In a sign of how Biden's Cabinet nominees face a bumpy road if there's no power-sharing agreement in the Senate, Republicans are still chairing key committees and have the power to set the agenda until such an agreement is reached.
That's because the power-sharing agreement will spell out the number of seats that each caucus will have on Senate committees. Absent an agreement, the Senate will operate under the rules of the last Congress when the GOP controlled Senate majority and held committee chairs
This is evident this morning in the hearing for Biden's Transportation nominee, Pete Buttigieg, who is being questioned by the Senate Commerce. Sen. Roger Wicker, the Republican from Mississippi, is chairing the hearing, and Sen. Maria Cantwell is serving as ranking member.
A power sharing agreement is under discussion between Chuck Schumer and Mitch McConnell, but the two have hit a snag over McConnell's demands that Schumer promise to save the filibuster and not move forward with efforts to gut the potent stall tactic on legislation.
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