Senate Republicans Are Holding Up Key Nominees

For all the bellyaching about the Obama administration's supposed excess of policymaking czars outside the normal appointment process, Senate Republicans have been blocking confirmation of a disturbing number of administration nominees, many for reasons having nothing to do with their suitability for their jobs. No one has clean hands here. Slow-walking nominations is a bipartisan sport. Democrats also pulled this stunt -- often as a gambit to dislodge documents that they believed the Bush administration was improperly withholding. The Obama administration's quick start on making nominations has slowed to a trickle, lessening the pressure on the Senate to deal with the backlog. And, ultimately, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has the power to force a vote on a pending nomination -- if he wants to take the time to do it. Nonetheless, that's no excuse for letting advise and consent degenerate into sit around and wait. Until Tuesday, when Tom Perez was confirmed as assistant attorney general for civil rights -- more than six months after being nominated -- five of 11 assistant attorney general positions were unfilled.