Jones' resignation puts focus on criticism of Obama's 'czars'

[RamboLiberal]

Source: CNN

As one so-called White House czar resigned over the weekend, President Obama announced the appointment of another one Monday, much to the frustration of Republican critics.

By some accounts, Obama has nearly 30 czars, who are officially called special advisers. The czars cover issues from AIDS and health care to Middle East peace.

Czars are nothing new. They date back to early presidents, including Franklin Roosevelt. Republicans also had czars: Richard Nixon had an energy czar, and George H.W. Bush appointed the first drug czar.

But the positions are not subject to congressional oversight or Senate confirmation, which rankles critics of the administration.

"What you see with President Obama is this reliance on czars," GOP strategist Kevin Madden said. "And I think there are probably even some corridors of power within the administration that probably didn't like the idea that you have czars that are encroaching on their policy portfolios."


Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/09/07/obama.czars/index.html

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This is what happens when you surrender to these assholes. They now have a new target!

[Beaverhausen]

1. Bush had 35 Czars- no one cared back then I guess

[depakid]

10. BushCo. never enabled and legitimized their opposition

They were smarter than that.

[Justitia]

2. "Czars" have become a RW tag. Thanks for playing, CNN! -eom

[RamboLiberal]

3. Yep - Right out of Newsmax

Headline there: One Obama Czar Gone, 30 Left to Go

[Ian David]

4. Stop calling them "Czars" and just call them "Dudes."

Green Jobs Dude
Drug Policy Guy

Stuff like that.

"Czar" is just a short-hand nickname for an unwieldy title, like "Deputy Assistant Secretary Attorney General In Charge Of Drug Policy Enforcement and Abatement."

[DrZeeLit]

5. The Dude would love it, wouldn't he? Drug Dude... kinda catchy.

[OHdem10]

6. One Republican from Ga indicates he is trying to get a move

stop paying the Czars until the Senate has had an opportunity
to vet they said the 30 zars. Afternoon program. Fox

On their 6pm news they were all over the Czars and naturally
Connecting Jones to Obama. These people need to be vetted was
the theme. They were not kind.

One might think we have this group of unknowns in the WH
influencing policy and and their intentions are nefarious
to say the least. I mean really.

IMO, Jones was not so much a problem--The Czars are the Problem
according to my interpretation of all these reports. Jones
gave them the opening they needed to go after the Czars.

This story is just beginning.

The Democratic Party had better wake up smell the coffee and
get some spines.. How convenient right here when we need
HCI Reform to be the focus.

[PassingFair]

7. Remember, you can't spell OLIGARCHY....

without the CZARS!

:puke:

[exboyfil]

8. I have always thought "czars" are idiotic

Policy should be exercised by the various cabinet departments. If not then why have them? All secretaries serve at the pleasure of the President. A czar should be an undersecretary.

Look at the list at the below link. It is back to the old joke that everybody wants to be a supervisor. Have any of these individuals actually done any good?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._executive_branch_czars

[naaman fletcher]

12. I agree..

good post. Also, calling them Czars is stupid. Why would a supposed democracy have anyone named a Czar conducting policy?

[Libertas1776]

9. Shouldn't

it be Tsars? Not trying to be overly grammatical, but just saying. :shrug:

[PSPS]

11. Should read: Jones' resignation latest pretext for media to undermine Obama.

What a joke. Of course, it's CNN. The true headline should read:

"Jones' resignation latest pretext for media to undermine Obama."

I guess we'll have even more manufactured controversy over all of this. It's long since gone out of control and begun feeding on itself, with the mighty right-wing Wurlitzer going full tilt over czars, speeches, death panels, fasting and praying for Obama's death.

Like I said, what a joke. Our little Potemkin democracy.

[create.peace]

13. found on a fairly (?) rightwing site

Poll
Which czar should be the next to go?
John Holdren, Science Czar
Cass Sunstein, Regulatory Czar
Mark Lloyd, FCC Diversity Czar