WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) delivered the following remarks today on the Senate floor regarding more of the president’s well-qualified nominees, including the nominee for assistant secretary of Housing and Urban Development and head the Federal Housing Administration, Brian Montgomery, and the nominee to chair the FDIC Board of Directors, Jelena McWilliams:

“Later today, we’ll vote on two more qualified nominees for important positions in the Trump Administration. First comes Brian Montgomery, the president’s nominee to serve as assistant secretary of Housing and Urban Development and head the Federal Housing Administration.

“His formidable background includes previous service as federal housing commissioner from 2005 to 2009 and as the acting Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. It’s no wonder that our colleagues on the Banking Committee reported his nomination favorably with a bipartisan voice vote. I’m glad we can vote to confirm him today without any further delay.

“After Mr. Montgomery, we’ll vote to advance the nomination of Jelena McWilliams, who the president has chosen to chair the FDIC Board of Directors. Ms. McWilliams’s resume spans government and the private sector. As a lawyer, policy expert, and executive, she has studied financial regulation from all angles. She understands the FDIC’s role in safeguarding Americans’ holdings, overseeing the banking sector, and reforming inefficient policies that create obstacles for families and job creators.

“Ms. McWilliams is especially attentive to the difficulties facing smaller community banks. In her testimony before the Banking Committee, she explained how government regulations inflict outsized compliance costs that can be too much for Main Street lenders to bear. She was also examined by our colleagues on the Banking Committee, and was also reported out by a bipartisan voice vote. I encourage all my colleagues to join me in voting to advance her nomination later today.”