Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) expressed strong disapproval of Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s (R-Ala.) claim that it is not the responsibility of Republican senators to vet President-elect Trump’s nominees for Cabinet and senior administration positions.
During an interview with CNN’s Kaitlan Collins on Thursday night, Blumenthal described Tuberville’s comments as “one of the most ridiculous statements I have ever seen or heard.” He emphasized, “The Constitution mandates that each of us must advise and consent on every nominee put forth by the president.”
Blumenthal calls Tuberville’s approach to confirmations a breach of Senate responsibility
Blumenthal further stated, “Our oath is to the Constitution, not to any president. A senator who claims they will simply support any nominee sent by the president without further scrutiny is fundamentally violating their oath of office.”
In response to Blumenthal’s statements, Tuberville urged lawmakers to “give [Trump] the team he and the American people are asking for” in a comment to The Hill.
He argued, “Trump went 7-0 in battleground states while the GOP Senate went 1-4 in those same areas. Trump won the popular vote, and the GOP House didn’t gain seats. This election was a mandate for President Trump. We need to stop pretending this is business as usual.”
Blumenthal’s remarks followed Tuberville’s earlier interview with CNN’s Manu Raju, during which Tuberville stated that it is “not our job” to further vet Pete Hegseth, a controversial nominee for Defense Secretary requiring Senate confirmation.
Hegseth has faced criticism due to allegations of sexual assault linked to a 2017 incident he claims was consensual, his previous remarks against women serving in combat roles, and a New Yorker article detailing his forced resignation from two nonprofit organizations amid reports of financial mismanagement and intoxication.
A New York Times article last week revealed that Hegseth’s mother accused him via email in 2018 of “routinely mistreating women for years” and lacking character. However, in a subsequent phone interview with the Times, she retracted her accusations and defended him during a Fox News interview this week.
Hegseth has insisted that he will not be intimidated by the scrutiny. In a separate interview with CNN, Tuberville claimed that criticisms directed at Hegseth were actually attacks on Trump.
“Donald Trump did all the vetting needed for Pete Hegseth,” Tuberville maintained. “I can’t believe members of our side are saying they need to look into this or that. They’re actually targeting Donald Trump, suggesting he didn’t conduct proper vetting and that Hegseth isn’t fit for the job. That responsibility lies with the Democrats, not us.”
Some of Trump’s advisers had proposed transferring the responsibility for background checks of high-level nominees from the FBI to private investigators to simplify Senate confirmation for certain picks, though several Republicans dismissed the idea.
While Trump has publicly defended his choice, Republican sources on Capitol Hill indicated that Hegseth’s nomination seems unlikely to succeed, with one senator noting, “there’s seven or eight” GOP votes against him. If four Republicans oppose Hegseth’s nomination early next year, he would not be confirmed.
