Trump has withdrawn 62 nominees. White House officials blame his impulsive nominations.

(Image credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

published 3 May 2019

President Trump's party has controlled the Senate for his entire term in office, and without a filibuster, most of the people he's nominated for federal jobs have been confirmed — though some just barely. But Trump has also withdrawn 62 nominations, Politico reports, citing figures from the nonprofit Partnership for Public Service. That's more than twice the 30 nominees former President Barack Obama had withdrawn at this point in his first term, and the 62 failed nominations don't even include people Trump never formally nominated, like Federal Reserve picks Stephen Moore and Herman Cain.

One reason for the high failure rate is weak and sloppy vetting, according to people involved in the process. "Past administrations have historically spent weeks or even months trying to identify potentially damaging information about candidates for administration jobs — long before their nominations are announced," Politico reports. In the most recent case, "many in the administration were unaware of some of Moore's past writings."

The White House's vetting operation has improved, but Trump "sometimes undermines that process by making major staffing decisions on his own, with little consultation and with little notice," Politico reports, citing current and former administration officials. One former senior White House official told Politico that Trump is "impatient and impulsive,'' adding: "When he makes a decision, he wants to move forward. There aren't any people around him urging caution."

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Trump's choice of friends, family, associates, people who looked the part, and people he saw on TV worked while Senate Republicans were freer with the green light, but they have recently started quashing more nominees. Trump has instead started relying more heavily on "acting" officials who don't need Senate confirmation. Besides, "compared to all of the stuff Trump is dealing with, this stuff barely registers," a former administration official tells Politico. "Is anybody going to remember Steve Moore in three months?"

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.