The Stark Limbo of Geoffrey Starks

It's been about two months of stall on the Senate floor for the nomination of Geoffrey Starks, the preferred choice of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) to fill the vacant seat at the Federal Communications Commission. But the Senate is still spinning its wheels on the nominee, despite bipartisan support for moving Starks alongside fellow-Commissioner Brendan Carr’s nomination for a second term. The delay comes as Republicans have sought to assemble a bigger package of Trump administration nominees that could advance by unanimous consent. Without a hard deadline for confirming these nominees, the Senate hasn’t felt pressure to finalize the package.

“I talked to Schumer this morning in the gym, and everybody has equities they’re trying to get in this final deal,” said Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John Thune (R-SD). “He’s interested in the FCC, as are we. It sounds like it’s kind of hopefully coming together but it isn’t there yet.” Chairman Thune previously described the package as wide-ranging, including nominees for agencies such as the US Consumer Product Safety Commission and the National Transportation Safety Board. Thune said one holdup has been getting a Democratic nominee for the National Labor Relations Board put forward.