President Donald Trump is pressuring the Senate to scrap its traditional August recess, insisting lawmakers stay in Washington until all of his government nominees are confirmed. Earlier this month, Trump raised the possibility with Republican Senate leader John Thune, praising him as “very talented” but warning there would be no time for breaks unless confirmations moved forward.
He even suggested senators might need to sacrifice long weekends to finalize votes for his “incredible” nominees, adding, “We need them badly!!!” Trump returned to the demand Thursday in a fiery post on Truth Social.
“The Senate must stay in Session, taking no recess, until the entire Executive Calendar is CLEAR!!! We have to save our Country from the Lunatic Left,” Trump wrote. “Republicans, for the health and safety of the USA, DO YOUR JOB, and confirm All Nominees. They should NOT BE FORCED TO WAIT.”
Currently, there are an estimated 1,300 executive branch and independent agency positions requiring Senate confirmation. More than 160 nominees are said to be ready for a vote, contributing to the backlog Trump wants cleared before the August recess, scheduled from Aug. 4 to Sept. 1.
For senators, the month-long break is often used to reconnect with constituents and campaign ahead of midterm elections. For Trump, however, it is a distraction from filling key posts he deems essential to advancing his agenda.
Doubling down, the president followed his “no recess” demand with sharp political advice for fellow Republicans. In another post, he wrote: “Republicans, when in doubt, vote the exact opposite of Senator Susan Collins. Generally speaking, you can’t go wrong. Thank you for your attention to this matter and, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
Maine Senator Susan Collins has been one of Trump’s more frequent Republican critics, voting against two of his bills this year—including his “One Big Beautiful Bill Act”—and opposing several Cabinet nominees.
Senator Thune signaled last week that GOP leadership is considering keeping lawmakers in Washington to speed up the confirmation process. “We’re thinking about it. We want to get as many [nominations] through the pipeline as we can,” Thune told reporters.
He added that filling out Trump’s administration remains a top priority: “Trying to get his team in place is something that we’re very committed to and we’re going to be looking at all the options in the next few weeks to try and get as many of those across the finish line as we can.”
Thune has previously gone to great lengths to appease Trump, including pulling an all-nighter earlier this summer to secure votes for the president’s sweeping “Big Beautiful” budget bill, which Trump demanded be ready for his signature by July 4.