President Donald Trump on Sunday pressured Sen. Chuck Grassley over the upper chamber’s “blue slip” tradition that’s essentially given Democrats veto power over his ability to nominate judges and U.S. attorneys.
“I have a Constitutional Right to appoint Judges and U.S. Attorneys, but that RIGHT has been completely taken away from me in States that have just one Democrat United States Senator," he wrote on Truth Social. "This is because of an old and outdated 'custom' known as a BLUE SLIP, that Senator Chuck Grassley, of the Great State of Iowa, refuses to overturn, even though the Democrats, including Crooked Joe Biden (Twice!), have done so on numerous occasions. Therefore, the only candidates that I can get confirmed for these most important positions are, believe it or not, Democrats!"
Trump then urged Grassley to tell Democrats to "go to HELL" over the tradition.
"Chuck Grassley should allow strong Republican candidates to ascend to these very vital and powerful roles, and tell the Democrats, as they often tell us, to go to HELL!"
🚨Just Now: President Trump calls out Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley for refusing to allow Trump to appoint Judges and U.S. Attorneys pic.twitter.com/04PI1GgiOR
— The Calvin Coolidge Project (@TheCalvinCooli1) August 25, 2025
Trump last month was forced to withdraw the nomination of his former defense lawyer, Alina Habba, to serve as a federal prosecutor in New Jersey after the state’s Democratic senators, Cory Booker and Andy Kim, opposed her nomination.
Traditionally, the Senate Judiciary Committee’s chairs haven’t proceeded on federal district-level judicial and prosecutorial nominees unless both senators representing the state where those districts are located return blue-slip documents signing off on the nominees.
On Thursday, a federal judge ruled that Habba has been unlawfully serving as New Jersey’s top federal prosecutor since July 24, when her 120-day period expired for her to serve as U.S. attorney in an interim capacity. (The Hill)
This is not the first time Trump has gone after Grassley over the tradition, with the Iowa Republican previously saying he was “offended” by the president’s criticism and “disappointed that it would result in personal insults.”
“Chairman Grassley has already successfully moved U.S. Attorneys through committee who have received blue slips from Democrats, including Senators Warner and Kaine of Virginia and Klobuchar and Smith of Minnesota," a spokesperson for Grassley's office told Iowa's News Now last month in response. "When a nominee comes out of committee all 100 senators have a say on the nomination and part of their consideration is based on the home state senators’ input.”