Obama has 'too many' posts still left to fill
Source: Agencies |
January 14, 2010, Thursday
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UNITED states President Barack Obama has filled key government jobs about as fast as the Bush administration, but too many top positions - about 40 percent - remain vacant nearly a year after Obama took office, according to a report which was being released yesterday.
While the study by the Partnership for Public Service praised Obama for a well-organized transition last year, it also criticized the president's team and Congress for filling top posts too slowly. Among them the Transportation Security Administration and the Customs and Border Protection agency - two agencies tasked with keeping terrorists off planes, a key area of failure in the attempted Christmas Day airline attack.
"We live in a very dangerous world whereby we can't afford any lapse in leadership," said Max Stier, president of the partnership, a Washington-based advocacy group that works to improve government service.
Other top jobs with no permanent replacement were deputy under secretary for benefits at the Veterans Affairs Department, a post that helps provide benefits and services to the nation's veterans, and under secretary for food safety at the Agriculture Department, a position that oversees the country's meat and poultry inspection.
"They did as good a job as anyone has ever done," Stier said of the Obama transition, "Our point is that's not good enough."
The partnership looked at about 500 top-tier positions in the federal government, and found that as of December 31, just 305 of those were filled - about 59 percent. Another 67 had been nominated and were awaiting Senate confirmation.
The partnership says part of the blame for the large number of vacancies is what it considers the Obama team's too-stringent disclosure requirements for potential nominees. Those were tightened after embarrassing tax questions surfaced over the nominations of now-Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and former Senator Tom Daschle, who Obama had tapped to run the Department of Health and Human Services.
Also getting blame was the Senate, where nominations have been delayed for various reasons, including "holds" placed by senators for political and policy concerns. Obama tapped Erroll Southers to head the Transportation Security Administration in September, but this was blocked by Republican Senator Jim DeMint.
The report recommends major fixes before the next election, such as reducing the number of political appointees that need Senate confirmation.
While the study by the Partnership for Public Service praised Obama for a well-organized transition last year, it also criticized the president's team and Congress for filling top posts too slowly. Among them the Transportation Security Administration and the Customs and Border Protection agency - two agencies tasked with keeping terrorists off planes, a key area of failure in the attempted Christmas Day airline attack.
"We live in a very dangerous world whereby we can't afford any lapse in leadership," said Max Stier, president of the partnership, a Washington-based advocacy group that works to improve government service.
Other top jobs with no permanent replacement were deputy under secretary for benefits at the Veterans Affairs Department, a post that helps provide benefits and services to the nation's veterans, and under secretary for food safety at the Agriculture Department, a position that oversees the country's meat and poultry inspection.
"They did as good a job as anyone has ever done," Stier said of the Obama transition, "Our point is that's not good enough."
The partnership looked at about 500 top-tier positions in the federal government, and found that as of December 31, just 305 of those were filled - about 59 percent. Another 67 had been nominated and were awaiting Senate confirmation.
The partnership says part of the blame for the large number of vacancies is what it considers the Obama team's too-stringent disclosure requirements for potential nominees. Those were tightened after embarrassing tax questions surfaced over the nominations of now-Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and former Senator Tom Daschle, who Obama had tapped to run the Department of Health and Human Services.
Also getting blame was the Senate, where nominations have been delayed for various reasons, including "holds" placed by senators for political and policy concerns. Obama tapped Erroll Southers to head the Transportation Security Administration in September, but this was blocked by Republican Senator Jim DeMint.
The report recommends major fixes before the next election, such as reducing the number of political appointees that need Senate confirmation.
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