1/Trump's nominations of Gabbard & Gaetz are designed to provoke outrage. But they’re also a test for the Senate. A test of whether the Senate will be loyal to the Constitution or whether it will bend the knee to Donald Trump. joycevance.substack.com/p/will-the-sen…
2/Alabama Senator “Coach” Tuberville said Trump was elected by an “enormous vote” (he wasn’t) & “deserves” the team” he wants. But that’s not how it works. Tuberville, doesn’t understand how the Constitution works. Presidents must have the advice & consent of the Senate.
3/Under the Constitution, presidents must have “the Advice & Consent of the Senate,” for appointment of cabinet secretaries & other senior executive branch officials. Article II, Section 2, Clause 2 of the Constitution provides that:
4/Senate scrutiny can lead flawed nominees to withdraw. In 2018, Trump's doctor Ronny Jackson withdrew for Sec of Veterans Affairs after senators expressed skepticism b/c he lacked management experience & engaged in hostile workplace behavior. npr.org/2018/04/26/605…
5/The advice & consent provision was set by the Founding Fathers as the best method to strike a balance between Congressional power & presidential power. In April of 2014 Sen Orrin Hatch wrote it was essential. thehill.com/opinion/op-ed/…
6/Trump wants the Senate to abandon its Constitutional responsibility: five days after the election & with a healthy 53-47 GOP majority that would see any reasonable nominee affirmed, Trump demanded Republican allegiance for recess appointments.
7/Why would Trump need recess appointments with this majority? Why demand that senators abandon their Constitutional obligation? Why make laughable nominations? He’s trying to force senators to bend the knee; loyalty to Trump, not the Constitution, will be the order of the day.
7/Trump’s justifications are false. Recess appointments aren’t essential to timely confirmations. The highly regarded, bipartisan, Center for Presidential Transition reports that most of a president’s initial picks for cabinet secretaries are quickly confirmed.
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