It's looking more and more like 2009 might be the year that DC gets a voting rep in the House. The resolution giving DC one seat, and Utah one seat passed the Senate with 57 votes in 2007, but this year, it looks good for 60. There is no question it passes the House. From the Times:
The legislation would permanently expand the 435-member House by two seats. One seat would go to Washington and the other to Utah, which narrowly missed getting an additional seat after the last census. Utah, which traditionally leans Republican, now has one Democrat and two Republicans in the House.
There is no bill yet, but it will come. The IIE objection is that once DC gets a House seat, by all rights they should get two Senate seats, and given the stats on DC, those two Senators are forevermore Democrats. If you hear them saying that there aren't enough people in DC to qualify as a state, remember to mention that Wyoming has fewer people than DC, and the population of Vermont is not appreciably bigger.
Adding seats to the House is an interesting proposition, one that the majority of you were not in favour of the last time we polled it.
DemConWatch will be keeping track of all of the major staff announcements in the Obama Administration. We'll list the Position, Nominee, Committee and Hearing and Vote Information.
The following table lists all positions in the Department of Justice that require Senate Confirmation. You can see the rest of the confirmation lists here.
Information has been gathered from the Plum Book as well as several other government sites. The positions addressed in this list are marked as PAS in the Plum Book.
DemConWatch will be keeping track of all of the major staff announcements in the Obama Administration. We'll list the Position, Nominee, Committee and Hearing and Vote Information.
The following table lists all positions in the Department of Defense that require Senate Confirmation. You can see the rest of the confirmation lists here.
Information has been gathered from the Plum Book as well as several other government sites. The positions addressed in this list are marked as PAS in the Plum Book.
In case this is your first go round with the confirmation process, it is summarized here.
First up is Tom Daschle. His hearing today is with the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labour and Pensions. It appears to be open to the public, and if you’re in DC, it is slated to start at 10 a.m. in room SD-430. I’m assuming that it will be on C-Span, if not other channels.
Mr. Daschle is incredibly accomplished. You can view a capsule bio, and a list of his writings here. In his position as Secretary of Health and Human Services, he will be in charge of the Administration side of health care reform, in addition to the other required duties of the position. Not to mention that West Wing office, director of the Office of Health Reform.
And health care reform is critical to the United States. I’ve posted on the topic before. The Philadelphia Jewish Voice asked permission to publish the information, and the integrated article can be viewed here.
Remember that while Congress enacts legislation, it is up to “the government” to actually implement the programs. That means award the contracts, cut the checks, manage the programs, and all the other nuts and bolts that go into taking legislation from poetry to prose to action. (That’s why I chose a Rube Goldberg graphic for this post.)
For example, there is this from Playbook:
The $775 billion economic stimulus plan ... could pump more than $100 billion into the health care sector, modernizing its delivery system and providing care to those who lost their health insurance along with their jobs, according to sources close to the planning. The bulk of the money, about $80 billion, would go to state Medicaid programs that are expected to grow with rising unemployment. Officials worry that without a cash infusion, state lawmakers facing already strained budgets would be forced to cut the safety-net health care program just as the need swells. Roughly another $20 billion would be used as a down payment on Obama's $50 billion campaign promise to update the nation's antiquated health care delivery system. The streamlining effort is aimed at improving quality and saving money and could include digitizing patients' medical records and pushing doctors to use e-prescribing.
It would be Daschle’s department that would get the money to the Medicaid programs, and develop the framework of the improved delivery program. We need Mr. Daschle because of his understanding of the system as it exists, and his inverted triangle view of the changes necessary.
WASHINGTON - Today, President-elect Obama and Vice President-elect Biden announced the following White House staff: Don Gips, White House Director of Presidential Personnel, Bradley J. Kiley, Director of the Office of Management and Administration, Susan Sher, Associate Counsel to the President, Brian McKeon, Deputy National Security Advisor to the Vice President, Courtney O'Donnell, Communications Director for Dr. Jill Biden, Carlos E. Elizondo, Residence Manager and Social Secretary for the Vice President and Dr. Jill Biden and Pete Souza, Chief White House Photographer.
President-elect Obama said, "I am honored to have this talented group of individuals joining my staff. They bring diverse backgrounds and unique perspectives to our team. I am confident that the American people will benefit from their experience and expertise and Vice President-elect Biden and I look forward to seeking their advice and counsel as we work to move our country forward."
