Dems Might Get Tough On Senator Sessions But They Don't Have The Votes Unless There Are Some RINOs Who Will Cave

Schumer vows 'tough vetting' for Sessions

BY JESSE BYRNES - 11/20/16 09:00 AM EST 2,117

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Incoming Senate Democratic Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) is promising a "tough vetting" of Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), President-elect Donald Trump's pick to be attorney general.

Schumer, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, declined in an interview on NBC's "Meet the Press" to offer any "quick judgements" on Trump's nominees.

"It's premature to make any decisions but, except to say a very thorough and tough vetting for a Senate colleague, as well as for anybody else," he said.

Schumer indicated he has questions for his Senate colleague regarding Sessions's plans for the Justice Department's civil rights division, among others.

Senate Democrats have pledged to fight Sessions's nomination to be attorney general, questioning whether he would be able to provide equal protections for Americans.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) on Friday called on Trump to rescind Sessions's nomination, while other Democrats voiced concerns about decades-old accusations of racism against the Alabama lawmaker.

Several Democrats on the Judiciary Committee have pledged to give Sessions a fair but thorough vetting as party members continue to voice opposition to his nomination.

"You want to make sure that they are qualified, that they will do the right thing," Schumer told NBC. "I think you have to be really careful, and particularly in a new administration with an untested president."