Business meeting to consider the nominations of Joseph Gormley, of Maryland, to be President, Government National Mortgage Association, Francis Cassidy, of Pennsylvania, to be an Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Paul Hollis, of Louisiana, to be Director of the Mint, and Travis Hill, of Maryland, to be Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee

2025-11-19

Source: Congress.gov

Summary

This meeting of the committee commenced with the ranking member's opening statement, followed by the chairman's remarks and subsequent votes on several key nominations . The purpose was to consider a slate of President Trump's nominees for critical roles within the housing finance, commerce, and banking systems [ 00:26:51 ] . Despite some strong objections, particularly concerning one nominee, all presented candidates were ultimately ordered to be reported favorably to the full Senate [ 00:31:34 ]

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Themes

Importance of Nominee Confirmations

Chairman Tim Scott highlighted the necessity of confirming leaders for essential American institutions like Ginnie Mae, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), and the U.S. Mint to ensure their strength and stability . He emphasized that these roles directly impact families, small businesses, and communities, supporting the American dream of homeownership and protecting financial stability . The chairman underscored that these appointments are about delivering results for the American people, not politics, especially important in getting the government "back up and running" .

Concerns Regarding Travis Hill's Nomination to the FDIC

Senator Elizabeth Warren raised significant concerns about the nomination of Mr. Travis Hill to be chairman of the FDIC [ 00:27:11 ] . She alleged that Mr. Hill's commitment to addressing the FDIC's toxic workplace culture faded after he became acting chair, and that he subsequently blocked Congress from accessing independent monitor reports on cultural improvement efforts [ 00:27:29-00:28:21 ] . According to reports she obtained, the FDIC's action plans were nullified, communication was inaccurate, and critical offices tasked with handling harassment and discrimination complaints were severely understaffed after Mr. Hill cut staffing levels by 30% [ 00:28:42-00:29:26 ] . Senator Warren further argued that Mr. Hill's actions, such as cutting bank examiners and rolling back safeguards, put the financial system and taxpayers at risk [ 00:29:45-00:29:47 ]

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Tone of the Meeting

The overall tone of the meeting was largely procedural and formal, focused on conducting roll-call votes for the nominations . However, a contentious element was introduced by Senator Warren's strong opening statement, which detailed her significant objections to Travis Hill's nomination . The voting patterns, consistently showing partisan splits such as 13-11 or 14-10 in favor of the nominees, indicated underlying divisions within the committee [ 00:31:15 ]

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. Despite the contentiousness, the meeting concluded efficiently with all nominations being ordered favorably reported [ 00:31:34 ]

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Participants

Transcript

We'll go ahead and get started and we'll start with the ranking members opening statement, giving us an opportunity to get our necessary votes here.
Did you just call on me?
I did.
Oh, thank you.  Thank you, Mr. Chairman.  So the panel before us today, if confirmed, will run critical components of our housing finance, commerce, and banking systems.  I remain concerned with these nominees' willingness to follow the law, to focus on the necessary work of combating rising costs for families, and to serve as a meaningful check on the president's reckless economic policies.   I want to focus, though, on Mr. Hill, President Trump's nominee to be chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.   After reports of a long-standing toxic workplace culture at the FDIC came to light in 2023, Mr. Hill, who was then serving as vice chair of the FDIC, was eager to publicly prioritize this issue.  I was clear at the time that the FDIC leadership had a responsibility to fix this.   But sadly, once Donald Trump became president, Mr. Hill became the acting chair.  His interest in fixing these long-running problems at the FDIC seems to have faded.  I have repeatedly requested copies of the monthly assessments conducted by the FDIC's Independent Transformation Monitor.   a third party who was hired to track the agency's progress on its cultural improvement efforts.  Not only has Mr. Hill failed to provide these documents to Congress, he has also explicitly blocked the independent monitor from sharing those reports with us.   Our job is oversight, and regardless of party, a candidate who is openly refusing to share information with members of the Senate Banking Committee should not be confirmed.   It turns out we were able to get ahold of some of these reports anyway, and it becomes clear why he wanted to hide them.
The reports are abysmal.  The Independent Monitor found that parts of FDIC's action plan to resolve its cultural problems had been nullified by President Trump's policies.  It found that, quote, the manner in which the FDIC communicates progress to FDIC staff   causes confusions and is at times inaccurate.  And two of the critical new offices that the FDIC set up to address its toxic workplace, the Office of Professional Conduct and the Office of Equal Employment Opportunity, offices that Mr. Hill himself touted in front of this very committee as critical to the FDIC's cultural improvement efforts are understaffed.   We now also have data that validates the independent monitor's concern that these offices are understaffed.  Mr. Hill slashed the staffing levels of the Office of Professional Conduct, which investigates and takes disciplinary action against harassment complaints, by 30%.  He has also cut staffing levels at the Office of Equal Employment Opportunity, which investigates discrimination complaints.   At the same time Mr. Hill obstructs progress on its workplace cultural issues, he is actively setting the stage for the next financial crisis, cutting bank examiners, tying their hands, and rolling back safeguards on mega banks.   These actions put taxpayers, the financial system, and the whole economy at risk.  Look, I will say it again.  We may not all share the same views on what people should be doing, but at a minimum, we ought to have access to the information and the reports   that these agencies are generating and I feel very frustrated that we're talking about advancing a candidate who has refused for months now to give at least the ranking member of this committee access to those reports.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Thank you.   Good morning.  I call the committee to order and move to executive session.  Today, the committee considers a slate of President Trump's nominees whose leadership will be essential to maintaining the strength and stability of critical American institutions.  From housing finance to financial stability, these roles directly affect the lives of families, small businesses, and communities across our nation, ensuring that experienced leaders   fill these positions is not just a procedural step, it is a matter of real consequence for the economy and communities across our country.   Safe and affordable housing is foundational to the American dream.  For families, it provides a path to wealth creation and a platform for upward mobility.  For communities, it anchors schools, businesses, and local economies.  Mr. Joseph Gormley and Mr. Frank Cassidy, nominated to lead Ginnie Mae and the Federal Housing Administration, will bring deep expertise to their respective agencies.   Their leadership will help ensure that housing finance remains accessible and sustainable and will expand opportunities for families who aspire to own their own home.  At the FDIC, Mr. Travis Hill will play an integral role in preserving the safety and soundness of our banking system.   Mr. Hill's prior experience, including at the FDIC, as well as a staff member on this committee, makes him more than qualified for this important role, managing the DIF, leading supervisory forms, and eliminating the toxic workplace culture that existed under the prior FDIC leadership.   Similarly, Mr. Paul Hollis, as Director of the U.S. Mint, will oversee the production and integrity of our currency as an essential symbol of stability for Americans and economic systems around the world.  Together, these nominees embody the principle   that public service should be about results, not politics.  As we work to get the government back up and running after the Democrat shutdown, it is even more important that these key agencies have confirmed leaders in place.
Families, lenders, and businesses, and communities as well, rely on timely decisions by Ginnie Mae, FHA, FDIC, and the Mint.  Advancing their nominations will allow them to begin

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