Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) has scrapped the August recess to push through President Donald Trump’s nominees, halting lawmakers’ summer plans to address a massive backlog that’s angered Trump and put key judicial seats on hold.
The Senate was supposed to head out for recess Saturday.
That’s not happening.
“Thune said he would keep the Senate in session at least this weekend to work on the confirmations and to negotiate with Democrats,” Just the News reported, noting that “some of the negotiations will be done between the White House and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.”
The holdup comes after weeks of slow-walking, with Republicans trying to confirm low-level appointees while at least 150 Trump nominees remain stalled. That includes judicial nominees and figures like Alina Habba, who’s waiting to be confirmed as U.S. attorney for New Jersey.
Trump has been publicly slamming the delay, aiming particular fire at Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IO).
“Chuck Grassley, who I got re-elected to the U.S. Senate when he was down, by a lot, in the Great State of Iowa, could solve the ‘Blue Slip’ problem… with a mere flick of the pen,” Trump said on Truth Social.
He torched the so-called