The U.S. Senate Banking Committee has voted to move forward with Paul Atkins’ nomination to become a commissioner of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
According to Reuters’ report, the vote took place on April 3 and ended in a 13-11 decision, meaning Atkins now moves closer to being confirmed by the full Senate. If approved, Atkins will serve two terms as an SEC commissioner. One of those terms will take over the spot previously held by Gary Gensler, while the other will run until 2031.
Senator Tim Scott, who is the chair of the Senate Banking Committee, spoke highly of Atkins. He said that his leadership would bring “much-needed clarity” to the regulation of digital assets like cryptocurrency. Scott believes that Atkins’ experience is necessary for the job.
On the other hand, some Democrats were strongly against the nomination. Senator Elizabeth Warren, who is the top Democrat on the committee, criticized Atkins and said his policies would favor deregulation and could disrupt the financial regulations.
Warren was also upset about what she called the influence of figures like Donald Trump and Elon Musk on government agencies, and she argued that they were “actively destroying” these agencies. She made it clear that she could not back Atkins.
“I will not vote to confirm these administration officials when co-Presidents Trump and Musk are actively destroying these agencies while we just sit here,” she said
The committee also advanced nominations for other roles, including Jonathan Gould as Comptroller of the Currency and Luke Pettit as Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Treasury. However, many Democrats were not present for the vote, and Warren had to act as a proxy for those members.
Atkins’ nomination, which is backed by Republicans, is expected to move to the full Senate, where it is likely to pass due to the Republican majority. Given that Republicans control the Senate, it’s expected that Atkins will be confirmed.
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