Vice President-elect Biden said, "Brian McKeon has been an integral part of my staff for over 20 years. He is an expert among experts in the national security field and one of the finest lawyers I've ever known. He has unimpeachable integrity and his continued counsel will be an invaluable addition to the Obama-Biden Administration. Dr. Biden and I are also looking forward to working with Courtney O'Donnell and Carlos Elizondo and we are grateful for their committment to public service."
It is with deep regret that I accept Governor Bill Richardson's decision to withdraw his name for nomination as the next Secretary of Commerce.Governor Richardson is an outstanding public servant and would have brought to the job of Commerce Secretary and our economic team great insights accumulated through an extraordinary career in federal and state office. It is a measure of his willingness to put the nation first that he has removed himself as a candidate for the Cabinet in order to avoid any delay in filling this important economic post at this critical time. Although we must move quickly to fill the void left by Governor Richardson's decision, I look forward to his future service to our country and in my administration.
STATEMENT OF GOVERNOR BILL RICHARDSON
For nearly three decades, I have been honored to serve my state and our nation in Congress, at the U.N., as Secretary of Energy and as governor. So when the President-elect asked me to serve as Secretary of Commerce, I felt a duty to answer the call.I felt that duty particularly because America is facing such extraordinary economic challenges. The Department of Commerce must play an important role in solving them by helping to grow the new jobs and businesses America so badly needs
It is also because of that sense of urgency about the work of the Commerce Department that I have asked the President-elect not to move forward with my nomination at this time.I do so with great sorrow. But a pending investigation of a company that has done business with New Mexico state government promises to extend for several weeks or, perhaps, even months.
Let me say unequivocally that I and my Administration have acted properly in all matters and that this investigation will bear out that fact. But I have concluded that the ongoing investigation also would have forced an untenable delay in the confirmation process.Given the gravity of the economic situation the nation is facing, I could not in good conscience ask the President-elect and his Administration to delay for one day the important work that needs to be done.
So, for now, I will remain in the job I love, Governor of New Mexico, and will continue to work every day, with Lieutenant Governor Diane Denish, to make a positive difference in the lives of New Mexicans. I believe she will be a terrific governor in the future.I appreciate the confidence President-elect Obama has shown in me, and value our friendship and working partnership. I told him that I am eager to serve in the future in any way he deems useful. And like all Americans, I pray for his success and the success of our beloved country.
DemConWatch will be keeping track of all of the major staff announcements in the Obama Administration. We'll list the Position, Nominee, Committee and Hearing and Vote Information.
The following table lists all positions in the Executive Office of the White House that require Senate Confirmation. You can see the rest of the confirmation lists here.
Information has been gathered from the Plum Book as well as several other government sites. The positions addressed in this list are marked as PAS in the Plum Book.
DemConWatch will be keeping track of all of the major staff announcements in the Obama Administration. We'll list the Position, Nominee, Committee and Hearing and Vote Information.
The following table lists all positions in the Department of State that require Senate Confirmation. You can see the rest of the confirmation lists here.
Information has been gathered from the Plum Book as well as several other government sites. The positions addressed in this list are marked as PAS in the Plum Book.
DemConWatch will be keeping track of all of the major staff announcements in the Obama Administration. We'll list the Position, Nominee, Committee and Hearing and Vote Information.
The following table lists all positions in the Department of Treasury that require Senate Confirmation. You can see the rest of the confirmation lists here.
Information has been gathered from the Plum Book as well as several other government sites. The positions addressed in this list are marked as PAS in the Plum Book.
DemConWatch will be keeping track of all of the major staff announcements in the Obama Administration. We'll list the Position, Nominee, Committee and Hearing and Vote Information.
The following table lists all positions in the Department of Agriculture that require Senate Confirmation. You can see the rest of the confirmation lists here.
Information has been gathered from the Plum Book as well as several other government sites. The positions addressed in this list are marked as PAS in the Plum Book.
We reported a while back that some House members avoided the lottery, and got primo office space by winning their elections after 4 November. But whenever the offices were assigned, there is a lot of logistics involved. Someone has to move things around.
Six days a week, crews move the contents of 10 lawmakers’ offices to other — presumably better — suite of rooms.
Before Jan. 6, when the 111th Congress convenes, every stick of furniture, every computer and every file cabinet from 182 offices will go through an internal shuffle.
The rest of the House office locations won’t change — either because those particular legislators are happy with the size, window view or location of their current digs or because they didn’t want to upgrade this time around.
