President Trump’s pick for CIA director Gina Haspel received some help from a few Senate Democrats on Thursday, who are desperately trying to hold onto their seats in red states during the 2018 midterms, when several of them voted in favor of confirming her during the Senate’s vote.
The Senate voted 54-45 to confirm her, making her the first female CIA Director to ever lead the intelligence agency.
Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) and Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) were the only Republicans to vote against Haspel, while Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) did not show up to vote as he continues to fight cancer.
On the Democratic side, Sens. Mark Warner (VA), Joe Manchin (WV), Heidi Heitkamp (ND), Joe Donnelly (IN), Bill Nelson (FL), and Jeanne Shaheen (NH) all crossed over and voted to confirm Haspel.
News organizations like the Associated Press and The Washington Post editorialized the news by noting she was confirmed “despite” scrutiny over her role in the CIA’s interrogation program.
Early reports that Haspel oversaw the CIA’s interrogation program were debunked when the George Soros-funded group, ProPublica, retracted their report that claimed she ran an enhanced interrogation program.