Trump’s team is stepping up efforts to find Democratic support for his nominees for office – the media

US President-elect Donald Trump’s advisers are hoping to secure bipartisan support for at least some of his less controversial nominees for the next administration – starting this week with Scott Turner, Trump’s choice to be Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Axios reports. UNN.

Details

As indicated, they are contacting some key Democrats this week to arrange meetings with Turner to discuss housing and other issues they might agree on.

Turner plans to meet with Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren, the new top member of the Senate Banking Committee, as well as every Republican on the committee, starting with Sen. Tim Scott, a Republican, a person familiar with Turner’s confirmation plan told Axios.

Turner’s meeting with Warren will be one of the few between a Senate Democrat and a Trump Cabinet nominee. Democratic Senator John Fetterman “melted the ice” last week by talking to two of Trump’s candidates, according to the publication.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Director of National Intelligence nominee Tulsi Gabbard are among those under particular scrutiny by Senate Democrats. Others, including Turner, are unlikely to face many obstacles, the publication notes.

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Warren, Democratic Sen. Andy Kim and Fetterman are said to be among the few Democrats who have expressed a willingness to meet with and possibly endorse some of Trump’s nominees.

Sen. Tammy Baldwin, a Democrat, said she would support Sean Duffy’s nomination for transportation secretary after meeting with him last week, and Fetterman said he would support House Republican Rep. Alice Stefanik for the U.N. ambassadorship.

Republican Senator Marco Rubio, Trump’s pick for secretary of state, and House Republican Lori Chavez-Deremer, a candidate for labor secretary, have won praise from Trump’s critics and are likely to win Democratic votes as well, the paper said.

Addition

“The growing focus on gaining at least some support from Democrats underscores how differently Trump’s current group of candidates is perceived,” compared to candidates in his first term, the newspaper said.

In 2017, 36 of the House’s 52 Republicans supported each of Trump’s Cabinet nominees, according to data compiled by the New York Times. Trump’s nomination of David Shulkin to head the Veterans Administration was approved 100-0.