How the White House convinced skeptical Republicans to back RFK Jr., Gabbard and Hegseth
CNN
Sen. Todd Young didn’t back Donald Trump in 2024. But that didn’t stop Young from calling the president this past weekend as he was wavering over Trump’s pick for the country’s top intelligence official, Tulsi Gabbard.
Sen. Todd Young didn’t back Donald Trump in 2024. But that didn’t stop Young from calling the president this past weekend as he was wavering over Trump’s pick for the country’s top intelligence official, Tulsi Gabbard. Trump told Young to “vote your conscience,” the Indiana Republican told CNN. And when Sen. Thom Tillis was considering a no vote on Pete Hegseth to be defense secretary last month, Tillis spoke with Trump and relayed his concerns about new allegations that emerged ahead of the Senate vote. “I made it very clear that if, on their face, they proved to be accurate, that I was a no,” Tillis said in an interview. “I told President Trump. We had a great discussion. It’s actually comical how people think it went versus how it went. I was treated with the utmost respect.” Two of Trump’s most controversial nominees, Gabbard and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., won key committee votes Tuesday with the support of all Republicans, the clearest sign to date that the president is poised to get all of his Cabinet picks confirmed after Hegseth was approved last month by the slimmest of margins. The White House ultimately won over skeptical GOP senators – not with Trump’s usual bombast, but with a combination of Trump’s personal conversations with senators, extensive engagement from Vice President JD Vance and assurances from nominees that their past controversial views would not drive their positions in Trump’s Cabinet.
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