WASHINGTON — Here’s a look at how area members of Congress voted over the previous week.
Along with the week’s roll call votes, the Senate also passed the Health Care for Burn Pit Veterans Act (S. 3541), to improve health care and services for veterans exposed to toxic substances; and a resolution (S. Res. 519), supporting an independent and democratic Ukraine against any further Russian military invasion.
There were no key votes in the House last week.
Senate
FDA COMMISSIONER: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Robert Califf to be the Department of Health and Human Service’s Food and Drug Administration commissioner. Califf was the agency’s commissioner for a year at the close of the Obama administration, then became a medical professor at Duke University; he is a biomedical scientist. A supporter, Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., said Califf “knows the agency well, understands the value of innovation underway in academia, and knows firsthand how the private sector is advancing cutting-edge science that can benefit all Americans.” An opponent, Sen. Edward Markey, D-Mass., said Califf has failed to commit to changing “FDA’s processes to ensure it does not make the opioid overdose epidemic worse than it already has.” The vote, on Feb. 15, was 50 yeas to 46 nays.
YEAS
Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., Patty Murray, D-Wash.
INTERNATIONAL SECURITY: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Celeste Wallander to be assistant secretary for international security affairs at the Defense Department. Wallander, currently president and CEO of the U.S.-Russia Foundation, was a senior official in the Obama administration specializing in Russia. A supporter, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said: “As one of our nation’s top experts on Russian affairs, her leadership is vital right now.” The vote, on Feb. 16, was 83 yeas to 13 nays.