Congress must realize that swiftly confirming CIA Director Mike Pompeo to become the next Secretary of State is critical to US national security interests, White House spokesperson Sarah Sanders said in a Twitter post on Wednesday, Sputnik reported.
Sanders linked her statement to an earlier Tweet from President Donald Trump saying Pompeo met with Kim Jong-un in North Korea last week to discuss details for upcoming talks.
According to her, "Dems have an opportunity to put politics aside, acknowledge our national security is too important, and confirm Mike Pompeo."
At the same time, Senator Tom Cotton told a White House briefing that if the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC) refused to confirm CIA Director Mike Pompeo as secretary of state, the Republican Party would put the nomination before the full Senate and expect to win.
Trump and Kim are supposed to hold talks on denuclearization of the Korean peninsula in May or June. Next Friday, the North Korean leader is scheduled to meet with South Korean President Moon Jae-in.
The US Senate Foreign Relations Committee plans to hold a vote on Pompeo's confirmation next week. Multiple lawmakers have come forward opposing Pompeo's nomination, primarily citing his past statements considered hostile to Muslims, women’s empowerment, and LBGT rights. Democrats have pushed back alleging Pompeo’s aggressive stances on Iran, North Korea, and torture reveal a mindset ill-conducive to the conduct of foreign policy.
Pompeo was nominated to be the next secretary of state when Trump announced via Twitter on March 13 that he was firing former Exxon Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson. Trump told reporters he dismissed Tillerson for differences over issues like the Iran nuclear agreement.