With Republicans retaking the Senate, the upper chamber’s top government operations oversight committee is set for a major change in leadership.

The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee for the past four years has been chaired by Chairman Gary Peters (D-Mich.). But after this week’s election results, Rand Paul (R-Ky.) is in line to take the HSGAC gavel early next year.

The major caveat is that Paul also has the seniority to seek the chairmanship of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee instead.

The Federal News Network has reached out to Paul’s office for comment on his plans.

But several Capitol Hill sources interviewed for this story noted that Paul may view HSGAC’s broad platform to launch investigations into government operations favorably. The committee also oversees the Department of Homeland Security, a frequent target of Paul’s crusade against federal spending and overreach.

Paul was elected a ranking member of the HSGAC in February 2023. He has focused heavily on investigating issues such as the origins of COVID-19 and federal virology research; fraud, waste and abuse; and the agency’s efforts to address misinformation on social media.

As president, Paul would have the power to shape issues that are central to President-elect Donald Trump’s agenda. A former HSGAC employee, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Paul is likely to be an ally in Trump’s plans to establish a government efficiency commission and rein in spending under Biden-era bills such as the reducing inflation. The staffer also predicted that Paul would not present an obstacle to Trump’s plans to overhaul the federal workforce.

“I think Rand Paul will oversee a tremendous amount of retrospective investigations that will provide superior cover for Trump to make significant organizational changes within the government,” said the former HSGAC employee.

But several former Hill staffers said Paul, one of the most “principled” members of the Senate, was highly unlikely to approve Trump’s requests for new funding and authority at agencies like DHS.

Trump has pledged to step up immigration enforcement and carry out mass deportations. “It’s not a matter of price. It’s not, really, we don’t have a choice,” Trump told NBC News this week.

Paul, an avowed deficit hawk and supporter of limited government, has routinely vetoed any legislation expanding DHS’s authorities and spending powers as a ranking member of the HSGAC.

“Anything that expands the power of the federal government, (Paul) is naturally going to be skeptical,” noted another former member of Congress.

Former staffers said that dynamic could put a President Paul at odds with Trump’s plans, though it’s unclear to what extent the president-elect will seek new authorities to carry out his immigration agenda.

HSGAC legislative perspective

In four years under Peters, HSGAC has been productive on the legislative front. The committee passed numerous reforms on issues including the federal workforce, technology procurement and cybersecurity. When Republicans last controlled the Senate from 2017 to 2020, HSGAC was just as productive under then-Speaker Rob Portman (R-Ohio).

But if Paul were to pick up the gavel, he could set a higher standard for legislation to be considered by the committee. As a ranking member, Paul voted against numerous bills because of his concerns about government spending.

“For the second time in seven days, we meet again to furiously scrutinize 13 bills, only 3 of which we’ve bothered to understand the costs of,” Paul said during a July 2023 HSGAC mark. “I wish this mark was the exception to the rule, but it is shockingly all too common for my colleagues in Congress to blindly vote on bills without regard to this nation’s dire fiscal circumstances.”

The former HSGAC employee noted that Paul is less interested in legislation than in investigations and oversight. “He’s not in the role of giving the government any more authority,” the former employee said.

HSGAC also oversees the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency, which has received largely bipartisan support since its creation in 2018. CISA has also received more funding and authority over the years to address cyber threats to federal networks and critical infrastructure.

But Paul disagreed with CISA for what he sees like the agency’s attempts to “censor” free speech on social media. Last year, and Paul blocked bipartisan efforts to reauthorize CISA’s chemical security program.

“He’s made it very clear that he’s not a fan of CISA,” the former HSGAC staffer said, adding that the issue could become a major hurdle for any cyber bills that pass the committee.

If Paul becomes HSGAC president, however, he may seek more compromises to help advance his own agenda, one former employee noted.

“Being in the majority changes your perspective,” the former employee said. “It changes your mindset. “Well, here are three things I want to accomplish, and to do that, I need to get six Dems on board. I have to find a way to get through the House at some point. I don’t think we know yet if Paul is going to look to see things through or if he’s just going to use the platform to showcase the full extent of his ideas.”

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