With a slim majority in the House of Representatives staring Republicans in the face, Elise Stefanik’s nomination to the U.N. ambassador post is all coming down to a single issue: timing.
That’s according to Politico, which reported Thursday that while the New York lawmaker has the votes in the Republican-controlled Senate – with even some Democrats backing her – White House worries have left her nomination hanging in the balance.
“The concern is … obviously the situation in the House and how narrow the majority is,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune told Politico in a brief interview Thursday. “I think they’re trying to figure out how to coordinate and time it all.”
Republicans have a rare trifecta of the federal government, which President Donald Trump is anxious to take advantage of as he kicked off his administration with ambitious policy goals.
The current math in the House means Republicans can only afford to lose a single Republican vote on party-line measures. Losing Stefanik, Politico noted, “would reduce that margin for error to zero” as House Speaker Mike Johnson eyes big-ticket legislative items, including on tax, energy, defense and the border.
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Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) – the No. 2 Republican in the Senate – told Politico his party is ready to move on Stefanik’s nomination, but added that it “would take the numbers in the House down one. So … we’ll time it appropriately.”
A timeline on when Stefanik’s nomination is expected to get the go-ahead has not been determined by Thune or Barasso, and the White House did not comment on the report.
Meanwhile, Republicans in New York lining up to replace Stefanik anxiously await her confirmation vote. They want her nomination to advance so her opening can trigger a special election, according to Politico.
“America really needs Elise Stefanik at the UN and if leadership was smart they would focus on an energy and immigration bill in order for that process to move forward faster,” Dave Catalfamo, a GOP consultant, told the publication.
