Nothing is coming very easily for President Obama when it comes to getting his cabinet confirmed. Jack Lew has been the easiest confirmation by far, with Chuck Hagel being held up for weeks and John Brennan now being slowed up as well.
The delaying tactics by the Republicans is certainly nothing new. Brennan’s delayed vote in the Senate Intelligence Committee is probably even a move that most Republicans can explain away with actual, tangible reasons for why they want to take a longer look at Brennan.
Still, the number of times that the Republicans have roadblocked nominees that are certain to be confirmed once an up or down vote is recorded has been raising some eyebrows. The Obama administration has done itself no favors by nominating candidates that come with baggage.
Hagel had his comments about the “pro-Israel” lobby. John Brennan has his acceptance and endorsement of a drone program that has targeted Americans who were suspected of terrorist activities. Reuters reports that Democratic leaders had hoped to hold a confirmation in front of the full Senate on Thursday.
Those plans were derailed when the Senate Intelligence Committee announced they were going to wait for their own vote until next week. The most interesting thing about this particular delay, is that the Republicans might be getting help from their Democratic colleagues on the committee.
Yahoo! News reports that some in the President’s own party have bristled at just how secretive the Obama administration has been regarding the drones. One of those Democrats, Ron Wyden from Oregon made it clear that at the present time he could not vote for Brennan.
Wyden said that he still wasn’t satisfied with the information the White House had provided him in regards to the drone strikes adding:
“Americans have a right to know when their government believes it is allowed to kill them, and that’s what getting these documents is about. I’ve made it very clear to the White House that we need those legal analyses before we vote. There is certainly additional time to work this out.”
With the continuing battle over drones, will John Brennan be confirmed as CIA Director next week?