Sen. John Curtis (R-Utah) remains undecided on two of President-elect Donald Trump’s top nominees — former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard’s nomination to be director of national intelligence and Pete Hegseth’s nomination as Defense secretary — he said at a POLITICO Live event Tuesday.
“The biggest problem for me is that she’s been so low-profile,” Curtis said about Gabbard, saying he needs more information in order to decide whether or not to support her nomination on the Senate floor. He added that he intends to “put the energy” into learning about Gabbard before casting that vote.
Gabbard’s nomination is one of the more contentious among Senate Republicans, with multiple Republicans not yet backing the former Democratic congresswoman.
Speaking about his approach to nominees more broadly, Curtis stressed that personal character is “huge” but added that “we’re all flawed, and the question is: At what point do you cross that line?”
Curtis, a freshman who is considered a relative moderate inside the Senate GOP, also said he continues to look into Hegseth’s nomination as Defense secretary, making calls to people who know Hegseth and reading his book in an attempt to get to know the former Fox News personality more closely. Curtis said he’s still waiting for information from Hegseth’s hearings and FBI background check before making a decision.
