Republicans prepare to push through a sweeping package of Trump nominees after a short-lived procedural challenge by Senate Democrats.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Senate Republicans are poised to confirm 97 of President Donald Trump’s nominees next week after an attempted blockade by Senate Democrats quickly unraveled last week.
GOP leaders had first planned a bloc vote to confirm 88 nominees but were stalled when Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado objected, arguing the package violated Senate procedure. When Republicans refiled the resolution hours later, they expanded the list to nearly 100 nominees.
The objection focused on Sara Bailey, a former Fox News contributor nominated to lead the Office of National Drug Control Policy—a cabinet-level post not eligible for group confirmation. Democrats argued her inclusion broke Senate rules governing expedited votes.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune condemned the delay tactics, calling them a sign of continued partisan obstruction. “Democrats – and their base – still can’t deal with the fact that President Trump won last November,” Thune said on the Senate floor. “And so they have held up every single one – every single one – of his nominations in revenge.”
The new list features former New York Republican congressman Anthony D’Esposito, nominated as inspector general of the Department of Labor, along with thirteen U.S. attorney nominees and dozens of other executive branch officials.
According to the Senate Republican Communications Center, 314 civilian nominees had been confirmed by Thursday evening. The upcoming package would push that number past 410, eclipsing totals reached under both President Biden and Trump’s first term.
Thune noted that after Republicans went nuclear in September to streamline confirmations, the Senate has nearly cleared its backlog. Before that rule change, more than 150 nominees remained stalled awaiting floor action.
The chamber previously approved a 48-member nominations package in September and another 108-member group in October. Both votes helped accelerate Trump’s second-term staffing after months of procedural resistance.
Bennet briefly succeeded in halting the latest vote but later celebrated his short-lived blockade on social media, declaring, “I will not allow unqualified nominees, this White House, or the President to undermine the rule of law and our national security.”
With the Democrats’ challenge now neutralized, Senate Republicans expect to finalize all 97 confirmations in the coming week—cementing Trump’s control over major executive agencies as his second year in office approaches.
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