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Senate confirmation hearings continue with key Trump Cabinet nominees in the spotlight

By Alexx Altman-Devilbiss

Senate confirmation hearings continue with key Trump Cabinet nominees in the spotlight

WASHINGTON (TNND) -- Thursday is another jam-packed day of Senate confirmation hearings for President-elect Donald Trump's Cabinet picks.

Committees will hear from nominees hoping to lead the Treasury, Interior Housing and Urban Development departments and the Environmental Protection Agency.

Donald Trump's pick to lead the Justice Department, Pam Bondi, will face a second day of questioning on Capitol Hill.

During her hearing Wednesday, she vowed there would be one tier of justice for everyone if she is confirmed.

I will not politicize that office. I will not target people simply because of their political affiliation," she told Senators on the Judiciary Committee.

With Trump's Jan. 20 inauguration just a few days away, officials are working to get his Cabinet picks through the the chamber.

Here's what to expect for Thursday:

The former governor of North Dakota and businessman will appear before members of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, who will consider his nomination as interior secretary, the chief steward of U.S. public lands. Burgum, who endorsed Trump after ending his own 2024 presidential bid and campaigned for Trump, has also been tapped to lead the National Energy Council. Trump has said the council will seek to establish U.S. "energy dominance" around the world.

Scott Turner, Housing and Urban Development Department

The former NFL player served in Trump's first administration as executive director of the White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council. Turner is a professional mentor, pastor and former Texas House member. HUD is charged with addressing the nation's housing needs and fair housing laws, and oversees housing for the poorest Americans. He will appear before the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee.

Former New York Rep. Lee Zeldin will appear before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. Trump promised his pick will "ensure fair and swift deregulatory decisions that will be enacted in a way to unleash the power of American businesses, while at the same time maintaining the highest environmental standards." The 44-year-old served as New York's First Congressional District from 2015 to 2023 before he lost the state's governor's race in 2022 to Kathy Hochul.

Bondi, the former attorney general of Florida, sought to reassure Democratic senators Wednesday that her Justice Department would not prosecute anyone for political purposes but also refused to rule out the potential for investigations into adversaries of the Republican president-elect. She said she would uphold the Constitution and said the public, not the president, would be her client.

The billionaire money manager from South Carolina takes questions from members of the Senate Finance Committee. He is poised to be President-elect Donald Trump's right hand in ushering in economic policies Trump promised voters would make life more affordable, some of which economists warn will have the opposite effect. Bessent has been outspoken about reducing the more than $36 trillion in national debt. The treasury chief helps formulate financial, economic, and tax policy, and manage the public debt.

According to prepared testimony given to The Associated Press, Bessent will say the U.S. must secure vulnerable supply chains, levy sanctions to address national security concerns "and critically, we must ensure that the U.S. dollar remains the world's reserve currency."

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, nominee for Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, will appear before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

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