Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) said Sunday on CNN's “State of the Union” that several of President-elect Donald Trump's Cabinet nominees are “not qualified or serious.”
Host Jake Tapper said, “Speaking of the FBI, my colleague Senator Banks said the New Orleans attack shows the urgent need to confirm President-elect Trump's national security nominees, including Kash Patel. I just heard them say that they are there,” he said. FBI Director Pete Hegseth and Secretary of Defense Tulsi Gabbard will become Director of National Intelligence. You are on the committee that considers all these recommendations. Is he right that prolonging this recognition fight will jeopardize national security?”
Kelly said, “Well, we're looking for qualified, serious people who are ready to take these jobs and tackle these jobs from day one.”
Tapper said, “Are those three people neither qualified nor serious?''
Kelly said, “Well, in some cases, especially the couples that appear before the Armed Services Committee and the Intelligence Committee, I think I have the opportunity to interact directly with them.I have some opinions.'' ”Pete Hegseth, there are major concerns about their experience and background. ”
Tapper asked, “Are all three of you just Hegses?”
Kelly said, “Well, I think all three of them except for the FBI director nominee are going to be in the judiciary, so I'm not going to meet him in person.” But again, that's someone I have serious concerns about. We are looking for people with backgrounds, especially in national security positions such as the Department of Defense, DNI, and FBI. We want serious people with the background to do these very demanding jobs. ”
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