With the clock ticking down to the mid-term elections, pressure is mounting on the Senate to ensure that our courts and executive agencies are adequately staffed. But changes to the filibuster came only after unprecedented abuse of the practice - and it is our agencies, courts, and the American public that are paying the price from ongoing obstruction. Enzi’s actions in connection with the confirmation of ambassadors, Republican senators have cited the weakening of the filibuster power as justification for slow-walking nominations. 2550 (2014), has opened the door to even greater obstruction as the Court validated the use of ‘‘pro forma’’ Senate sessions - sessions in name only where no business occurs - as a way to block the president’s power to make temporary recess appointments.Īs with Sen. Moreover, a recent Supreme Court decision, National Labor Relations Board v. The nomination and confirmation process for judicial and executive branch positions has been embroiled in unprecedented levels of Senate obstruction since 2009, even after changes to the filibuster process in November 2013 allowed up-or-down votes on several high-stakes nominees. Unprecedented Levels of Senate Obstruction This is just one small, but important, sign of a broken Senate, which is making it dangerously difficult for our government to function effectively. Enzi observed that ‘‘e used to pass ambassadors and all kinds of people en bloc,’’ but ‘‘it takes a little longer to do the whole process’’ now.įollowing an outcry, the Senate eventually confirmed the Russian ambassador later that night, but dozens of other ambassador posts remain vacant, including in Guatemala, one of the principal origin countries for the surge of unaccompanied child migrants to the U.S. Citing Senate Democrats’ changes to the filibuster procedure in November 2013, Sen. Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.) blocked an effort to confirm a block of 25 ambassadors by unanimous consent - including ambassadors to foreign policy priority countries such as Russia. On the eve of the Senate’s month-long August recess, Sen. Copyright 2014 by The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc. *Reproduced with permission from Daily Report for Executives, 160 DER B-1. Attend the Brennan Legacy Awards Dinner.Advance Constitutional Change Show / hide.National Task Force on Democracy Reform & the Rule of Law.Government Targeting of Minority Communities Show / hide.
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