The Senate is forcing a rare weekend vote to push through Kristi Noem as homeland security chief
The Senate will hold a vote over the weekend to expedite the confirmation of one of the presidents Donald Trump key candidates in the Government.
The representatives will meet for a rare Saturday session to hold a vote on whether to confirm South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Homeland Security, to a top Cabinet post.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., indicated earlier this week that the Senate would stay through the weekend to push through the confirmation process if Democrats blocked the vote.
“Do we want a vote on these people on Tuesday or a vote on them on Friday, Saturday and Sunday? Because that’s what we’re going to do,” Thune said after Democrats blocked a confirmation vote on Trump’s CIA director nominee, John Ratcliffe , which has bipartisan support. “This can be easy or this can be hard.”
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South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem is sworn in during a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing on her nomination for Homeland Security Secretary, on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, January 17, 2025. (Getty)
“This is about American national security interests, and we’re stalling, so that’s not going to happen,” Thune said.
Noem was questioned lawmakers on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee during her hearing earlier this week.
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The Department of Homeland Security deals with issues of national security and immigration, making Noem’s confirmation a priority for Trump as he makes the crisis at the southern border a priority during his second term.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, RS.D., Thune indicated earlier this week that the Senate would stay through the weekend to push through the confirmation process if Democrats blocked the vote. (Getty Images)
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Several of Trump’s nominees remain unconfirmed after the 47th president’s first week in office. But Thune vowed, speaking on the Senate floor Friday, to “continue to make sure the Senate works as quickly as possible to get President Trump’s team in place.”
Elizabeth Pritchett of Fox News contributed to this report.
