Treasury Secretary-designate Steven Mnuchin arrives on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 19, 2017, to testify at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Finance Committee. Mnuchin built his reputation and his fortune as a savvy Wall Street investor but critics charge that he profited from thousands of home foreclosures as the chief of a sub-prime mortgage lender during the housing collapse.
Sen. Brown on Mnuchin: 'I'm going to vote no'
03:46 - Source: CNN
CNN  — 

A Democrat on a key Senate committee tells CNN’s Erin Burnett that he will vote no on Donald Trump’s nominee for treasury secretary

Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, revealed during a prime-time interview from Washington DC, that he will oppose Steven Mnuchin for the cabinet post.

Brown spent much of Thursday grilling Mnuchin during a confirmation hearing before the Senate Finance Committee.

Following that testimony on the eve of Trump’s inauguration, Burnett asked Brown for his official position on the nominee.

“I’m going to vote no on his confirmation,” Brown said, before lobbing a thinly veiled barb at Trump’s cabinet picks in general – and Mnuchin in particular.

“The President-elect talked about draining the swamp, but what we’re seeing increasingly is a White House that looks like a Goldman Sachs executive retreat,” Brown told Burnett.

Brown’s no-vote alone would not impede Mnuchin’s confirmation. Republicans hold a 14-12 majority on the finance committee.

Pressed by Burnett about other Trump nominees, Brown revealed at least some degree of support for the incoming cabinet.

“I’m going to vote for the secretary of defense. I’m going to vote for the secretary of homeland security,” Brown said, referring to retired Marine Gen. James Mattis and retired Marine Gen. John Kelly, respectively.

“I like very much the pick for the secretary of the VA,” he said, referring to Trump’s choice of David Shulkin to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs. “I think he’s the best pick of all. So I assume I will vote for more than half of them.”