CNN follows Senator Jim Webb (D-VA) to work this Thanksgiving holiday just to bang the gavel so that technically the Senate is not in recess to make sure Bush can’t slip any more of his crooks and cronies by us with more recess appointments.
Among the likely candidates this move thwarts are the homophobic Dr. James Holsinger as Surgeon General and/or the election engineering Hans A. von Spakovsky to a spot on the Federal Election Commission.
It's worth remembering not only the more well known in-your-face past Bush recess appointments like John Bolton, Swift boat hack Sam Fox, and anti-civil rights judge Charles Pickering. In just his first six years in office, President Bush had made 171 recess appointments (pdf) including a controversial pick with Otto Reich so he could continue his dirty tricks south of the border, a spot at the pentagon for a great guy like Eric Adelman (just don't ask Sec Gates), a DOL spot for Eugene Scalia (the son of that Scalia), a cushy ambassadorship for Bush's ex-girlfriend April H. Foley and an important one as a treat for C. Boyden Gray, his judicial bulldog on the Hill back in the day when the GOP majority made his job easy.
It's nice to finally see the Democrats step up and do what it takes to stop Bush from running roughshod right over them. Thank you Sens Webb and Reid.
If you want to know more about Congressional recess, I'll let Uncle Jay explain it to you.
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