Apparently on Tuesday, the White House appointed Sen. Mike Lee's (R-Teabagger-crazy) legal counsel for the position of US Attorney in Utah, a seat that has been open for 18 months. After the WH abandoned a perfectly acceptable democratic candidate!
Link: http://www.sltrib.com/...
Further background re vetting link: http://www.sltrib.com/...
I know nothing about David Barlow, the appointee. He appears to have worked with Mike Lee at Sidley Austin, leaving "for the good of the country" when the teabaggers tossed out Bob Bennett and elected Lee. He went to BYU, where Lee's father was president.
But I do know that Mike Lee, himself a lawyer, spouts the absolute crazy when it comes to constitutional law.
Like this:
Sen. Mike Lee is well on his way to overtaking Michelle Bachman on the batshit crazy scale. He’s already suggested that laws against child labor are federally unconstitutional and should be left up to the states to determine. Whoopee! West Virginia and Kentucky can return the kiddies to the mines as soon as the GOP manages to get this repealed. (I won’t hold my breath!)
Now he’s added to his list of “get the federal government out of state business” federal disaster relief, safety nets for poverty and food safety.
Source: http://politicsunspun.com/...
And this:
"That's why the first piece of legislation I submitted as your Senator was a Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution. My proposal requires a balanced budget every fiscal year, limits federal spending to 18 percent of gross domestic product, and requires a two-thirds vote in Congress to increase taxes, raise the debt limit, or run a specific deficit."
Straight from the horse's mouth: http://lee.senate.gov/...
And Utah democrats have forwarded half a dozen names, none of whom have received any contact from the WH.
This is an important position. This office is supposed to prosecute fraud and criminal cases, even though under the prior republican AG, arguably its most visible prosecution was of Tim DeCristopher for civil disobedience. Who else is giving Lee his legal advice if not David Barlow, his legal counsel? What are we in store for?
Actually, perhaps it is a good thing that TimDeChristopher has already been sentenced to two years in prison. The new U.S. Attorney may have pushed for a longer sentence.
All I can do is shake my head. Methinks this is carrying bipartisanship way too far.
The other option. if Obama could not get Hatch's and Lee's consent to his own appointee, was simply to leave the position open. But no, this president gave in once more to the dark side. Sigh.