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BREAKING: Bush Recess-Appoints Former Coal Exec as Mine Safety Chief |
President Bush just put former coal industry executive Richard Stickler in charge of the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA)—a job the U.S. Senate twice refused to grant him. Since Bush couldn’t get his appointment through Congress, he gave Stickler a “recess appointment” while members of Congress are out of town.
The Senate sent Stickler’s nomination back to the White House twice because of his troubling mine safety record—the mines he managed from 1989 to 1996 incurred injury rates double the national average.
Back in late September after the second time the Senate refused to confirm Stickler’s nomination, Sen. Robert C. Byrd (D-W.Va.) said:
We’re again sending a message to the administration that America’s miners deserve better, and we hope that this time it will listen. The fact that the nomination has twice failed to receive Senate confirmation reflects a strong lack of confidence in the president’s choice for this critical position. By continuing to insist on a nominee with a weak safety record, the White House is playing political games with mine safety. We must not let them win.
Bush’s recess appointment is an affront to all working people. It comes in a year that has seen 40 coal miners killed on the job, more than in any full year since 2001.
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[…] President Bush recess-appointed former coal industry executive Richard Stickler to head the Mine Safety and Health Administration. The Senate had twice refused to confirm him “because of his troubling mine safety record — the mines he managed from 1989 to 1996 incurred injury rates double the national average.” […]
[…] I’ve observed before that the mark of a business-dominated government is that its concern is the welfare of business, not the welfare of consumers and workers. The Bush Administration is one of the worst, but the uncritical love of Big Business is a hallmark of the GOP. President Bush takes an action that’s typical of this sort of attitude. From ThinkProgress: President Bush recess-appointed former coal industry executive Richard Stickler to head the Mine Safety and Health Administration. The Senate had twice refused to confirm him “because of his troubling mine safety record — the mines he managed from 1989 to 1996 incurred injury rates double the national average.” […]
[…] President Bush recess-appointed former coal industry executive Richard Stickler to head the Mine Safety and Health Administration. The Senate had twice refused to confirm him “because of his troubling mine safety record — the mines he managed from 1989 to 1996 incurred injury rates double the national average.” […]