Under bipartisan pressure to clear the way for more extensive vetting of his administration picks, President elect-Donald Trump’s transition team announced Tuesday they entered into an agreement with the Department of Justice for background checks and security clearances.
The move comes after weeks of speculation about whether Trump would follow the normal procedures for presidential transitions for digging into the backgrounds of those proposed for top federal jobs.
Some Republicans had called for the FBI to conduct background checks of Trump’s nominees to lead to key agencies.
“The background checks are important,” said Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss.
The Trump transition said the agreement signed Tuesday would allow them “to submit names for background checks and security clearances” to the Justice Department.
“This agreement with the Department of Justice will ensure President Trump and his team are ready on Day 1 to begin enacting the America First Agenda that an overwhelming majority of our nation supported on Election Day,” Trump chief of staff Susie Wiles said in a statement.
The backgrounds of some Trump nominees are raising concerns. Former Rep. Matt Gaetz withdrew from consideration as Trump’s attorney general pick after meeting resistance. Gaetz was investigated but never charged by the DOJ over sex trafficking allegations, which he denies.
Pete Hegseth, Trump’s nominee for defense secretary, was accused of sexual assault but never charged and denies the allegations. He paid a financial settlement to his accuser.
Other allegations have surfaced from the years Hegseth oversaw two veterans’ groups. A whistleblower report alleged Hegseth had been forced out of the non-profit groups for personal misconduct, mismanagement of funds and intoxication on the job.
Media reports indicated Trump’s team was not using the FBI to screen nominees for top jobs.
Amid the escalating controversy surrounding Hegseth, some senators have been outspoken about the need for a deep look into the background of every Trump pick.
“It’s important that we thoroughly vet the nominees for these very important decisions,” Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, said of the defense secretary pick.
Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., argued for the importance of FBI background checks in a letter Sunday to incoming Senate GOP leader John Thune, R-S.D.
Schumer wrote that Senate Democrats are committed to “working in a bipartisan fashion to process each nominee by reviewing standard FBI background-investigation materials, scheduling hearings andmarkups in the committees of jurisdiction, and considering nominees on the Senate floor.”
The Department of Justice did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the MOU.
Trump’s team announced an agreement with President Joe Biden’s administration last week to cooperate on the transition of power, but Trump is forgoing a separate agreement with the General Services Administration that would have provided federal funding for transition efforts. Trump’s transition is being funded with private donations.
