Sen. Tuberville vows to remove any GOP 'swamp creatures' from Senate if they block Trump's nominees
President-elect Donald Trump will take office in January to begin his second term with the putative backing of Republican majorities in the House and Senate, though there are concerns that some GOP members won't support his Cabinet nominees or policy agenda.
One of Trump's allies in the Senate, Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, just warned those GOP "swamp creatures" that they needed to support Trump's picks or he would work to see them removed from office in the next election, according to The Hill.
The former college football coach turned U.S. senator was reacting to the harsh criticism that had exploded, including from some establishment Republicans, in response to Trump's choice of Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) to be his attorney general.
"Republicans: If you’re not on the team, get out of the way"
On Wednesday, Sen. Tuberville appeared on Fox Business and was first asked by host Elizabeth MacDonald whether he believed incoming new Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) would "push hard for Trump's agenda" despite being a longstanding member of the GOP's establishment wing.
"He has no choice. There was a mandate last week," Tuberville replied in reference to President-elect Trump's decisive victory, in which voters said, "We want President Trump to have his team, we wanna take back our country. Republicans: If you’re not on the team, get out of the way."
The Alabama senator did suggest that Thune would work well with Trump and said, "I think he'll do a good job, but President Trump and [Vice President-elect] JD Vance are gonna be running the Senate."
"We're gonna try to get you out of the Senate" if you block Trump's nominees
MacDonald then shifted gears and asked whether the Republican-majority Senate would confirm Trump's controversy-generating pick of Gaetz to be the next attorney general, to which Tuberville replied, according to Alabama's 1819 News, "I don't know. You're finding all the swamp creatures coming out right now."
"Everybody's got an opinion up here, but at the end of the day, President Trump was elected by an enormous vote, and he deserves a team around him that he wants. It's not us to determine that," he continued. "We've got 53 votes in the Senate. We can confirm with 51."
"I've already seen where a couple of them say, 'I'm not voting for him.' Wait a minute," Tuberville said. "You are not the United States of America. You have one vote in the U.S. Senate. You did not get elected president. Vote with President Trump."
"This is the last chance we're going to have of saving this country," he added. "And if you want to get in the way, fine. But we're gonna try to get you out of the Senate, too, if you try to do that."
Tuberville supports Trump's pick of Gaetz
On Wednesday, President-elect Trump announced that he had picked Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz to be the attorney general and head of the Justice Department, and the firebrand congressman's many critics erupted with outrage and disbelief, given the potentially serious -- but also potentially manufactured and politically motivated -- allegations of criminal and ethical violations against him.
The Hill noted that some Republican senators, such as Alaska's Lisa Murkowski and Maine's Susan Collins, were quick to join Democrats and the media in expressing their deep opposition to that nomination.
Tuberville, on the other hand, left no doubt about his stance when he posted on his personal X account, "Congratulations to a true conservative warrior, @RepMattGaetz. He and his wife, Ginger, are great patriots and dear friends. Now we will have a fearless Attorney General who will go to war for the Constitution. Another great pick by @realDonaldTrump.