‘Delaying at Every Turn’: Senate Republicans Rip Democrats’ ‘Obstructing’ of Trump Nominees

Senate Republicans are sounding off on Democrats’ obstruction of the confirmation of President Donald Trump’s judicial and executive branch nominees.

“There is absolutely zero reason we should have this backlog—especially with such important nominations,” Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., said on the Senate floor on Thursday.

Blackburn was just the latest Republican senator to express frustration at the slow pace of confirming Trump administration personnel and judicial appointees. 

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, posted on the social media platform X yesterday that “at the current pace,” it would be April 2026 before the current nominees out of committees and awaiting floor votes would be confirmed. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., chimed in, replying that it was “[t]ime for recess appointments.”

Found in Article II of the Constitution, recess appointments can be made by the president for executive branch positions without Senate confirmation and can last for as long as one or two years.

Despite the Democrats’ obstruction, the upper chamber, under the helm of Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., has still managed to confirm almost double the number of civilian nominees at this point than at the point during the first Trump administration. That’s 107 civilian nominees in 2025, compared with just 55 in 2017.

The Senate has also taken 437 votes, a 35-year record for this point in a congressional session. 

For his part, the president has advocated that the Senate remain in session instead of going on its customary recess for almost six weeks from this week until after Labor Day.

Writing on TruthSocial last week, Trump said, “Hopefully, the very talented John Thune, fresh off our many victories over the past two weeks and, indeed, 6 months, will cancel August recess (and long weekends!), in order to get my incredible nominees confirmed. We need them badly!!!”

In addition to canceling the August recess, the Senate majority leader also has the option of increasing the Senate workweek to seven days.

Thune told the “Ruthless” podcast on Thursday that Democrats were “blocking and obstructing and delaying at every turn.”

“Democrats have filibustered all but one of President Trump’s nominees, and that was the very first nominee–Marco Rubio to be secretary of state. He was confirmed on Day One of this administration,” Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wy., said on the Senate floor on Thursday.

Barrasso highlighted that there was no Trump administration role either too symbolic or too important to prevent the stonewalling by Democrats.

“Democrats filibustered positions requiring confirmation that have never before had a roll call vote in the United States Senate. They have gone by unanimous consent,” the Wyoming senator contended.

According to the Senate Republican Communications Center, Democrats have forced cloture votes on 22 civilian nominees that were so noncontroversial that they all earned at least 60 votes from senators upon confirmation.

“Democrats filibustered the chief of protocol for the Department of State—the chief of protocol. Democrats filibustered the undersecretary of Commerce for industry and security. Democrats filibustered the undersecretary of defense for research and engineering,” Barrasso noted.

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