Senate advances Rick Perry to be Energy secretary

The Senate voted Thursday to forward with Rick Perry’s nomination to be Energy secretary. 

Senators voted 62-37 to get his nomination over an initial procedural hurdle, setting up a final vote for Perry as early as Friday if senators fail to reach a deal to speed up his nomination.

Democratic Sens. Mark Warner (Va.), Joe Manchin (W.Va.), Heidi Heitkamp (N.D.), Tom Udall (N.M.), Catherine Cortez Masto (Nev.), Debbie Stabenow (Mich.), Claire McCaskill (Mo.), Jon Tester (Mont.), Ben Cardin (Md.) and Joe Donnelly (Ind.), and Independent Sen. Angus King (Maine), voted with all present Republicans to back Perry.

GOP Sen. Johnny Isakson (Ga.) was not present. 

Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) predicted ahead of the vote that Perry would get bipartisan support, adding that once the former Texas governor is confirmed, he can “begin leading on smarter policies at the Energy Department.” 

Perry wasn’t included on a list of top targets from Democrats. 

{mosads}The Senate’s Energy and Natural Resources Committee voted 17-6 to approve Perry’s nomination in late January, sending it to the full Senate.

Perry pledged to abolish the Energy Department when he was running for president in 2011 — notably forgetting the department’s name during a debate while listing the agencies he wanted to cut.

He was forced to walk back that pledge during is confirmation hearing, instead saying he would focus on updating the country’s nuclear arsenal and research activities. 

“I am committed to modernizing our nuclear stockpile, promoting and developing American energy in all forms, advancing the department’s critical science and technology mission and carefully disposing of nuclear waste,” Perry said during his hearing.

Democrats also raised concerns about Perry’s position on climate change. The former governor says he believes in it, but doesn’t know how much influence humans have had. 

Trump praised Perry last year as a potential 2018 challenger to Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas). Democrats have publicly fretted about whether Perry would be able to stand up to or influence the president. 

Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) said during the confirmation hearing that she worried about Perry’s ability to influence the White House and Trump’s inner circle of advisers.

“The governor’s responses for the record left me wondering whether he would stand up to fight the White House’s approach to these programs,” she said.