“He shall have Power, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, to make Treaties, provided two thirds of the Senators present concur; and he shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the supreme Court, and all other Officers of the United States, whose Appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by Law: but the Congress may by Law vest the Appointment of such inferior Officers, as they think proper, in the President alone, in the Courts of Law, or in the Heads of Departments.” — Const. Art. II, §2, Cl. 2
When a president nominates cabinet members, the Senate has to approve them before they can take office. That’s what this says, and it’s a basic feature of the constitutional scheme that disperses power and creates accountability, known as separation of powers.
Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) doesn’t understand it. Possibly he’s never read it. He certainly doesn’t believe the Senate has any business exercising judgment on the fitness of presidential nominees.
That will be tested by Trump’s shocking nomination of Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), who’s a subject of criminal and ethics investigation, and is rumored to have engaged in sex trafficking (among other things), to be Attorney General of the United States.
Gaetz (bio here) has a law degree, but little law practice experience. He’s been a rightwing firebrand in Congress, engaging in what CNN calls “stunt politics.”
Several Republican senators reacted to Gaetz’s nomination with disbelief (see story here), which raises the question of whether he can be confirmed (see story here). David French, a lawyer and political commentator, said the nomination poses a “moral test” for the GOP (see story here).
Sen. Tuberville, America’s dumbest senator, has already flunked it. French wondered if Republican senators (of whom Tuberville is one) can
“summon up the minimum level of decency and moral courage to reject Gaetz? Or will they utterly abdicate their constitutional role of advice and consent in favor of simply consenting even to Trump’s worst whims?”
Tuberville’s response was to threaten political retaliation against any senator who opposes the nomination. He exclaimed, “at the end of the day, President Trump was elected by an enormous vote, and he deserves the team around him that he wants. It’s not up to us to determine that” (see story here), even though the Constitution assigns them (and him) that duty.
These days there are lots of Republican politicians who lack both brains and moral courage, so why am I singling Tuberville out? Partly because he’s the jackass who held up military promotions for months, potentially weakening America’s readiness posture. Partly because he’s said so many dumb things before (see, e.g., my postings here and here).
He’s also a flaming hypocrite who criticizes college athletes for breaking their contracts with schools to seek a better deal elsewhere — which he did twice himself (see story here).
Quite simply, he keeps demonstrating he’s an idiot. But that probably means nobody listens to him, or takes what he says seriously, including his threats.
Related story: CNN‘s Kaitlin Collins suggests Gaetz was an impulsive pick, see story here.