McCain gets brushed aside, Senate confirms Hill as Iraq ambassador

By GottaLaff

Better late than never:

The Senate on Tuesday easily confirmed the nomination of Christopher Hill as the next U.S. ambassador to Iraq, brushing aside strong opposition from 2008 GOP presidential nominee John McCain.

So much for John Sidney's influence.

Senators voted 73-23 to confirm Hill, a day after approval of a key process vote, by a similar margin, had made it clear that Hill had widespread support in the Senate. Nevertheless, Republicans Sam Brownback of Kansas and McCain had blocked the chamber from short-cutting the process.

Brownback said in a floor speech Monday that Hill had performed poorly in his previous job as U.S. ambassador to North Korea, given that the country has gone ahead with nuclear ambitions that appear hostile to some. Brownback is simultaneously pushing a bill to restore the status of North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism, a designation which the Bush administration removed in 2008.

Maybe this is what got under their skin:

McCain also cited Hill’s “failure” to prevent North Korea from launching nuclear missiles, as well as comments he made to a New York Times reporter about the Bush administration, saying "These (expletives) don’t know how to negotiate," and that his instructions from Washington showed “a complete lack of understanding about how the world works.”

Sam Brownback Will Step Down

Let's hope Kansas went blue enough in '08 to keep this holy roller out of the governor's mansion.

Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS), who pledged he would only serve two terms in the U.S. Senate, will formally announce today that he won't seek a third term in 2010, the Kansas City Star reports.

Brownback, "who's been wrapping up a statewide tour lately, is widely expected to run for governor in 2010 to succeed Democrat Kathleen Sebelius, who is barred by law from seeking a third term."

However, a statement from Brownback's office warns that he "will not be making any announcements about his future at this time."