A hearing to examine the nominations of Sergio Gor, of Florida, to be Ambassador to the Republic of India, Herschel Walker, of Georgia, to be Ambassador to the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, Andrew Veprek, of Louisiana, to be an Assistant Secretary (Population, Refugees, and Migration), and James Holtsnider, of Iowa, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Counselor, to be Ambassador  to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, all of the Department of State.

Committee on Foreign Relations

2025-09-11

Source: Congress.gov

Summary

The United States Senate Foreign Relations Committee convened a hearing to consider several ambassadorial nominees, including Sergio Gore for India, Herschel Walker for the Bahamas, Mr. Viprik for Assistant Secretary for Population, Refugees, and Migration, and Mr. Holtschneider for Jordan. Secretary Rubio introduced Mr. Gore, highlighting the critical importance of the U.S.-India relationship, while Senator Cruz introduced Mr. Walker, emphasizing his diverse background. [ 00:21:54 ] Chairman Risch and Ranking Member Shaheen set the agenda, emphasizing the Senate's role in scrutinizing nominees and acknowledging the solemnity of the date, September 11th.

Themes

Nominees' Qualifications and Readiness to Serve

Sergio Gore, nominated as Ambassador to India, was introduced by Secretary Rubio and Senator Hagerty as a highly trusted advisor to President Trump with significant administrative experience. [ 00:21:54 ] He emphasized his commitment to advancing American interests in India through defense cooperation, trade, and technology. Herschel Walker, nominee for Ambassador to the Bahamas, was praised by Senator Cruz for his legendary athletic career, business acumen, and strong character. Mr. Walker highlighted his discipline, determination, and ability to build relationships as key qualifications for the role. Mr. Viprik, nominated as Assistant Secretary for Population, Refugees, and Migration, expressed his focus on securing borders and aligning foreign aid with U.S. interests. He also faced scrutiny regarding his views on the root causes of migration and the prioritization of specific refugee groups. [ 01:08:03 ]

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 Mr. Holtschneider, nominated as Ambassador to Jordan, was recognized for his distinguished career in the Middle East with both the State Department and Marine Corps. He pledged to strengthen the U.S.-Jordan security partnership and promote stability in the region.

The U.S.-India Strategic Relationship

The U.S.-India relationship was repeatedly highlighted as critical for global stability and countering China's influence, particularly in the Indo-Pacific. Concerns were raised about India's continued purchase of Russian oil, which helps fund Russia's war machine in Ukraine, leading to discussions on potential U.S. tariffs and diplomatic efforts. Nominee Gore emphasized the importance of his direct line to President Trump to navigate complex issues and strengthen trade and technology cooperation with India. The Quad partnership was noted as vital for maintaining a free and prosperous Indo-Pacific, with ongoing efforts to deepen cooperation and conduct joint military exercises. The discussion also touched upon India's role in organizations like BRICS and the need to address trade imbalances and open Indian markets to U.S. products, including agriculture and energy.

U.S. Engagement with the Bahamas and China's Influence

The Bahamas' strategic importance, given its proximity to the U.S. coast, was underscored, alongside the long absence of a Senate-confirmed U.S. ambassador. [ 00:38:30 ]

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 Significant concern was expressed over China's growing influence through investments like the Freeport Container Terminal and its diplomatic presence. [ 00:38:55 ]

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 Mr. Walker committed to strengthening bilateral relations, fostering U.S. investment, and collaborating on counter-narcotics efforts to ensure U.S. security interests.

U.S. Migration, Refugee, and Humanitarian Aid Policy

The hearing addressed President Trump's focus on securing borders and aligning foreign aid with U.S. interests, moving away from previous reliance on UN agencies. [ 00:37:28 ]

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 Mr. Viprik stated that the outdated international refugee and asylum system is a major root cause of mass migration, advocating for its reform. Senators questioned the administration's prioritization of Afrikaner refugees and the vetting process, expressing concern about potential biases and lack of attention to other vulnerable groups like Iranian religious minorities. The discussion also touched on the specific classification of Palestinian refugees by UNRWA and its implications. [ 01:52:45 ]

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The U.S.-Jordan Partnership and Regional Stability

Jordan was affirmed as a critical, long-standing U.S. partner and a major non-NATO ally in the Middle East. Challenges facing the relationship include anti-Israeli sentiment and regional instability, particularly after the October 7th terror attack. Mr. Holtschneider committed to strengthening security cooperation, combating extremism, and working with Jordan on issues like Iranian adventurism and mitigating Chinese technological expansion. The importance of the Jordan Corridor for humanitarian assistance to Gaza was also raised.

