Trump Cabinet confirmation hearings **live commentary thread**

[Axel Foley]

Is Pompeo so bad? I listened to his hearing, and my impression of him wasn't negative at all...he seemed to me at least a loyal and trustworthy person( to your Nation, obviously, not to Trump)...maybe I don't know him fully?

[Axel Foley]

I don't understand a thing, maybe it's just because I'am a fool...Collins and Murkoswski are both in the Committee competent about Education...this Committee is 12-11 Republican...so, not even both, but just the vote of one of them would have blocked DeVos in the preliminary fase, without the need of a full floor Senate vote...if they weren't willing to vote for her, why did they vote for advancing her nomination in Committee?

[Axel Foley]

So, Pruitt is in thanks to two Dems or am I wrong?

[Axel Foley]

Yes, you're right...even with a NAY from Manchin, Heitkamp, McCain and Collins, Pence would have saved him.

[Axel Foley]

In any case, from a 2018-related point of view, I can understand Manchin and Heitkamp vote.

[Axel Foley]

The WV Mountain Party will presumably attack Manchin a lot for voting for Pruitt.

Probably, he could be primaried. But for now, a Trumpist approach to enviromentalism is winning in West Virginia. I'm betting on Manchin doing a similar thought. Personally, at least for now, I think an enviromentalist candidate beating Manchin in WV Dem Senate primary would end up in GE like Akin or Mourdock on the opposite side.