Senate Republicans are weighing changes to the chamber’s confirmation process as they face a backlog of judicial nominations thanks to stall tactics by minority Democrats.
President Donald Trump has criticized Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) for preserving the Senate’s “blue slip” tradition, which allows home-state senators to weigh in on nominees and can effectively block their confirmation if the slips are withheld.
GOP lawmakers are considering several proposals before a Wednesday meeting to speed up confirmations. According to The Hill, the leading option mirrors a Democratic plan floated two years ago that would permit a single vote on as many as 10 nominees. Other ideas include sharply reducing debate time, making some nominations nondebatable, and cutting the required procedural votes.
Because rule changes require only a simple majority, Republicans could act without Democratic support. But such a move—described as a “nuclear option”—would underscore the partisan nature of the fight. A GOP working group has been tasked with hammering out the details, according to the report.
“Everybody has been talking through various options,” Alabama GOP Sen. Katie Britt, the leader of the group, said. “One of the things that that process does is empower the committee process.”
Britt mentioned she is collaborating with Democrats to develop a suitable rules change. The group has been working through some of the August recess to find a path forward for the remaining nominations.
Early last month, ahead of scheduled summer recesses, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) announced he would keep the chamber in session for a weekend to push through some of Trump’s outstanding nominees, as Senate Democrats continued to stall the confirmation process.
The Senate had been scheduled to begin its traditional August recess on the 4th, but that plan was thrown into uncertainty as Democrats demanded roll call votes on even the most routine nominees. Trump had urged senators to delay their break, warning that his nominees should not be “forced to wait” any longer, Just The News reported.
The Senate did confirm one of the more high-profile nominees on the calendar — Jeanine Pirro, Trump’s pick to serve as Washington D.C.’s top prosecutor. The onetime New York judge, prosecutor, and Fox News host was one of more than 150 pending confirmations.
Pirro’s approval came just hours before the Senate left town, as negotiations to move a broader slate of nominees fell apart.
Lawmakers confirmed only seven of Trump’s picks before heading home for the remainder of August. A deal that would have allowed dozens more confirmations collapsed after talks between Senate Republicans, the White House, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer broke down.
Sources told CNN that Schumer had demanded the release of as much as $1 billion in federal funds and a commitment from the Trump administration not to pursue new legislation that would cut federal spending. Trump rejected those terms in a fiery Truth Social post.
“Tell Schumer, who is under tremendous political pressure from within his own party, the Radical Left Lunatics, to GO TO HELL!” Trump wrote. “Do not accept the offer, go home and explain to your constituents what bad people the Democrats are, and what a great job the Republicans are doing, and have done, for our Country. Have a great RECESS.”
Thune had earlier told reporters that the chamber would remain open “at least through the weekend” to try to break the logjam and allow for more votes.
“That will be up to the discussions between White House and Schumer and the Democrats,” Thune said. “That’s how this is going to get resolved. We’ll see where that leads.”
Senate Republican Whip John Barrasso blasted Democrats for the blockades.
“President Trump is the only president in modern history not to have a single nominee confirmed by voice vote or unanimous consent,” Barrasso said. “Not a single one. Even the most routine nominees are being filibustered.”