U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) spoke to MSNBC on Monday about President Donald Trump's appointees, specifically saying that he opposes unqualified candidates.
In response, former Republican Party chairman and MSNBC host Michael Steele demanded to know what Van Hollen and other Democrats in the Senate intend to do about it.
"My question to Sen. Van Hollen is, so how are you going to use the Senate procedure to slow this down?" Steele asked. "Who are you going to put up a block and say, you know what? Nope. Sorry. We could be here next year, considering this one nominee ain't happening. That's not going to happen!"
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Animated and punctuating his words, Steele pointed out, "That goes back to what I was saying before, is who's prepared to draw the political line and stand on it? Van Hollen, you're not. You're not going to use the Senate procedure the way Mitch McConnell used it against Democrats."
Symone Sanders, a former Democratic strategist and now MSNBC host and commentator, asked why Democrats needed to be the ones in that position to stand up to unqualified appointees.
"You see, this is how Merrick Garland didn't get a judicial seat, because of that thinking," Steele said. "You're relying on someone else to do something that you already have the power to do."
He told the panel, "Republicans are not going to come to this dance and help you. I guess what I'm saying is [they're] held captive."
Sanders persisted, asking why Republicans are being left off the hook.
Co-host Chris Hayes had to step in to stop the argument and throw the conversation to historian John Meacham.
Steele has spent the past few weeks hammering Democrats on their plans to fight back against Trump. In particular, he's argued that lawmakers, particularly newly elected Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA), are operating as if the norms haven't been obliterated. They still operate "in a system that's already been blown up."
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