Since he’s apparently having quite the problem with filling the position, what with the pay-for-play and the lack of vetting and the clumsy attempts at looked-good-on-paper political stratagems. Anyway, here’s the suggestion: Why don’t you just abolish the Commerce Department? After all, your last pick thought that it was a good idea, and you thought his judgment was sound, right? I mean, I’d hate to think that you were too intellectually incurious to actually know that about Senator Gregg.
As for the question: given that you’re probably going to go with having a Democrat back in the position – although I hear that the Libertarians would quite like a go – I was wondering whether you were going to trust him or her with the Census gig?
Moe Lane
PS: Your guy Gibb is just a touch too ungracious for his job. Keep him.
Crossposted at Moe Lane.
Moe Lane
PG DeFreese
Victoria Coates
Daniel Horowitz
Dan Spencer
ha ha, bingo
Caleb Howe (Diary) Thursday, February 12th at 7:37PM EST (link)QFE: “Anyway, here’s the suggestion: Why don’t you just abolish the Commerce Department? After all, your last pick thought that it was a good idea, and you thought his judgment was sound, right? I mean, I’d hate to think that you were too intellectually incurious to actually know that about Senator Gregg.”
Caleb Howe (formerly known as absentee)
You can abolish the department, BUT
JSobieski (Diary) Thursday, February 12th at 11:14PM EST (link)there are parts of the Commerce Dept that you will want to preserve:
(1) Patent and Trademark Office
(2) export regulators who guard against technology transfers to places like Iran
In talking about abolishing departments, its probably more meaningful to talk about specific sub-departments. Commerce is a grab-bag for a lot of miscellaneous stuff.
My rules of the road for primary season.
Rule #1: Vote for YOUR first choice in the primaries
Rule #2: Vote for the R in the general.
Rule #3: Don’t let anyone convince you to violate Rule #1 or Rule #2
Rule #4: When in a center-right argument, reaffirm Rules #1-#3–it will help us all to get along better.
Rule #5: If you are using the language of the left, you probably aren’t furthering conservativism
Rule #6: The priority is issues first, candidates second, and supporters third. Nobody is bigger than the issues. Conversely, if you spend your time focusing on supporters, you are wasting everyone’s time.
STOP THE MADNESS!
A reduction in the rate of spending increases is NOT a cut!
In-state tuition for illegals is NOT amnesty!
Requiring someone to pay their medical bills is NOT an individual mandate!
Reducing tax rates is NOT a tax increase!