16 Democrats Just Voted to Confirm Another Trump Appointee

[Nevilledog]

https://newrepublic.com/post/194575/16-democrats-vote-confirm-trump-appointee-ambassador-china

No paywall link
https://archive.li/pDYx1

Donald Trump’s choice for U.S. ambassador to China was confirmed Tuesday with the help of 16 Democratic votes in the Senate.
David Perdue, formerly a Republican senator from Georgia, easily sailed through with a 67–29 vote, with four senators not voting. The Democrats who joined all but two Republicans to vote for Perdue weren’t only representing battleground states, either.
“Yea” votes included New Jersey’s Cory Booker, whose record-breaking speech on the Senate floor against Trump’s policies earlier this month seemed to inspire the rest of his party, as well as Illinois Senator Tammy Duckworth, a military veteran who has criticized the administration for firing military veterans from civil service positions.
Perdue was confirmed while the U.S. and China are in the midst of a trade war entirely caused by Trump’s ill-conceived 145 percent tariffs against Chinese imports, which China has responded to with its own 84 percent tariffs against U.S. exports to the country. Somehow, 16 Senate Democrats agreed with Trump’s choice of Perdue to deal with Beijing during this manufactured crisis. Here are their names:

Cory Booker—New Jersey
Chris Coons—Delaware
Tammy Duckworth—Illinois
John Fetterman—Pennsylvania
Ruben Gallego—Arizona
Maggie Hassan—New Hampshire
Tim Kaine—Virginia
Andy Kim—New Jersey
Angus King—Maine (independent who caucuses with Democrats)
Amy Klobuchar—Minnesota
Gary Peters—Michigan
Jack Reed—Rhode Island
Jacky Rosen—Nevada
Jeanne Shaheen—New Hampshire
Elissa Slotkin—Michigan
Mark Warner—Virginia

*******


WTF??!?

[madville]

1. It's an exclusive club

And we ain’t in it. Former Senators usually have no problems getting confirmed since they have personal relationships on both sides of the aisle.

[TomSlick]

12. It would require something extraordinary for Senators to vote against a former colleague.

[DJ Synikus Makisimus]

2. Just Democrats doing bipartisan. Nothing to see here.

Keeping folks like this in office is why David Hogg MUST be defeated and driven out of the party, We must work together with "our" friends! Otherwise, how are they going to get in front of MSNBC cameras to express their outrage?

Sure would be nice if there were an opposition party in the U.S.

[Ponietz]

5. Our titular leader in the Senate voted for the Iraq war

[Autumn]

17. I think a lot of us leared from that. Too bad Dem's haven't learned.

[Ping Tung]

3. Note from President John Quincy Adams to 16 senators:

Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone, and you may cherish the sweetest reflection that your vote is never lost. John Quincy Adams

[Celerity]

11. Barbara Lee

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Authorization_for_Use_of_Military_Force_of_2001

On September 14, 2001, the House passed House Joint Resolution 64. The totals in the House of Representatives were 420 ayes, 1 nay and 10 not voting.

The sole nay vote was by Barbara Lee, D-CA. Lee was the only member of either house of Congress to vote against the bill. Lee opposed the wording of the AUMF, not the action it represented.

She believed that a response was necessary but feared the vagueness of the document was similar to the 1964 Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. Lee has initiated several attempts to repeal the authorization.

[Autumn]

4. What the hell was Booker doing his sit in for?

[Celerity]

7. my first thought as well

[angrychair]

13. Apparently

A photo opp

[Autumn]

16. Exactly what it was. Does he think his vote was secret?

For fucks sake. What the hell,

[SunSeeker]

6. WHY??? Perdue has no diplomatic experience nor speaks Chinese.

[DJ Synikus Makisimus]

14. Because he combines Ted Cruz's personality with Tommy Tuberville's intellect.

Presumably.

[republianmushroom]

8. And the DNC wonders why I won't give them money.

3-5 emails a day wanting money.

[Intractable]

18. Donate just once and it will be thirty emails a day.

[Celerity]

9. dismaying

[Hotler]

10. Don't you dare call them do nothing...

[Sky Jewels]

15. So sick of this bullshit...

We need a massive change in the party. And that's about all I can say without getting scolded or in trouble.

[mackdaddy]

19. My guess is they think he will be the least crazy of the Trump team dealing with China.

Of course that did not work out so well with little Marco as SOS signing deportation orders for students who said maybe it was not a good idea for Nutanyahoo to be killing Palestinian civilians either.