In a move that underscores just how far Republicans are willing to go for Donald Trump, the Senate GOP on Thursday blew up another rule — this time to fast-track dozens of Trump’s loyalists with minimal scrutiny.
Republicans unilaterally changed how the Senate handles confirmations for lower-level nominees, triggering the so-called “nuclear option” to override Democratic objections. It’s yet another example of the GOP torching Senate tradition in order to grease the wheels for Trump’s agenda.
This new rule will allow them to confirm batches of nominees all at once, rather than one at a time. And they’re wasting no time using it — they’ve already lined up 48 Trump picks for a mass confirmation vote next week.
“Democrats — and their political base — cannot deal with the fact that the American people elected President Trump,” said Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.), defending the move. “And so they’re dragging out every confirmation in retaliation.”
Democrats tried to slow things down, asking for more time to negotiate a bipartisan path forward. Thune refused.
“How much time is enough?” he snapped on the Senate floor. “Give me a break!”
The GOP’s frustration isn’t new. Republicans have repeatedly claimed that Democrats have been dragging their feet, refusing to approve even non-controversial Trump nominees by voice vote — a faster, typically bipartisan method.
But Democrats argue this isn’t just business as usual. With Trump back in office, they say scrutiny is more important than ever.
“What Republicans have done is chip away at the Senate even more, to give Donald Trump even more power and to rubber-stamp whoever he wants whenever he wants them, no questions asked,” said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.).
Schumer didn’t hold back:
“When we have a president like this one, who you know has no sense of integrity or honesty or fidelity to the truth, who you know doesn’t care about acting corruptly — look at what he’s doing with his own personal wealth — then the Senate’s job to scrutinize and review nominees is doubly important under a president like this.”
Among the nominees Republicans plan to confirm next week: Kimberly Guilfoyle, set to become ambassador to Greece, and Callista Gingrich, tapped for ambassador to Switzerland. Both are longtime Trump allies.
While some of the 48 nominees are non-controversial and passed committee with bipartisan support, Republicans still plan to go nuclear a second time to finalize the bulk confirmation next week.
Democrats weren’t caught totally off guard. Earlier this year, Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Angus King (I-Maine) introduced a proposal to speed up confirmation votes — but only for future presidents. A revised version of that plan was floated in a last-ditch effort to avoid Thursday’s showdown.
“We were achingly close to a deal, but I’m afraid my colleagues on the other side have run out of patience,” said Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii).
Instead of compromise, Republicans went scorched-earth — again.
It’s just the latest chapter in the Senate’s rulebook getting rewritten on the fly.
In 2017, Republicans extended bypassed the filibuster to push through Supreme Court justice Neil Gorsuch.
In 2019, Republicans slashed debate time for nominees from 30 hours to just two.
And earlier this year, they bent Senate rules to pass Trump’s multi-trillion-dollar tax cuts.
Now, with this latest change, it’s even harder for the minority to delay or block executive appointments. While Republicans say they’re fine with the consequences — even when a future Democratic president is in power — they’re also making it harder for the minority to place holds on nominees. That tool has traditionally allowed individual senators to slow down confirmation proceedings.
“We’re gonna have to live with this, too, but the status quo is untenable,” admitted Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas).
“Sadly, we’ve been brought to this point,” added Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.). “I think the Republicans here don’t really want to do this, but when you have this level of obstruction, it has to be met with some sort of way to address it.”
Still, it’s hard to miss the larger trend: Republicans keep changing the rules to get what they want for Trump, even as they insist the legislative filibuster — the last major roadblock — is off-limits.
But Schumer, for one, isn’t buying it.
“This is a sad, regrettable day for the Senate. And I believe it won’t take very long for Republicans to wish they had not pushed the chamber further down this awful road,” he warned.
The rules are gone. The floodgates are open. And Trump’s grip on the Senate just got even tighter.
