OMB nominee gets hearing on Feb. 9

Neera Tanden, President Biden’s nominee to head the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), will have her hearing before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee next Tuesday, the panel said in a statement Tuesday.

Then-Rep. Mick Mulvaney (R-S.C.), former President Trump’s first OMB head, faced hearings from both the Homeland Security panel and the Senate Budget Committee, chaired by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). A spokesperson for the Budget Committee told The Hill it did not yet have a timeline for Tanden’s hearing.

Biden announced Tanden, who heads the liberal think tank Center for American Progress, as his nominee on Nov. 30, before two Senate runoff elections in Georgia secured a 50-50 Democratic majority in the chamber. GOP senators suggested at the time that Tanden would face a confirmation fight due to her history of outspoken criticism of Republicans on social media.

Last week, Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), a member of the Budget Committee, said he had spoken with Tanden by phone and did not rule out supporting her nomination.

“While we have our differences, I hope to work with both the Office of Management and Budget and the Council of Economic Advisors on the issues where we can find agreement for North Dakotans. I appreciate both of them taking the time and look forward to their confirmation hearings,” Cramer said in a statement.