Democrats agree to block Obama nominees by holding pro-forma sessions

Democrats agree to block Obama nominees
In a stunning alliance between Senate Democrats and Senate Republicans, Senate Democratic leadership quietly agreed Wednesday evening to block President Barack Obama from making recess appointments while senators return home to campaign for midterm elections, according to a Congressional newspaper.

The move involves Senate leadership holding "pro-forma" sessions of the Senate every Monday and Friday to prevent Obama from filling vacant senior federal positions. By holding sessions every few days, Obama can't slip his nominees through.

Recess appointments are valid through the end of a Congressional session, and typically must be reconfirmed in the next calendar year. They're often used to appoint nominees that have been held up by the Senate. President George W. Bush nominated UN ambassador John Bolton through a recess appointment in 2005; Bolton had previously made comments saying the UN didn't exist, and later resigned when it became clear he couldn't be confirmed.

The Senate Democratic-Republican agreement was first reported by Alexander Bolton in The Hill.

Senate Democrats will schedule pro-forma sessions every week for the next six weeks, Bolton said.

Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) had threatened to send Obama’s most controversial nominees back to the president if Democrats did not agree to schedule pro-forma sessions, according to a senior GOP aide.

Senate rules give McConnell this power.

That would have forced the president to resubmit the nominees to the Senate and Democrats to start their confirmation processes (including hearings) all over again.

http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/121775-senate-blocks-recess-appointments