Tea party conservatives Sens. Ted Cruz and Mike Lee are demanding that the confirmation hearings for attorney general nominee Loretta Lynch be delayed until next year.
In a
joint statement, Cruz of Texas and Lee of Utah also said that Lynch should first reveal whether she supports President Barack Obama’s plan to order executive action possibly giving amnesty to millions of illegal immigrants.
They said, "President Obama’s Attorney General nominee deserves fair and full consideration of the United States Senate, which is precisely why she should not be confirmed in the lame duck session of Congress by senators who just lost their seats and are no longer accountable to the voters.
"The Attorney General is the President's chief law enforcement officer. As such, the nominee must demonstrate full and complete commitment to the law. Loretta Lynch deserves the opportunity to demonstrate those qualities, beginning with a statement whether or not she believes the President’s executive amnesty plans are constitutional and legal."
South Dakota Republican
Sen. John Thune also said Sunday on CNN's "State of the Union" program that Congress should wait until next year, when Republicans take control of the Senate, before confirming Lynch as Obama's replacement for outgoing Attorney General Eric Holder.
Thune, who chairs the Senate Republican Conference, said Lynch "will get fair consideration, but there's a process."
Incoming Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has also maintained that the confirmation process should take place after the lame-duck session, according to
Mediaite.
Just before he left on a trip to Asia over the weekend, Obama announced Lynch’s nomination in a move seen as an attempt to get the confirmation hearings completed while Democrats still control the Senate.
In an interview on CBS' "Face the Nation" on Sunday, Obama defended his plan to use executive powers to implement some immigration reforms, saying that he had waited long enough for Congress to act.
Obama told congressional leaders on Friday he would try to
ease some restrictions on undocumented immigrants, despite warnings from Republican leaders that such actions would "poison the well" or would be "a red flag in front of a bull."
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