The US Senate voted on Thursday to approve former CIA director Mike Pompeo as Secretary of State Thursday, after a bruising battle by Democrats against President Donald Trump’s nominee.
Pompeo, who earned Trump’s confidence after a year at the CIA, was accused by Democrats as being too bellicose and harboring anti-Muslim and homophobic sentiments. But after barely getting the nomination past the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Pompeo was easily confirmed by the entire body in a vote
of 57-42, with a handful of Democratic senators facing tough re-election battles voting in favour.
The approval came in time for Pompeo to lead the US delegation to NATO foreign minister talks in Brussels this weekend and to arrange a summit between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in the coming months.