When the Republican Senate loses Rudy Giuliani, its time for them to figure out they are killing themselves. Rudy recognises the stalling of Loretta Lynches nomination as the next Attorney General of the United States is a total political loser. That's why he sent a letter to Lindsey Graham (with a copy to Politico) in an apparent attempt to intervene before Mitch McConnell alienates everyone except the hard right.
Here's what Rudi had to say in his letter:
As former Mayor of New York City and a lawyer now in private practice at Bracewell & Giuliani, I have had occasion to work with Ms. Lynch as she served in the Eastern District. During that time, she was balanced, professional and a dedicated public servant. "As a former senior official in the Justice Department, I can further attest that her skill set seems very appropriate to the tough tasks she would face as Attorney General.
Rudy doesn't stop there. Having vouched for her competence and dedication. He makes it very clear how he would vote.
I would vote to confirm her if I were a member of the Senate regardless of my political affiliation.
Rudi also offers his view of the Senate's duty to provide 'advice and consent'. I don't think Mitch McConnell and the rest of the Senate Republican Caucus would agree with him.
How we treat nominees like Ms. Lynch has important constitutional implications. The scope and the breadth of the advice and consent function of the U.S. Senate has been much debated. My interpretation has always been that a president should be given the deference to choose his Cabinet unless the nominee is unqualified to do the job, has a history of unethical behavior or is so ideologically
Rudy Giuliani is no paragon of the legal profession. I normally would not give this much weight to this letter to Senator Graham, but in this case Rudy is trying to warn his Republican colleagues that they are on a disastrous course. I wonder if they are bright enough to get the message.
When the Republican controlled Senate loses Rudy Giuliani, they should maybe take a peek outside the Washington bubble to see how well this is going. I'd say it is not going very well for them, especially since they already know they have to cave in eventually. The only real question is, when?