President-elect Donald Trump is meeting with Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.) on Friday, and sources tell Reuters and CNN that Trump is considering the red-state Democrat for either energy secretary or secretary of the interior. Trump is also thinking about tapping Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.V.) for energy secretary, three sources tell Politico. Heitkamp's Trump Tower meeting in particular has Senate Democrats alarmed, since if Heitkamp joined Trump's Cabinet, North Dakota voters would likely elect a Republican to replace her.
Right now, the Senate has 51 Republicans and 48 Democrats (including two independents), and a runoff election in Louisiana is expected to deliver another Republican. Neither Heitkamp nor Manchin ruled out serving in the Trump administration. Both senators are up for re-election in 2018, expected to be a tough cycle for Senate Democrats, and having incumbents run would significantly improve the Democrats' chances of holding those seats.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
A beginner's guide to exploring the AmazonThe Week Recommends Trek carefully — and respectfully — in the world's largest rainforest
-
What is the future of the International Space Station?In the Spotlight A fiery retirement, launching the era of private space stations
-
What are the rules of a no-buy vs. low-buy year?The Explainer These two revised approaches to purchasing could help you save big
-
Trump starts term with spate of executive ordersSpeed Read The president is rolling back many of Joe Biden's climate and immigration policies
-
Trump pardons or commutes all charged Jan. 6 riotersSpeed Read The new president pardoned roughly 1,500 criminal defendants charged with crimes related to the Capitol riot
-
Will Trump's 'madman' strategy pay off?Today's Big Question Incoming US president likes to seem unpredictable but, this time round, world leaders could be wise to his playbook
-
DeSantis appoints Florida's top lawyer to US SenateSpeed Read The state's attorney general, Ashley Moody, will replace Sen. Marco Rubio in the Senate
-
Pam Bondi downplays politics at confirmation hearingSpeed Read Trump's pick for attorney general claimed her Justice Department would not prosecute anyone for political reasons
-
Biden warns of oligarchy in farewell addressSpeed Read The president issued a stark warning about the dangers of unchecked power in the hands of the ultra-wealthy
-
Hegseth boosts hopes for confirmation amid grillingSpeed Read The Senate held confirmation hearings for Pete Hegseth, Trump's Defense Secretary nominee
-
Biden removes Cuba from terrorism blacklistSpeed read The move is likely to be reversed by the incoming Trump administration, as it was Trump who first put Cuba on the terrorism blacklist in his first term
