CWA: Fix the Broken Senate Rules; the President's Nominees Deserve "Up or Down Vote"

Washington, D.C. -- Following is a statement by Communications Workers of America President Larry Cohen on the failure of the U.S. Senate to move forward on the nominations of Mel Watt and Patricia Millett:

“Today’s action by a minority of the U.S. Senate to block the confirmation votes of Mel Watt to head the Federal Housing Finance Administration and Patricia Millett, to fill one of three vacancies on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, demonstrates why Majority Leader Reid must move forward to fix the broken Senate rules.

This summer, Reid stood up to the obstructionists and showed his leadership in pushing to gain confirmation votes for the President’s nominees. To counter this current round of obstruction, the Majority Leader should use the procedural motion that’s been used 17 times since 1978 to move these nominees to a vote.

The President’s constitutional authority calls for him to appoint nominees for executive positions and the judiciary.  The Senate’s constitutional obligation is to advise and consent, not obstruct. In our democracy, the President’s nominees deserve an up or down vote. 

Just as some senators tried to block confirmation of the head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau because they didn’t want that agency to function, that same attack is being waged against Watt. Watt is highly qualified member of Congress from North Carolina.  

Millett, also highly qualified, has been named by the President to fill one of three vacancies in what is called the second most important court in our country. The minority doesn’t want to change the current make-up of this court because of political ideology. That’s not democracy. 

Contact: Candice Johnson or Kendra M. Chaikind, CWA Communications, 202-434-1168, cjohnson@cwa-union.org and kchaikind@cwa-union.org