William Bookless, the Trump administration’s choice for second-in-command at the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), is set for a crucial confirmation hearing Thursday before the Senate Armed Services Committee.
The committee is scheduled to vet Bookless, a veteran nuclear weapons hand who spent decades at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and other spots before retiring in 2015, at 9:30 a.m. Eastern time. That leaves the thinly GOP-controlled Senate — which will not enjoy the few extra seats it won in the midterm elections until January — only about two weeks of legislative workdays to get the would-be NNSA principal deputy administrator a vote on the Senate floor.
If confirmed, Bookless will give the NNSA a full complement of politically appointed senior leaders for the second half of President Donald Trump’s first term. There are four leadership slots in the semiautonomous Department of Energy agency that require Senate confirmation, three of which have been filled so far. The others are: NNSA administrator; deputy administrator for defense programs; and deputy administrator for defense nuclear nonproliferation.
Half of those jobs will be filled by former Livermore hands, if the committee approves Bookless’ nomination and the full Senate confirms him.
Separately, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee has scheduled a business meeting at 10 a.m. Tuesday for votes on three nominees, including Rita Baranwal as assistant energy secretary for nuclear energy.
Baranwal, who leads DOE’s Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear program, appeared before the committee during a Nov. 15 confirmation hearing.
If confirmed, Baranwal would lead the department’s work on nuclear power, including nuclear waste management initiatives such as the potential licensing of the Yucca Mountain repository in Nevada. During the hearing, she pledged to follow the law as it relates to nuclear waste disposal. Congress has designated Yucca Mountain as the final resting site for the nation’s spent nuclear reactor fuel and high-level waste.
