The full Senate is set to vote on the nomination of President Trump’s CIA director to be his top diplomat, later this week.
Minutes before the vote, Senator Rand Paul, a Republican from Kentucky, changed his mind about opposing Pompeo over his support for the Iraq war and for the ongoing U.S. presence in Afghanistan.
On Monday evening, the committee — which is narrowly split with 11 Republicans and 10 Democrats — voted along party lines to endorse Pompeo’s nomination to the entire Senate.
Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) originally vowed not to vote for Pompeo. But, in an unexpected twist, the senator tweeted minutes before the vote that he changed his mind after speaking with President Donald Trump and Pompeo himself.
Most observers expect the Senate, where Republicans hold a 51-49 advantage, to officially confirm Pompeo because three Democrats have already said they’ll vote for Trump’s pick. The endorsements by Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (ND), Sen. Joe Manchin (WV), and Sen. Joe Donnelly (IN) — who are all up for reelection in states Trump won — will pave the way for Pompeo to become the nation’s chief diplomat.
