Blumenthal Says He’ll Put Senate Hold on Trump Judicial Nominees

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) plans to obstruct Donald Trump’s judicial nominations as progressive groups push Democrats to hinder the president’s plans to further reshape the bench with young conservatives.

Blumenthal said that he’s “committed to working with my colleagues on putting a hold on all” of Trump’s court picks and Justice Department selections. His remarks came during a press conference on Tuesday hosted by advocacy group Demand Justice.

Left-leaning judicial advocacy organizations have urged Senate Democrats to use every procedural tool available to oppose Trump’s judicial appointments drive, which is just getting under way with the first batch of intended circuit and district picks now announced.

Trump made 234 lifetime appointments to the federal bench during his first term, including three Supreme Court justices.

Blumenthal and Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) have similarly put holds on Trump’s Veterans Affairs nominees, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said he’d obstruct his Justice Department picks amid administration plans to accept a luxury aircraft from Qatar for use as Air Force One.

Such a maneuver doesn’t completely block nominations from moving through the Senate, but it can slow the process as Republicans are forced to use more floor time to overcome opposition through additional procedural votes.

Judicial nominations are already subject to several procedural votes, including to end debate on the nomination, in order to make it to a confirmation vote.

Trump has announced five intended judicial nominees so far, including for a Tennessee seat on the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit and four openings on Missouri’s St. Louis-based US trial court.

Some Democrats in the first month of Trump’s return to office said they were open to working with the administration to fill vacancies in their states, which drew sharp rebuke from progressives.

Some groups have stopped short of calling for wholesale opposition to Trump’s judicial picks, while others say there’s no room for compromise.

“I think that it’s really critical that we say that it is better to have empty seats than to have seats filled by a president who has shown that he would like to be a dictator,” said Molly Coleman, executive director of the People’s Parity Project.