The Senate GOP is working to stock the government with conservative appointments in the lame duck.
Two months before Joe Biden assumes the presidency, Senate Republicans are racing to install a series of conservative nominees that will outlast Donald Trump.
While Trump still refuses to concede the election, the Senate GOP is moving quickly to ensure that the president’s stamp sticks to the Federal Elections Commission, Federal Reserve Board, the federal judiciary and beyond.
The effort played out in dramatic fashion this week, as Senate Republicans tried to muscle Judy Shelton onto the Fed by the narrowest of margins but fell short amid senators’ absences from the coronavirus. They’re also plotting a confirmation vote for Christopher Waller, Trump’s less controversial Fed pick.
The last-minute push to confirm Shelton, Waller and others is a key part of the Senate GOP’s bid to wield power in the dwindling days of a Republican presidency — even if most in the party still won’t acknowledge Biden’s victory.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s work on pushing lifetime judicial appointments is well known. But Shelton’s term would extend to 2024, Waller’s would last until 2030, and the FEC commissioners would stay on past Biden’s inauguration, as would potential additions to the Federal Communications Commission and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
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As Biden prepares to take office, Senate Republicans are racing to confirm conservative nominees to the federal government who will outlast Trump https://t.co/zPjmNvBzGM
— POLITICO (@politico) November 19, 2020
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