Senate confirms Trump’s budget, management pick

The Senate on Thursday night confirmed Russell Vought as the new director of the federal government’s Office of Management and Budget. The chamber divided across party lines for the confirmation vote, with 53 Republicans supporting Vought and 47 Democrats and Independents opposing him.

What was the opposition? A group of over 30 senators claimed to hold the floor overnight from Wednesday into Thursday trying to delay Vought’s confirmation. Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., raised concerns about Vought’s work in the last administration, saying that once confirmed again, Vought would work with Trump to cancel programs authorized by Congress.

Who is Vought? A former WORLD columnist, Vought served in the first Trump administration. He is listed as an author on the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025. He told the Senate Budget Committee during one of his two confirmation hearings that his objective in his new position would be to make the federal government work for all Americans, not just the bureaucrats who worked for the federal government.

His entire career has been working for taxpayers like his parents, who worked as an electrician and a schoolteacher, Vought said. He spent about two decades in Washington working for Congress, public policy organizations, and grassroots advocacy groups. He also founded the Center for Renewing America and Citizens for Renewing America.

Dig deeper: Read my report in The Sift about how Pamela Bondi has been confirmed as U.S. attorney general.