recess appointment news stories on Newser

Courts Could Nix Obama Recess Appointments

Kevin Spak — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 10:56:31 CST

Legal experts doubt President Obama's controversial "recess appointment" of Richard Cordray will hold up in court—including some experts who've sided with him in the past, the Hill reports. "It's untested ground," says one Harvard constitutional law expert. "If I were a judge, I could write out an opinion either...

Obama Defies Congress With More Recess Appointments

John Johnson — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 15:17:52 CST

President Obama isn't winning much love among his political enemies on Capitol Hill today. Hours after making a controversial recess appointment to lead the new consumer protection agency, the president announced three more—this time to the National Labor Relations Board. The move will please the president's pro-union allies and...

Obama Will Appoint Cordray Watchdog

Wed, 04 Jan 2012 09:31:39 CST

President Obama is thumbing his nose at Republican opposition and will today name a new US chief consumer watchdog: Richard Cordray. Yep, the same Cordray who Senate Republicans blocked early last month. Obama's decision to make a recess appointment is certain to cause an uproar—he's essentially declaring the Senate's...

Obama's 6 Recess Picks Include AIG Consultant

Thu, 30 Dec 2010 11:43:49 CST

President Obama bypassed the Senate yesterday to make six recess appointments, the most controversial being a deputy attorney general whose links to the insurance giant AIG had stalled his confirmation. Obama first nominated James Cole to the No. 2 Justice Department post in May, but GOP lawmakers blocked his confirmation...

Obama Uses Recess Appointments to Thwart GOP

John Johnson — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 14:56:12 CDT

Barack Obama is using the presidential prerogative of recess appointments for the first time to bypass a Republican logjam in the Senate. Obama made 15 such appointments today, complaining that GOP senators were blocking his nominees to score "political points." The picks include two nominees backed by unions to serve...

Senate Confirms 27 Obama Nominees

Emily Rauhala — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 07:01:43 CST

Twenty-seven Obama nominees were confirmed last night following a tense exchange between the president and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. Critics accused McConnell and the GOP of "blinking" in the face of the president's threat to make recess appointments over the President's Day break. Republicans denied the claim, saying the...

Harry Reid Changes Tune on Recess Appointments

Kevin Spak — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 07:40:24 CST

Harry Reid thinks its time for Barack Obama to make some recess appointments, a procedural move the majority leader vehemently opposed when George Bush was in power. “What alternative do we have?” Reid said last week, exasperated over Richard Shelby’s move to place a hold on all of Obama’s outstanding...

Senators Fly Solo, Foiling Bush Move

J. Kelman — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 14:05:00 CST

A contentious Justice Department nomination lies behind Harry Reid's plan to keep the Senate in session over the holidays, if only for seconds at a time. Dems offered to give the White House a pass on a slew of other recess appointments in exchange for putting controversial terrorism expert Steven...

The Hill Has Recess, But It's No Fun

Dustin Lushing — Wed, 26 Dec 2007 14:16:15 CST

Democrats in Congress are keeping a watchful eye on President Bush and preventing him from making any appointments during the monthlong holiday recess. The strategy requires the Senate to be in session every couple of days—even if only for a few seconds. On Friday, the Politico reports, the Senate...