WASHINGTON – Senator Claire McCaskill voted to confirm St. Louis native Emily Murphy, President Trump’s nominee to lead the General Services Administration. The agency is responsible for the federal government’s real estate management, and assisting federal agencies with purchasing goods and services, including IT systems.
“I was proud to support Ms. Murphy, a fellow Missourian who has a long and distinguished career in government oversight,” McCaskill said. “She understands the importance of using Missourians’ tax dollars wisely, and I look forward to working with her to cut wasteful spending.”
McCaskill introduced Murphy at her Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee confirmation hearing. Prior to the hearing, McCaskill met with Murphy to discuss how she will save taxpayer dollars, especially as it relates to buying and selling federal property.
The Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee has oversight authority over the General Services Administration and other federal agencies, and protecting taxpayer dollars has been a top priority for McCaskill as a Committee leader. Earlier this year, McCaskill-backed bipartisan legislation to crack down on misuse of federal agency travel and purchase cards spending passed the Senate. The Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee has unanimously approved two of her bills with Republican Senator Steve Daines of Montana to eliminate wasteful spending at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Recently, the Senate passed a McCaskill-backed bill making it illegal to spend taxpayer dollars on portraits of government officials. McCaskill led an investigation into the General Services Administration under the Obama Administration, helping topple its leaders at the time for waste, fraud, and abuse of taxpayer dollars—including on a conference that cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars.
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