Senate rejects governor's choice for DMV head

[Bush_Eats_Beef]

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/12595150.htm

SACRAMENTO (AP) - The Senate on Thursday rejected Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's nomination of a veteran state employee to head the Department of Motor Vehicles, saying California needs a ``political leader'' in the post to prepare for tough driver's license security requirements.

Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata, D-Oakland, said the nominee, Joan Borucki, had had a ``very solid career with the state of California.''

``(But) this is not a job for a bureaucrat,'' he added. ``This is a job for a political leader ... someone who knows how to marshal forces of political clout to make sure we are safe.''

Perata said Congress' recent approval of new security requirements for driver's licenses could force the re-licensing of all 24 million California drivers with new identification standards. He suggested that could turn into a morass that the DMV wasn't prepared to handle.