House Republicans took over six hours on Friday to pass several bills confirming low-level appointments made by former Governor Ralph Northam, a reaction to the Senate’s vote earlier this week to block Governor Glenn Youngkin’s appointment of former Trump EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler as Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources.
Republican leaders in the House and the Senate have been hinting at potential trouble over potential blocked nominees for weeks, but on Thursday, State Senator Emmett Hanger (R-Augusta) told The AP that Youngkin seemed ready to move on from Wheeler’s confirmation.
Friday in Richmond was sunny and warm, and legislators and their staff typically arrange Friday schedules so they can leave early and return to their homes across Virginia. But by calling a series of breaks, House Republicans delayed the ending of the session until after 6 p.m., with several committee meetings that still had to occur after the House adjourned.
Senate Democrats have said they’ll be a brick wall to key Republican goals. “They want to be the brick wall, let ’em be a brick wall,” House Majority Leader Terry Kilgore (R-Scott) said, according to The Virginia Mercury.
“Governor Youngkin and House Republicans are willing to shut Virginia’s government down over the appointment of a corrupt Trump political appointee,” the Democratic Party of Virginia tweeted. “This is nothing short of political destruction. Playing politics with Virginia’s civil servants is reckless and negligent.”
The Richmond Times-Dispatch reported that the appointments were required to be confirmed by midnight and that State Senator Adam Ebbin (D-Alexandria) threatened to block further Youngkin appointments over delays by House Republicans.
Near the end of the day, House Republicans got to a series of bills containing the Northam nominations for positions ranging from the Peanut Board to boards of visitors who oversee Virginia’s public higher education institutions.
In an apparent end to the standoff, Republicans approved most of the appointments, but blocked several, including members of the Board of Education, creating vacancies that Youngkin can fill.
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Eric Burk is a reporter at The Virginia Star and The Star News Network. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Glenn Youngkin” by Glenn Youngkin. Background Photo “Virginia House of Delegates Floor” by Antony-22. CC BY-SA 4.0.
