Donald Trump Tells Chuck Schumer to ‘Go to Hell’ as Senate Leaves Without Deal on Nominees

President Donald Trump set off yet another political firestorm Saturday when he lashed out at Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer on his social media platform Truth Social, telling Schumer to “GO TO HELL!”, just hours before the Senate adjourned for its August recess without reaching a deal to confirm a slate of Trump’s nominees.

Trump’s latest remarks followed intense back-and-forth negotiations involving Schumer, Senate Republican Leader John Thune, and the White House.

“Tell Schumer, who is under tremendous political pressure from within his own party, the Radical Left Lunatics, to 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 wrote.

Why the Senate Left Town Without a Deal

According to the US media reports, Schumer had asked that the Trump administration unfreeze federal funds for key programs, including the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and foreign aid, and that Trump agree not to push another package of federal funding cuts, or “rescissions”.

Schumer said Democrats were “serious” about finding a “reasonable path” for bipartisan confirmation of the nominees, as reported by CNN. “In a fit of rage, Trump threw in the towel, sent Republicans home, and was unable to do the basic work of negotiating. Is this the ‘Art of the Deal’?” he quipped during a press conference, standing next to a poster of Trump’s social media post.

Thune, meanwhile, requested unanimous consent Saturday night to confirm a batch of nominees and recess for the month, but Democrats refused.

Rules Fight Could Be Next

With no breakthrough, Senate Republicans are now mulling changes to chamber rules in September in order to fast-track future confirmations. “I think that the last six months have demonstrated that this process, nominations, is broken,” Thune said, according to CNN.

Schumer, however, has warned that “a rules change would be a huge mistake,” particularly since Republicans will need Democratic votes for future legislation.

“We have never seen nominees as flawed, as compromised, as unqualified as we have right now,” Schumer added.

As both parties dig in, the Senate appears to be bracing for more gridlock after the recess.

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