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NAM Official Withdraws Nomination
by Heather Greenfield
President Bush's nominee to head the Consumer Product Safety Commission responded to critics in a letter Friday to The Washington Post.
Michael Baroody, the executive vice president of the National Association of Manufacturers, withdrew his nomination last week after several Democratic lawmakers protested and Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., and Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, D-Ill., placed an official hold on his appointment.
Both lawmakers expressed concern about what they described as NAM's efforts to fend off regulations to protect consumers before the commission. Democrats raised questions about a $150,000 severance payment that Baroody would have received upon leaving NAM, questioning whether it could create a potential conflict of interest.
Under the headline "How to Treat a Nomination Shabbily," Baroody's letter to The Washington Post points out he openly disclosed the payment in documents provided to the government ethics office.
Baroody said the outrage should not be over the payment, but that the information was leaked, "which breached not just my reasonable expectation of confidentiality and proper privacy safeguards but the explicit promise of [the] same -- offering yet another regrettably chilling example that will cause potential future nominees for posts in government to think twice, or maybe three times, before taking the risk."
NAM reprinted the letter in its blog.
National Association of Manufacturers President John Engler told National Public Radio that Baroody was the victim of an "unprincipled smear campaign."
"Watching this abuse of process, apparently without consequence for the wrongdoers, makes me wonder why any qualified citizen would submit to run today's Senate gauntlet," Engler said.
Consumer groups also had fought the nomination, arguing that as a lobbyist, Baroody worked to weaken protections against dangerous products, making him an inappropriate choice to head a commission that oversees product recalls and enforces federal consumer safety rules.
The Center for Responsive Politics' Opensecrets.org, which keeps a database on officials going from government to lobbying to government jobs again, noted that before going to NAM and serving in other lobbying jobs, Baroody worked in the White House and as a speechwriter for former Sen. Bob Dole, R-Kan.
The three-member commission is in a holding pattern now. Legally it can operate without a chairman with just two commissioners for just six months. It has been without a chairman since July 2006, so the panel has been unable to vote on new federal rules or new civil penalties since January 2007.
From PFF To Progress In Copyright Battles
When Patrick Ross hears arguments that artists should create and let their work be put in the public domain, it's personal. His mother, Jo Anne Ross, is a successful novelist, and he will be fighting for her rights and the rights of others who create copyrighted works as the new executive director of the Copyright Alliance.
The coalition of organizations from the creative community launched this month with 29 members. Ross left his job as a senior fellow and vice president of communications at the Progress and Freedom Foundation to lead the group.
Ross said he was researching the issue and realized opponents were gathering strength and that while there were lots of defenders of artists, "they were spread out and not really organized." He said he was hoping to organize them as a project and learned others were trying to do the same.
In the first week, artists have signed up on the Web site and Ross said he hopes this will be a grassroots effort.
Ross said he understands copyright from another standpoint too. He spent years creating his own copyrighted works and getting others to publish them as a freelance writer. He worked as a journalist for 10 years at Communications Daily, Washington Internet Daily and also for CNET.
Tech Reporter
Meanwhile another former reporter for Washington Internet Daily has left journalism as well to become a spokesman for the Telecommunications Industry Association.
Ian Martinez reported for three years for Warren Communications' Communications Daily and the Washington Internet Daily. Martinez said he decided to go into reporting after earning a masters degree in English from Princeton and finishing a writing fellowship at Georgetown University.
He said a "fortuitous meeting" at a restaurant with Paul Warren led to an internship and his journalism career, which he loved.
Martinez describes the move to TIA as "a better opportunity to be more involved on the policy side and learn a new skill as well."
He plans to do a roaming blog at next month's Nextcom technology show in Chicago.
Cable Retires From House Leadership Office
The chief of staff for House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., will retire Friday after a career on Capitol Hill that began 40 years ago.
Bill Cable left to work at Timmons and Company as vice president and general counsel for 17 years, but he returned to Capitol Hill several years ago. Since then, he served as Democratic staff director for the House Administration Committee under Hoyer, who served as the panel's ranking Democrat at the time. He became Hoyer's chief of staff in his Whip office early last year.
"I am sad that after 40 years of public service and dedication to the Democratic Party, Bill Cable has decided to retire at the end of this month," Hoyer said. "He has been an exceptional chief of staff, and I wish him all the best as he retires to spend more time with his wife and his grandson, Jackson."
Terry Lierman, the current state chairman of the Maryland Democratic Party will become Hoyer's new chief of staff.
"I am delighted that Terry Lierman has agreed to come on board," Hoyer added. "With his deep knowledge of national and Maryland state politics, as well as extensive policy experience, Terry's expertise will help us run the House Floor effectively while advancing the Democratic agenda. I am confident that he will make a terrific chief of staff."
Lierman has served as the head of the Maryland Democratic Party since 2004, following his role as national finance co-chairman for Democrat Howard Dean's presidential campaign in 2004. A former candidate for Congress in 2000, Lierman founded and directed Capitol Associates, a consulting firm focused on health issues, and previously served as staff director for the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Quote of the Week:
"I think any foreign student who gets a Ph.D. in our country -- in any subject -- should be offered citizenship. I want them. The idea that we actually make it difficult for them to stay is crazy."
-- New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman, writing about visas for highly skilled workers after attending a graduation ceremony.
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