OPINION: Crapo, Wyden brace for confirmation fights

In the world of politics, it’s out with the old and in with the new — particularly in the White House, where President-elect Trump moves in, and the Senate, where Republicans will take over the committee chairs.

Idaho Sen. Mike Crapo and Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden will be reversing roles in January, with Crapo moving over as chair of the Senate Finance Committee and Wyden becoming the ranking member. This will be one of the key committees to watch, with Trump’s and the Republican Party’s tax and economic policies open for debate, and there should be more than a few ideological battles between the two senators. 

The differences will be on full display when the committee takes up the controversial nominations of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for secretary of Health and Human Services and Dr. Mehmet Oz as administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medical Services. It’s no surprise that Crapo favors both, since they are Trump’s selections. My thought is that Crapo would vigorously oppose both if they were the choices of Vice President Kamala Harris, but that’s not the case. Trump wants Kennedy and Oz, and that’s what he’ll likely get from Crapo and his committee. And with Republicans in the majority, confirmation by the Senate is practically a foregone conclusion. 

But that doesn’t stop Wyden and his fellow Democrats from grilling Kennedy and Oz in the committee’s confirmation hearings. And the inevitability of their confirmation doesn’t cause Wyden to hold back with his thoughts about Trump’s nominees. 

“Mr. Kennedy’s outlandish views on basic scientific facts are disturbing and should worry all parents who expect schools and other public spaces be safe for their children,” Wyden said in a news release. “When Mr. Kennedy comes before the finance committee, it’s going to be very clear what Americans stand to lose under Trump and Republicans in Congress.” 

What Americans will lose, according to Crapo, is a lot of old bureaucratic ways of doing business. 

“RFK Jr. has prioritized addressing chronic diseases through consumer choice and healthy lifestyle,” Crapo said in a news release. “American patients, providers and taxpayers deserve a health-care system that is efficient, effective and affordable.” 

And what everyone will get, counters Wyden, is a first-class mess. It will lead to “higher premiums, weakened protections for pre-existing conditions, criminalizing reproductive health care and attacks on essential health coverage like Medicaid.” 

Trump’s health agenda, Wyden says, means “worse health care at a high cost for American families.”

Which brings us to Dr. Oz, the famous TV doctor-turned politician. Crapo welcomes the thought pattern that Oz brings to the table. 

“Far too often, patients relying on federal government health care programs are forced to accept bureaucratic one-size-fits-all coverage,” Crapo says. “Dr. Oz has been an advocate for providing consumers with the information necessary to make their own health-care decisions.” 

That’s not how Wyden sees it. 

“Trump’s health-care agenda is all about empowering fraudsters and big businesses while everyday Americans are stuck with the bill,” Wyden says. “Dr. Oz is no stranger to peddling nonsense to innocent Americans without facing consequences. This is one of the most consequential positions in American government, touching millions of seniors and families who count on Medicare and Medicaid for affordable health care. I’m not sure a talk show host is up for the fight.” 

It’s clear that Crapo and Wyden are up for the fight in the committee, and that battle will be at least as entertaining as that recent Mike Tyson-Jake Paul debacle on Netflix. So, get your popcorn ready when the committee schedules its confirmation hearings. 

Or, maybe it would be better with a potent energy drink.

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Chuck Malloy is a longtime Idaho journalist and columnist. He may be reached at ctmalloy@outlook.com.