Before leaving for Presidential Day recess, the United States Senate has confirmed as many as 27 nominees of the Obama Administration, but at the same time was still undecided on at least a few dozens more.
“While this is a good first step, there are still dozens of nominees on hold who deserve a similar vote, and I will be looking for action from the Senate when it returns from recess,” President Barack Obama said in a statement soon thereafter on Thursday.
Mr. Obama warned that if the Senate does not approve or confirm his nominees who are critical to run his administration, he reserves the right to use his recess appointment authority in the future.
“At the beginning of the week, a staggering 63 nominees had been stalled in the Senate because one or more senators placed a hold on their nomination. In most cases, these holds have had nothing to do with the nominee’s qualifications or even political views, and these nominees have already received broad, bipartisan support in the committee process,” he said.
“Instead, many holds were motivated by a desire to leverage projects for a Senator’s state or simply to frustrate progress. It is precisely these kinds of tactics that enrage the American people,” Mr. Obama said.
“And so on Tuesday, I told Senator McConnell that if Republican senators did not release these holds, I would exercise my authority to fill critically-needed positions in the federal government temporarily through the use of recess appointments,” he said.
“This is a rare but not unprecedented step that many other presidents have taken. Since that meeting, I am gratified that Republican senators have responded by releasing many of these holds and allowing 29 nominees to receive a vote in the Senate,” he said.
The nominees confirmed last night included Charles Collyns, deputy under secretary at the Treasury Department, Marisa Lago and Mary John Miller, assistant Treasury secretaries; Caryn Wagner, assistant secretary of homeland security; Robert A. Petzel, under secretary for health at the Department of Veterans Affairs; Mary Sally Matiella, assistant secretary of the Army; Douglas B Wilson, an assistant secretary of defence; and Ellen Gloninger Murray, assistant secretary of health and human services.
