Cassidy Sets July 23 Vote on 2 Health Nominees as Support Remains Unclear
Updated
Updated · POLITICO · Jul 16
Cassidy Sets July 23 Vote on 2 Health Nominees as Support Remains Unclear
2 articles · Updated · POLITICO · Jul 16
Summary
July 23 is the date Bill Cassidy set for the Senate HELP Committee to decide whether to advance CDC nominee Erica Schwartz and ASPR nominee Sean Kaufman, even as he said he has not counted enough votes.
Cassidy expects unified Democratic opposition and faces unease inside his own party, with Lisa Murkowski still seeking answers on both nominees after concerns that helped sink Trump’s surgeon general pick in April.
Several Democrats — including Andy Kim, Tammy Baldwin, Tim Kaine and John Hickenlooper — said they remain undecided, giving the nominees a narrow path if Republicans stay united.
At Wednesday’s hearing, Schwartz drew scrutiny over whether she would resist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on science and vaccines, while Kaufman tried to walk back past anti-Covid-vaccine comments by saying vaccines are safe and effective.