Counterbias: Bush Doesn't Play Fair at Recess

Bush Doesn't Play Fair at Recess

January 24 2006
Counterbias.com
GENE C. GERARD

President Bush recently took advantage of Congress’ winter recess to appoint 17 individuals to government positions. The Constitution allows presidents to make temporary appointments without Senate approval; those appointed can serve until the next Congressional elections. The Founding Fathers granted the presidency the power to make recess appointments because prior to the 20^th century Congress was often in session for less than six months a year, and vacancies couldn’t wait until Congress reconvened. However, since the 1980s presidents have used recess appointments for political purposes.

Presidents Reagan and Bush made recess appointments in the face of a Democratically-controlled Senate. And following the Republican takeover of Congress in 1994, President Clinton frequently used his recess appointment power. In this sense, Mr. Bush’s use of recess appointments is nothing new. However, what is unique is that Mr. Bush is making appointments at a time when his own party controls the Senate. And he is making more appointments than that of recent presidents. President Clinton issued 140 recess appointments during his two terms in office. Mr. Bush’s father made 77 appointments during his administration. By comparison, Mr. Bush made 110 appointments during his first term alone.

Mr. Bush’s use of the recess appointment power is unusual in another respect. Many of those appointed are unsuited or unqualified for their positions. Mr. Bush has seemingly appointed individuals not because of what they know, but rather whom they know. In the Bush administration, it’s often not the qualifications of those appointed that matter, but their personal or political connections to Mr. Bush himself.

Among those appointed was Julie Myers, who was installed to head the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement in the Homeland Security Department. The bureau has 15,000 employees and a budget of $4 billion. Yet Ms. Myers has never managed a government agency and has no immigration experience. Until her appointment she was the special assistant for personnel to Mr. Bush. At the age of 36, Ms. Myers is one of the youngest and most inexperienced officials to ever lead an agency. It’s more likely that her personal connections account for the appointment. She is the niece of General Richard Myers, who until recently was the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the wife of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff’s chief of staff.

Tracy Henke was appointed to serve as Executive Director of the Office of State and Local Government Coordination and Preparedness in the Homeland Security Department. Ms. Henke previously served in the Justice Department, where she was involved in an attempt to alter government documents. Last April, a report on racial profiling compiled by Lawrence Greenfield, the federal director of the Bureau of Justice Statistics, was sent to Ms. Henke for review. The report found that although police stopped blacks, Hispanics, and whites at approximately the same rate, blacks and Hispanics were more likely to be searched and greater force was used against them. Ms. Henke returned the report to Mr. Greenfield with instructions to delete the reference to unfair police treatment of blacks and Hispanics. When Mr. Greenfield refused, he was reprimanded by Justice Department officials and ultimately forced to resign by the Bush administration.

Mr. Bush recess appointed Robert Lenhard to the Federal Election Commission (FEC). Yet Mr. Lenhard is a strong critic of campaign finance reform legislation. In fact, Mr. Lenhard served as legal counsel in a case that sought to overturn the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002. As counsel, Mr. Lenhard argued that attempts to restrict advertisements disguised as addressing political issues but that actually attack or support a candidate are unlawful. However, the Supreme Court rejected his argument. Republican Senator John McCain referred to Mr. Lenhard as “someone who would use his [FEC] position not to enforce the law, but to weaken it.”

The Constitution clearly affords a president the ability to make appointments while Congress is not in session. But it also mandates that the Senate shall provide “advice and consent” on presidential nominations. By circumventing the Senate Mr. Bush is abusing his power. And he is putting the country at risk by appointing individuals to critical positions that are unqualified.