Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said on Wednesday that he was "offended" and "disappointed" by President Donald Trump's attacks against him on social media this week.
Trump on social media Tuesday evening hit out at Grassley and other longtime legislators on the panel for continuing the "blue slip" tradition that allows senators to veto nominees to district courts and U.S. attorneys' offices in their home states.
"Chuck Grassley, who I got re-elected to the U.S. Senate when he was down, by a lot, in the Great State of Iowa, could solve the 'Blue Slip' problem we are having with respect to the appointment of Highly Qualified Judges and U.S. Attorneys, with a mere flick of the pen," Trump wrote on Truth Social.
"Democrats like [Sens. Chuck] Schumer, [D-N.Y.,] [Mark] Warner, [D-Va.,] [Tim] Kaine, [D-Va.,] [Cory] Booker, [D-N.J.,] [Adam] Schiff, [D-Calif.,] and others, SLEAZEBAGS ALL, have an ironclad stoppage of Great Republican Candidates," Trump added.
"Put simply, the President of the United States will never be permitted to appoint the person of his choice because of an ancient, and probably Unconstitutional, 'CUSTOM,' that if you have, even one person in the opposite Party serving in the U.S. Senate, he/she must give consent, thereby completely stopping the opposite Party's Nomination," he wrote.
In a statement at the opening of a Judiciary Committee hearing on nominations, Grassley said, "Last night, I was surprised to see President Trump on Truth Social go after me and Senate Republicans over what we call the blue slip."
He added, "I was offended by what the president said, and I'm disappointed it would result in personal insults."
Grassley's colleague on the panel, Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., said that while he can "understand [Trump's] frustration" with the blue slip, "it's a cherished and very needed Senate tradition." He added, "Particularly for district court judges, senators are much better able to … pick a lawyer from their community that satisfies community standards."
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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