| TLJ News from June 21-25, 2013 |
People and Appointments
6/25. Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) won a special election to fill the Massachusetts Senate seat vacated by John Kerry, who is now Secretary of State. Markey has served in the House of Representatives since 1976. He was for a long time either the Chairman or ranking Democrat of the House Commerce Committee's (HCC) subcommittee with jurisdiction over communications and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
6/25. The Senate confirmed Penny Pritzger to be Secretary of Commerce by a vote of 97-1. See, Roll Call No. 161. Only Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-VT) voted no. See also, Congressional Record, June 25, 2013, at Page S5201, and story titled "President Obama Picks Democratic Fund Raiser for Secretary of Commerce" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,557, May 6, 2013.
Obama Nominates McSweeny for FTC Commissioner
6/24. President Obama nominated Terrell McSweeny to be a Commissioner of the Federal Trade Commissioner (FTC) for the unexpired term of seven years from September 26, 2010. See, White House news office release and release.
McSweeny (at right) is you and has
limited experience relevant to the activities of the FTC. However, she has political
experience. She has been nominated for the Democratic seat previously held by Jonathan
Liebowitz.
She has briefly served as Chief Counsel for Competition Policy and Intergovernmental Relations at the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division. After the election of President Obama in 2008, she held the positions of Deputy Assistant to the President, and Domestic Policy Advisor to the Vice President.
During the 2008 election cycle, she worked for the Obama Biden campaign. Before that, she worked on then Sen. Joe Biden's (D-DE) Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) staff. During the 2004 presidential election cycle, she worked on the campaign of Wesley Clark. During the 2000 presidential election cycle, she worked for the Gore Lieberman campaign.
She has also briefly held the positions of law clerk and associate at the law firm of O'Melveny & Myers.
She is the daughter of Bill McSweeny, a former President and Member of the Board of Directors of Occidental International Corporation, and prominent Washington philanthropist and socialite. See, 1995 White House news office release announcing his appointment to the Board of Trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
People and Appointments
6/24. President Obama nominated Lee Goodman to be one of the six members of the Federal Election Commission (FEC) for a term expiring on April 30, 2015. See, White House news office release. and release. He has been nominated for one of the three Republican seats on the FEC. He has worked at the law firm of LeClair Ryan since 2005. His law firm biography states that he "advises clients on a broad range of policy-oriented civil matters, including federal and state election laws and First Amendment rights of political participation". Before that, he was Counsel at the law firm of Wiley Rein. Before that, he worked in several senior positions for then Governor of Virginia James Gilmore. Before that, he was an associate at Wiley Rein.
6/24. President Obama nominated Ann Ravel to be one of the six members of the Federal Election Commission (FEC) for a term expiring on April 30, 2017. See, White House news office release and release. She has been nominated for one of the three Democratic seats on the FEC. She is Chairman of the California Fair Political Practices Commission. Before that, she was Deputy Assistant Attorney General for Torts and Consumer Litigation in the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Civil Division early in the Obama administration. And before that, she worked in the Santa Clara County Counsel's Office.
People and Appointments
6/21. President Obama nominated James Comey to be Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for a ten year term. See, White House news office release. See also, story titled "Obama May Nominate Comey for FBI Director" in TLJ Daily E-Mail Alert No. 2,568, May 31, 2013. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) will hold a hearing on his nomination on Tuesday, July 9 at 10:00 AM. See, notice.