The Senate on Thursday confirmed 48 of President Donald Trump’s nominees in a single vote — a sweeping act made possible by new rules Republicans forced through to shatter a backlog of appointments Democrats had held in check.
For months, nominations that once moved as a matter of routine had been caught in procedural snags, as Democrats insisted on roll calls for nearly every Trump pick. The delays infuriated the president and paralyzed the chamber’s work. Republicans, weary of the obstruction, chose to act.
The rule change now allows large groups of lower-level, non-judicial nominees to be approved by simple majority. Gone is the power of a single objection to bring the process to a crawl. Judicial nominations and Cabinet secretaries remain outside its reach.
“Republicans have fixed a broken process,” Senate GOP whip John Thune declared before the vote.
With the new rule in place, the Senate approved 51–47 a package of nearly four dozen appointees, many of them deputy secretaries for the Departments of Defense, Interior and Energy — all of whom had already passed committee with bipartisan support.
The list included Jonathan Morrison, tapped to lead the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and Kimberly Guilfoyle, confirmed as U.S. ambassador to Greece. Guilfoyle, a former California prosecutor and television personality, rose to prominence as a top fundraiser for Trump’s 2020 campaign and was once engaged to Donald Trump Jr.
Thune’s maneuver is the latest turn in a long struggle over Senate rules — a battle waged for more than a decade as both parties chipped away at filibuster traditions. This time, Republicans say, the change was not about gamesmanship but governance.
The push came after bipartisan talks collapsed in August. As senators departed for recess, Trump fired off a social-media broadside at Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, telling him to “GO TO HELL!” The message underscored what had become clear: Republicans were done waiting.
Last week @SenateGOP took steps to overcome Democrats’ historic obstruction and restored the Senate’s longstanding practice of confirming nominees in batches.
Later today the Senate will confirm a slate of 48 nominees to get @POTUS' team in place to enact his agenda. pic.twitter.com/IcRmQLTz3K
— Leader John Thune (@LeaderJohnThune) September 18, 2025
