Follow the latest coverage as President Donald Trump participates in the National Prayer Breakfast. Updates as the Senate weighs Cabinet nominees and federal workers consider buyouts.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate confirmed Russell Vought as White House budget director on Thursday night, putting an official who has planned the zealous expansion of President Donald Trump’s power into one of the most influential positions in the federal government.

WASHINGTON — The Senate voted along party lines Thursday to confirm Russell Vought as the next head of the Office of Management and Budget despite fierce pushback from Democrats. Although Democrats have been divided over various Trump nominees, they unified in opposition to Vought.

The Republican-led U.S. Senate confirmed President Donald Trump's nominee Russell Vought as budget director on Thursday, placing the reins of government funding in the hands of hardline conservative who has advocated for reducing Congress's power over taxpayer dollars.

Democrats call Russell Vought the president's "most dangerous nominee", but Republicans say he will "stop the waste of US taxpayers' dollars".

Democrats fought the OMB nominee's confirmation, elevating a little-known agency head to the national spotlight amid larger anxieties about the fate of congressional spending authority.

Vought's return to the White House Office of Management and Budget, which he also helmed during Trump's first term, would put him in a role that often goes under the public radar