The committee vote was split along party lines, with Democrats saying that a lack of an FBI background check for Turner was a sticking point.

The Senate Banking Committee backed former NFL player Eric Scott Turner to become Housing and Urban Development secretary.

Picked to lead the housing agency under Trump, the former Texas House member tells senators there is a housing crisis. Democrats say they want to act only after a background check.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) defended President Trump’s decision to oust more than a dozen inspectors general in a late-night shake-up of the federal government. He conceded, however, that Trump

President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to head the Department of Housing and Urban Development declined Thursday to wade into the turbulent political waters of how the incoming administration’s tariffs could affect housing costs.

The subcommittee has primary jurisdiction over issues related to affordable and accessible housing, mortgage servicing, transit, and urban development.

Scott Turner, President Trump's pick to head the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, faced opposition from Democrats on the Senate Banking Committee, but his nomination was nonetheless approved by a vote of 13-11.

Senate committees on Thursday approved a handful of Trump Cabinet nominees setting them up for approval by the full chamber.

Senate hearings are scheduled this week for several of Trump’s picks for the Cabinet. While many are rapidly gaining support for their confirmation, the remaining still have to go before the committees overseeing the agencies Trump wants them to run.

If confirmed, the NFL veteran and former developer would run a department with a $70 billion budget and roughly 8,000 employees

(AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.) Eric Scott Turner, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to be Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, delivers his opening remarks during a Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs hearing for his pending ...

The Trump administration directed federal agencies to conduct a funding review, including a review of 100 HUD programs.