Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., on Thursday blocked an attempt by Republicans to call up the nomination of Richard Grenell to be President Trump’s ambassador to Germany.
Grenell, a gay conservative, has had his nomination held by at least one Democrat in the Senate, and Merkley took to the floor after Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., tried to get to a vote to the nominee.
“I cannot in good faith support a nominee who has a lengthy track record of tweets attacking both prominent Democratic and prominent Republican women,” Merkely said.
“Since his nomination, these tweets have continued, showing a complete disregard for the Senate confirmation process and disregard for the seriousness of the position to which he is nominated,” he added.
Grenell has been criticized by Democrats for criticizing Democratic women over the last few years. The nominee has apologized, but it hasn’t been enough to satisfy Democrats.
Some examples of his tweets include a comment aimed at Hillary Clinton, who he said was “starting to look like Madeleine Albright.”
But Merkley said Grenell has also rejected the idea that Russia is threatening the U.S.
“At the same time, Mr. Grenell has been dismissive of the importance of the threat Russia poses to U.S. democracy,” Merkely said.
The White House has openly called out Senate Democrats for blocking Grenell and other nominees over the last few weeks.
