JD Vance Is Screening Key State Department Nominees for Wokeness: Report
Ohio Senator J.D. Vance is handing out “wokeness” questionnaires to State Department nominees whose Senate confirmations he’s placed on hold, according to a report from Politico.
The Republican Senator confirmed the existence of the questionnaires to Politico, but declined to provide the publication with a copy of the questions sent to nominees.
Vance claimed that the point of the surveys was to establish if any of the nominees had “radical” viewpoints that would cloud their treatment of foreign policy. “If you are injecting your own personal politics in a way that harms American national security and diplomacy, that’s not fine,” Vance told Politico. “The questions all try to get at those issues.”
“You can call it ‘extreme left’, ‘woke,’” Vance added. “To me it’s leaning toward cultural progressivism in a way that alienates half of our country and frankly it probably alienates about 80 percent of the countries these guys are going to represent.”
The Senator claimed that he has released several of his holds on several nominees after receiving their surveys, but dozens of State Department roles — including ambassadorships — remain vacant due to objections raised by Vance and Kentucky Senator Rand Paul (R).
The Senator claimed that he has released holds on some nominees after reviewing their survey responses, but dozens of State Department roles — including ambassadorships — remain vacant due to objections raised by Vance and Kentucky Senator Rand Paul (R).
Republicans in the Senate, currently the minority in the chamber, have attempted to hold appointments and confirmations hostage as a negotiation tactic against Democrats and the Biden administration. In June, Vance promised to stall DOJ appointments as retaliation for the Department’s indictment of Donald Trump.
Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville has virtually single-handedly crippled the advancement of military nominations. A member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Tuberville has blocked hundreds of military promotions over his opposition to the Pentagon’s policy of providing some abortion services for service members, veterans, and dependents.
As a result of the embargo, the U.S. Marine Corps remains without leadership, lacking a commandant for the first time in over 150 years.
The effects of the confirmation doldrums in the Senate are being felt by the governmental bodies whose postings remain vacant. In response to the holds placed by Vance and Paul, Secretary of State Antony Blinken issued a letter earlier this month calling for Congress to advance the nominations of his department.
“Vacant posts have a long-term negative impact on U.S. national security, including our ability to reassure allies and partners, and counter diplomatic efforts by our adversaries,” Blinken wrote.
“They’re being blocked from leverage on other unrelated issues. It’s irresponsible, and it’s doing harm to our national security,” he added.
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