With Republicans taking back the Senate, the Senate’s top government oversight committee will undergo a major leadership overhaul.
For the past four years, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee has been led by Chairman Gary Peters (D-Mich.). But after this week’s election results, Ranking Member Rand Paul (R-Ky.) will likely receive the HSGAC gavel early next year.
The big caveat is that Paul also has the seniority to seek the chairmanship of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee instead.
Federal News Network has reached out to Paul’s office for comment on his plans.
But several Congressional officials interviewed for this article noted that Mr. Paul may view favorably HSGAC’s broad platform for launching investigations across government operations. The committee also oversees the Department of Homeland Security, a frequent target of Mr. Paul’s campaign against federal spending and overreach.
Paul was elected to the HSGAC Ranking Member in February 2023. His primary focus is investigating issues such as the origins of COVID-19 and federal virology research. Fraud, waste and abuse. Government efforts to combat misinformation on social media.
As chairman, Paul will have the power to shape the issues central to President-elect Donald Trump’s agenda. A former HSGAC official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Mr. Paul is likely to create a Government Efficiency Commission and cooperate with President Trump’s plan to rein in spending based on Biden-era legislation such as the Inflation Control Act. said. The official also predicted that Paul would not be an obstacle to President Trump’s plans to overhaul the federal workforce.
“Rand Paul will be overseeing a vast amount of backward-looking investigations that will provide President Trump with the best cover for significant institutional change within the government,” said a former HSGAC official. Ta.
But multiple former Hill staffers said it was highly unlikely that Paul, one of the most “principled” members of the Senate, would respond to President Trump’s requests for new funding or powers for agencies such as DHS. He said it was low.
President Trump has vowed to tighten immigration enforcement and carry out mass deportations. “It’s not about price. It’s not, really, we don’t have a choice,” President Trump told NBC News this week.
An avowed deficit hawk and supporter of limited government, Paul has consistently opposed any legislation that would expand DHS’s powers and spending authority as a member of HSGAC.
“(Paul) would naturally be skeptical of anything that expands the power of the federal government,” said another former Congressional staffer.
Former staffers said the dynamic could put Paul at odds with President Trump’s plans, but it’s unclear how much the president-elect will seek new authorities to carry out immigration policy.
HSGAC legislative outlook
During the four years under Peters, HSGAC has achieved legislative success. The committee has passed numerous reforms on issues such as the federal workforce, technology acquisition, and cybersecurity. The last time Republicans controlled the Senate, from 2017 to 2020, HSGAC was similarly productive under then-Chairman Rob Portman (R-Ohio).
But if Paul takes the gavel, he may set a higher bar for bills to be considered in committee. As a ranking member, Paul has voted against many bills due to concerns about government spending.
“For the second time in seven days, we’re meeting again to furiously consider 13 bills, but I don’t think we’ll even bother to understand the costs before the July 2023 HSGAC price hike,” Paul said. There were only three cases where I had difficulty.” “We hope this increase is an exception to the norm, but it’s amazing how too often our colleagues in Congress vote on bills blindly, without any regard for the dire financial situation in this country. .”
A former HSGAC official noted that Paul is less interested in legislation than in research and oversight. “He’s not going to give the government any additional powers,” the former official said.
HSGAC also oversees the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, which has received primarily bipartisan support since its creation in 2018. CISA has also received more funding and authority over the years to address cyber threats to federal networks and critical infrastructure.
But Paul is at odds with CISA over what he believes is an attempt to “censor” free speech on social media. Mr. Paul also blocked a bipartisan effort last year to reauthorize CISA’s chemical security program.
“He has made it very clear that he is not a fan of CISA,” said a former HSGAC staffer, adding that this issue could be a major hurdle for any cyber bill making it through the committee.
But if Mr. Paul becomes HSGAC president, he may seek further compromises to advance his policies, one former official said.
“When you’re in the majority, your views change,” said a former official. “It changes the way you think. ‘Okay, here are three things I want to accomplish. To do that, I need to get six Democrats on board.’ Someday we’ve got to find a way to get it through the House.” yeah. ” I guess it remains to be seen whether Paul plans to get things done or if he just uses his platform to reveal the full extent of his ideas. ”
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