Monday, February 8, 2010
2:37 PM
Shelby holds up Butler, Conley, Sargeant nominations
U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby's hold on presidential nominees appears to have snagged three Wisconsin appointments.
The move holds up the nominations of Louis Butler and William Conley to the federal bench in Madison, as well as the appointment of Winslow Sargeant to be chief counsel for advocacy in the Small Business Administration.
Shelby, R-Ala., put the hold on the nominations Friday to pressure the administration on military projects that impact his home state.
The office of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said today that hold applies to all appointments pending on the executive calendar, which includes the appointments of Butler, Conley and Sargeant.
The Senate could overturn the hold by cobbling together 60 votes, but that would require at least one GOP member breaking ranks to join Dems in removing the hold. The president could also pursue recess appointments with the Senate going on break next week.
See the executive calendar with the various appointments pending:
http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/executive_calendar/xcalv.pdf
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