Senate Republicans are mulling whether to go nuclear after negotiations with Senate Democrats to ram through President Donald Trump’s nominees fell apart over the weekend.
The path to confirming dozens of Trump’s outstanding nominees was destroyed when the president accused Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., of "political extortion," and charged that the Democratic leader’s asking price for nominees was too high.
Now, lawmakers have left Washington without a deal to bundle dozens of nominees that made it through committee with bipartisan support, and a change to how the Senate handles the confirmation process is on the horizon.
Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo., berated Schumer and Senate Democrats for their "unprecedented" blocks of the president’s nominees, and noted that every pick had been filibustered save for Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who glided through the Senate earlier this year.
