Oh, the outrage we would have heard if a Democratic Senator had chosen to put a hold on all of Bush’s appointments merely to extort obtain Federal monies for his or her state. Can you just imagine what the the Limbaughs and Hannitys and Becks of the world would have said about a Democrat who pulled a stunt like this one?
Sen. Richard Shelby (R-AL) has put an extraordinary “blanket hold” on at least 70 nominations President Obama has sent to the Senate, according to multiple reports this evening. The hold means no nominations can move forward unless Senate Democrats can secure a 60-member cloture vote to break it, or until Shelby lifts the hold. […]
According to the report, Shelby is holding Obama’s nominees hostage until a pair of lucrative programs that would send billions in taxpayer dollars to his home state get back on track. The two programs Shelby wants to move forward or else:
– A $40 billion contract to build air-to-air refueling tankers. From CongressDaily: “Northrop/EADS team would build the planes in Mobile, Ala., but has threatened to pull out of the competition unless the Air Force makes changes to a draft request for proposals.” Federal Times offers more details on the tanker deal, and also confirms its connection to the hold.
– An improvised explosive device testing lab for the FBI. From CongressDaily: “[Shelby] is frustrated that the Obama administration won’t build” the center, which Shelby earmarked $45 million for in 2008. The center is due to be based “at the Army’s Redstone Arsenal.”
If this was a Democratic Senator doing this to a Republican President, Faux News and the Conservative Movements would no doubt label him or her a traitor, at best (I’ll leave the “at worst” scenarios to your imagination). But since this is a Republican Senator screwing with a Democratic President, I’m sure they’ll portray it as a patriotic act of the highest order.
If they mention it at all, that is.
Well, at least we now know one of the corporations which owns Richard Shelby, lock, stock and barrel: Northrop Grumman. I wonder how much they paid for his “extraordinary services?” Then again, maybe it is all about bringing the bacon back home:
Shelby is particularly peeved about the refueling tanker because a tanker contract worth up to $35 billion was awarded to Northrop Grumman and Airbus last year, but later voided in a bid protest filed by Boeing. The Northrop tankers would have been assembled in Mobile, Ala.
Well, if this is what Shelby does when he’s “peeved,” I’d hate to see what sort of Hulk monster he morphs into when you make him angry.
One would hope the Democrats (and their best buddy, Joe Lieberman) can muster the 60 votes to override this hold, but I won’t hold my breath waiting for that to happen. I doubt Shelby can be shamed into releasing his hold, and I suspect none of his Republican colleagues will twist his arm over the matter, either, no matter how small and petty it makes them look. They are all probably just kicking themselves (or their respective staffs) for not thinking of this approach to bipartisanship sooner.
Maybe if we put Rahm Emanuel in a locked room with the Honorable Gentlemen from Alabama without any food or water …? Oh, sorry, Rahm only does that to his fellow Democrats. Nevermind.
