Donald Trump lashed out at Senate Democrats as “CRAZED LUNATICS” for allegedly demanding billions in exchange for votes on his executive picks.
In a typically unhinged late-night Truth Social post, the president accused Democrats and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of intentionally stalling more than 150 of his nominees before the Senate’s August recess.
“Democrats, lead by Cryin’ Chuck Schumer, are slow walking my Nominees, more than 150 of them. They wanted us to pay, originally, two billion dollars for approvals,” Trump wrote. “The Dems are CRAZED LUNATICS!!!”
Schumer and Senate Majority Leader John Thune had reportedly been working on a deal to confirm nearly two dozen of Trump’s nominees before the recess. Schumer had pushed for the release of billions of dollars in government funding, including $5 billion for the National Institutes of Health, in exchange for votes on Trump’s picks, according to CBS News.
The tactic enraged Trump, who urged the GOP to reject the “political extortion” and told Schumer, “GO TO HELL!”
“Do not accept the offer, 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,” Trump posted on Truth Social on Saturday.
Senate Republicans, who control the upper chamber, are eyeing a so-called “nuclear option” when they return in September to allow speedy confirmations of Trump’s picks. That could include drastically reducing the amount of debate time allowed for each nominee before a final vote, or trying to reduce the number of nominees needing Senate confirmation.
“We are absolutely trying to avoid a nuclear option issue, but at some point you’ve got to have an operational government,” South Dakota Sen. Mike Rounds told Politico.
Meanwhile, Schumer has mocked and taunted Trump as the Senate failed to reach an agreement.
“Donald Trump tried to pressure, threaten, cajole, name call Democrats. He took his ball home and got nothing,” Schumer said in a Sunday video posted on X.
Schumer even joined in the meme wars, sharing a clip of Trump stumbling on the stairs to Air Force One overlaid with the viral “Nothing beats a Jet2 holiday” audio.
Schumer did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Beast.
