GOP senator delivers subtle slam on Ted Cruz

Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) delivered an implicit rebuke of Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) over the latter’s decision to skip out on the final confirmation vote for Loretta Lynch.

While not naming Cruz directly, Cornyn tweeted Saturday that the actual confirmation vote on Lynch’s nomination — one Cruz skipped — was significant.

That came after the office of Cruz — 2016 Republican candidate for president — defended his absence by contending that the cloture vote held earlier on the nominee was the only one that mattered.

{mosads}“FYI: Cloture ends debate only. It does not confirm a nominee. Otherwise a subsequent vote on whether to confirm a nominee is meaningless,” Cornyn tweeted Saturday morning.

Cornyn’s tweet came after Cruz’s communications director defended Cruz missing the confirmation vote by arguing it was effectively meaningless. After Lynch received 60 votes to invoke cloture, the final vote to confirm her was assured, the aide said.

“If the Senate could get 60 votes for cloture, they could get 51 for final confirmation. Cloture is the only vote that mattered,” tweeted Amanda Carpenter, Cruz’s communications director.

Cruz railed against the president’s pick to replace Attorney General Eric Holder on Thursday, and called on his colleagues to block her nomination. When it came time to vote on whether to limit debate on her nomination and allow a final vote on her confirmation, Cruz voted against it.

But later that day, when senators voted on Lynch’s actual confirmation, Cruz was nowhere to be seen — the only senator to miss that vote. His office has not specified why he missed the vote, but he had a fundraising event scheduled for Thursday evening in Texas for his White House campaign.

Cornyn was among the 20 Republicans who voted to invoke cloture on Lynch’s nomination, limiting debate and clearing the way for her to be confirmed. He then went on to vote against her on actual confirmation, where she was approved despite getting just 10 GOP votes in favor.