PULSE POINTS

❓WHAT HAPPENED: President Donald J. Trump announced plans to file a lawsuit challenging the Senate’s “blue slip” tradition.

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👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: President Donald J. Trump, Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA), and Democratic senators opposing nominees.

📍WHEN & WHERE: August 25, during an Oval Office signing ceremony at the White House.

💬KEY QUOTE: “Blue slips make it impossible for me as President to appoint a judge or a U.S. attorney because they have a gentlemen’s agreement that’s about 100 years old.” – Donald Trump

🎯IMPACT: The lawsuit aims to challenge a Senate tradition that has delayed the confirmation of Trump’s judicial and prosecutorial nominees.

President Donald J. Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on August 25 that he plans to file a lawsuit over the Senate’s long-standing “blue slip” tradition, a procedural custom that allows home-state senators to block certain judicial and prosecutorial nominees in the areas they represent. The century-old practice, used by the Senate Judiciary Committee, often stalls the nomination process when one or both home-state senators decline to return their blue slips, a signal of approval for moving forward with the nominee.

The America First leader made the announcement at the White House, where he signed an executive order targeting cashless bail policies. “We’re also going to be filing a lawsuit on blue slipping,” Trump said. “You know, blue slips make it impossible for me as president to appoint a judge or a U.S. attorney because they have a gentlemen’s agreement that’s about 100 years old.”

Trump’s frustration with the Senate’s slow pace in confirming his nominees has been mounting, especially in light of recent judicial setbacks. U.S. District Judge James Boasberg, who currently serves as the chief judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, has issued multiple rulings in recent months that have thwarted important elements of the Trump administration’s agenda. Boasberg notably ruled against key executive actions on immigration enforcement and environmental deregulation, decisions that the White House has sharply criticized as judicial overreach.

President Trump recently had to withdraw his nominee for U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, Alina Habba, after both Democratic senators from the state withheld their blue slips, effectively blocking her confirmation.

Trump also took aim at Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) over the weekend for refusing to discard the blue slip tradition and push through his nominees. “Chuck Grassley should allow strong Republican candidates to ascend to these very vital and powerful roles, and tell the Democrats, as they often tell us, to go to HELL!” he posted on Truth Social.

Image by Gage Skidmore.

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