In a deeply embarrassing display of political theatre, Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee stormed out of the building before a vote advanced President Trump’s judicial nominee, Emil Bove, to the U.S. Court of Appeals.
For context, the shameful display came after Democrats attempted to smear Bove after a whistleblower alleged the Trump nominee was pondering ignoring lower judges to support Trump’s agenda. They used this slur as an excuse to delay the confirmation vote. However, republicans, such as Chairman Chuck Grassley, dismissed these claims and pointed to several instances where Democrats had used the same tactics before.
In any case, shortly before he stormed out of the room, Sen. Corey Booker snapped at Grassley, whining, “What are you afraid of? … Debating this [nomination], putting things on the record — Dear God, that’s what we are here for.”
Melting down over Grassley’s decision to push forward the confirmation vote, the New Jersey Democrat whined about the correct procedure, saying, “This lacks decency, this lacks decorum, it shows that you will not hear from your colleagues.”
Concluding his remarks before he left the hearing, Booker declared, “You are a decent man,” to Grassley, adding, “but this is outrageous, this is unacceptable, this is wrong…Why are you doing this? … What are they saying to you … that is making you do something to violate the decorum, the decency, and the respect of this committee to at least hear each other out?”
Chiming in, controversial Rhode Island Democrat Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse said, “There’s something rotten in Denmark.” Quickly adding his quip, Booker complained, “This is wrong, sir, and I join with my colleagues in leaving…This is an abuse of power. It is an undermining of the well-being and the integrity of this Senate.”
Agreeing, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) offered his theatrical reaction. He raved, “I haven’t seen anything like it in 15 years in the U.S. Senate. Just overriding, roughshod, the rules of the committee to silence members [on concerns involving] the nominees for lifetime appointments.” —
“We can disagree about whether they should be on the court, but not about the rules that put them there.”
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Reacting to this shameful outburst, Sen. Chuck Grassley defended his reasonable decision. He stated, “Chairman Durbin ordered the vote then, just like I ordered the vote this time. What we did is not unprecedented — either the actions of the minority walking away, or what we did here as a majority, we have to move things along.”
Reacting to the baseless allegations that prompted this freakout, Grassley attacked the motivations of the accuser. He said, “What we’re witnessing has all of the hallmarks of a political hit job done for maximum media splash with minimum substance.”
Watch the epic showdown here:
However, Senator Booker replied with typical Democratic arrogance. Booker alleged, “Time and time again, there were allegations made against this nominee by independent people, by Republicans, by career professionals, and we are not listening to them or demanding answers.”
Featured image from embedded video