Miriam Sapiro was nominated to be deputy U.S. trade representative in April. The Senate Finance Committee voted -- unanimously -- to confirm her in July.
She's still not in the job -- because Sen. Jim Bunning, Republican of Kentucky, is unhappy with the Canadian Parliament.
...Bunning wants U.S. trade authorities to intervene [in Canadian tobacco law], even though federal law restricts them from promoting tobacco use. And he is holding Sapiro hostage, leaving the trade office without a political appointee overseeing such crucial issues as the North American Free Trade Agreement, the Doha round of trade talks, and the pending trade agreements with Panama and Colombia.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Bunning's obstructionism
Ruth Marcus calls out Jim Bunning in her column today:
