Lifetime Citizen Portal Access — AI Briefings, Alerts & Unlimited Follows
Nominee for Commerce general counsel pressed on Digital Equity, MBDA and departmental independence
Loading...
Summary
Pierre Genton, nominee for general counsel at the Commerce Department, told the Senate Commerce Committee he has not yet advised on recent agency decisions to terminate grants and would prioritize reviewing legal questions about the Digital Equity Act and the Minority Business Development Agency if confirmed.
Pierre Genton, the nominee to be general counsel for the Department of Commerce, told the Senate Commerce Committee he had not advised on recent, contested policy changes at the department and pledged to prioritize reviewing legal questions if confirmed.
Senators repeatedly raised the department’s recent actions affecting the Digital Equity Act grants, the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) contracts, and the future of the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA). Several members said the department has issued termination notices or failed to execute formula grants that Congress authorized and appropriated; Genton replied he had not been involved in advising or implementing those actions and committed to review them if confirmed.
Sen. Gary Peters pointed to program terminations and to a committee questionnaire he said Genton had not fully completed; Genton acknowledged outstanding items would be provided and said he had met with minority staff for more than an hour and a half and would produce remaining materials. Sen. Edward Markey and others pressed Genton on whether the department’s termination of state Digital Equity awards comported with Congress’s appropriation; Genton said he would look into the legal issues and did not offer a legal opinion from the witness chair.
Committee members also asked Genton about potential outside influence at Commerce. Sen. Tammy Baldwin asked whether Genton had met members of the “Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)” and he replied he had a brief hallway introduction to two people he understood were associated with DOGE and had attended one White House meeting where Elon Musk was present. He described those interactions as casual and said he did not recall names.
Genton, a former assistant U.S. attorney and chief legal officer in private practice, confirmed to senators that, if confirmed, he would advise the department to follow court orders and decisions and to “follow the law.” He said he would prioritize working with bureau leadership and counsel if confirmed and pledged to respond to the committee’s requests and appear for follow‑up.
The hearing produced no committee vote; senators indicated they would submit written questions for the record.
