[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 24 (Wednesday, February 5, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Page S602]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                          Cabinet Nominations

  Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, tomorrow, the Senate will be voting on the 
nomination of Russell Vought to be Director of the Office of Management 
and Budget. I could talk about the extensive experience, policy 
experience, that has helped prepare him for this position, but Mr. 
Vought has an even bigger qualification for this position, and that is 
the fact that he has already held it. That is right. Mr. Vought has 
already served as Director of the Office of Management and Budget in 
President Trump's first administration, and so there is no question 
that he will be able to hit the ground running.
  As Director of OMB, Mr. Vought will have the chance to address two 
key economic issues: cutting burdensome government regulations and 
addressing excessive spending.
  Government regulation has a direct effect not only on our economy but 
on Americans' pocketbooks. Regulations can drive up Americans' energy 
bills. They can drive up the cost of housing, of a new car, of 
appliances. The list goes on and on.
  The history of the past 4 years under the Biden administration is a 
history of burdensome new regulations. Republicans are determined to 
alleviate that regulatory burden for the sake of economic growth and to 
improve the lives of hard-working Americans, and I know that Mr. Vought 
will make getting rid of burdensome regulations a priority.
  I know that Mr. Vought is already also committed, I should say, to 
addressing our spending problems. Our country is currently on a 
dangerous spending track, with debt held by the public set to hit a 
staggering $52 trillion by 2035. That is not sustainable. Identifying 
ways to rein in our spending and to target government waste has to be a 
priority, and I am confident Mr. Vought will help lead that charge.
  One of my top priorities for the Senate at the beginning of this year 
was processing President Trump's nominees. I am very pleased to say 
that Mr. Vought's confirmation will bring the total number of nominees 
confirmed since the inauguration to 13. That is roughly twice as fast 
as nominees were confirmed at the start of the two previous 
administrations.
  The Senate will take up additional nominees next week, and we will 
maintain an aggressive pace to get the President's full team in place 
as soon as possible.