Bush today made the following
recess appointments. (Full list at the end of the diary.)
The most immediately interesting and terrifying name is that of Julie Myers, the second of two similarly named cronies picked by Bush for important national positions in the wake of Katrina and Michael Brown.
Myers' nomination at the time was so odious as to elicit this reaction from noted obstructionist Democrat Michelle Malkin:
Oh, give me a ^*&%$# break and a half! This nomination is a monumental political and policy blunder in the wake of the Michael Brown/FEMA fiasco. And I can tell you that contrary to the Miss Mary Sunshine White House spokeswoman's comments, rank-and-file DHS employees and immigration enforcement officials are absolutely livid about Myers' nomination.
And similar reactions from such other
raging anti-Bush critics as Red State and
National Review.
But Katrina Kronyism has receded from the headlines. Anderson Cooper is now mourning in West Virgina, Ariel Sharon is incapacitated in a hospital, and Sam Alito is getting his getting his hair combed in preparation for his hearings. A great time to slip through an appointment like this.
To top it all off, Myers is apparently also quite friendly with Alice Fisher, the prosecutor currently overseeing the Abramoff investigation.
Heckuva job, Dubya.
Here's the full list dumped this afternoon:
President George W. Bush today recess appointed the following individuals:
Floyd Hall, of New Jersey, to be a Member of the AMTRAK Reform Board.
Enrique J. Sosa, of Florida, to be a Member of the AMTRAK Reform Board.
Nadine Hogan, of Florida, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the Inter-American Foundation (Private Representative).
Roger W. Wallace, of Texas, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the Inter-American Foundation (Private Representative).
Gordon England, of Texas, to be Deputy Secretary of Defense.
Benjamin A. Powell, of Florida, to be General Counsel of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
Ronald E. Meisburg, of Virginia, to be General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board.
Julie L. Myers, of Kansas, to be Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security (Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement).
Tracy A. Henke, of Missouri, to be Executive Director of the Office of State and Local Government Coordination and Preparedness at the Department of Homeland Security.
Arthur F. Rosenfeld, of Virginia, to be Federal Mediation and Conciliation Director at the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service.
Ellen R. Sauerbrey, of Maryland, to be Assistant Secretary of State (Population, Refugees, and Migration).
Dorrance Smith, of Virginia, to be Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs).
Robert D. Lenhard, of Maryland, to be a Member of the Federal Election Commission.
Steven T. Walther, of Nevada, to be a Member of the Federal Election Commission.
Hans Von Spakovsky, of Georgia, to be a Member of the Federal Election Commission.
Peter N. Kirsanow, of Ohio, to be a Member of the National Labor Relations Board.
Stephen Goldsmith, of Indiana, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the Corporation for National and Community Service.