Republicans say the Senate will remain in session over the weekend to confirm nominees unless Democrats, who the GOP says are being “sore losers,” abandon their stalling tactics.
“We will be here this weekend,” Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn, R-Texas said Tuesday. “We are going to finish the nominations of Sen. [Jeff] Sessions, Doctor [Tom] Price and [Steve] Mnuchin.”
The Senate is scheduled to vote Wednesday at 7 p.m. on whether to confirm Sessions, R-Ala., as President Trump’s attorney general.
The Senate has also scheduled a vote this week on Trump’s Health and Human Services nominee, Rep. Tom Price, R-Ga., and Treasury nominee Steve Mnuchin.
Senate rules require 30 hours of debate time in each case unless Democrats agree to a shorter timeframe. But Democrats have signaled they want to delay the confirmations as long as possible.
That means the Senate must use up all the time and Price may not be confirmed until early Friday morning, while Mnuchin would be delayed until early Sunday morning.
“We can do it cooperatively so we can burn time while we are out of session, but if [Democrats] won’t agree to that, we can stay in session 24 hours. A lot of members are happy to do that.”
Democrats have demonstrated they are willing to stay in all night, but to fight Trump’s nominees. Democratic lawmakers stayed on the floor through Monday night and into Tuesday morning to argue against the nomination of Betsy DeVos, who was ultimately confirmed as education secretary Tuesday at noon when the debate time expired and Vice President Mike Pence cast a tie-breaking vote.
Democrats have also delayed committee votes on the nominees by not showing up for votes and forcing the GOP to change the rules so that panel quorums are no longer required.
“They know how this story ends, they know we are going to be successful,” Cornyn said. “So stunts like staying up all night and making speeches, I’m not sure who they are trying to impress other than their dysfunctional base, by stopping, slowing down these confirmations which will be successful eventually.
Democrats are deeply opposed to most of Trump’s nominees, mostly because their views align with the GOP agenda that Democrats hope to block.
“We have an obligation to try to overturn some of these nominees,” Schumer, D-N.Y., said Tuesday and to “show the American people who these nominees are.” Schumer said he wants to thwart Trump, but would not confirm that he will demand the full time for each nominee and force a weekend session.
“We are going to have long debates on Sessions and long debates on Price,” Schumer said, adding that the strategy employed by the Democrats is working.
“It’s greatly weakening Trump’s ability with the American people because he’s not doing what he promised,” Schumer said.
