WASHINGTON D.C. – Free Speech For Individuals joined 70 nationwide civil rights and pro-democracy organizations in sending a joint letter to the Senate, demanding that it uphold its crucial constitutional duty to advise and consent on presidential nominations to the chief and judicial branches. The letter supply was organized and led by Individuals For the American Method in collaboration with Public Citizen, the Constitutional Accountability Middle, and Residents for Accountability and Ethics in Washington (CREW).
You may learn the letter in full right here.
The letter comes as President-elect Donald Trump is urging incoming Republican Senate management to let him bypass the Senate affirmation course of and make recess appointments of his chosen nominees. It echoes Senate Majority Chief Chuck Schumer’s protection of the Senate’s constitutional function earlier this week, when he known as on incoming Majority Chief John Thune to “course of every nominee by reviewing commonplace FBI background-investigation supplies, scheduling hearings and markups within the committees of jurisdiction, and contemplating nominees on the Senate ground.”
“Should you’re making an attempt to ram via nominees with out Senate and public scrutiny, it’s a reasonably good guess that you’ve got one thing to cover,” mentioned Individuals For the American Method President Svante Myrick. “The American folks deserve full vetting of each particular person chosen to serve in our nation’s highest workplaces and Trump’s nominees aren’t any exception.”
“The Structure’s requirement of Senate ‘Recommendation and Consent’ for sure high-ranking officers can present an essential test on a president’s capacity to put in officers who’re wholly unqualified or unsuitable for workplace. It’s obscure why a president-elect would preemptively threaten recess appointments when the Senate is managed by the president-elect’s personal social gathering — except one considers the acute and harmful nature of most of the names being prompt for these extremely essential positions. The Senate ought to rigorously and impartially vet these nominees. Senators who ignore their constitutional function ignore their obligation to the American folks,” mentioned Praveen Fernandes, Vice President, Constitutional Accountability Middle.
“The Senate should do their job and completely vet nominees for crucial positions throughout authorities. To do in any other case is a dereliction of obligation and neglects the Senate’s key constitutional duty to evaluate and vote on these nominated by the President. Donald Trump’s aggressive demand for recess appointment in lieu of regular course of is one more demonstration of his view that he’s above the regulation, above different branches of presidency, and ought to be unilaterally allowed to do no matter he chooses. The Senate should not give in to his overreaching, irrational request,” mentioned Lisa Gilbert, Co-President of Public Citizen.
“By urging the Senate to bypass the affirmation course of and permit mass recess appointments for his cupboard and different govt department nominations, President-elect Trump is trying to do an finish run round a key test on presidential energy at a time of dwindling checks and balances,” mentioned CREW President Noah Bookbinder. “Utilizing recess appointments on this manner goes towards the sturdy intention of the Structure’s framers to restrict govt energy. It solely emphasizes Trump’s need to skirt the guardrails in our system to stop abuses and illegal habits, and it could deny the general public an important alternative to listen to concerning the deserves and {qualifications} of his nominees. The Senate ought to do all the pieces in its energy to make sure that President-elect Trump adheres to the affirmation course of and to keep away from mass recess appointments that can solely serve to additional erode democratic establishments and the general public’s belief in authorities.”
The organizations’ letter concludes that “Senators are elected to do a job. Each senator ought to have the dignity and fortitude to demand that the Senate train its constitutional duty to scrupulously and impartially vet, after which vote on whether or not to substantiate, the nominees of the incoming president.”
