President-elect Donald Trump’s most controversial Cabinet picks are largely bypassing meetings with leading Senate Democrats as they begin navigating the confirmation process. These hot-button selections, who face major questions over past statements, actions and policy positions, are looking to shore up their GOP support before searching for Democratic backing — which they may never get anyway.
Consider this: Defense Department nominee Pete Hegseth hasn’t met with Senate Armed Services Committee Chair Jack Reed (D-R.I.). Department of Health and Human Services nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr. hasn’t met with Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.). FBI nominee Kash Patel hasn’t met with Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Durbin (D-Ill.). And Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, hasn’t yet met with DNI nominee Tulsi Gabbard.
There’s no guarantee any of these picks get any Democratic votes at all.
Trump’s already withdrawn two picks so far — former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) for DOJ and Chad Chronister for DEA — because they couldn’t get enough Republican support. And the Trump transition team knows there’s little-to-no chance that this quartet gets any Democratic support. So Senate Republicans are still at the point of figuring out whether they can get these nominees across the finish line without relying on Democrats.
Warner and Reed told us they’re aiming to meet with Gabbard and Hegseth respectively in January. Wyden and Durbin said they hadn’t heard from the Kennedy or Patel teams yet, but also want to organize a sitdown.
It’s clear that the Trump transition team isn’t prioritizing Democratic meetings during the opening rounds on the Hill.
Senate Republican leadership, however, tried to point the finger at Democrats. Incoming Majority Leader John Thune said Trump’s nominees “are doing their best to try and make contact with Democrats.”
“But I had a conversation with one earlier this morning who hasn’t had any success doing that just yet,” Thune told us on Tuesday after meeting with Pam Bondi, Trump’s attorney general nominee. “So hopefully the Democrats will entertain our nominees and give them an opportunity to make their case.”
That’s not to say that all of Trump’s Cabinet picks are ignoring Democrats. Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.), a vulnerable Democrat up for reelection in 2026, met with Gabbard on Tuesday to hear her thoughts on intelligence matters. Gabbard will also meet with Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.), who has signaled his openness to voting for Trump nominees.
Another in-cycle Democrat, Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee Chair Gary Peters (D-Mich.), met with DHS nominee Kristi Noem.
Apart from the Trump nominees dominating the headlines, there are a number of more bipartisan picks that are already making the rounds with Democrats.
Treasury secretary nominee Scott Bessent will meet today with Sens. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). Brooke Rollins, Trump’s choice for agriculture secretary, will meet today with Sens. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Fetterman and Bennet.
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), Trump’s selection for secretary of state, has met with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (N.H.), who’ll be ranking Democrat on the Foreign Relations Committee in 2025. Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) has also met with a number of Democrats.
“I’ve known most of these people for a while, been here now 14 years,” Rubio told us. “But obviously we’ll have to get through the hearing and see how the vote goes.”
