Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., was far from his home state Wednesday, campaigning for GOP Senate candidate Bernie Moreno in Ohio, a race whose outcome could directly impact Scott’s role next year in the Senate.
Scott is the ranking member of the Senate Banking Committee. The chairman of the panel, Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, is trying to beat back Moreno’s challenge. If Moreno wins, he could help the GOP secure a Senate majority and elevate Scott to Banking Committee chairman.
But Scott may also have a second job in his sights in the next Congress. He’s exploring a chance to chair the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the campaign arm of Senate Republicans.
“The Senator is grateful for the encouragement he has received from colleagues to run for chair of the NRSC,” Nathan Brand, a senior political adviser to Scott, said in a statement. “He is working tirelessly to send Donald Trump back to the White House and take the U.S. Senate, then looks forward to growing the Republican majority in 2026.”
Scott, after campaigning for Moreno in the Youngstown area on Wednesday, will head to Pennsylvania on Thursday to campaign for Republican David McCormick, who is taking on incumbent Democratic Sen. Bob Casey.
Scott was in Michigan early in the week to help former GOP Rep. Mike Rogers in his race against Democratic Rep. Elissa Slotkin for the seat being vacated by retiring Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow.
In addition to his time on the road for Senate candidates, Scott’s independent super PAC is “spending seven figures” in battleground states and Scott has helped raise “more than six figures” for Senate campaigns, according to Scott’s staff.
Scott could take both jobs.
“Sen. Scott has a vision for the country,” said Jason Rosenstock, a partner at Thorn Run Partners, a government relations consulting firm. “He’s run for president. He could use both posts to advance his vision further.”
If former President Donald Trump is re-elected, Scott may get an offer to join the administration. But he seems to prefer the Senate Banking chair if Republicans win the Senate.
“If Trump wins, I still think I’m better off serving the people of our country as chairman of the Banking Committee as opposed to going into the administration,” Scott said at a Punchbowl News event over the summer.
Scott’s agenda
Scott has started to preview his agenda for the 119th Congress if he takes the Banking gavel. In recent weeks, he has released legislation focused on housing policy and helping startup companies raise capital. He’s also called for a Senate Banking cryptocurrency subcommittee.
“Sen. Scott would be a very active chairman focused on capital formation, the digital economy and housing policy,” said Ryan Carney, a government affairs adviser at the law firm K&L Gates and a former House Republican aide. “A potential Chairman Scott could speak with more credibility on conservative housing policy than just about anyone else.”
Scott and Brown could switch positions if Republicans win the Senate but Brown holds his seat. Brown’s fate may depend on how big a margin Trump runs up in Ohio, where he is the prohibitive favorite. Even though Scott is campaigning against Brown, they won’t necessarily have a brittle relationship.
Scott “is known as quite the dealmaker and negotiator,” said a former congressional aide on financial services who is now an industry lobbyist who asked not to be identified speculating about next year’s potential machinations.
Democratic complications
If Brown loses his race and Republicans take the Senate, things become more complicated in figuring out who would become the panel’s ranking member. The next three Democrats in line may not want or be able to take the job.
Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., currently is chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee and could become the panel’s ranking member.
Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., is next in line. But he’s in a tough re-election battle against Republican Tim Sheehy, and may not be returning next year.
Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., is chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee and may choose to become ranking member.
“That’s the $64,000 question among financial services folks — whether Warner will give up intel to serve as ranking on Banking,” Rosenstock said. “I don’t think anyone has a real sense of where” Warner may land.
If Reed, Tester and Warner fall out of the running, the next lawmaker up is Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., a strong Wall Street critic.
Warren wouldn’t be that different from Brown, Rosenstock said. They would take similar approaches to oversight of financial markets.
“It’s contrasting with Warner that the difference becomes more dramatic,” Rosenstock said. “There’s [little] daylight between Warren and Brown on policy.”
But Scott’s relationship with Warren might be more fraught than it would be with Brown in that role, said the financial services lobbyist who asked not to be identified. Her ascension also could cause consternation among Wall Street representatives — although not as much as would be generated by her becoming chair.
One more scenario is that Brown loses his seat, but that Democrats keep the majority. That would mean the Democrats would be going down the seniority list to find a chair.
“It would be more worrisome if she [Warren] could call hearings,” the financial services lobbyist said.
If Trump wins the White House, there could be other shakeups further down the seniority ranks on the committee. For instance, Sen. Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn., has been mentioned as a possible Treasury secretary or secretary of State. And, of course, Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, Trump’s running mate, would leave the committee.
The next in line in seniority to Scott, Sen. Michael D. Crapo, R-Idaho, is expected to become chairman of the Finance Committee if Republicans win the Senate.
The post Scott eyes Banking gavel, NRSC if Republicans take Senate appeared first on Roll Call.
