Even when going out of his way to be a nice guy, Lamar Alexander can’t catch a break from Senate Democrats. Chairman of the committee currently vetting the next Health and Human Services secretary, Alexander has tried to treat Obama and Trump nominees equally.
But so far Democrats accuse him of foul play, of trying to smuggle nominees through without proper scrutiny. Sen. Al Franken summarized the complaint, quipping bitterly that while Republicans spent 11 hours on the Benghazi attack, each Democrat only had seven minutes to cross-examine the nominee, Tom Price.
For those uninitiated in Senate procedure, that’s a pretty damning charge against Alexander. Except it’s just not true. If anything, Republicans are extending a favor, they didn’t enjoy in either 2009 or 2014.
No matter what Democrats cry, everyone on the committee gets a turn. Here are the rules set by Alexander: One round of questioning and seven minutes of cross-examination for every senator. That’s not just fair. It’s more generous.
When the committee held hearings for HHS Secretaries Kathleen Sebelius and later Sylvia Burwell, then Democrat Chair Tom Harkin allowed one round of questions. Each senator had five minutes in the limelight — two minutes less than Alexander gave.
And Franken knows this. He was there when Burwell was confirmed in 2014. He supported her, voted for her, and wasn’t upset that he only had five minutes to question her.
This quibbling over minutes is a distraction. Senators regularly sit down with cabinet candidates for lengthy private meetings. Staff probe nominee’s political, financial, and personal records. And often, the outcome’s already determined before the committee comes to order and the C-SPAN cameras flip on.
More importantly, this isn’t even Price’s confirmation hearing. Alexander on Wednesday reminded Democrats that HELP’s examination of Price was a “courtesy hearing” and that the senators “don’t vote on his nomination.” The real grilling comes later in front of the Senate Finance Committee. They’re the ones who decide Price’s fate.
“Dr. Price made an exceptional case for his confirmation today in a hearing that lasted nearly four hours,” Alexander told reporters, “By far our committee’s most extensive questioning of any HHS Secretary nominee since 1993.”
Philip Wegmann is a commentary writer for the Washington Examiner.
