Hawaii Senator blocks hundreds of Trump nominees in ire over Trump acting like 'a maniac'
By
comments and news from net, Posted in Politics / National
Democratic Hawaii Sen. Brian Schatz is blocking more than 300 of President Donald Trump's nominees from swift confirmation votes despite previously criticizing efforts to stall nominations during the Biden administration.
Schatz's blockade on hundreds of Trump nominees and at least nine bipartisan foreign relations bills comes as Senate Democrats are escalating opposition tactics against the Trump administration.
Schatz expanded his holds on Trump nominees to include individuals tapped to serve across 12 agencies, such as former New York Republican Rep. Anthony D'Esposito whom Trump appointed to a Department of Labor position, Axios reported.
"Their lawlessness is escalating and they are intentionally destroying the economy, and so I don't think we should make anything easy going forward," Schatz told Axios Monday.
"Every senator has enormous power," Schatz said in the speech. "I could probably block the defense bill this week if I wanted to, but I won't - you know why? Because I'm not a maniac, because I understand that when you vest someone through your voters with this kind of power, you have to be very careful how you exercise it."
Schatz, who sits on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is also placing holds on at least nine bipartisan foreign affairs bills.
Senate Republicans have vowed to continue processing Trump's national security nominees despite Schatz and other Senate Democrats' attempts to slow down the pace of confirmations.