Ohio Sen. JD Vance (R) announced Tuesday that he will block all of President Biden’s nominees to the Department of Justice in protest of a 37-count indictment that special counsel Jack Smith has brought against former President Donald Trump in federal court in Florida.
“Donald Trump is merely the latest victim of a Department of Justice that cares more about politics than law enforcement,” Vance said in a statement.
“Starting today, I will hold all Department of Justice nominations. If [Attorney General] Merrick Garland wants to use these officials to harass Joe Biden’s political opponents, we will grind his department to a halt,” he declared.
Vance’s hold on Justice Department nominees will not apply to individuals nominated to the U.S. Marshals Service.
The action will not prevent Senate Democrats from confirming Biden’s nominees to the department if they have enough votes, but it will require Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) to schedule votes on individual nominees, which will eat up floor time.
Often nominees are agreed to by unanimous consent on the floor to speed up the process.
But Vance says the Department of Justice has unfairly targeted conservatives.
“Garland’s department harasses Christians for pro-life advocacy, but allows hardened criminals to walk our streets unpunished. This must stop, and I will do everything in my ability to ensure it does,” Vance said.
His office pointed to a report that 13 states have signed onto a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit seeking records from the administration on possible FBI surveillance of parents protesting school boards.