Inspire Political Discourse

Gregg Conflict of Interest With Commerce

:: The AP reports that Gregg may have had a conflict of interest which caused his resignation from the commerce post.
Too bad that he wasn't honest with the American people.
From HUFFPOST:

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama's former nominee to become commerce secretary, Republican Sen. Judd Gregg, steered taxpayer money to his home state's redevelopment of a former Air Force base even as he and his brother engaged in real estate deals there, an Associated Press investigation found.

Gregg, R-N.H., has personally invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in Cyrus Gregg's office projects at the Pease International Tradeport, a Portsmouth business park built at the defunct Pease Air Force Base, once home to nuclear bombers. Judd Gregg has collected at least $240,017 to $651,801 from his investments there, Senate records show, while helping to arrange at least $66 million in federal aid for the former base.

Image courtesy of Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images. .
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Gary Locke Latest Nominee for Commerce Secretary

:: Former Washington governor, Gary Locke, announced as the nominee for commerce secretary. From HUFFPOST:

President Obama and Vice President Biden introduced former Washington Gov. Gary Locke as Commerce Secretary nominee Wednesday.

"I'm sure it's not lost on anyone that we've tried this a couple of times. But I'm a big believer in keeping at something until you get it right," Obama said. Locke is Obama's third nominee for the post. His previous two choices for the post dropped out well before the Senate had a chance to confirm them.

Image source whitehouse.gov. 
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Former Washington Governor, Gary Locke, to be Named as Commerce Secretary

:: Gary Locke is the third nominee for this post, and will be named tomorrow. From MSNBC:

A senior administration official says President Barack Obama's likely pick to head up the Commerce Department is former Washington Gov. Gary Locke.

Locke will be Obama's third pick to lead the department. Republican Sen. Judd Gregg withdrew his name from contention on Feb. 12, citing "irresolvable conflicts" over the president's massive stimulus plan.

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The Economy is the Proverbial Train Wreck, Reflected in the Figures Released Today by the Commerce Department

 
:: The Dept. of Commerce issued the GDP figures from the 4th quarter of 2008; the drop was 3.8%, the economy shrinking at it's fastest rate in 25 years, and signaling more contraction to come. From NYT:

In the broadest official accounting of the toll of the credit crisis, the government reported that gross domestic product shrank at an annual rate of 3.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008. While that was less than economists’ expectations of a 5.5 percent drop, the decline would have been much steeper — more than 5 percent — if shipments of goods had fallen as sharply as orders.

Image source Wikimedia Commons. 

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Daily Political News Round-Up - Friday, November 21, 2008

►According to the NYT, Hillary Clinton has made a decision to accept the position of secretary of state.

“Hillary Rodham Clinton has decided to give up her Senate seat and accept the position of secretary of state, making her the public face around the world for the administration of the man who beat her for the Democratic presidential nomination, two confidants said Friday.”Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton campaigning in Florida in October (Photo: Damon Winter/The New
York Times)

►Expected to be nominated for commerce secretary on Monday, is former U.N. Ambassador and Energy Secretary in the Clinton administration, New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson.

“New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson has emerged as a "serious contender" to head the Commerce Department under President-elect Barack Obama, according to a Democratic official close to the proceedings.
Richardson, who was elected governor of the Land of Enchantment in 2002 and reelected with 69 percent of the vote in 2006, has made no secret of his interest in returning to Washington to take a place in the Obama Administration.” The Washington Post