The age-old tradition known as the "blue slip" is at the heart of a fierce new battle in Washington, as President Donald Trump and Senate Republicans clash over the future of judicial and U.S. attorney nominations. The blue slip, a Senate custom dating back to at least 1918, allows home state senators to approve or block the president’s nominees for federal judgeships and U.S. attorney positions within their state. While the practice has weathered decades of political storms, it now faces perhaps its most intense scrutiny yet.
On August 25, 2025, President Trump publicly denounced the blue slip process, calling it "old and outdated" and even going so far as to label it "unconstitutional." According to the Associated Press, Trump told reporters, "This is based on an old custom. It’s not based on a law. And I think it’s unconstitutional. And I’ll probably be filing a suit on that pretty soon." The president’s frustration has been mounting for weeks, as he argues that the tradition is being used to block his nominees in states with at least one Democratic senator, resulting in what he described as only "weak" judges being approved.
Yet, Trump’s threat to sue over the blue slip process has left many in Washington scratching their heads. The Senate, after all, sets its own rules, and it remains unclear who he would even sue or how such a lawsuit would proceed. Despite the president’s pressure, Republican senators have refused to abandon the practice. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, a Republican from Iowa, has been at the center of the dispute. Trump has repeatedly urged Grassley to drop the blue slip tradition, even taking to social media in July to criticize the veteran senator: "Chuck Grassley, who I got re-elected to the U.S. Senate when he was down, by a lot, in the Great State of Iowa, could solve the ‘Blue Slip’ problem." Grassley, however, has stood firm, responding that he was "offended by what the president said, and I’m disappointed that it would result in personal insults."
The blue slip itself is a simple blue-colored form sent to a nominee’s home state senators after the president makes a selection. Senators can return the slip with either a positive or negative response, or not return it at all. If a senator objects or does not respond, the Judiciary Committee chairman can choose not to advance the nomination. According to the Congressional Research Service, the tradition has evolved over the years and has become increasingly partisan, especially in recent decades. Until 2017, the blue slip even applied to circuit court nominees—those overseeing multiple states—until the Republican-led committee, then also chaired by Grassley, ended that practice.
Republicans have been quick to defend the blue slip, noting its strategic value. Grassley himself posted on X (formerly Twitter), "In Biden admin Republicans kept 30 LIBERALS OFF BENCH THAT PRES TRUMP CAN NOW FILL W CONSERVATIVES." North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis, another Republican on the Judiciary Committee, echoed this sentiment, warning that eliminating the blue slip would be "a terrible, short-sighted ploy that paves the path for Democrats to ram through extremist liberal judges in red states over the long-term." Tillis added, "Republicans shouldn’t fall for it." Senate Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota also backed the tradition, saying, "I don’t sense any rush to change it." Thune emphasized that he had personally used the process and worked with the Biden administration on judicial vacancies in his own state.
The current standoff is not just about tradition; it’s about power and the future shape of the federal judiciary. Democrats, for their part, have blocked several of Trump’s nominees this year, including Alina Habba for U.S. attorney in New Jersey and two prosecutors in New York, both of whom were stopped by Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer. The White House, in the past, often negotiated with home state senators when selecting nominees, but the atmosphere has grown more combative under Trump’s presidency. As reported by Nexstar Media, Trump has shown little interest in working with Democrats, and the feeling seems mutual.
The dispute over nominations has spilled into other areas of Senate business. On August 23, 2025, Trump praised Senate Republicans for their efforts to get his nominees confirmed, writing on Truth Social, "Very proud of our great Republican Senators for fighting, over the Weekend and far beyond, if necessary, in order to get my great Appointments approved, and on their way to helping us MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN." He also blasted Democrats for what he called deliberate delays, claiming, "If George Washington or Abraham Lincoln were up for approval, the Dems would delay, as long as possible, then vote them out. The Democrats want our Country to fail, because they have failed."
Senate Majority Leader Thune has been in the thick of negotiations. On August 21, he told reporters that recess appointments—where the president can fill vacancies while the Senate is not in session—were "on the table" to address the backlog of over 160 nominees, most for lower-level positions. "I think everything is on the table," Thune said. He later added, "Fixing the rules, not just for now, but for the long term, would be a better solution for it. But at this point right now, I wouldn’t say we’re taking any options off the table." Thune noted that if an agreement with Democrats could not be reached, Republicans might pivot to other strategies, but such moves would require near-unanimous support from their caucus.
Democratic Leader Schumer has defended his party’s approach, arguing on August 23 that "historically bad nominees deserve historic levels of scrutiny." In a post on X, Schumer wrote, "We have never seen nominees as flawed, as compromised, as unqualified as Trump’s. And they know that." According to Politico, Schumer and Thune’s offices have been in contact, with Schumer sending a counterproposal on August 22 to try and break the deadlock.
Trump, however, has accused Schumer of political extortion. On August 23, he claimed on Truth Social that Schumer was demanding more than $1 billion in funding to be released in exchange for confirming a "small" number of his "highly qualified" nominees. "This demand is egregious and unprecedented, and would be embarrassing to the Republican Party if it were accepted. It is political extortion, by any other name," Trump wrote. He went further, telling Schumer to "GO TO HELL!" and urging Republicans to reject any such deal, adding, "have a great RECESS and, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!"
Despite Trump’s calls to stay in session, the Senate proceeded with its traditional August recess, leaving the nominations impasse unresolved. Thune indicated that when lawmakers return in the fall, they will consider rule changes designed to make it harder for Democrats to block or slow votes on nominations. "I think that the last six months have demonstrated that this process, nominations, is broken," Thune told reporters. "And so I expect there will be some good robust conversations about that."
The blue slip battle is more than a procedural squabble—it’s a window into the broader struggle over the future of the judiciary and the balance of power in Washington. As both parties dig in, the fate of dozens of nominees hangs in the balance, and the Senate’s traditions are being tested as never before.
