Senate Dems give up on Berwick

hot air ^ | 3/6/11 | Ed Morrissey

[Nachum]

Barack Obama’s renomination of Donald Berwick to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) came as a surprise on Capitol Hill. Presidents do not usually renominate recess appointments after a recess ends their term unless the recess appointment was a true emergency or the President in question wants to make a point. In Berwick’s case the decision makes even less sense, as Obama gave the controversial Berwick the recess appointment without even allowing the Senate to hold a single hearing when his party had nearly a supermajority in the Senate. Indeed, Berwick didn’t even do the Senate the courtesy of completing his questionnaire before Obama bypassed Capitol Hill.

Needless to say, Republicans in the Senate aren’t about to give Berwick an easy ride on what would be his first job interview in the Senate, and now Democrats have decided that they’re not too keen to turn it into a fight, either:

Senate Democrats have given up on confirming Don Berwick as CMS administrator in the wake of a letter from 42 Republican senators opposing the nomination, sources tell POLITICO. …

[Nachum]

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[TsonicTsunami08]

Oh Come on! Don’t you want a communist redistributionist?

[cweese]

"...President in question..."

Indeed he is, the "President in question".

[norwaypinesavage]

"Obama will probably decide that discretion is the better part of valor in this case and look for Plan B."

Obama has never been discreet before. I think he's too dumb for discretion. Look for him to poke the stick in the senate's eye, and give him another recess appointment.