Senate Advances Nearly 100 Trump Nominees In Historic Move
Senate Republicans moved closer to delivering a historic wave of confirmations on Wednesday after clearing another key procedural hurdle toward approving nearly 100 nominees put forward by President Donald Trump.
With lawmakers racing to wrap up business ahead of the holiday recess, Republicans advanced a package of 97 nominees in a 53–47 party-line vote, positioning the Senate just one step away from final confirmation.
A final vote is expected Thursday unless Senate Democrats agree to speed up the process through a time-limiting agreement, Fox News reported.
If the confirmations proceed as expected, Republicans will have approved more of President Trump’s nominees in the first year of his second term than any president in modern history.
The current slate would bring Trump’s total confirmations to 415 in year one of his second term, eclipsing the 323 confirmations he secured during his first term and surpassing former President Joe Biden’s 365 confirmations at the same point in his presidency.
The rapid pace follows a September change to Senate confirmation rules that allowed Republicans to overcome sustained Democratic obstruction. For months, Democrats had slowed or blocked progress on even low-level executive appointments, prompting GOP leaders to take action.
Republicans invoked the so-called “nuclear option” for the fourth time in Senate history, lowering the threshold for confirming certain nominees from 60 votes to a simple majority. The move applies to sub-Cabinet positions and has allowed the Senate to swiftly advance hundreds of Trump administration picks, Fox reported.
“Among the list of nominees are former Rep. Anthony D’Esposito, R-N.Y., to serve as inspector general at the Department of Labor and two picks for the National Labor Relations Board, James Murphy and Scott Mayer, along with several others in nearly every federal agency,” the outlet reported.
Lawmakers also confirmed President Trump’s nomination of billionaire entrepreneur Jared Isaacman to lead NASA, along with Douglas Weaver to serve on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Isaacman’s confirmation passed with bipartisan support in a 67–30 vote, marking the Senate’s second consideration of his nomination. Fox noted that Trump originally selected Isaacman to head NASA in December 2024, but the nomination was temporarily withdrawn earlier this year following a “thorough review of prior associations.”
Trump renominated Isaacman in November, praising his “passion for space, astronaut experience, and dedication to pushing the boundaries of exploration, unlocking the mysteries of the universe, and advancing the new space economy.”
If Republicans complete the process this week, President Trump will surpass 400 confirmed nominees during the first year of his second term — placing him well ahead of Biden, who had roughly 350 confirmations at the same point in his presidency.
The nominees span nearly every federal agency, including former Rep. Anthony D’Esposito for the Department of Labor inspector general post and National Labor Relations Board nominees James Murphy and Scott Mayer.
Murphy and Mayer were added after President Trump removed NLRB member Gwynne Wilcox, a decision the Supreme Court upheld earlier this year.
Republican leaders have defended the rule change as a necessary response to partisan obstruction, emphasizing that the streamlined process applies only to sub-Cabinet roles and restores functionality to a Senate gridlocked by political warfare.