President-elect Joe Biden’s nominees for cabinet positions will have to “run the gauntlet” if the GOP controls the Senate next year, the third-ranking Republican in the chamber said.
“So it’s not going to be a garden party if the Republicans are in the majority. These nominees are going to have to run the gauntlet,” Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming said on “Fox News Sunday.”
Barrasso, chair of the Senate Republican Conference, said his colleagues will not “rubber stamp” Biden’s nominees during confirmation hearings and will ask “tough questions.”
“We are not going to forget what happened with President Trump’s administration and the delayed process that went through it,” he said.
A runoff election in Georgia on Jan. 5 will determine which party controls the Senate.
Two incumbent GOP senators — David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler — are being challenged by Democrats Jon Ossoff and the Rev. Raphael Warnock.
If the Democrats win, the chamber would be split 50-50 and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris would cast any tie-breaking votes.
Barrasso signaled that former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm, Biden’s pick to run the Energy Department, would come under intense scrutiny.
“The impact of that on our economy, on jobs, it cuts the throat of my state, our economy, the men and women who work there, the energy that America needs. It’s going to drive up costs significantly for American families, so you bet I’m going to ask tough questions,” he said.