Posted on 04/03/2019 1:15:59 PM PDT by jazusamo
Senate Republicans deployed the nuclear option on Wednesday to drastically reduce the amount of time it takes to confirm hundreds of President Trumps nominees.
Senators voted 51-48 to change the rules for the amount of time it takes to confirm most executive nominations with only a simple majority of the chamber. GOP Sens. Mike Lee (Utah) and Susan Collins (Maine) joined with Democrats in opposing the rules change.
Republicans are expected to trigger the nuclear option for a second time later Wednesday to force through the same change for district court nominations.
The combined actions will result in most nominations that require Senate confirmation needing only two hours of debate after theyve defeated a filibuster that shows they have the votes to ultimately be confirmed. Before Wednesdays rules change they faced up to an additional 30 hours of debate.
Supreme Court picks, appeals court judges and Cabinet nominees will not be affected by the rules change and will still face the lengthier Senate floor debate.
But the move will let Republicans hit the gas on confirming nominations, a top priority in an era of divided government that has left lawmakers without big-ticket legislative agenda items.
Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) argued shortly before triggering the hardball procedural tactic that the Senate needed to go back to a more normal and reasonable process for confirming nominations.
Our colleagues across the aisle have chosen to endlessly relitigate the 2016 election rather than actually participate in governing, McConnell added. This problem goes deeper than today. Were talking about the future of this very institution and the future functioning of our constitutional government.
Republicans have set a record for the number of appeals judges confirmed during an administrations first two years, but theyve accused Democrats of using the chambers legislative rulebook to slow down lower-level executive and judicial nominations.
Of 715 key positions tracked by The Washington Post and the Partnership for Public Service, 435 have been confirmed by the Senate. An additional 131 are awaiting confirmation, 12 need to be formally nominated and 140 positions still need nominations.
And, according to the same tracker, some departments still have substantial vacancies in their Senate-confirmed positions.
The Interior Department, for example, has 41 percent of its Senate-confirmed employees in place, the Justice Department has 48 percent and the Department of Labor has 50 percent.
Its the second time Republicans have gone nuclear to make it easier to confirm Trumps nominees in as many years. In 2017, Republicans nixed the 60-vote filibuster on Supreme Court nominees, mirroring the action Democrats took in 2013 on lower-court and executive nominees.
Republicans made a last-ditch effort on Tuesday to pass the rules change as a standing order, which would have required 60 votes. But Democrats and Lee voted against the resolution, preventing it from getting the necessary support to pass.
The resolution was widely expected to fail the earlier test vote but was aimed at assuaging concerns from within the GOP caucus about moving forward with the nuclear option without at least trying to pass it with Democrats. The caucus held a meeting on Tuesday evening to walk through the plan for Wednesday.
I think we had to convince 51, at least 51, of our members that were doing everything possible to try to do this through regular order, said Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) about the point of Tuesdays vote.
Republicans say they reached out to try to negotiate an agreement with Democrats to try to reach a deal to avoid Wednesdays floor drama but found little interest. Sources familiar with the negotiations told The Hill last week that Democrats have tried to negotiate a deal with McConnell, with suggested changes such as postponing the rules change until 2021, applying it only to executive nominees or restoring the blue slip for circuit court picks but were unable to reach an agreement.
Democrats are bristling over Republicans decision to invoke the nuclear option, arguing that they cant simultaneously complain about the pace of nominations while setting a record for some court nominees.
A similar resolution passed the Senate in 2013 that cut debate time for most executive nominations to eight hours and district judges to two hours. But that resolution, which passed with bipartisan support, only controlled the 113th Congress.
Democrats argue that the dynamic around nominations has changed dramatically since then. Democrats nixed the 60-vote filibuster in 2013 for most nominations and Republicans followed suite in 2017 on Supreme Court nominations.
Republicans have also moved circuit nominations over the objections of home-state senators.
The way my colleagues on the other side talk about the issue, youd think Democrats delayed every nominee for as long as possible. That just doesnt remotely resemble the truth, said Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.).
Bump!
These DemoCommies are being rude.
Perhaps Captain Woodrow Call should explain to them the consequences of rudeness.
click on the pic to see a rude Democrat get "dealt with".
GOP Sens. Mike Lee (Utah) and Susan Collins (Maine) joined with Democrats in opposing the rules change.
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Is there any way to kick Utah out of the country?
Maybe a $3 bill and some magic underwear?
I just don’t get it, either.
A year late.
Lee and Collins in opposition, yet again? Time to boot them out of the GOP. They are RINOs at best...
Make me happy s a left-leaning State.
Collins is probably the best we can hope for.
Im sure they counted the number of votes needed to pass, then let COLLINS off the hook so she has cover. Its how they do it.
I’m not afraid... We need to root out judicial activism now. It’s a gable very worth taking.
Im not afraid... We need to root out judicial activism now. Its a gamble very worth taking.
My first thought as well. Democrats have no shame and will pull ANY stunt to forward their agenda. Stalling on our part in the hope the other side won't do it is useless.
Admittedly, I was stunned.
I didn’t figure the uptight, rigid McConnell would dare to act like the slime ball Schumer, but, by golly, he sure did!
Woo-hoo!
Took the old turtle long enough, but now it’s finally done!
On to boatloads of confirmations!
The Dems will be stumbling over themselves to make these changes as soon as they regain power in the Senate. No reason to postpone the inevitable.
The Senate is already well positioned to check the excesses of the House by virtue of its composition (2 per state) - it does not need a 60-vote supermajority requirement for every Tom, Dick and Harry that is appointed to head a team of bureaucrats.
I hear you and I too was leery but tried to focus on the best side of it.
Boatloads of confirmations will be fantastic and so will the Rats going into orbit over them. ;^)
Absolutely, the Rats even said they were willing to do this but not at this time.
Thank the Lord Mitch didn’t stand down.
Its not being done to Speed Trumps Picks! Its to stop dems from delaying votes.
The Second Congressional District was carried by Donald Trump by 10 points. It covers 80% of the state and is VERY strong 2nd Amendment country.
It’s the more heavily populated First Congressional District in Southern Maine....the Portland area....that is more liberal and screws up the state.
more good news
thanks for posting jazusamo
He’s a complete cuck and he despises President Trump. He hides behind fear of Democrats using the same tactics. No, no, no, Mikey. They invented the tactics. They will always use them, and they rely on us being the good guys who won’t. Those days are (finally) over.
There was a somewhat conservative Governor, so it is possible to win a statewide election... but not easy.
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