Trump’s Housing Nominee Advances Out of Committee on a Party-Line Vote

The Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee advanced his nomination over protests from Democrats, who said they wanted to see his FBI background check.

Scott Turner

Angelina Katsanis/POLITICO/AP

Scott Turner is heading to the Senate floor for a full vote on his nomination for secretary of housing and urban development, but he’s only doing it with Republican support.

The Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee’s party-line vote to advance Turner on Thursday happened over the protests of Democrats, who requested a delay on the vote until after the committee had a chance to review Turner’s FBI background check. Republicans argued that it was not required and pushed the nomination forward.

“I would think we could have had a broader bipartisan vote out of the committee,” said Democratic Sen. Mark Warner, who said he was first introduced to Turner after his nomination.