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Article snippet: The White House is bracing for a heated fight over deputy CIA director Gina Haspel’s nomination to lead the agency, as she prepares to head to Capitol Hill next week. “I think that unfortunately in this environment we accept that every vote is close. ...It’s just the dynamic we face,” Marc Short, the director of legislative affairs, told reporters during a conference call. He added that he hoped some Democrats would be “courageous enough” to support Haspel despite engrained opposition from progressives and allied outside groups. Haspel is poised to appear before the Senate Intelligence Committee next week to testify as part of the confirmation process. She is expected to be grilled over her past involvement with enhanced interrogation techniques, among other things. GOP Sen. MORE (Maine), a key moderate and member of the panel, has said she is waiting until Haspel’s hearing to make her decision. Short directed a question on Wednesday about Collins’s position to her office, but predicted Trump would be personally involved in trying to win over support for Haspel's nomination. “He’s willing to do that certainly for Gina Haspel. He’s had a couple of conversations with members but probably more of that will happen after her hearing,” he said. With GOP Sen. MORE (Ky.) currently opposed to her nomination, Haspel will need to win over at least one Democratic senator to be confirmed. No Democrats have stepped forward yet. Short said on Wednesday that Paul hasn’t yet m... Link to the full article to read more