If confirmed, Mr. Vought will be at the center of President-elect Donald Trump’s plans to upend the federal bureaucracy.

Russell Vought, President-elect Donald Trump‘s nominee to be the next director of the Office of Management and Budget, faced tough questioning from Senate Democrats during his Wednesday confirmation hearing.

After Trump's defeat, Vought founded the Center for Renewing America, a conservative think tank. In speeches he made in 2023 and 2024, Vought described how he helped create legal justifications to prevent military leaders and government lawyers from obstructing Trump's executive actions, ProPublica reported.

Russell Vought, U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to be director of the Office of Management and Budget, testifies during a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., January 15, 2025. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz

President-elect Donald Trump's pick for the top budget office, Russ Vought, will face senators on Wednesday for potential confirmation to a crucial post for Trump's goals to reshape and downsize the federal government.

Project 2025 co-author Russell Vought faced intense questioning during his Senate confirmation hearing for the role of OMB director. Senators grilled Vought over his role in drafting policies for the controversial Project 2025 and his stance on executive power.

The Senate’s confirmation hearing of Russell Vought, one of Washington’s staunchest advocates for cutting spending, offered a preview Wednesday of the bruising spending wars likely to consume Congress this year.