Do people understand how little the Commerce Department does?

[Zynx]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Department_of_Commerce

I'll admit, I've always hated Judd Gregg, but he does far less damage here than he does in the Senate. He only oversees a $9 billion budget and mostly collects economic data and looks at our weather patterns. Most of that has very little to do with him anyway as the data collecting agencies are fairly immune from departmental pressure. Seriously, this is the Siberia of government.

[rwheeler31]

1. Hmmm Why would he want it?

Defense contracts?

[Zynx]

2. Nope. Those don't go through Commerce.

What that job has always been is a liaison to business. He's probably hoping to build some connections. He does serve in somewhat of an advisory role to the president as well, but not really.

[Hippo_Tron]

13. I think it's a cushy gig with a lot of perks

[Thrill]

19. Because he was toast in the midterm elections

[PM7nj]

3. Maybe he wants to retire from the Senate?

:shrug:

[Zynx]

4. Could be. It's not a bad way of doing it.

[Lint Head]

5. Yep. He will stick his wet finger up in the air and check the weather.

That's about a 9 billion dollar task.
:dem:

[Zynx]

7. That's pretty much what he does. He gets paid top Federal money to do it too.

[Double T]

6. From the shape of our economy looks like the commerce department should be eliminated.

Judd Gregg is Mr. H1B visa and in this job market the last thing we need are low wage scab workers from other nations. corporate america and the commerce department should both get the line item veto. This is the kind of shit where Obama loses me.

[rwheeler31]

8. Who was the last chairman of the powerful commerce

committee.

[Pirate Smile]

20. This guy, of course. Doesn't everyone remember him with all his power and influence? Nope?

[JayMusgrove]

9. Maybe Obama will eliminate that cabinet position after he appoints Greg.

How nice of him to show Judd Greg that he, too, can be laid off as useless or unsupportable with federal dollars.

[KoKo]

10. HA! Just "GOOGLE" US Chamber of Commerce and you'll SEE ...they write ALL our Anti-Labor Bills

and they are IN ON IT TO NOT ALLOW any Health Insurance or other "Peoples Rights" to EVER get PASSED in CONGRESS! They are TOTAL BUSH BOTS...and NOTHING they DO could ever be conceived of as DEMOCRATIC!

[Muttocracy]

16. Chamber of Commerce is a private group, not same as U.S. Dept of Commerce. nt

[Richardo]

21. Never let facts get in the way of a good, uninformed rant.

[Occam Bandage]

26. This has to be satire. nt

[Bolo Boffin]

11. Republicans in charge of Defense and Commerce.

A clear message to the American people that only Republicans can properly deal with these issues. Please, President Obama, try to shoot Democrats in the foot harder.

[Zynx]

33. If this is your concern, how many Americans do you even think could tell

you who the last Attorney General was? My guess is less than a quarter.

[PVnRT]

43. So, does unpopularity mean unimportant?

Quick, who is the commander of U.S. forces in Africa? Think that's not important? How about Secretary of the Navy?

Saying that this "isn't important" is idiotic. All cabinet appointments are important, whether you think the average American knows who they are or not.

[Zynx]

47. Commerce is not a vital department.

I'm sorry, it just isn't. There is no vital administrative function.

[BadgerKid]

12. I'd still keep alert though.

For example, while *Co was around, there were forces trying to privatize most of the National Weather Service.

[Jack Rabbit]

14. Well, there is one case of a Commerce Secretary becoming president

It was Herbert Hoover.

[Life Long Dem]

15. United States Department of Commerce

That's all... just words... we won...

The mission of the department is to "promote job creation and improved living standards for all Americans by creating an infrastructure that promotes economic growth, technological competitiveness, and sustainable development."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Department_of_Commerce

[Muttocracy]

17. oh, good thing we don't have to worry about job creation or infrastructure or anything.... nt

[Life Long Dem]

24. That's Another Package. This is the appointment.

:rofl: duh???

[Zynx]

25. That's the theoretical mission. It doesn't actually do anything.

[lonestarnot]

36. And since we are throwing all that money into infrastructure, sure put him in charge of all that

money for sweetheart deals for his cronies. :puke: Would he have authority to declare an infrastructure emergency and then no bid contracts?

[Zynx]

37. Which specific agency does he oversee actually does that?

If you answered "none", you get a candy bar.

[lonestarnot]

39. MMMmmm candy bars good. Good thing it's up to the President.

Section 318(a) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. § 1318(a)) gives the Secretary of the Treasury authority, on a temporary basis, to take certain actions immediately where the President declares the existence of an emergency. Specifically, the Secretary may "permit... the importation free of duty of... supplies for use in emergency relief work." This authority, insofar as it encompasses antidumping and countervailing duties (AD/CVD), was delegated to the Secretary of Commerce in 1979. All functions of the Secretary of Treasury under this provision, with respect to the AD/CVD functions, were transferred to Commerce pursuant to Reorg. Plan No. 3 of 1979, to be exercised in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury. Reorg. Plan No. 3 is set out as notes under 19 U.S.C.A. § 2171. Authority under Section 1318 was transferred to Commerce under Section 5(a)(1)(E) of the Plan. The proposed rule, if adopted, would establish procedures for importation of supplies for use in emergency relief work free of antidumping or countervailing duties, as authorized under section 318(a) of the Act.

