Last updated on July 17th, 2023 at 09:44 pm
Senate Democrats have announced that they are going to fight Trump’s cabinet nominees tooth and nail and the battle will be the launching pad for their political comeback.
Democrats took their stand in a statement, “Despite President-elect Donald Trump’s promise to unrig the system, he is trying to fill his cabinet with billionaires and Washington insiders who have a deep record of working for special interests instead of working Americans. From ending Medicare “as we know it” to allegations of insider trading, President-elect Trump’s cabinet picks have a series of very tough questions to answer in the confirmation process. Senate Democrats are fighting to hold Trump’s nominees accountable to his promise to drain the swamp, and will continue to do so throughout the confirmation process.”
Democrats are planning to use the confirmation hearings to call out Trump’s hypocrisy and his nominees’ conflicts of interest. Senate Democrats aren’t going to sit back and play the traditional minority party role during the confirmation process. The Democrats have a broader strategy in play.
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According to Politico, the hearings are the first step in exposing Trump as a fraud, “Senate Democrats want to force Trump’s picks to lay down markers on specific policies that can be used to build a case against the incumbent as his administration unfolds and the next election approaches, insiders said. More immediately, they want to begin to make the case to Trump voters that what they voted for is a far cry from what they’ll be getting with the next president.
Just as Republicans used the House and Senate to lay the groundwork for their 2016 run against Hillary Clinton, Democrats are going to use the Senate to build their 2020 case against Trump. While the House is straight majority rule, which limits the power and influence of the minority party significantly, the Senate as an institution is designed to give the minority a voice and some power. Democrats will have an ample platform in the Senate without a majority to build the case against Trump.
As far Senate Majority Leader McConnell changing the Senate rules and eliminating the filibuster is concerned, don’t count on it happening.
McConnell has been reluctant to drastically change Senate rules because as a body, the Senate knows what goes around comes around. Republicans will someday find themselves in the Senate minority, and if they eliminate the filibuster, a Democratic Senate will do the same in the future.
Pay close attention to the Trump cabinet confirmation hearings. The questions aren’t going to be limited to challenging Trump’s nominees. They are also going to be the first step in evidence gathering for 2020.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
