New York Times Editorial: Pssst, Over to You

New York Times Editorial: Pssst, Over to You
Copyright by the New York Times
Published: May 12, 2010
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/13/opinion/13thu3.html?th&emc=th


The United States Senate was supposed to have dropped its insidious tradition that let members put endless secret holds on nominations and other important matters. The abuse continues, more murky than ever.

The reform, adopted three years ago, required senators to identify themselves within six days of blocking a nominee, and to state their objection. That stricture has been routinely violated with cheesy gamesmanship. Members — mostly in the Republican minority — pass secret holds among themselves to foil the time limit.

Right now there are 52 nominees on secret holds — all noncontroversial in committee debates. Claire McCaskill, a Democrat of Missouri, is so fed up that she is challenging her colleagues from the Senate floor to fess up. “If you’re gonna stall and block, let’s see who you are,” she demanded in one speech. Charles Grassley, a Republican of Iowa, echoed her, urging secret holders to “have the guts to go public.”

Only Senator Tom Coburn, a Republican of Oklahoma, had the guts. He owned up to six nominees in limbo. That won’t cure obstructionism, but it will let taxpayers see who is blocking whom to further what agenda.

Senator McCaskill is campaigning to ban all secret holds. She is unlikely to get the votes. Senators Grassley and Ron Wyden, Democrat of Oregon, are proposing a middle ground — a two-day requirement for secret holders to identify and explain themselves in the Congressional record, no evasions.

Both parties have abused secret holds. But Democrats warn there is now a wholesale emergency of court vacancies. The Senate has confirmed only 45 percent of President Obama’s judicial nominees, as opposed to 93 percent at a similar point during the administration of President George W. Bush. The games need to stop. Senators need to do their jobs. That means debating, confirming or rejecting nominees based on their merits.