Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Butcher's Bill

During the Napoleonic Wars, a list of the dead and wounded was called the "Butcher's Bill". Since so many of Obama's nominations for key positions have fallen under the weight of their own misdeeds I have decided that I will keep a "Butcher's Bill" for the Obama Administration. New entries will be marked in red.

  • Charles Freeman (former ambassador to Saudi Arabia); nominated to to be the chairman of the National Intelligence Council; killed due to strong anti-Israeli views and close ties to the Chinese and Saudis (including the Bib Laden family)
  • Tom Dashcle (former Senate majority leader); nominated to be Secretary of Health and Human Services; killed due to unpaid taxes
  • Nancy Killefer; nominated to be deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget; killed due to failure to pay employment taxes on household help (D.C. placed a tax lean on Killefer’s, $1.7 million home in Northwest Washington in 2005 for failure to pay the taxes)
  • New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson; Commerce secretary; killed due to federal investigation into “pay-to-play” allegations
  • U.S. Attorney Gen. William Holder; wounded due to his support for the early release of FALN terrorist bombers and the pardon of Marc Rich
  • Timothy Geithner, (former president of the New York Federal Reserve Bank that failed to head off the Wall Street meltdown); wounded due to his failure to head off the Wall street meltdown and unpaid taxes
  • Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel; wounded due to former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich scandal
  • Senior Adviser David Axelrod; wounded due to former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich scandal
  • Senior Adviser Valerie Jarrett; wounded due to former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich scandal
  • Leon Panetta (former Clinton administration chief staff); nominated to be CIA director; wounded due to lack of intelligence experience
  • Secretary of State Hillary Clinton; wounded due to possible conflict of interest with her husband's foundation
  • William Lynn; wounded because despite Obama’s “no lobbyists” pledge, he selected the former Raytheon executive and lobbyist to serve as the No. 2 official in the Pentagon. Raytheon is a major Pentagon contractor
Newsmax interviewed James P. Pfiffner, author of The Modern Presidency, about the number of "casualties" in the Obama administration:
Presidential transition and policy expert James P. Pfiffner, author of The Modern Presidency, tells Newsmax that Obama’s nomination mishaps have been somewhat greater than normal for an incoming president, particularly regarding tax issues.

The errors suggest flaws in the Obama team’s vetting process, he says, and adds that the stumbles are worrisome given the high expectations for good governance created by Obama himself.

Pfiffner, a public policy professor at George Mason University, says he finds Obama’s missteps all the more surprising given what he viewed as an extraordinarily effective presidential transition.



SOURCE: Newsmax article on Ambassador Charles Freeman
SOURCE: Newsmax article on other nominees

No comments: