Republicans invent a new litmus test for nominees: Say something they disagree with about Trump’s trials, and you can kiss a speedy confirmation goodbye.
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Three and a half years after inciting an insurrection that led to the storming of the US Capitol, Donald Trump is returning to the scene of the crime Thursday to meet with congressional Republicans.
And, just in time to demonstrate to the former president that they are still under his thrall, a group of GOP senators announced that they would try to slow down the chamber’s business.
Why?
Because they are still upset that a jury unanimously found Trump guilty of falsifying business records to cover up an affair with a porn star.
It’s equally amusing and terrifying to realize the many ways in which Republicans are willing to debase themselves to prove their allegiance not to the United States but rather to a convicted felon who has never won a popular vote in his life.
It’s a bit unfair to compare what they are doing to the kind of tantrum a kid in the candy aisle of a grocery store might throw. That’s because they are not just incessantly whining but also want to take active steps to ensure that the nation’s business doesn’t get done.
Therefore, a more apt comparison would be to that of a toddler who not only throws a fit but also begins to break mayonnaise jars on the floor.
That doesn’t do a ton of damage, but is messy and takes time to clean up.
Essentially, this is what Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) and a handful of his colleagues are promising to do by holding up the speedy nomination of uncontroversial nominees.
That doesn’t mean that some or all of the nominees won’t get confirmed in the end, but it will take a lot more precious floor time to do so — time that could otherwise be spent on things that might actually improve the lives of Americans.
On Thursday, they announced that, as part of their “continuing response to the current administration’s persecution of President Donald Trump,” they would prevent the Senate from fast-tracking President Joe Biden’s judicial and US attorney nominations.
(Editor’s Note: Apart from wishing it were so, Republicans have not produced any evidence to show that the Biden administration is involved in the “persecution” of Trump.)
Here comes the craziest part:
“Further, we will not permit the fast-tracking of nominees who have suggested the Trump prosecutions were reasonable, endorse President Trump’s guilt in these sham proceedings, joined or supported organizations that celebrated the indictment of President Trump, supported the ‘get-Trump’ candidacy of Alvin Bragg, or supported lawfare or censorship in other ways,” these senators said in a statement.
While nothing is surprising anymore when it comes to how beholden Republicans are to Trump, this is utterly insane.
Essentially, what they are saying is that, if you tweeted, “Well, a jury unanimously convicted the guy, so let’s move on,” you should not hold a position in the US government.
Or, if you said, “No one is above the law,” you should not be a federal judge.
And, of course, nothing would stop Republican senators asking the nominees during their confirmation hearings what they thought of the verdict. If you don’t say what they want to hear, then you will have to wait to be confirmed.
Conversely, if you falsely claim that the 2020 election was stolen, then you could become the GOP’s presidential nominee this year.
Republicans should consider themselves fortunate that Americans are not (yet) paying attention to (or don’t understand) what it is that they are doing on a daily basis to do Trump’s bidding… to the detriment of the country.
Otherwise, they hopefully would not get away with their incessant lies and the gaslighting of Americans.
