As President-elect Donald Trump has made his cabinet selection in the weeks following his landslide win in the 2024 election, some of his appointees have encountered substantial hurdles, including Secretary of Defense nominee Pete Hegseth. However, amid the opposition toward Hegseth, some of it within the Republican Party, Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird sent a stern message to GOP detractors.
Bird published an opinion piece in Breitbart calling for unity within the Republican ranks, particularly as Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA), who is a key member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, has indicated she is undecided about whether she will back Hegseth or not. Hegseth has been the subject of controversy amid anonymous, unproven allegations brought against him.
Bird said in her op-ed, “In recent days, it’s become clear that D.C. politicians think they can ignore the voices of their constituents and entertain smears from the same outlets that have pushed out lies for years. When voters select a president, they are selecting that president’s vision for a cabinet that will enact his agenda. On November 5, America voted for change, and for Washington to work for America – not the other way around.”
Praising President-elect Trump cabinet picks, she said, “Trump has been building a qualified, talented, and powerful team to lead his America First agenda.” She continued, “The Constitution gives senators the important responsibility for advice and consent and that’s what the confirmation hearings are for. It’s a chance for nominees to respond to criticism and make their case for why they are the right choice to lead cabinet agencies.”
Slamming the efforts to prevent Hegseth’s nomination, she added, “What we’re witnessing in Washington right now is a Deep State attempt to undermine the will of the people. We must not let Washington kill nominations before the Constitutional confirmation process even begins.”
She concluded, “Trump campaigned on delivering much-needed reform to Washington D.C. Tens of millions of Americans went into the ballot box, sick of paying taxes year after year, just to see the government fail to deliver on its responsibility to protect the border, defeat our adversaries, and secure economic prosperity. The president’s cabinet is essential to delivering on the president’s agenda. The American people have spoken, and our elected D.C. lawmakers should listen.”
Sen. Ernst’s vote will play a crucial role in whether Hegseth gets successfully nominated. Revealing her reservations toward Hegseth during a Fox News interview last week, Ernst maintained the vetting process is still ongoing. When asked if she supports Hegseth’s confirmation, Ernst said, “Well, I did have a very long, lengthy discussion with Pete yesterday, and I do appreciate his service to the nation.”
She continued, “I also am a combat veteran, so we talked about a number of those issues, and we will continue with the vetting process. I think that that is incredibly important. So again, all I’m saying is we had a very frank and productive discussion and I know that we will continue to have conversation in the upcoming months.” Ernst also noted, “I think for a number of our senators, they want to make sure that any allegations have been cleared, and that’s why we have to have a very thorough vetting process.”
Note: The featured image is a screenshot from the embedded video.
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