Senate Holds Confirmation Hearing for Treasury Security Nominee Steven Mnuchin

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), speaks during treasury secretary nominee Steven Mnuchin's Senate Finance committee confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill, on Jan. 19 in Washington, D.C.

(Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

Tensions were already high on Capitol Hill Thursday as a week full of cabinet confirmation hearings came to a close with a session focused on Treasury secretary nominee Steven Mnuchin.

Then somebody made a Valium joke, which led Democrats and Republicans to bicker for minutes before the nominee even said a word.

It started when Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, complained about what he saw as Democrats obstructing President-elect Donald Trump's cabinet picks. He ended his nine-minute opening statement with an off-hand remark about his colleagues' decorum.

"My colleagues sometimes are content to unfairly, and in some cases maliciously, malign more or less every nominee before they can assume their posts," Hatch said. "I hope that's not true of our Senate Finance Committee members today."

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., then launched into a nearly 20-minute oration that criticized Mnuchin's ties to Wall Street and reported failure to disclose $100 million in assets.

"The Treasury secretary ought to be somebody who works on behalf of all Americans, including those who are still waiting for the economic recovery to show up in their communities," Wyden said. "When I look at Mr. Mnuchin's background, it's a stretch to find evidence he'd be that kind of Treasury secretary."

Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., wasn't having it.

"Sen. Wyden, I've got a Valium pill here that you might want to take before the second round. Just a suggestion," Roberts said.

Light chuckles could be heard throughout the chamber. Wyden, the committee's ranking Democrat, appeared unfazed.

"Just another suggestion," Wyden said as Mnuchin grinned at Roberts' comment. "We've got a lot of colleagues waiting. If you could be brief, it would be helpful."

As Roberts continued, he was interrupted by Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio.

"Mr. Chairman, I hope that comment about Valium doesn't set the tone for 2017 in this committee," he said. "I like Sen. Roberts -- I just can't quite believe that he would say that to a distinguished senator from Oregon."

The exchange made waves throughout political media sites, some claiming the chamber "blew up" with others characterized Roberts' ribbing as a joke that fell flat.

It's not the first time Wyden has made waves over his handling of Trump's pending presidency.

Earlier in the day, he aggressively questioned the president-elect's choice of CIA director, Mike Pompeo, about his support of widespread data collection from American citizens.

When Trump claimed nobody but reporters cared about his tax returns, Wyden dared anyone who did to retweet him. Within hours 60,000 of his followers obliged. (The count is now 88,000.)

Wyden also pressed FBI Director James Comey to investigate Trump's alleged ties to Russia. The Oregon senator has also repeatedly tried to introduce legislation that would require presidential candidates to disclose their taxes, a move initiated by the incoming commander-in-chief's staunch refusal to do so.

--Eder Campuzano

503.221.4344

@edercampuzano

ecampuzano@oregonian.com