OK, am I the only one who finds this to be an extra-constitutional abuse of power? Sen. Selby is holding all nominations up until $40 billion in earmarks for Alabama are passed. Where exactly does the Constitution say one dumbass from Alabama can hold up the entire Senate until he gets his bribe? The Senate rules need reform desperately. This is just abusing the system. This is from a member of the party that claims to be the voice of fiscal restraint.
Sen. Richard Shelby (R-AL) has put an extraordinary “blanket hold” on at least 70 nominations President Obama has sent to the Senate, according to multiple reports this evening. The hold means no nominations can move forward unless Senate Democrats can secure a 60-member cloture vote to break it, or until Shelby lifts the hold.
“While holds are frequent,” CongressDaily‘s Dan Friedman and Megan Scully report (sub. req.), “Senate aides said a blanket hold represents a far more aggressive use of the power than is normal.” The magazine reported aides to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid were the source of the news about Shelby’s blanket hold.
via Report: Shelby Blocks All Obama Nominations In The Senate Over AL Earmarks | TPMDC.
