Newly elected President Donald Trump publicly became involved in the battle for leadership in the Senate for the first time on Sunday. He wrote on Truth Social that anyone running to become the next Senate majority leader must agree to let him make recess appointments to his Cabinet.
“Every Republican Senator seeking the coveted LEADERSHIP position in the United States Senate must agree to Recess Appointments (in the Senate!), without which we cannot get people confirmed in a timely manner,” Trump wrote, adding admits: “Sometimes the votes can take two years, or longer. This is what they did four years ago, and we can’t let it happen again. We need the positions IMMEDIATELY!’
Among the demands he outlined is the ability to make recess appointments, which would allow the president to appoint people to senior administration positions and bypass Senate confirmation.
Currently, both chambers of Congress are conducting “pro forma” sessions, even when the House of Representatives and Senate are out of town, as a tactic to prevent the president from sidestepping confirmation votes.
The Supreme Court reprimanded President Barack Obama when he made recess appointments and ruled 9-0 that he made them during a three-day break and that recesses are technically longer than that. The ruling gave the Senate more power to thwart such appointments in the future.
In 2020, during the crisis of the Covid pandemic, Trump threatened to unilaterally adjourn Congress so he could make recess appointments, but the threat never materialized.
Trump’s message Sunday marks the first time he has entered the race to replace Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the de facto leader of Senate Republicans.
GOP Sens. John Cornyn of Texas, Rick Scott of Florida and John Thune of South Dakota, the minority whip, are running to replace him.
Scott quickly weighed in on Sunday, writing on X that he agrees with Trump on recess appointments.
“100% agree. I will do everything I can to get your nominations through as quickly as possible,” Scott wrote.
Cornyn wrote on X that it is “unacceptable” for Senate Democrats to block Trump’s nominations.
“The Constitution expressly grants the president the power to make recess appointments,” he wrote in the post. “Article II, Section 2, Clause 3: The President shall have the power to fill any vacancies which may occur during the recess of the Senate by appointing committees to expire at the end of their next session.”
Thune said members of the Senate must act “swiftly and decisively” on Trump’s appointments.
“We must act quickly and decisively to get presidential nominees in place as quickly as possible, and all options are on the table to make that happen, including recess appointments. We cannot allow Schumer and Senate Democrats to block the will of the American people,” he wrote on X.
The race to succeed McConnell has intensified since Election Day, with rank-and-file Republican senators publicly endorsing their choices.
The Republican Sens. Rand Paul of Kentucky, Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, Marco Rubio of Florida and Bill Hagerty of Tennessee have all endorsed Scott.
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., has endorsed Cornyn.
On Thursday, Thune urged Trump not to endorse the race, telling CNBC in an interview: “Obviously, if he wants to, he can exert a significant amount of influence on that, but honestly, I think that would be my preference, and I think it’s probably in his best interest to stay out of that.”
Scott told Trump in May that he would run to succeed McConnell and asked for his endorsement, a source familiar with the call told NBC News.
Cornyn, Scott and Thune will meet Tuesday night at a candidates forum hosted by Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah. On Wednesday morning, just hours before Trump meets President Joe Biden at the White House, senators will vote for a new majority leader in a secret ballot.
In the second part of his Truth Social post Sunday, Trump called on Democrats not to confirm additional judicial nominees before the start of the next congressional session.
“Additionally, no judges should be confirmed during this period because Democrats want to push their judges while Republicans fight for leadership. THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE. THANK YOU!” Trump wrote suggesting that Republicans should stop Democrats from confirming judges during the lame duck session.
That would only work if Republicans slow down the process. They cannot unilaterally prevent Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., from bringing nominees to the floor.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
