Democrats slow GOP rush to confirm Trump nominees

Senate Republicans had hoped to hastily confirm a wave of Cabinet nominees in the days immediately after President Trump took office. But Democrats, expressing reservations about some choices, are slowing the push, frustrating Republicans and denying the new president the rapid action he demanded.

“It’s really about trying to drag out all these nominations, playing procedural games,” Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas, the third-ranking Republican, said Tuesday as Democrats blocked quick confirmation of John Ratcliffe as Central Director. Intelligence agency. “We are going to select these candidates in the simplest and most collegial way – or apparently, in the most difficult way. »

Hours after Mr. Trump was sworn in, Democrats accepted the quick 99-0 confirmation of Marco Rubio, their Senate colleague, as secretary of state. But they have since shown they are willing to use procedural tactics to slow down other candidates, even if they are destined for confirmation, including forcing lengthy floor votes on actions that are usually done jointly. agreement.

Democrats said some of Trump’s choices merited closer scrutiny.

“If each of President Trump’s nominees were as qualified and experienced as Senator Rubio, they would sail through the Senate with bipartisan support,” said Senator Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York and minority leader. “Unfortunately, too many of the president’s nominees do not match Senator Rubio’s caliber. Too many of them have difficult backgrounds. Too many people seem unprepared for this work, and this was proven in their testimonies.

The slow start caught the attention of Mr. Trump, who in a meeting Tuesday with the two top congressional Republicans at the White House resurrected the idea of ​​bypassing the Senate entirely on nominations and try to install his choices without votes while the Senate is in recess. Senate Republicans balked at the idea when the president first raised it after his election victory, but Sen. John Thune, Republican of South Dakota and majority leader, did not rule out the approach if Democrats persisted with what his camp considers unnecessary delays.

“Obviously, this is something that, as you know, he has expressed interest in in the past,” Mr. Thune said of Mr. Trump and the holiday nominations. “I think we’re going to find out here pretty quickly whether or not the Democrats want to help us carry out some of these nominations in a way that gets us back on track as we were before the last two presidencies. »