President Donald Trump suffered a blow on Thursday when a senator from one of the most conservative states in the US placed a hold on all future administration nominees.
According to a report from The Hill, Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND) put the White House on notice over the administration's refusal to alter wetland stewardship as promised.
In a statement shared with The Hill, Cramer expressed "disappointment" that the administration is leaving a Biden-era wetland policy in place for the time being and indicated he would not advance the president's nominees as a result.
"The blind defense of a Biden rule favored by environmental extremists at the expense of farmers confounds me, particularly at a time when our ag producers are hurting so badly," Cramer said. "My farmers are furious and so am I. There won't be another nominee confirmed until something changes."
Cramer's hold comes after the Fish and Wildlife Service decided not to move forward with changes to a Biden-era policy that sought to prevent the draining of wetlands protected under conservation easements, thereby protecting duck habitat, according to the report.
As The Hill notes, "holds can slow the process of confirming nominees," requiring the Senate to spend hours debating them and taking additional votes for each nominee. While they don't necessarily prevent confirmation if a nominee can still reach a majority, a backlog of nominees has the potential to bog the chamber down.
With the Senate currently in recess and not actively advancing nominations, there is still the possibility the fight can be resolved while Republicans are still certain to hold a majority, with the threat that the chamber could flip after the November midterms.
