Rex Tillerson's nomination as Secretary of State advances
and Senate confirms Mike Pompeo as CIA chief.
The foreign affairs panel in the US senate has narrowly
endorsed Rex Tillerson as secretary of state, while the
Senate confirmed Mike Pompeo as head of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Monday
greenlighted Tillerson, a former ExxonMobil boss
whose nomination has been controversial largely
because of his lack of government or diplomatic
experience, and because of reported links to Russia.
The move cleared the way for a confirmation vote by the full
chamber, which is controlled by Republican allies of Trump.
The vote in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee
was 11 to 10, along party lines, setting up a period
of debate and a subsequent vote on an as-yet-
undetermined day.
Tillerson received a major boost when Senator Marco
Rubio, one of three Republicans who had expressed
doubts about him, announced he would support
him despite serious reservations.
Rubio said that given "uncertainty" about the direction
of US foreign policy, "it would be against our national
interests to have this confirmation unnecessarily
delayed or embroiled in controversy."
Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham, two other
Republicans who had expressed reservations about
Tillerson's dealings with Russia, gave their blessing on Sunday.
The committee's Democrats all voted against Tillerson.
Questions about Russia dominated his confirmation
hearing earlier this month after allegations that the
Kremlin meddled in the election.
New CIA chief
The committee endorsement of Tillerson followed a
66-32 Senate vote confirming Mike Pompeo's CIA appointment.
Pompeo, 52, is a former Army captain who graduated
first in his class from the US Military Academy at
West Point. He later attended Harvard Law School
and worked as an executive in the defence industry.
A staunch critic of the 2015 nuclear agreement with Iran,
he has served on the House Intelligence Committee.
Pompeo opposes closing the US military prison at
Guantanamo Bay and has called for the execution
of fugitives US intelligence contractor Edward
Snowden, whose revelations exposed massive
electronic surveillance by the National Security Agency.
Pompeo becomes only the third member of Trump's
cabinet to take up his post, as the president's
Republican Party has pushed hard to speed up
confirmation of his nominees.
Secretary of Defense James Mattis and Homeland
Security Secretary John Kelly were sworn in Friday, Inauguration Day.
Republicans were also hoping to get Trump's pick for
US attorney general, Senator Jeff Sessions, installed swiftly.
The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to vote on
Sessions on Tuesday, the same day that the Foreign
Relations Committee votes on South Carolina Governor
Nicki Haley's nomination to be US ambassador to the
United Nations.
and Senate confirms Mike Pompeo as CIA chief.
The foreign affairs panel in the US senate has narrowly
endorsed Rex Tillerson as secretary of state, while the
Senate confirmed Mike Pompeo as head of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Monday
greenlighted Tillerson, a former ExxonMobil boss
whose nomination has been controversial largely
because of his lack of government or diplomatic
experience, and because of reported links to Russia.
The move cleared the way for a confirmation vote by the full
chamber, which is controlled by Republican allies of Trump.
The vote in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee
was 11 to 10, along party lines, setting up a period
of debate and a subsequent vote on an as-yet-
undetermined day.
Tillerson received a major boost when Senator Marco
Rubio, one of three Republicans who had expressed
doubts about him, announced he would support
him despite serious reservations.
Rubio said that given "uncertainty" about the direction
of US foreign policy, "it would be against our national
interests to have this confirmation unnecessarily
delayed or embroiled in controversy."
Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham, two other
Republicans who had expressed reservations about
Tillerson's dealings with Russia, gave their blessing on Sunday.
The committee's Democrats all voted against Tillerson.
Questions about Russia dominated his confirmation
hearing earlier this month after allegations that the
Kremlin meddled in the election.
New CIA chief
The committee endorsement of Tillerson followed a
66-32 Senate vote confirming Mike Pompeo's CIA appointment.
Pompeo, 52, is a former Army captain who graduated
first in his class from the US Military Academy at
West Point. He later attended Harvard Law School
and worked as an executive in the defence industry.
A staunch critic of the 2015 nuclear agreement with Iran,
he has served on the House Intelligence Committee.
Pompeo opposes closing the US military prison at
Guantanamo Bay and has called for the execution
of fugitives US intelligence contractor Edward
Snowden, whose revelations exposed massive
electronic surveillance by the National Security Agency.
Pompeo becomes only the third member of Trump's
cabinet to take up his post, as the president's
Republican Party has pushed hard to speed up
confirmation of his nominees.
Secretary of Defense James Mattis and Homeland
Security Secretary John Kelly were sworn in Friday, Inauguration Day.
Republicans were also hoping to get Trump's pick for
US attorney general, Senator Jeff Sessions, installed swiftly.
The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to vote on
Sessions on Tuesday, the same day that the Foreign
Relations Committee votes on South Carolina Governor
Nicki Haley's nomination to be US ambassador to the
United Nations.
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