Updated Jan 30, 2025 - Politics & Policy

Trump budget chief pick advances amid Democratic boycott

Stephen Neukam

US Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (L), Democrat from New York, speaks to reporters as Senator Jeff Merkley, Democrat from Oregon, looks on following the weekly Senate Democrats policy luncheon, at the US Capitol in Washington, DC on January 28, 2025 — Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer at the Capitol on Jan. 28, 2025. (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP)

Republicans on the Senate Budget Committee voted Thursday to approve President Trump's budget chief nominee in the midst of a boycott by the panel's Democrats.

Why it matters: Democrats are sounding the alarm on Russ Vought, Trump's pick to head the Office of Management and Budget, after an order from the office this week to freeze all federal aid and grants.

"We will not vote for someone so clearly unfit for office," the X account for Democrats on the budget panel posted Thursday morning.
The vote was 11-0, with support coming solely from the Budget Committee's Republicans.

The big picture: Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) has put a spotlight on the OMB nomination, a job that usually flies under the radar.

OMB rescinded the controversial memo yesterday.
The GOP has handled Vought's nomination with urgency, as the party is crafting a multi-trillion dollar budget reconciliation plan for later this year.

Go deeper: Senate Dems sound alarm on Trump's budget director

Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect the committee vote.

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Trump budget chief pick advances amid Democratic boycott

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