Deputy EPA chief nominee withdraws

By GottaLaff

Another one bites the dust:

Another Obama administration nominee withdrew his name Wednesday as questions emerged about a nonprofit group with which he had been affiliated.

Jonathan Z. Cannon, nominated as deputy director of the Environmental Protection Agency, cited questions about the now-defunct America's Clean Water Foundation, for which he had been a board member. He said he didn't want to be a distraction.

In 2007, EPA auditors accused the foundation of mismanaging $25 million in taxpayer funds. The foundation had won that much in federal contracts to identify environmental risks at beef, poultry and pork plants, and to help states and Native American tribes comply with the Clean Water Act.

EPA auditors questioned the foundation's accounting of almost all that money and alluded to allegations of embezzlement. The report did not mention Cannon, who is a professor of environmental law at the University of Virginia and the former top EPA lawyer. [...]

Matt Dempsey, a spokesman for Sen. James M. Inhofe of Oklahoma, the top Republican on the panel, told the Associated Press that committee staffers had questioned Cannon about the report at a meeting Monday. But Dempsey said the organization's missteps did not warrant opposing Cannon's nomination.

Obama's National Intelligence Council pick withdraws

By GottaLaff

Freeman has been the center of controversy for days:

The Daily Beast: Chas Freeman, Obama's pick to head the National Intelligence Council, has withdrawn from contention for the job. The leader of the campaign against Freeman was Steven Rosen, a former director of AIPAC awaiting trial on espionage charges, who has a long history of attacking and undermining anybody he deems hostile to Israel.

From the L.A. Times:

Charles W. Freeman Jr. withdrew Tuesday from his appointment as chairman of the National Intelligence Council after questions about his impartiality were raised among members of Congress and with White House officials. [...]

Freeman had come under fire for statements he had made criticizing Israeli policies and for his past connections to Saudi and Chinese interests.

The National Intelligence Council oversees production of intelligence estimates and shorter assessments on specific issues, tapping experts from among the 16 intelligence agencies. The chairman's position does not require Senate confirmation.

Going through withdrawal: US returns six-year stockpile of weapons

By GottaLaff

"Hi. I'm the United States, and I'm a war-oholic."

"Hi, United States."

Step One in our military Twelve Step Program: First, admit you can return equipment. Withdrawal may be painful, but will eventually lead to inner, and outer, peace:

The US military is sending back equipment it has used in Iraq through Jordan and Kuwait as it tests possible exits out of the war-torn country.

The convoys that are carrying armored vehicles, weapons and other items out of Iraq, mark the Pentagon's first steps in confronting the complex logistics of transporting the huge arsenal the US military has stockpiled in Iraq over nearly six years.

The move is also part of a wider assessment, to decide what items the military can transfer, donate, sell or throw away once a full-scale withdrawal is underway, Marine Corps and Army officials told The Associated Press.

"Because they are starting to see a potential reduction of forces, they are looking to get more stuff out," Terry Moores, the deputy assistant chief of staff for logistics for Marine Corps Central Command, said on Saturday.

See you at the next meeting.

Pop quiz

By GottaLaff

vs.

I liveblogged this verbatim when Judd Gregg spoke to the press about his withdrawal as Commerce Secretary nominee:

"The census wasn't a major issue, it was a slight issue."

Yet, on Countdown, Howard Fineman claimed that the census was a major deal breaker. Which is it?

VIDEO-- President Obama on Judd Gregg's withdrawal, bipartisanship: "I'm gonna keep on working on this"

By GottaLaff

Here you go:



H/t: Hippie_Cyndi

AUDIO: President Obama's reaction to Judd Gregg's decision to withdraw as Commerce Sec'y

By GottaLaff

It's short, but it's all I could dig up:

Judd Gregg: "Nothing about the vetting process played any role in this decision."

By GottaLaff

A few updates to add to what we already know:

Sen. Judd Gregg (R-NH) withdrew from consideration as Secretary of Commerce citing "irresolvable conflicts" over President Obama's economic stimulus package and oversight of the Census Bureau.

In a statement, Gregg noted that "nothing about the vetting process played any role in this decision."

Marc Ambinder: "Gregg's decision to withdraw caught the White House by surprise. The press office found out about it at about the same time as the world did. If senior administration officials had advance notice, they did not widely disseminate it." [...]

In a conference call, Gregg confirmed he will not run for re-election in 2010.

Democratic source: Gregg campaigned for the job

By GottaLaff

Check out these headlines on the CNN website:

• Democratic source: Gregg campaigned for the job

A Democratic source confirms to CNN that Harry Reid approached White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel about Gregg for Commerce Secretary.

And White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said Thursday Gregg had initiated discussions over the position.

“Senator Gregg reached out to the President and offered his name for Secretary of Commerce. He was very clear throughout the interviewing process that despite past disagreements about policies, he would support, embrace, and move forward with the President’s agenda," said Gibbs in a statement.

"Once it became clear after his nomination that Senator Gregg was not going to be supporting some of President Obama’s key economic priorities, it became necessary for Senator Gregg and the Obama administration to part ways. We regret that he has had a change of heart”.

• Gregg withdrawal shows Obama's inexperience, senator says

Sen Judd Gregg's decision to withdraw his name for Commerce Secretary is a sign of President Obama's inexperience, Republican Sen Bob Bennet of Utah said.

“I think it is a demonstration of inexperience. You don’t attract someone of Judd Gregg caliber into the cabinet and then take steps that would cause him to leave without at least talking to him and understanding that that might happen," he told reporters Thursday.

• Gregg decision came after talks with GOP leaders

• White House decisions 'almost humiliated' Gregg, says source

BREAKING: Judd Gregg withdraws as Commerce Secretary

By GottaLaff

Talking to the press on TV now. Liveblogging.

He says it would be too difficult to serve in any cabinet and not be "110% of the team". "The president has been incredibly gracious... he has aggressively reached out across the aisle, and I immensely respect that and respect him. It's not about that... but it wasn't a good fit. I wasn't comfortable with that. With that in mind, I withdrew. It was unfair in many ways to do that, but if I couldn't do the job the way it should be done... [it would have been a mistake]. I believe I might be more effective [not as a part of his cabinet]."

I will "carry his water in the Senate" in other ways. ... "It was a bridge too far from me. He asked me to do it, I said yes, that was my mistake... maybe his... but it was my mistake. ... [I wouldn't be able to be a team player.]"

"The census wasn't a major issue, it was a slight issue. ...I probably won't run again."

"The president is doing an incredible job with the stimulus. I think the plan will work when it gets the detail behind it.... When the market takes a look at what's proposed, the market will react very positively..."

I made a mistake, I should have focused sooner and more effectively on being a member of the cabinet instead of doing my job. This came very quickly, over a period of a week and a half. My genuine belief that this will be a good presidency is what caused me to say yes...

[It took awhile for me to focus... I realized I had to join the team.]