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119th Congress Presidential nomination

PN26-44

Department of Commerce

John Squires, of Florida, to be Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office, vice Katherine Vidal, resigned.

Open official Congress.gov record
Source: Congress.govUpdated 2026-09-14 23:13:17 UTC.

Source-supplied overview

Nomination record

Received
Mar 10, 2025
Latest action
Sep 18, 2025
Nominee positions
1
Nominees
1

Latest official action: Confirmed by the Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 51 - 47. Record Vote Number: 526.

Source-supplied nominee positions for PN26-44.
PositionOrganizationNominees
Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and TDepartment of Commerce1

Official chronology

Dated actions

  1. Confirmed by the Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 51 - 47. Record Vote Number: 526.

    Floor

  2. Considered by Senate pursuant S. Res. 377, 119th Congress.

    Floor

  3. By unanimous consent agreement, debate pursuant to S. Res. 377, 119th Congress on 9/18/2025.

    Floor

  4. Considered by Senate pursuant S. Res. 377, 119th Congress.

    Floor

  5. Upon reconsideration, cloture invoked in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 52 - 47. Record Vote Number: 525.

    Floor

  6. Motion by Senator Thune to appeal the ruling of the chair agreed to, the question being, "Shall the decision of the Chair stand as the judgment of the Senate" determined by Yea-Nay Vote. 47 - 52. Record Vote Number: 524.

    Floor

  7. Ruling of the Chair that the precedents set on November 21, 2013 and September 11, 2025 do not apply to the consideration of en bloc nominations; the point of order raised by Senator Thune was not sustained.

    Floor

  8. Point of order made by Senator Thune that consistent with the precedents of the Senate established on November 21, 2013, and September 11, 2025, the threshold for cloture on the en bloc consideration of nominations pursuant to an Executive resolution with a calendar number on the Executive Calendar, other than those on Level 1 of the Executive Schedule under 5 U.S.C. 5312, or Article 3 judges, is a simple majority raised in Senate.

    Floor

  9. Motion by Senator Thune to reconsider the vote (Record Vote No. 522), by which cloture was not invoked on the nominations en bloc agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 51 - 47. Record Vote Number: 523.

    Floor

  10. Cloture not invoked in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 51 - 48. Record Vote Number: 522.

    Floor

  11. By unanimous consent agreement, mandatory quorum required under Rule XXII waived.

    Floor

  12. Cloture motion presented in Senate.

    Floor

  13. Motion to proceed to executive session to consideration of nomination pursuant to S. Res. 377, 119th Congress agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

    Floor

  14. Placed on Senate Executive Calendar. Calendar No. 185.

    Calendars

  15. Reported by Senator Grassley, Committee on the Judiciary, without printed report.

    Committee

  16. Committee on the Judiciary. Ordered to be reported favorably.

    Committee

  17. Committee on the Judiciary. Hearings held. Hearings printed: S.Hrg. 119-177.

    Committee

  18. Received in the Senate and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

    IntroReferral