WASHINGTON — Since taking control of the Republican Party nearly a decade ago, President-elect Donald Trump has demanded greater loyalty from members of Congress.
With a few exceptions, they went along with this, refusing to convict in two impeachment trials, and even after being convicted of 34 felonies, falsely charging Republican primaries and main voters. He helped him win the election and a second term in the White House. He denied the defeat in 2020.
The senator will now face a new challenge. The question is whether to give up long-held independent powers under the constitution to consider an increasingly controversial cabinet selection group.
Many senators from both parties have already expressed concerns about some of Trump’s picks, but Trump has said he expects the committee to try controversial tactics that could circumvent the confirmation process. Ta.
In recent days, President Trump nominated Pete Hegseth, a Fox TV host and military veteran who had never held a leadership post, to be secretary of defense. Former Democratic congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard is accused of promoting Kremlin talking points as director of national intelligence. And Florida Republican Matt Gaetz resigned from his House seat as attorney general on Wednesday in the face of a congressional investigation into sex trafficking.
And on Thursday, President Trump nominated Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a vocal vaccine skeptic who has spread false conspiracy theories about health care, to lead the Department of Health and Human Services.
Trump is known for bucking tradition and going against policy, but some political observers say his recent appointments signal a larger agenda.
“There is a difference between having a broader set of ideologies and choosing a particular ideology. [accused] A sex trafficker for the attorney general of the United States,” said Marc Short, who served as Trump’s legislative affairs director during his first term and as chief of staff to former Vice President Mike Pence.
“I think he’s trying to cause chaos,” Short said of Trump. But “I’m not convinced it’s been clearly thought out.”
Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, a Bakersfield Republican whose career in Congress was severely derailed by leading the revolt against Gaetz, predicted that at least Gaetz’s nomination would fail, telling Bloomberg TV on Thursday: . ”
McCarthy called the nomination a “good turnaround” and said that even if Gaetz loses, Trump will be able to use up the willpower that Republican senators need to take on a new president next year. Alluded to a popular theory in Washington that it could help win approval for other controversial candidates.
At the center of this is Sen. John Thune, Republican of South Dakota, who was elected Senate Majority Leader in a floor vote on Wednesday. He will replace Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell, who at times clashed with Trump during his first term but avoided an all-out intraparty war by largely acquiescing to the president. Thune’s Senate will likely become more pro-Trump, with more senators taking office with his support, but some of the more skeptical Republicans are no longer serving.
Despite choosing from a pool of inexperienced candidates, Trump had mixed results with his nominations in his first term. Some of his high-level nominees faced long battles, and a few withdrew, but most were ultimately approved.
Before Thune defeated two of his colleagues to win the party leadership post, Trump tweeted on social media that he hoped the new Senate leadership would use recess appointments to push his candidate forward. The Senate was scheduled to adjourn for 10 days to allow the president to adjourn. Appoint a Chief Cabinet Secretary for the remaining two-year term.
This tactic, devised in the days of horse-drawn carriages when parliaments met regularly, will likely be challenged in court. Opponents have opposed its routine use, and senators have defended its historical role as a check on the executive branch.
Thune told reporters in South Dakota on Wednesday that he wanted to avoid scheduling a recess, but did not rule out the possibility.
“I’m going to struggle and do it the old-fashioned way,” he said, according to the Sioux Falls Argus leader.
He reiterated that point to ABC News on Thursday, pledging: “I look forward to our committee doing its job and providing the advice and consent required by the Constitution.”
Lawmakers from both parties have already said they want to know more about the House ethics investigation into Gaetz, which ended with Gaetz’s resignation from Congress. This comment shows they don’t want to give up their right to review his record. One lawmaker who said he would “absolutely” want to see the House report was Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, the top Republican on the Judiciary Committee who ran against Thune for majority leader.
This is how dictatorships operate
— Richard Painter, former White House Ethics Counsel.
For some who have worked in the federal government, using the recess schedule to avoid the Senate is a concern.
Richard Painter, a former White House chief ethics lawyer under President George W. Bush, said an immediate prorogation of the Senate at the direction of the new president would herald dark days for the country. .
“This is how dictatorships operate,” said Painter, who ran for the Minnesota Senate as a Democrat in 2018. “You’re dissolving Congress immediately after sworn in the president? That’s absolutely ridiculous.”
But pressure is mounting to push President Trump’s preferred options. Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville, one of President Trump’s most ardent allies, told potential opponents during an appearance on Fox Business that if they get in the way of President Trump’s policies, “We’re going to try to get you out of the Senate.”
As one of the two chambers of Congress, the Senate has a long tradition of maintaining its status as part of an equal branch of government, even if the president is of the same party. The late Nevada Majority Leader Harry Reid irritated some Democrats in a 2009 interview when he said: I’m working with him. ”
But James Manley, a former adviser at Reid, said he believes Trump is consciously trying to erode those boundaries and is skeptical that Republicans will have the courage to stand up to him. Ta.
“The house is broken. They’ll do whatever he wants,” Manley said. “Now he turns his attention to the Senate.”
Ben Olinsky, senior vice president of structural reform and governance at the liberal Center for American Progress, said President Trump is fielding a highly questionable nominee and at the same time allowing the Senate to pass it without scrutiny. He discussed how the Senate would respond to these demands. It will tell us a lot about what will happen in the next few years. ”
“I absolutely think this is a test of independence and integrity for them,” Olinsky said. “It could be a direct loyalty test from the president.”
