Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) shared an eyebrow-raising bar when it comes to whether he'll support Donald Trump’s cabinet selections in what is expected to be a contentious nomination battle for many of the president-elect’s unconventional picks.
Cruz's curious comment came Tuesday during a wide-ranging discussion about how he expects the Senate confirmation process to play out next month. He told CNN anchor Kaitlan Collins that he believes all of Trump’s cabinet-level nominees will be confirmed.
But when the host asked if there was anything in former Fox News personality Pete Hegseth’s FBI background check that could potentially change his vote, the conservative Texas senator delivered an answer he later acknowledged was “absurd.”
“Well sure,” he told Collins. “If he, you know, killed someone and dragged their body into the woods, I’d vote no. I don't believe that's going to be the answer.”
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“But that's not your standard for confirming a defense secretary?" Collins asked.
“Of course not, I picked an absurd example,” Cruz replied. “But yes, of course, with any nominee, if something comes out about them that nobody knows that is deeply concerning, everyone will – that's why you have advice and consent because you discover things about people's backgrounds.”
Earlier in the interview, Collins also pushed back on Cruz’s characterization of how Democrats approached President Joe Biden’s nominations four years ago.
“I think most Republican senators begin from a proposition that the president is entitled to choose his cabinet nominees,” Cruz said, adding that Democrats voted to confirm whoever Biden selected.
That’s when Collins pointed out that Republicans also fought back against Biden’s picks — and reminded Cruz he voted “against everyone except Lloyd Austin.”
“But look, I mean, a lot of Biden’s picks, I think were extreme,” Cruz said. “You look at someone like Merrick Garland. I think Merrick Garland has been the most partisan and political attorney general the country has ever seen.”
Cruz, who was reelected to a third term last month, added that he “was surprised Biden did not nominate more moderate candidates.” Trump, on the other hand, has nominated “several people who were Democrats until like 12 minutes ago," he said. Cruz named former Democrats turned Trump loyalists Tulsi Gabbard and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as examples.
