President Donald Trump on Monday blamed Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer for not approving ambassadors he has appointed.
"Heads of countries are calling wanting to know why Senator Schumer is not approving their otherwise approved Ambassadors!? Likewise in Government lawyers and others are being delayed at a record pace!” he tweeted.
"360 great and hardworking people are waiting for approval from Senator Schumer, more than a year longer than any other Administration in history. These are people who have been approved by committees and all others, yet Schumer continues to hold them back from serving their Country! Very Unfair!"
Of 136 appointments Trump has made, 54 have yet to be approved, according to data found on the American Foreign Service Association.
The Trump administration was criticized in October for not having an ambassador to Saudi Arabia when Saudi dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi was killed in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.
Retired Gen. John Abizaid, the former head of U.S. Central Command, was nominated by Trump to take over that post in mid-November but has yet to be approved.
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