Washington — The Senate is expected to vote Thursday on the confirmation of Russ Vought to lead the Office of Management and Budget, after Democrats held the floor overnight to oppose his confirmation.
Vought, 48, served as OMB director toward the end of President Trump’s first term after serving as deputy OMB director and acting director. He was involved in writing the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 and worked as policy director for the 2024 Republican National Committee’s platform committee.
Overnight, more than a dozen Senate Democrats delivered scathing critiques on the Senate floor of Vought’s nomination in the wake of last week’s OMB memo that directed all agencies to temporarily pause federal assistance, sending shockwaves through the political sphere and beyond. On Monday, a federal judge ordered the Trump administration to temporarily stop its freeze on federal assistance. But Democrats have seized on the move, which added fuel to their effort to stall Vought’s confirmation.
“It may be back online, but no one knows whether that’s for sure, because Russel Vought and Donald Trump think they may be above the law,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat, said Wednesday night.
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Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer outlined Wednesday the plan to oppose Vought’s confirmation, saying Democrats would “come to the floor and sound the alarm” on the Vought into the night.
“All 47 Democrats are opposed to Vought’s nomination,” Schumer said. “His confirmation would be a disaster for working families, and a godsend to billionaires who don’t pay their fair share in taxes.”
But Vought is expected to have enough support among Senate Republicans to be confirmed Thursday night, after his nomination advanced Wednesday in a 53-47 party line vote that limited debate to up to 30 hours, which Democrats were eager to use.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune on Wednesday praised Vought, citing his previous experience in the role, saying “there’s no question that he will be able to hit the ground running.”
If confirmed, Vought would oversee the president’s proposed budget, while being responsible for executing Mr. Trump’s agenda across the federal government. Thune said as director of OMB, Vought will have the chance to take on “two key economic issues:” addressing “excessive spending” and cutting “burdensome government regulations,” while expressing confidence that Vought will make the issues priorities.
Vought appeared before the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee last month, along with the Senate Budget Committee, where Republicans advanced him unanimously as Democrats boycotted the vote.
Vought, in his opening statement to the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee last month, said that “we have to use taxpayer dollars wisely” because “inflation driven by irresponsible federal spending taxes Americans twice.”
If confirmed, Vought said he will continue to strive to “ensure every decision contributes to a more prosperous future for all Americans.”
