COVID-19 and some Republican defectors led to a defeat for President Trump in the Senate on Tuesday.
Trump had nominated Judy Shelton to the Federal Reserve Board — a controversial pick considering Shelton has repeatedly criticized the board's power and is an advocate of returning to the gold standard. But with two Republican senators out after potential exposure to COVID-19, and three Republicans opposed to the nominee, a vote to advance Shelton's nomination failed Tuesday.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
But it's not game over for Shelton's nomination yet. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) switched his vote to oppose Shelton at the end of Tuesday's vote, allowing him to bring her nomination up again once those missing senators return. Still, Democrat Mark Kelly of Arizona will likely join the Senate after Thanksgiving now that he's won Arizona's special election to fill the late John McCain's seat. He'll replace Sen. Martha McSally (R), further complicating Shelton's future vote even if all Republicans are accounted for.
Trump nominated Shelton, a conservative economic commentator, after his adviser Stephen Moore withdrew from consideration when sexist past comments resurfaced.
-
Denmark's 'pornographic' mermaid statue is in hot waterUnder the Radar Town will reportedly remove voluptuous Big Mermaid, despite statue being 'arguably a bit less naked' than Copenhagen monument the Little Mermaid
-
August 10 editorial cartoonsCartoons Sunday's political cartoons include a global plastics problem, GOP enthusiasm over tariffs, and more
-
5 thin-skinned cartoons about shooting the messengerCartoons Artists take on unfavorable weather, a look in the mirror, and more
-
NFL gets ESPN stake in deal with DisneySpeed Read The deal gives the NFL a 10% stake in Disney's ESPN sports empire and gives ESPN ownership of NFL Network
-
Samsung to make Tesla chips in $16.5B dealSpeed Read Tesla has signed a deal to get its next-generation chips from Samsung
-
FCC greenlights $8B Paramount-Skydance mergerSpeed Read The Federal Communications Commission will allow Paramount to merge with the Hollywood studio Skydance
-
Tesla reports plummeting profitsSpeed Read The company may soon face more problems with the expiration of federal electric vehicle tax credits
-
Dollar faces historic slump as stocks hit new highSpeed Read While stocks have recovered post-Trump tariffs, the dollar has weakened more than 10% this year
-
Economists fear US inflation data less reliablespeed read The Labor Department is collecting less data for its consumer price index due to staffing shortages
-
Crypto firm Coinbase hacked, faces SEC scrutinySpeed Read The Securities and Exchange Commission has also been investigating whether Coinbase misstated its user numbers in past disclosures
-
Starbucks baristas strike over dress codespeed read The new uniform 'puts the burden on baristas' to buy new clothes, said a Starbucks Workers United union delegate
