executive order that imposes a temporary ban on immigrants from seven Muslim-majority countries, The Hill reported.
Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas) opposed Schumer’s request and said the Senate should confirm Tillerson to lead the State Department amid the ongoing war in Syria and refugee crisis, Jordain Carney writes.