Former Wall Street executive Howard Lutnick was confirmed by a senator on Tuesday to lead the Commerce Department under President Trump.
Lutnick's nomination was approved by the senators in a 51-45 party voting. Four senators, Corey Booker (D-NJ), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Gary Peters (D-Mitch) and Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), missed the vote.
With Lutonic's confirmation in his book, Trump is now surpassing the confirmation pace of former presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden.
The Democratic-led Senate under Obama in 2009 confirmed 16 cabinet candidates 16 years ago, and at this point in 2021, Biden's seven choices were Biden's That was all.
Obama's figures do not include former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, a holdover from the previous administration who did not require another Senate confirmation vote.
Counting the gates, Trump is expected to move ahead of Obama's pace on Wednesday.
Lutnick, former CEO of financial services firm Cantor Fitzgerald, is the 17th member of Trump's Cabinet to be confirmed.
Under Biden, it took the Democratic-led Senate 56 days to confirm the 17 Cabinet Secretaries. The Republican-led Senate under Trump achieved the feat in just 29 days.
“Howard Lutnick's story is exciting. Senate majority leader John Tune (R-SD) said before the confirmation vote.
Thune said Lutnick lost more than 650 employees on September 11, 2001, including his younger brother Gary.
“Howard Lutnick has given surviving employees a choice. They can either go to funerals for 20 people a day next month or work harder than ever to rebuild the company. Ta”
Under Lutnick's leadership, Cantor Fitzgerald employees agreed to donate a quarter of their salary to 658 families of their colleagues.
“In the next five years, the company and its employees have given those families $180 million,” Thune continued. In 2008, Howard Lutnick confirmed that each employee would double what they gave. ”
Senate leaders said the gestures indicate “the type of Howard Luttonick, the civil servant he will be.”
Co-chaired the Trump Transition Team, Lutnick oversees a vast division with extensive responsibility.
The Census Bureau, the National Weather Service, the Patent and Trademark Service, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Service, the Bureau of Economic Analysis, and the Minority Business Development Agency are all within the scope of the Ministry of Commerce.
The department has nearly 47,000 employees and is requesting a $11.4 billion budget for fiscal year 2025.
As Secretary of Commerce, Lutnick ranks 10th in the presidency.
