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Reporting from Washington -
President Obama's appointment of "czars," or policy coordinators, is drawing new fire from lawmakers in both parties.
The most prominent complaint is that Obama, by using his own authority to name people to these policy jobs, is circumventing the role of the Senate in considering and confirming important nominations to the president's administration.
In a letter to the president this week, Sen. Susan Collins (R- Maine) and five other Republican lawmakers criticized the administration for encroaching on Congress' authority in establishing what it said were too many far-reaching czars.
Collins identified 18 positions created by Obama that "may be undermining the constitutional oversight responsibilities of Congress."
The letter asks Obama to respond with information about each position, including the administration's vetting process and whether the officials will be available to appear before Congress.
Among the czars are Nancy-Ann DeParle, who coordinates healthcare issues within the White House; Carol Browner, who coordinates energy and environmental issues within the White House; Adolfo Carrion Jr., who works on urban affairs; and Lynn Rosenthal, who works on domestic violence and sexual assault issues.
Democrats also have questioned the use of czars. On Tuesday, Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) raised similar concerns in a letter to Obama. Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.), in his own letter this year, noted that czars in past administrations had "rarely" testified before congressional committees "and often shield the information and decision-making process behind the assertion of executive privilege."
White House spokesman Tommy Vietor said Republicans have mislabeled key agency personnel as czars.
"The term 'czar' is largely a media creation to make jobs that have existed under multiple administrations sound more exciting," Vietor said. "Every president since Nixon has hired smart and qualified people to coordinate between agencies and the White House."
Despite the recent fervor among lawmakers and the conservative media over Obama's lengthy czar list, these positions are not a creation of the 44th president.
The term goes back at least as far as 1957, when the press called James Killian the "Missile Czar" in the aftermath of the Russians' launch of Sputnik.
During the 1970s oil crisis, Frank Zarb was known as the energy czar under President Ford.
President George H.W. Bush appointed William J. Bennett as the nation's first drug czar in 1989.
The second Bush administration also had numerous intelligence and homeland security czars.
The Obama administration itself rarely refers to officials as czars, and some of them have been confirmed by the Senate or placed in positions created by Congress.
Richard Holbrooke, whom Collins labeled the Afghanistan czar, has testified before Congress several times.
joseph.markman@tribune.com
The most prominent complaint is that Obama, by using his own authority to name people to these policy jobs, is circumventing the role of the Senate in considering and confirming important nominations to the president's administration.
In a letter to the president this week, Sen. Susan Collins (R- Maine) and five other Republican lawmakers criticized the administration for encroaching on Congress' authority in establishing what it said were too many far-reaching czars.
Collins identified 18 positions created by Obama that "may be undermining the constitutional oversight responsibilities of Congress."
The letter asks Obama to respond with information about each position, including the administration's vetting process and whether the officials will be available to appear before Congress.
Among the czars are Nancy-Ann DeParle, who coordinates healthcare issues within the White House; Carol Browner, who coordinates energy and environmental issues within the White House; Adolfo Carrion Jr., who works on urban affairs; and Lynn Rosenthal, who works on domestic violence and sexual assault issues.
Democrats also have questioned the use of czars. On Tuesday, Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) raised similar concerns in a letter to Obama. Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.), in his own letter this year, noted that czars in past administrations had "rarely" testified before congressional committees "and often shield the information and decision-making process behind the assertion of executive privilege."
White House spokesman Tommy Vietor said Republicans have mislabeled key agency personnel as czars.
"The term 'czar' is largely a media creation to make jobs that have existed under multiple administrations sound more exciting," Vietor said. "Every president since Nixon has hired smart and qualified people to coordinate between agencies and the White House."
Despite the recent fervor among lawmakers and the conservative media over Obama's lengthy czar list, these positions are not a creation of the 44th president.
The term goes back at least as far as 1957, when the press called James Killian the "Missile Czar" in the aftermath of the Russians' launch of Sputnik.
During the 1970s oil crisis, Frank Zarb was known as the energy czar under President Ford.
President George H.W. Bush appointed William J. Bennett as the nation's first drug czar in 1989.
The second Bush administration also had numerous intelligence and homeland security czars.
The Obama administration itself rarely refers to officials as czars, and some of them have been confirmed by the Senate or placed in positions created by Congress.
Richard Holbrooke, whom Collins labeled the Afghanistan czar, has testified before Congress several times.
joseph.markman@tribune.com
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