Hours of negotiations in the U.S. Senate over the confirmation of President Donald Trump’s nominees collapsed late Saturday night, following a decision by the President to end talks after what he called an “egregious” demand from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.
In a post on Truth Social, President Trump accused Schumer, D-N.Y., of attempting to extort over $1 billion in exchange for allowing a vote on a small number of nominees who had already received bipartisan committee support.
“This demand is egregious and unprecedented, and would be embarrassing to the Republican Party if it were accepted. It is political extortion, by any other name,” Trump wrote.
“Tell Schumer, who is under tremendous political pressure from within his own party, the Radical Left Lunatics, to GO TO HELL!”
Trump instructed Republican lawmakers to reject the offer outright.
“Do not accept the offer,” he continued. “Go home and explain to your constituents what bad people the Democrats are, and what a great job the Republicans are doing, and have done, for our Country. Have a great RECESS and, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!”
The breakdown in talks meant that instead of confirming up to 60 nominees—many of whom had cleared committee with bipartisan backing—the Senate rushed through votes on just seven before leaving Washington for recess until September.
Despite the failure of the negotiations, Schumer characterized the outcome as a win for Democrats.
Standing beside a poster-sized image of President Trump’s post, Schumer accused the President of walking away from the process.
“He took his ball, he went home, leaving Democrats and Republicans alike wondering what the hell happened,” Schumer said.
“Trump’s all-caps Tweet said it all. In a fit of rage, Trump threw in the towel, sent Republicans home, and was unable to do the basic work of negotiating.”
Prior to the President’s directive, both parties had indicated optimism that a deal was within reach. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., confirmed that multiple offers had been exchanged with Schumer throughout the day.
“There were several different times where I think either or both sides maybe thought there was a deal in the end,” Thune said.
According to sources familiar with the talks, Senate Democrats were seeking to unfreeze billions in funding for the National Institutes of Health and foreign aid programs, and to secure a commitment from the White House not to propose further clawbacks.
In return, they would support confirmation of several of the President’s non-controversial nominees.
Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., said Democrats had continually moved the goalposts, accusing Schumer of escalating demands beyond what had been previously agreed.
“We’ve had three different deals since last night,” Mullin said. “And every time it’s been, every time it’s ‘I want more.’”
Mullin noted that the White House had been actively involved in the discussions and that Trump’s decision to call off negotiations was expected.
“You get to a realization that it was never about making a deal,” Mullin added.
“They want to go out and say the President’s being unrealistic, and because he can’t answer to his base to make a deal like we have in every other president in history.”
Republicans do not plan to pursue recess appointments during the break, but Mullin confirmed that the GOP will consider moving forward with changes to the Senate confirmation process when they return in September.
“The asks evolved on both sides quite a bit over time,” Thune said.
“But in the end, we never got to a place where we had both sides agree to lock it in.”
Senate Democrats, however, maintained that their demands remained consistent while accusing Republicans of attempting to push through an expanded list of nominees, including some viewed as partisan.
Schumer declined to publicly outline his requests but warned against any effort to change Senate rules.
“Any changes to Senate rules would be a huge mistake,” Schumer said.
He called on President Trump to work with Senate Democrats as Congress prepares for a potential funding deadline in September.
“They should stop listening to him,” Schumer added.
“If they want to do what’s good for the American people, they shouldn’t be in blind obeisance to Donald Trump.”
The Senate is expected to reconvene in September amid mounting pressure to address both the stalled confirmations and upcoming appropriations deadlines.
