Changing of the Guard at Finance

On Thursday, the Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) announced that Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) will become the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. Leader Reid’s action means no votes are needed from the party's caucus or steering committee. Wyden following Baucus in the chairman's role will make a spot on the committee available, with Senator Mark Warner (D-Va.) expected to fill the vacancy. Wyden is the second Oregonian to serve as chairman, after Bob Packwood (R) in 1995.   It is unclear at this point whether Wyden will carry on in the same vein as the outgoing chairman when he turns to the tax portion of his agenda, or if he will consult with House Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp (R-Mich.) as intimately as Baucus had over the past three years. While the transition to chairman of the panel may not take long, observers are awaiting anticipated changes to key staff and a pronouncement for the direction of the committee especially on reforming the tax code; advancing Trade Promotion Authority as signaled by the president in the State of the Union; and addressing technical setbacks to Obamacare and reforms to doctors’ payments. Baucus's nomination to become the U.S. Ambassador to China was approved by a voice vote on Feb. 4. by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and passed the on the Senate floor by a 96-0 vote. Baucus is expected to be sworn in immediately after resigning his Senate seat in the coming days, which he held since 1979. It is expected that Montana Lt. Gov. John Walsh (D) will be appointed to the Senate to serve out the remainder of the term. For more information, please contact Brian Lenihan at (202) 547-4733 or lenihanb@agc.org.