Controversial Fed nominee Shelton stalls in Senate test vote
WASHINGTON » The nomination of Judy Shelton, President Donald Trump’s controversial pick for the Federal Reserve, is stalled in the Senate after Vice President- elect Kamala Harris returned to the chamber to cast a key vote in a tally Tuesday.
Two key Republicans were absent because of COVID-related concerns. The 47-50 vote came as the Republican- controlled Senate continues to focus its energies in the post- election lame- duck session on confirming Trump’s appointees.
Shelton is an unusually caustic critic of the Fed and was opposed by two GOP senators, Susan Collins of Maine and Mitt Romney of Utah, in Tuesday’s vote. Harris has been focused on the transition to the Biden administration but returned to the chamber for her first vote since winning the vice presidency.
Senator-elect Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., is likely to join the Senate when the chamber returns from its Thanksgiving break. That could leave Shelton short of support for confirmation even if Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., seeks a revote next month.
Another Republican opponent, Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, missed Tuesday’s vote, and his return could cement Shelton’s fate, even after Rick Scott, R-Fla., and Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, return to the chamber after quarantining because of exposure to the coronavirus.
McConnell initially voted “aye” but changed his vote to reserve the option to call a second tally if he can line up the votes. Another potential supporter, Bill Cassidy, R-La., missed Tuesday’s vote.