Senate Republicans wrote to Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and said that having the Senate stay open on Fridays and possibly the weekends is not good enough. Republican lawmakers urged the Senate Majority Leader to “turn the Senate on full time, 24/7, to advance the president’s agenda.”
Nine Republican senators sent a letter to Senate Majority Mitch McConnell after McConnell finally cracked under pressure from conservatives and populists alike and decided to extend the Senate’s workweek into Fridays and even possibly the weekend.
The nine Republican senators includes: Sens. Mike Rounds (R-SD), Luther Strange (R-AL), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Ron Johnson (R-WI), Steve Daines (R-MT), David Perdue (R-GA), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Dean Heller (R-NV), John Kennedy (R-LA).
The Republican senators argue that Democrats’ “perversion of Senate rules,” which was “designed to imperil” President Donald Trump’s agenda, makes the steps necessary to confirm nearly 200 judicial and executive nominees.
Conservatives chastised the Senate’s light work week, which typically spans from Monday evening to early Thursday afternoon. GOP sources say that the Senate’s work schedule will start to mirror the average Americans’; the Senate will now work on Fridays and possibly the weekend to complete their legislative priorities.
Breitbart News reported that under Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, the Senate remains in session roughly 2.5 days per week.
The Senate will soon move into its 11th month into its congressional term and has yet to pass an Obamacare repeal and replace package, pass tax reform, confirm judicial nominees, and fund a southern border wall.
Last week, more than 100 national leaders urged Senate Republican leaders to use every means at their disposal to confirm more than 200 presidential nominations currently pending in the U.S. Senate, both for the executive branch and for the federal courts.
Conservative leaders, including the Tea Party Patriots, FreedomWorks, and the Senate Conservative Fund called on McConnell to resign, citing McConnell’s failure to repeal and replace Obamacare, confirm federal judges, and fund a southern border wall.
The senators wrote in their letter to McConnell, “You have our pledge to be available for voting day and night and we offer our time to preside over the Senate when necessary to keep us on track. Given the unprecedented obstruction by our colleagues across the aisle, we hope you will also take a renewed look at the rules governing executive branch nominations.”
Read the rest of the letter here.