Duncan Faces Senate Scrutiny Over OMB Impoundment Powers

Hal Duncan, Trump’s nominee for deputy director of the OMB, was grilled by the Senate Budget Committee over the administration’s use of impoundment and pocket rescissions to bypass Congress’s funding decisions. He refused to commit to not using such tools in the future, said the administration has complied with the Impoundment Control Act to date, and signaled alignment with OMB Director Russ Vought on authority. He dodged a direct question about whether the 2020 or 2024 elections were rigged, leaving Democrats concerned about his stance on checks and balances and his readiness to manage OMB day-to-day operations if confirmed.