Cruz rushes Trump's FCC nominee to a hearing before Democrats take the Senate

Senator Ted Cruz isn't wasting his last weeks in charge. The Texas Republican announced a November 10 nomination hearing for Danielle Thumann Severs, President Trump's pick for the Federal Communications Commission, according to Ars Technica. The timing is no accident: Republicans just lost the midterms, and Democrats take control of the Senate in January 2027.

Cruz chairs the Senate Commerce Committee, which handles telecom nominations, and he has roughly two months left in the gavel. His apparent goal is to push Thumann Severs through the committee and onto the full Senate floor before that clock runs out. If she's confirmed, Republicans would hold an unusual 3-1 edge on the five-seat commission.

That edge could get sharper still. Democratic Commissioner Anna Gomez would have to leave the FCC at the end of 2027 unless Trump agrees to renominate her, Ars Technica reports. If Trump declines, the Republican advantage would widen to 3-0, leaving the commission with an empty Democratic bench.

The announcement landed just before Republicans' midterm loss, adding a whiff of urgency to the schedule. Cruz is essentially racing the incoming Democratic majority for control of the agency that regulates broadband, spectrum and media ownership rules. Every seat he locks in now is one Democrats can't easily reclaim.

What happens next hinges on the November 10 hearing and whether Senate leaders can find floor time in a jam-packed lame-duck stretch. If they can't, the nomination lands in the lap of a Democratic-controlled Senate come January 2027 — and Cruz's window shuts.