Cigar
12-29-2015, 08:51 AM
Senate Republicans Are Blocking Obama's Judges at a Nearly Unprecedented Rate
The Senate has confirmed just nine judges nominated by President Obama so far this year. It's the slowest pace of confirmations in more than half a century, on track to match the 11 confirmations in 1960.
"It's still like pulling teeth to move nominations," says a senior Democratic Senate aide. "They're being held by a number of different Republican senators for every reason under the sun. None of which have anything to do with the actual qualifications of the nominees."
With Republicans in charge of both branches of Congress, odds are slim that Obama will sign major domestic legislation during the last two years of his presidency. Even keeping the government's lights on and selecting a new House speaker have required protracted fights in this dysfunctional Congress. But judges are still one area where a hamstrung president can leave a mark, as district and circuit court judges who win confirmation receive a lifetime appointment.
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2015/11/senate-republicans-block-obama-judge-nominations
America’s Empty Embassies
By WALTER F. MONDALE DEC. 29, 2015
...American diplomats have made remarkable progress across a number of fronts, from climate change to checking Iran’s nuclear ambitions.
Such success depends on making common cause with our allies, an effort led by America’s ambassadors. And yet, thanks to Senate politics, dozens of ambassadorial nominations have been delayed unnecessarily. At one point in 2014, nearly a quarter of the world’s countries lacked an American ambassador, and even today, despite some efforts to approve candidates, a dozen nominations have not received congressional action — including nominees to represent the United States in strategically vital countries like Mexico, Norway and Sweden.
Some of these are still early in the nomination process, but several have received overwhelming bipartisan support in committee, only to see their candidacy halted on the Senate floor.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/29/opinion/americas-empty-embassies.html?emc=edit_th_20151229&nl=todaysheadlines&nlid=70251688&_r=0
Remember when the Republicans were screaming about this during the Bush Administration?
The Senate has confirmed just nine judges nominated by President Obama so far this year. It's the slowest pace of confirmations in more than half a century, on track to match the 11 confirmations in 1960.
"It's still like pulling teeth to move nominations," says a senior Democratic Senate aide. "They're being held by a number of different Republican senators for every reason under the sun. None of which have anything to do with the actual qualifications of the nominees."
With Republicans in charge of both branches of Congress, odds are slim that Obama will sign major domestic legislation during the last two years of his presidency. Even keeping the government's lights on and selecting a new House speaker have required protracted fights in this dysfunctional Congress. But judges are still one area where a hamstrung president can leave a mark, as district and circuit court judges who win confirmation receive a lifetime appointment.
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2015/11/senate-republicans-block-obama-judge-nominations
America’s Empty Embassies
By WALTER F. MONDALE DEC. 29, 2015
...American diplomats have made remarkable progress across a number of fronts, from climate change to checking Iran’s nuclear ambitions.
Such success depends on making common cause with our allies, an effort led by America’s ambassadors. And yet, thanks to Senate politics, dozens of ambassadorial nominations have been delayed unnecessarily. At one point in 2014, nearly a quarter of the world’s countries lacked an American ambassador, and even today, despite some efforts to approve candidates, a dozen nominations have not received congressional action — including nominees to represent the United States in strategically vital countries like Mexico, Norway and Sweden.
Some of these are still early in the nomination process, but several have received overwhelming bipartisan support in committee, only to see their candidacy halted on the Senate floor.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/29/opinion/americas-empty-embassies.html?emc=edit_th_20151229&nl=todaysheadlines&nlid=70251688&_r=0
Remember when the Republicans were screaming about this during the Bush Administration?