Coons calls Gaetz's nomination 'deadly serious challenge' to Senate

Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) on Wednesday said President-elect Trump’s choice of Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) for attorney general poses a “deadly serious challenge” to the Senate’s constitutional role of advice and consent for presidential nominees.

In an interview on CNN’s “The Lead” with Jake Tapper, Coons said he would engage in the confirmation process but that he thinks it’s important that the nominee’s qualifications and background are taken into account.

“This is a deadly serious challenge to the Senate's constitutional advice and consent role, and as a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, I'll engage in the confirmation process, where we consider the qualifications, the ethics and character and the policy views of nominees,” Coons told Tapper, saying he was “speechless” when he first heard the news.

Coons said he agrees with Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), whom Trump tapped for secretary of State, that Trump is entitled to his picks.

“Generally that's correct,” Coons said about Rubio’s remarks. “But the Senate has a critical guardrail function to play, where we should look at whether someone is appropriate to serve in a role. The attorney general is the top law enforcement officer of the United States.”

Coons said he expects Gaetz’s confirmation process to be among the most thorough, noting Gaetz was the subject of a Justice Department investigation and a House Ethics Committee probe.

“Given an ongoing ethics investigation in the House, given some of the allegations that have been made against Congressman Gaetz, and given some of his conduct, I think this will be a robust and thorough confirmation process,” he said.

“My hope is that my colleagues in the Republican caucus will urge the president to reconsider,” Coons continued.

Trump announced Gaetz as his pick for attorney general on Wednesday, tapping a loyal congressional ally to fill the country’s top law enforcement role. The Florida congressman is the latest in a string of nominations of those who aligned with Trump amid his first impeachment investigation.

The announcement came as a shock to Senate Republicans, who were caught completely flat-footed by the announcement on Wednesday.

Two key centrist members — Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) — expressed shock and surprise, with the Alaska Republican panning the choice for its lack of seriousness.

“I don’t think it’s a serious nomination for attorney general. We need to have a serious attorney general,” Murkowski told reporters. “I’m looking forward to the opportunity to consider somebody that is serious.”

“This one was not on my bingo card,” she added.

Murkowski told Punchbowl News that she “was shocked at the nomination.”

“This is why the Senate's advise and consent process is so important. I'm sure that there will be many, many questions raised at Mr. Gaetz’s hearing.”

Asked whether he thinks five Republicans will vote against Gaetz — the threshold to block his confirmation — Coons told Tapper, “I don’t know.”

“But, as I said, that will be the key test of whether or not the Senate plays its important constitutional role as a guardrail, as an organization, an institution, that says to an executive who‘s just won a broad, national mandate, ‘We will confirm your nominees, but not all of them, not anyone, not without regard to their character and qualifications.’”