Sparks flew on a CNN panel Monday evening, when never-Trump conservative Ana Navarro clashed with former Trump strategist Erin Perrine over Trump's push to use recess appointments to end-run any Senate review of his more controversial nominees, including Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for Health and Human Services and Matt Gaetz for attorney general.
"Isn't this the job of the United States Senate?" said anchor Anderson Cooper. "I mean, do you believe that there are going to be recess appointments?"
"That's the biggest question ... right now there's no need for them," said Perrine. "The Senate will be, in doing its regular work, it can do the committee hearings, it can vote to send a nomination out of committee to the floor, it can vote on the floor. Recess appointments are pulling the fire alarm. It means that something has gone terribly wrong, and it's so jammed up that they're not able to get things moving in the Senate."
Navarro tried to begin speaking. "John Thune—"
"Right now, right now there's no need to talk about 60 votes," said Perrine. "We're talking about a boogeyman that doesn't exist yet, we're talking about the hypothetical."
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"If Republican Senators do not capitulate on their Duty to advise and consent, and they conduct vigorous hearings where they, you know these folks are only, and they vote their conscience, they should — we shouldn't be having this, but I can also tell you..." said Navarro, as Perrine continued to try talking over her. "I've known John Tune for 20 years ... I hope that he will conduct himself as the new leader of the Senate..."
Perrine continued: "If Democrats want to make it painful and never get home to see their districts or their families, they can run the clock on every nomination. It also eats up floor time in order to get the agenda done that Donald Trump was elected to do on behalf of the American people. If Democrats want to jam the floor of the United States Senate and ultimately have a fire alarm pulled because they're unwilling to do both of their jobs, which are nominations and not jam up the floor—"
"Listen, Democrats cannot throw their hands up in the air..." Navarro said as Perrine kept protesting. "May I speak? Mitch McConnell, who had — okay, who had polio, who had polio, I have a hard time thinking that Mitch McConnell, who had polio and knows the benefit of those vaccines and eradicating those diseases that almost wiped out children, would throw his hands up in the air and say, oh it's RFK."
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