It means a full tractor-trailer unloads each day after commuting from a storage facility at Dulles International Airport, said Dave Woodburn, the logistics director for the House moves.
Employees of the Architect of the Capitol and the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) of the House expect to be done with all 182 moves by Jan. 2.
Perhaps they're working today...
By the way, this link was contained in that CQ Politics article, and I thought you might enjoy seeing how the offices are chosen.
DemConWatch will be keeping track of all of the major staff announcements in the Obama Administration. We'll list the Position, Nominee, Committee and Hearing and Vote Information.
The following table lists all positions in the Department of the Interior that require Senate Confirmation. You can see the rest of the confirmation lists here.
Information has been gathered from the Plum Book as well as several other government sites. The positions addressed in this list are marked as PAS in the Plum Book.
If you're a fan of Senate confirmation history, you may know there are a certain number of people who don't make it past the process. Sometimes it's a real problem (illegal nannies) and sometimes it's just the other side being mean.
Well, soon-President Obama was elected with a mandate, and he has a Senate majority that might actually grow in number by one of two by the time the hearings begin. Will his mandate play out in the Senate? Will our Senate Democrats grow a group actual spine and use their majority?
The first test for this will likely be the Eric Holder confirmation. The GOP will go after him for Clinton-era imbroglios, including Mark Rich. Plus, Arlen Spector has decided to look into any relationship between Holder and, wait for it, Rod Blagojevich. (And when this comes up, I'm hoping someone points out that an indictment is not a conviction. The American justice system says "innocent until proven guilty." Everyone seems to have forgotten that. Thanks, I feel better now.)
This may be a Republican test to see if they still have any clout; it may be a prelude to see how much they can go after Hillary Clinton with when her confirmation for Secretary of State comes up. They may just want to set a contentious tone. But in the final analysis, either he'll make it through confirmation, or he won't. What do you think?
Rep. Rahm Emanuel will resign his House seat Friday.
Emanuel, set to serve as chief of staff to President-elect Barack Obama, sent a letter to Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich Monday indicating that he planned to step down at the end of the week. The new Congress will be sworn in on Jan. 6.
Unlike the case of Obama's vacated Senate seat, Blagojevich has no power to appoint Emanuel's replacement. Instead, state law gives Blagojevich five days to set a date for a special election to replace Emanuel once the seat is officially vacant. The election to fill the seat on Chicago's North Side must be held within 115 days. The governor will likely set a date for a primary election as well, although the state statute doesn't require that he do so.
ONE: There was a SCOTUS case earlier this year, District of Columbia v. Heller, 07-290, which struck down DC's gun law. It allows District residents to own guns, but not to carry them concealed.
TWO: The Bushies recently messed with Federal regs to allow people to carry concealed weapons in National Parks in states where concealed weapons are allowed.
THREE: The Inauguration is being held in a National Park, that big mall...
Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) and gun control groups are concerned that some visitors attending President-elect Obama’s inauguration may try to pack heat because of a rule allowing concealed weapons in national parks. ... Norton and other think confusion over the rule could lead visitors to bring guns to Obama’s Jan. 20 inauguration.
“It is truly frightening to think of what this could mean coming just a couple of weeks before the inauguration,” said Norton, who has long supported strict gun laws in D.C.
Larry Pratt, executive director for the pro-gun rights Gun Owners of America, said Norton’s fears are misguided.
“People know enough to check on what the rules are,” Pratt said. “It’s not been a problem in the past and I can’t imagine why all of a sudden it’s going to be a problem on that particular day. It may be a problem for people who don’t like guns, but they have that problem every day.”
Pratt supports a concealed carry law for D.C., and said the crime rate would go down if it were allowed. It’s “immoral” to deprive residents of guns, he said.
Gun owners have been touchy since Obama’s election. In the time since his victory, gun stores along the East Coast have seen sales double, and in some cases triple, apparently out of a fear that Obama will curb gun ownership laws as one of his first acts as president.
What do you think? We can assume that there will be enough security to take any guns that show up. I assume, although others may not, that the only person bringing a gun to the Inauguration has bad intentions. And should curbing gun ownership be an initial Adminstration priority, or are there more important issues to take up initially?
In case this is your first go round with the confirmation process, it is summarized 
If you're a fan of Senate confirmation history, you may know there are a certain number of people who don't make it past the process. Sometimes it's a real problem (illegal nannies) and sometimes it's just the other side being mean.
