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SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: Cabinet

Cabinet stories: 52 news summaries

1 - 20 of 52 Stories | 1 2 3 Next >>

Bush Cabinet Member in Criminal Inquiry

Interior secretary gave Shell big contracts, then took job with firm

(Newser) - The Justice Department has opened a criminal investigation into whether Gale Norton illegally used her power as secretary of the Interior to obtain three oil contracts for Royal Dutch Shell—which only months later hired her as a legal counsel. The 2006 decision to award Shell leases on oil-rich federal... More »

Sanford Says He Won't Resign, Cites Bible

Compares himself to David, who 'fell mightily,' in apology

(Newser) - Gov. Mark Sanford apologized today to his South Carolina cabinet, the State reports, but said he wouldn’t resign and compared himself to the Biblical David. David “fell mightily, he fell in very significant ways, but was able to pick up the pieces,” said the Republican, adding that... More »

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Obama's Slow Vetting Leaves Agencies Empty, Stymied

Treas. secretary swamped with little help amid crisis

(Newser) - The Obama administration’s painstaking vetting of nominees for important positions has left many lower-level posts unfilled at a time of crisis, NPR reports. Some agencies lack appointees below Cabinet level—meaning, for example, that Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner is swamped as “pretty much the only Obama appointee with... More »

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 Vetting Process Leaves 
 Agencies Understaffed 

Stimulus increases workload, but senior posts vacant

(Newser) - President Obama’s nominee vetting process is making it hard for federal agencies to get to work on new projects, the Boston Globe reports. Of about 500 senior positions, only 70 have been filled. Normally that wouldn’t be a problem, but the passage of the stimulus package “may... More »

 Sebelius Mum on HHS Post 

Kansas gov says she's had no meetings on joining the Obama Cabinet

(AP) - Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, mentioned as a top candidate for health secretary, said today she has not talked with President Barack Obama about joining his Cabinet. "There really isn't anything to tell. I haven't had any meetings about the position," Sebelius, 60, said in an interview with the... More »

 Netanyahu to Form 
 Israeli Government 

LIvni averse to power-sharing propositions

(Newser) - Right-of-center Benjamin Netanyahu has been asked to form Israel’s new government, despite President Shimon Peres’s initial hopes that  Netanyahu would share power with centrist Tzipi Livni, who was the top vote-getter in the election last week. Livni said she would prefer to head the opposition, the BBC reports.... More »

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(Newser) - As Hillary Clinton takes over the State Department, it's worth remembering that her train-wreck presidential campaign followed an "audacious 2000 run for Senate" and an excellent record as a legislator, Michael Crowley writes for the New Republic. "The question—not only for Hillary's legacy but for US... More »

Obama Campaign Advisers Left Out in the Cold

Members of foreign policy team passed over for more center-right candidates

(Newser) - Prominent advisers to presidential candidates can usually count on having their pick of administration jobs after the campaign. Not so with candidate Obama's foreign policy team, most of whom shaded to the left, the LA Times reports. It stems from the president's decision to give the three top national security... More »

ANALYSIS

What's the Fallout from Daschle's Withdrawal?

Major issues in the wake of Daschle's withdrawal

(Newser) - Tom Daschle gave up his nomination for Health and Human Services Secretary, raising a host of questions, Matthew Cooper writes at Talking Points Memo. Did an issue besides tax problems arise? Was the decision really Daschle’s, or the administration’s? Some other big issues:
  1. How many Obama nominees
... More »

 Daschle 
 Withdraws 
 Cabinet Bid 


Tax flub claims another Obama nominee

(Newser) - Tom Daschle withdrew today from consideration for secretary of health and human services over controversial unpaid taxes, the Boston Globe reports. Daschle had retained the support of the Obama administration despite the flub, but quit seeking the post so as not to be a distraction, he said. President Obama regretfully... More »

Obama Mulls Republican for Commerce

Tapping NH's Gregg could give Democrats 60 seats in Senate

(Newser) - Democrats may get their 60-seat Senate majority after all. President Obama is considering New Hampshire Republican Judd Gregg for the Commerce Secretary post Bill Richardson declined, sources tell Politico. New Hampshire’s Democratic governor would then get to appoint Gregg’s successor. Asked if he’d been offered the job,... More »

White House Ordered to Find Missing Emails

Judge issues last-minute bid to archive Iraq letters

(Newser) - As current White House employees pack their bags, a federal judge today ordered the president's executive office to find and properly archive missing e-mails written by senior Bush appointees. At issue are communications that date to the period between 2003 and 2005, specifically documents that relate to the invasion of... More »

Senate Delays Hearing on Geithner

Troubled Treasury bid must wait until after Inauguration

(Newser) - The incoming administration's attempt to fast-track Tim Geithner's confirmation hearing has failed in the wake of trouble with his personal finances, and the session will now take place on Jan. 21, the New York Times reports. The delay of the Senate hearing until after the Inauguration, motivated by Republican lawmakers'... More »

(Newser) - Hillary Clinton signaled a willingness to directly engage Iran and Syria in talks once she's secretary of state—a prospect she had denounced as "naive" during the campaign, the Wall Street Journal reports. In her confirmation hearing—she is expected to be easily approved later this week—Clinton said... More »

Keep Richardson Cabinet Spot Hispanic, Leaders Urge

Latino activists disappointed NM governor won't head Commerce, push new list

(Newser) - Bill Richardson’s Cabinet nomination was big for the Hispanic community, and with the New Mexico governor backing out, Politico reports, Latino leaders are pushing Barack Obama to choose another of their own for the Commerce slot. Says the head of one group, “We hope we can keep that... More »

(AP) - Thailand's prime minister unveiled his new cabinet today, including a supporter of last month's airport blockade in a lineup that cast doubt on the government's ability to unite the divided nation, the AP reports. The announcement came after King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the country's revered monarch, endorsed Abhisit Vejjajiva, whom lawmakers... More »

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ANALYSIS

 Solis Is Cabinet's 
 Lone Progressive 

Obama's Cabinet stocked with moderates—except Solis

(Newser) - Progressives are viewing Barack Obama's ever-so-centrist Cabinet with disappointment, except for the notable pick of union friend Hilda Solis for labor secretary, Politico reports. Solis, a rising star in the House who had been viewed as a potential Speaker, is the daughter of a teamster and a factory worker, and... More »

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 Obama Picks Solis for Labor 

Calif. Congresswoman has pushed for creation of 'green jobs'

(Newser) - Barack Obama will nominate Hilda Solis, a daughter of Latin American immigrants who’s currently a California Congresswoman, for secretary of labor, the Washington Post reports. Elected in 2000, Solis currently sits on the House Energy and Commerce committee and the Natural Resources committee, among others. She, like Obama, has... More »

(Newser) - Former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack will be Barack Obama's pick for agriculture secretary, CNN reports. Obama is expected to make the announcement tomorrow. Vilsack himself briefly ran for president before dropping out and campaigning for Hillary Clinton. As a two-term governor, Vilsack backed renewable energy and sought to develop the... More »

ANALYSIS

 Cabinet Devoid of Southerners 

Some complain of 'geographical snubbing,' others say it's irrelevant

(Newser) - President-elect Obama has named most of his Cabinet picks—yet thus far, he hasn’t chosen any Southerners, Politico reports. Every president since at least JFK has named Southerners to his cabinet, and some southern Democrats aren’t happy about what they see as “geographical snubbing.” But others... More »

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