[Muttocracy]

18. they oversee NOAA which does climate change and environmental research

not just the weather forecasts.

[CK_John]

22. A good politician could make the office of dog catcher the most important office in any state. n/t

[Zynx]

32. That's a nice little saying, but not based on fact.

There are legal and structural constraints of the bureaucracy that prevent that.

[MadHound]

23. Ah, another rationalization for Obama's bipartisan bullshit

That makes three 'Pug cabinet members, some more bullshit tax cuts, tossing gays and women's health under the bus, all to get ZERO 'Pug support.

What are you going to tell us next? How this is Obama's super secret plan to turn the us into a liberal paradise?

Either Obama, or you, or both, simply don't get it.

[Occam Bandage]

27. Zero pug support? He's pulling a 60% approval rating in Alabama.

Obama's game ain't about the Republican Senators and Congressmen directly. It's about realigning the country, and you can't realign a country by playing GWB and whipping it where you want it to go. Once the Republicans in Congerss start to realize, one by one, that their "safe Republican seat" is nothing of the sort at all, they'll start acting like the whipped kittens they're going to have to be. In the mean while, we'll do the same party-line vote game that we've been doing in Washington for the last decade, all while tossing off some meaningless frills to make it look like we're being bipartisan.

Did you know the House stimulus bill expands Medicaid to anyone on unemployment? Under any other President, that'd be OMG SOCIALIZED MEDICINE. Under Obama, it's under the radar, as everyone talks about how magnanimous and bipartisan he is.

[MadHound]

29. LOL, backpedal and bullshit!

Please, you folks need to get this shit straight. When criticisms about Obama's cabinet were running around here, you folks were saying it's all about getting bipartisan support in Congress not in the country at large. It was all about Obama winning bipartisan support in the House and Senate.

Now you're telling me it's about "realigning the country"? Excuse me, but in case you hadn't notices, the country has been realigned, the largest realignment since Reagan's first election. That's why we've got such large Congressional margins. And what is this new political alignment saying? That the ways of 'Pugs, including endless tax cuts, endless wars and endless BS are an anathema to them, that they want to try Democratic solutions to these problems and screw the bipartisan BS.

Yet Obama's still trying to play this bipartisan bullshit game, doing damage to those who support him, doing damage to genuine economic solutions, all in the futile pursuit of bipartisanship:eyes: Meanwhile people, the vast majority of people from both sides of the aisle are screaming for Obama to stop fiddle fart fucking around and pass this needed legislation because goddamn it, life is getting rough out here, we need help, and by including tax cuts instead of genuine infrastructure type stimulus he's piddling away precious and scarce tax money on economic schemes we all know are going to fail.

But hey, anything, any stretching of the truth, and pretzel logic to keep alive the illusion of the godlike Obama, eh?

Oh, and as far as the expansion of Medicare? Umm, it's being noticed. People are generally supportive of it, which is why you're not hearing a hue and cry. Except from the radical right. Limpballs replacement mouthpiece led with this yesterday, will all the predictable screaming and gnashing of teeth.

How much are you willing to sacrifice in the pursuit of this mythical bipartisanship?

[Occam Bandage]

40. Nope. That's what I've been saying since the primaries,

when HRC supporters were telling me, "No, moron, the Republicans in Congress will never sing Kumbaya." I haven't seen absolutely anything to make me think my judgment is off.

If other people made dumb arguments in the past, that's fine, but I'd hope you'd have the intelligence to understand that not all people hold all arguments that you've seen in your life.

[Oak2004]

28. NOAA isn't "little"

It's the agency at the front lines of climate protection.

Disclaimer: I worked for NOAA, once upon a time ago, and will defend it to my dying breath as a mostly-neglected agency doing incredibly valuable work.

[acmavm]

30. Wow! There's some intelligent justification for a really bad pick.

Sheesh!

[Zynx]

31. This isn't exactly Attorney General, Defense Secretary, or Secretary of State.

That's my point. No one can refute that.

[acmavm]

34. Oh, I see. Silly me, then let's just fill all those 'unimportant and

unproductive' positions with really crappy people.

That's not exactly change now, is it? We've already been down the past of watching our government pick the worst of the worst. Apparently you approve.

[Zynx]

35. This is the only cabinet pick I don't like, but I don't think it matters.

[acmavm]

38. You like Vilsack? You want that Monsanto loving fool anywhere

near your food supply?

[Occam Bandage]

41. Sure. Monsanto's seeds are the best in the world. That's why farmers use them.

Their business practices are often thuggish, but that's the way things go when one company develops an intellectual property that becomes a necessity in a business market.

[PVnRT]

45. LOL "A is not B, this is a fact, therefore I'm right"

Hey, if they're unimportant anyway, why not appoint the CEO of Monsanto to Secretary of Agriculture? Or the CEO of Marathon to Secretary of the Interior? After all, those aren't "important" agencies, right?

[Zynx]

49. Those actually do something other than sit around and collect data.

[demokatgurrl]

42. And administers the Patent and Trademark Office

a very important department, IMHO.

[PVnRT]

44. They also deal with technology, international trade, economic development

Yep, not important.

[Zynx]

48. With their whopping $9 billion budget?

They have roles of influence and data collection, but little else.

[Zynx]

46. He does not personally interfere in that process.

It is simply under his department.