It’s official!
The Senate just voted to confirm Mike Pompeo as the new Secretary of State. He will be the 70th Secretary of State of the United States.
The New York Times reports:
The Senate on Thursday easily confirmed Mike Pompeo as the nation’s 70th secretary of state, elevating the current C.I.A. director and an outspoken foreign policy hawk to be the nation’s top diplomat.
Mr. Pompeo was expected to be sworn in almost immediately after the vote, after which he planned to dash to Joint Base Andrews, where a plane was waiting to fly him to Brussels on his first trip abroad as secretary of state for a meeting of NATO allies.
Mike Pompeo Confirmed as Secretary of State, Flies to Europe, via @nytimes https://t.co/uVhCO8n26M
— James Green (@JamesGreenBronx) April 26, 2018
The vote tally came in at 57-42. CNN provides the breakdown:
Present Republicans approved Pompeo. In addition, independent Sen. Angus King of Maine had also announced his support as have several Democrats: Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Doug Jones of Alabama, Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, and Joe Donnelly of Indiana.
Earlier this week, Pompeo cleared a big hurdle in getting the support of Senator Joe Manchin of the West Virginia, a red-state Democrat up for reelection. That all but guaranteed that Pompeo would get enough votes to get confirmation.
For weeks leading up to the vote, Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, a libertarian-leaning Republican, was threatening to scuttle Pompeo’s nomination. There was also talk that Senator John McCain, who has been absent from the Senate due to his ongoing health issues, wouldn’t be able to attend the vote. With a slim Republican majority in the Senate, having any dereliction would put the vote at risk.
Mike Pompeo will be President Trump’s second secretary of state. Earlier this year, Trump fired Rex Tillerson from his role, citing a difference of values and personal styles. There was also major disagreement on the Iran deal that separated the President from his chief diplomat.
With Pompeo at the helm in Foggy Bottom, expect a more hawkish approach when it comes to diplomacy.
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