Schumer says Democrats will block Trump from installing a rightwinger on the Supreme Court
Chuck Schumer, who will become Senate majority leader when the new Congress is sworn in, told the Associated Press that Democrats will not confirm a right-wing justice to the US Supreme Court and will reject substandard nominees to that court, the lower courts, and Donald Trump’s cabinet. Four justices are already in their seventies; the oldest and most conservative, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, are 78 and 76. Trump’s first-term appointments of Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett produced a 6–3 conservative majority that has turned aside many, though not all, challenges to second-term policies. Thomas has given no sign he will retire. Alito, speaking to Fox News on Thursday, denied retirement rumours and said he intends to remain for the rest of the term despite the Democratic sweep. In theory, a Republican Senate still has about six weeks in which it could confirm a Trump high-court pick.
After taking both chambers, Democrats hold 54 Senate seats, a figure that could rise to 56 if their candidates in still-uncalled Mississippi and Alaska races, where they lead, prevail. They will have at least 253 House seats after flipping more than 40, as of Friday morning. Schumer said that majority should be enough to block nominees and other policies. Some Democrats plan investigations of Trump and his administration; incoming House oversight chair Robert Garcia on Tuesday evening told Republicans to lawyer up. Leaders also intend to restore Medicaid cuts from Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” and halt funding for the war in Iran, though Trump has signalled he will veto bills he opposes.
Republicans have blamed the Iran war and tariffs for higher everyday costs. Vice-president JD Vance acknowledged frustration over the war; Texas senator Ted Cruz cited tariffs; Florida governor Ron DeSantis said the party’s vote on the Epstein files looked poorly. Trump has focused on Washington construction. On Friday a federal judge halted work for 14 days on a planned triumphal arch after a commission packed with loyalists had approved it on Thursday. On Monday he showcased upgrades to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, a project officials had blamed on vandals until a Trump-appointed US attorney found poor work. On Wednesday he spent more than 20 minutes on White House ballroom renovations and barely addressed the election.
Continue in the app — vote & join in ➔