J.D. Vance and a gaggle of other Republican senators refused to confirm any judicial nominees, under-secretaries and commission members. The decision is retaliation for Donald Trump’s felony conviction.
The opposition to Biden’s confirmations was led by Vance, Mike Lee, Bill Hagerty, Roger Marshall, Tommy Tuberville, and Eric Schmitt. The group wrote a letter stating that this was their way of protesting Trump’s 34 felony counts.
Per The Washington Post, the contrived logjam broke after Vance “felt confident the administration would not place ideology over national security considerations.”
Gumming up President Biden‘s personnel moves has been somewhat of a pet project for Vance. In a leaked questionnaire obtained by The Washington Post, he asked diplomatic nominees to disclose their positions on “gender-neutral bathrooms” and “regional Pride celebrations.”
Although this story is from June of 2024, Vance’s obstructionist rhetoric began some time earlier, when Trump’s appearances in courtrooms started.
Burgess Everett noted in a June 2023 Politico piece that Vance was furious about Trump’s indictments and was “seeking some modicum of revenge for the second indictment of Donald Trump.”
Grinding government functions to a halt seems like a petty, vindictive way to air objections to a private citizen’s legal troubles. But Vance’s tack is not unique: GOP Senator Tommy Tuberville recently blocked Senate military promotions for nearly a year in objection to reproductive healthcare options for servicemembers.
