WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee voted 15-13 along party lines Wednesday to advance the Trump administration's nominee to oversee a $42 billion government fund to bring high-speed broadband internet to unserved parts of America.

Arielle Roth, who has been nominated to head the Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration, at a Senate hearing last month denied that she would administer the program to benefit Starlink owner Elon Musk.