WASHINGTON, D.C. — In a year full of twists and turns originating from 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W., the Friday announcement from the White House that President Trump has nominated a Senior Counsel to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr to serve as a Commissioner at the agency.
Danielle Thumann Severs, if confirmed, would serve a term of five-years, retroactive to July 1, 2024. It is the seat last held by Republican Nathan Simington, who decided to leave the FCC early over reported acrimony regarding the selection of Carr by President Trump as Chairman.
Severs’ nomination at the dawn of a potentially contentious midterm election season could prove to be the ultimate GOP loyalty test to Republican Senators: If Congress approves the nomination, it potentially creates a 3-0 Republican majority with a firing of lone Democrat Anna Gómez. At the same time, Democrats could use the nomination to force Trump to fill out the FCC with a fifth nominee, bringing three Republicans and two Democrats to an agency short of its statutory maximum Commissioners for months.
As key Washington, D.C., lawyers who spoke with RBR+TVBR see it, there’s little consensus on whether Severs will get the Senate’s OK. And, they don’t agree on whether Trump can use a recent Supreme Court ruling to create a one-party agency in lock step with his policy plans.
