Does not play
well with others.
Posted on 08/04/2005 9:17:04 AM PDT by Fido969
Thursday, August 4, 2005
'Hold' attributed to Snowe
By CLARKE CANFIELD, Associated Press
©Copyright 2004 Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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SOUTH PORTLAND - Sen. Olympia Snowe on Wednesday declined to confirm reports that she has blocked the nomination of Gordon England to the No. 2 Pentagon job because she is frustrated over the Pentagon's base closure recommendations.
The Wall Street Journal and Defense Daily reported that Snowe, R-Maine, has put a "hold" on England's nomination to serve as deputy secretary of defense.
President Bush in May designated England to be acting deputy secretary even though the Senate has not approved his nomination. England, formerly secretary of the Navy, would replace Paul Wolfowitz, who quit to become president of the World Bank.
Senate tradition allows senators to place anonymous holds on executive post branch nominations.
The Wall Street Journal wrote on its opinion page Wednesday that Snowe placed the hold on Friday because of the Pentagon's recommendation that Maine military bases be closed as part of the nationwide reorganization of military facilities.
The Base Realignment and Closure Commission is evaluating the Pentagon's recommendations and will issue a report to the president by Sept. 8.
In Maine, the Pentagon proposed closing the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery and the Defense Finance Accounting Service center in Limestone and scaling back the Brunswick Naval Air Station. The Brunswick base was later added to the closure list.
The paper said Snowe has turned the list into a political issue.
"With a war on, you'd think senators would have an interest in keeping the Pentagon's top jobs fully staffed," the newspaper wrote. "But some members - including one from the president's own party - march to their own tin drummers."
Defense Daily, a military trade publication, wrote that Sen. John Warner, R-Va., was furious with Snowe and spent half an hour trying to persuade her to lift the hold so England's nomination could be approved before the Senate's August recess. Warner is chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
At a press briefing after touring a Coast Guard base on Wednesday, Snowe said she wouldn't comment directly on the reports.
"But let me just say this," Snowe said. "It's a range of issues I'm concerned about with respect to the leadership (while at) the Navy and many issues . . . over the past few years."
Last spring, England said he favored changing the acquisition strategy for the next-generation DD(X) destroyer by awarding an all-or-nothing contract that could have driven either Maine's Bath Iron Works or Mississippi's Ingalls shipyard out of business.
Congress stymied the Pentagon's efforts, and the Navy is still mulling its options as it tries to reduce costs of the technologically sophisticated ship.
Warner held a press conference Monday recommending that the president use his recess powers to install England and Eric Edelman as undersecretary for policy even without Senate confirmation.
Warner spokesman John Ullyot said Wednesday that the senator believes it's critical to have a full-time deputy secretary in place during wartime. He declined to comment about any behind-the-scenes hold on England's nomination.
"We do not comment on procedural maneuvers taken by other senators," Ullyot said.
Reader Comments Do you back Sen. Olympia Snowe?
Recess Appointment time!
This practice is pure BS. There should never be anonymous actions in Congress. If she wants the nomination held and has a good reason, she should be proud to stand in front of the nation and tell us why. Also, all votes in Congress should be recorded votes. I hate the idea that even treaties can be passed by voice vote without recording who voted for what.
A 5 letter word for Olympia Snowe comes to mind.
Boy, are you ever right, about both "anonymous holds" and non-recorded votes...
BOTH should be outlawed...these same congresscritters will whine and cry if they can't get classified intelligence memos out "in the light" for "transparency", but when it comes to THEIR actions...
oh, no, they get to do things in secret so that their reputations and re-election chances aren't hurt....BAH!
Well said & I agree 100%.
This type of "senatorial priviledge" ought to be against the law.
Is it witch?
I can't slam Snowe for this one. She's representing her state. State first, rest comes after. That's a senator's job.
I agree. Maine is getting hurt really bad by the base closures, and the radical leftist dims that run the state government are headed non-stop on an economic suicide course.
My word only has four letters.
Lol my two words start with a 'w', and a 'b', whats your word?
Get rid of this RINO. Are there no conservatives in Maine?
Nah the northeast is full of squishy rinos who think they run the show.
The fact that the RINOS states appear to be taking a hit doesn't give us any opportunity to unseat the RINOs with more conservative republicans. If anything, it poses a danger that the "deliver the bacon" porkers from the Demoncrats will be able to successfully get in...by handing them an issue.
South Dakota's lone GOP Senator, John Thune, freshly installed after a titannic battle against Tom Daschle, is being GOREd by the BRAC cuts, and it may make it untenable to ever hold this state, let alone expand our representation there.
Time for another recess appointment.
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