WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump is making demands of the incoming Senate Republican leader ahead of this week’s closed-door election, writing on social media that whoever is elected should suspend the chamber early next year so he can appoint anyone wants without having to go through the confirmation process.

“Any Republican senator seeking the coveted position of LEADERSHIP in the United States Senate must agree to Recess Appointments (in the Senate!), without which we will not be able to confirm people in a timely manner,” Trump said. he wrote. “Sometimes votes can take two years or more. This is what they did four years ago and we cannot let it happen again.”

If the Senate were to go into recess for an extended period after Inauguration Day on January 20, it would ensure that Trump could freely make appointments to top government positions, including the secretary of defense and secretary of the Treasury, without needing GOP support of the center. parliamentarians. Senate Republicans are on track for a 53-seat majority, with one race in Arizona still undecided.

Texas Sen. John Cornyn, Florida Sen. Rick Scott and South Dakota Sen. John Thune — who are competing for the position of majority leader — all quickly lined up with their social media posts about so-called break dates.

“It is unacceptable for the Senate D to block President @realDonaldTrump’s cabinet appointments,” Cornyn wrote on social media. “If they do, we will stay in session, including the weekend, until they give in. In addition, the Constitution expressly grants the President the power to make recess appointments.

“Article II, Section 2, Clause 3: The President shall have power to fill all vacancies which may occur during the recess of the Senate, by granting Committees which shall expire at the end of the next session.”

Thune wrote, “We must act quickly and decisively to get the president’s nominees as soon as possible, and all options are on the table to make that happen, including recess appointments. We cannot let Schumer and the members of the Senate block the will of the American people.” Chuck Schumer, a Democrat from New York, is the Senate Majority Leader.

Scott commented on Trump’s original post, saying he agreed “100%”

“I will do whatever it takes to get your nominations as quickly as possible,” Scott said.

Skipping the Senate’s advice and consent power would likely mean no committee hearings for recess appointees, preventing them from answering questions from lawmakers about their political experience and goals.

It would also prevent senators from having to hold what could be difficult votes on potential Trump nominees.

Trump has just begun announcing who he is selecting for posts in his next administration, naming a “border tsar,” ambassador to the UN and EPA Administrator as of Monday afternoon.

The decision of the Supreme Court

The Senate has avoided recess for more than three days in the middle of a years-long session under both Republican and Democratic majorities.

Instead, when the Senate leaves Capitol Hill for several weeks, the chamber holds what’s called a pro forma session every three days to prevent recess appointments. They usually last only a few minutes and usually do not involve any legislative business.

The pro forma sessions, in part, stem from a unanimous Supreme Court ruling in June 2014 that held that a president could fill vacancies during a congressional recess if it lasted more than 10 days.

“In light of historical practice, a break of more than 3 days but less than 10 days is presumptively too short to fall under the clause,” the judges said. he wrote in National Labor Relations Board v. Noel Canning.

That case began after then-President Barack Obama made three appointments to the National Labor Relations Board in 2012, even as the Democratic-controlled Senate held pro forma sessions every few days.

Opposition to Obama appointments on hiatus

Republicans in Congress, including Thune and Cornyn, praised the Supreme Court’s decision at the time, sharply criticizing Obama for trying to bypass the Senate.

Thune launched a written statementsaying the Supreme Court had blocked Obama from trying “to violate the separation of powers.”

“When the president couldn’t get his appointments through the Senate, he decided to ignore the law and try to end the run around Congress,” Thune wrote. “I am glad that the Supreme Court unanimously rejected the president’s attempt to circumvent the Constitution. Today’s decision reaffirms that Congress, not the president, has the authority to set its own rules.”

Cornyn criticized Obama for taking “unilateral actions” that gave “the perception that he doesn’t care what Congress says.”

“In fact, this morning the Supreme Court reprimanded the president for an illegal recess appointment — an unconstitutional recess appointment,” Cornyn said during a speech on the floor, according to Congressional Record.

Scott was not a member of Congress when the Supreme Court issued its ruling.

Iowa Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley at the time praised “the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down President Obama’s illegal recess appointments.”

“Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution provides only two ways in which presidents can appoint certain officers: First, it provides that the president appoints and, with and with the advice of the Senate, appoints various officers,” Grassley said. “Second, it allows the president to make temporary appointments when a vacancy in one of those positions occurs when the Senate is in recess.”

During Trump’s first term, Senate Republicans held pro forma sessions as a way to avoid recess appointments and ensure the House had time to vet the people Trump wanted to lead some of the most powerful institutions in the country, including the Department of Defense.

Any future Trump recess programs would expire at the end of the Senate’s “next session,” meaning he would have to go through the process again within two years, according to a report from the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service.

Elections scheduled for Wednesday

Senate Republicans will hold a closed-door, secret-ballot election on Wednesday to select new colleagues to fill the top jobs.

Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell, who has held the title of Republican leader since 2007, opted not to continue in the role as the new Congress begins, leading to a three-way race between Cornyn, Scott and Thune.

Whoever the Republicans choose as their next leader, along with the rest of the leadership team, will have an important role in determining the Senate’s agenda for the next two years, as well as setting the tone for the incoming Trump administration.

They will also have to strike deals with Democrats on must-pass legislation, such as the annual government funding bills and the annual defense policy bill.

John Barrasso of Wyoming is running unopposed for the whip position, currently held by Thune and previously held by Cornyn.

Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton and Joni Ernst of Iowa I’m in competition to hold the management position no. 3 conference president, currently held by Barrasso.

Republicans will also elect a Policy Committee Chair, a Conference Vice Chair and a Republican National Senate Committee Chair to round out the six-person Senate leadership team.

Last updated at 15:06, November 11, 2024