Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) said Sunday that President-elect Trump’s nominees for the incoming administration “should have background checks coming together.”
In an earlier interview, Klobuchar told ABC News’ Jonathan Karl that as a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, she and her colleagues on the panel are responsible for looking at FBI background checks and asking questions to ensure they are enforcing regulations. “Department Mission” is used to make recommendations to the Cabinet.
“If there is no agreement on FBI background checks in this case, I worry about all the candidates,” Klobuchar added during an appearance on “This Week.” “As far as I know, the transition committee has not yet reached such an agreement.”
Some Trump advisers have suggested that the president-elect should shift background checks for high-level appointees from the FBI to private investigators.
“They should have background checks together,” Klobuchar said of Trump’s team. “They need to get qualified candidates, and then we’re interested in getting things done for the American people.”
Some Republican senators have pushed back against a proposal by Trump associates that they would not undergo background checks conducted by the FBI.
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) previously said, “In my judgment, the FBI should conduct a background check.”
Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., also previously said the FBI’s access to information collected by law enforcement at the local, state and federal levels is better than that of private companies.
“If you want to supplement it with a private company, I would say OK. But the FBI probably has access to information that private companies don’t have. “Even very proficient companies,” he said.
Klobuchar said in an appearance this week that she hopes Team Trump will field qualified candidates, background checks, move forward and not create an uproar over people like Matt Gaetz who should not have been nominated. first of all.”
The Hill has reached out to Gaetz and the Trump transition team for comment.