Tone of the Meeting

The meeting maintained a largely professional and respectful tone, despite pointed questioning on several contentious policy issues. Senators expressed both support and serious concerns regarding the nominees' qualifications and the administration's foreign policy directions, particularly concerning migration, U.S.-India relations, and China's regional influence. [ 00:40:05 ]

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 A somber moment was observed in remembrance of 9/11 victims, and concerns were raised about political violence in the U.S. [ 00:36:17 ]

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Participants

Transcript

United States Senate Foreign Relations Committee will come to order.  Thank you all for attending today, and I appreciate the applause when I walked in.  I don't know, I don't usually get that, but I certainly appreciate it from the audience.  You didn't hear it?  You should have been here, Senator.  It was wonderful.   In any event, we have a robust calendar today, and we'll get to that in a minute.  First of all, let me say that the usual protocol is in effect.  We welcome our guests here.  We have a zero tolerance for interruptions, as you know.  And Secretary Rubio, every time you show up seems to be when we have those issues.  And we were fortunate enough to have...   bilingual protests while you were here on occasion so we're glad to have you back but we'll see if we can avoid the excitement today so with that we do have a number of nominees to hear today and we're going to have some introductions to those and I know Secretary you've got a busy calendar so I'm going to give you the floor to start with and you're welcome here and we're always glad to have you back in the committee
Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Thank you, the ranking member, to all the members for the opportunity to be here today.
We feel that we have before you a very good panel, an excellent panel of four ambassadors to important places.
To the Bahamas, where we have not been able to have a representative in almost nine years, maybe longer.
It's been quite a while.
On the Bureau that deals with population refugees and migration, which is clearly an issue that
that has impacted the country, but also has impacts on our neighbors in the region and around the world.
And then in Jordan, which is, I don't need to explain what an incredibly important relationship that is for the United States.  I'm here to introduce a fellow Floridian and someone who I've known for a very long time, Sergio Gore, who is the nominee to India, which is, I would say, one of the top relationships the United States has in the world today in terms of the future of what the world's gonna look like.
I said it when I appeared before you,   as a nominee to the position I currently hold as well, and I don't mean archivist, when I was here in the position for Secretary of State, and I repeat it again, that the 21st century, the story is going to be written in the Indo-Pacific.  In fact, it's so important we've actually changed the name of the combatant command to the Indo-Pacific.
India is at the core of that.
And we are in a period of extraordinary transition in that relationship with India.  We've got some really
important issues coming up that we need to work with them on and work through that implicate what's happening from Ukraine, but also implicate what's happening in the region.
It is my view, I hope it will be your view, that it is important that the United States be represented at that post with someone who has the direct ear and confidence of the President of the United States.
And I know of no one over the last certainly period of time during this administration, but going back four or five years, no one who has had a better
a closer working relationship than Mr. Gore, someone who I've known since his time working here in the Senate, by the way, one of our colleagues, and since then has gone on to do different things, but is very, very close to the president, has the president's confidence.  And I can tell you that when you interact with these countries, in fact, I've already seen it.
When you interact with these countries, having a representative in a place like India that has direct access to the Oval Office, to the President, and who they know can get things done both in the administration and through the Oval Office is critically important.
And I don't know of anyone out there that's better positioned to do that than Sergio Gore.
I would add one more footnote, and that is that in all of this is that in addition to that, I've also seen his administrative abilities.
95% of the people working in the government now from political appointees
came through a process that he set up and had to operate.
I don't know if we fully appreciate how hard it is to staff up a new administration.
And he ran that process with a small group and a small team, and I thought did an excellent job.
So I think it shows his administrative abilities as well.  So he's an excellent nominee.
They're all excellent nominees, and I hope you'll give them your full consideration.
And thank you for the opportunity to address that this morning.
Thank you, Secretary.  You're certainly welcome to stay with us, but I know you've got a busy schedule, being archivist and all these other things that you deal with every day, so we will certainly excuse you, and thanks so much for joining us today.  Well, I was going to go to Senator Hagerty, but I see he's...   got other things on his mind right now.  So Senator Cruz, how about you?
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

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