Senate confirms 48 Trump nominees at once, including Kimberly Guilfoyle and Callista Gingrich [View all]

Source: NBC News

The Senate confirmed 48 of President Donald Trump's nominees in a single vote on Thursday after the Republican majority triggered the "nuclear option" to make a far-reaching rule change.

The party-line vote of 51-47 confirms a slew of Trump picks for sub-Cabinet positions and ambassadors. They include former Rep. Brandon Williams, R-N.Y., as under secretary for nuclear security; former Fox News personality Kimberly Guilfoyle as ambassador to Greece; and Callista Gingrich, wife of the former House speaker, as ambassador to both Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

It came after Senate Republicans voted to overturn existing rules with a simple majority to bypass the 60-vote threshold for confirming nominees in batches. The GOP effort to go "nuclear" — the term for changing Senate rules on a party-line basis — was unanimous, joined by centrist Sens. Susan Collins, of Maine, and Lisa Murkowski, of Alaska.

Democrats voted at every turn to stop the rule change, but with only 47 seats, they didn't have enough votes.

Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/senate-confirms-48-trump-nominees-kimberly-guilfoyle-callista-gingrich-rcna231946