S9304 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE September 14, 2009 table, but this man is one of the great- the principal symptom of this adminis- Let me take my concerns one by one. est humanitarians who have ever lived. tration’s 8-month record of too many Article I of the Constitution of the He dedicated his life to the develop- Washington takeovers. We have an United States gives to the Congress the ment of scientific breakthroughs in AIDS czar, an auto recovery czar, a appropriations power and sets up, in order to ease malnutrition and famine border czar, and a California water articles II and III, the executive and ju- all over the world. czar. We have a car czar, a central re- dicial branches, a system of checks and One of Dr. Borlaug’s latest efforts gion czar, and a domestic violence czar. balances to make sure no one branch of began in the early 1980s. There wasn’t There is an economic czar, an energy the Federal Government runs away anything in the Nobel armada of prizes and environment czar, a faith-based with the government. Senator ROBERT that represented agriculture, which is czar and a Great Lakes czar. The list BYRD, the President pro tempore of the why he received the Peace Prize for goes on, up to 32 or 34. One of these, for Senate, wrote a letter to President recognition of his research in agri- example, is the pay czar, Mr. Kenneth Obama on February 23. Senator BYRD, culture, and so Dr. Borlaug thought Feinberg, the Treasury Department’s who is often called the Constitutional there ought to be an annual award for Special Master for Compensation. He conscience of the Senate, expressed his research in agriculture and helping will approve pay packages at seven concern over the increasing appoint- with the problems of food production. firms receiving TARP funds, thus de- ments of White House czars and the re- Through his initiative, the World Food ciding how much pay is too much. This lationship between these new positions Prize was initiated. It recognizes the will affect the top earners at some of and their executive branch counter- achievement of individuals who have the major corporations in America. parts, noting: advanced human development by im- According to Mr. Feinberg, in answer Too often, I have seen these lines of au- proving the quality, quantity, and to some questions, he said: thority and responsibility become tangled availability of food in the world. Just The statute provides guideposts but the and blurred, sometimes purposely, to shield as Dr. Borlaug dreamed, the World statute ultimately says I have discretion to information and to obscure the decision- decide what it is that these people should making process. Food Prize is helping to continue to in- make and that my determination will be That is Senator BYRD speaking. He spire future generations of scientists final. Anything is possible under the law. and farmers to innovate and lift those goes on to say: That is the pay czar. Then we have a The rapid and easy accumulation of power mired in poverty and preserving Dr. manufacturing czar. The manufac- Borlaug’s legacy over the years. The by White House staff can threaten the Con- turing czar’s name is Mr. Ron Bloom. stitutional system of checks and balances. World Food Prize is the idea of Dr. He is also the car czar. We have had At the worst, White House staff have taken Borlaug, and so his scientific work will manufacturing czars before in other ad- direction and control of programmatic areas live on. ministrations, but as Rollcall pointed that are the statutory responsibility of Sen- The World Food Prize exists today out on September 8, Mr. Bloom’s back- ate-confirmed officials. because of the John Ruan family en- ground and new position differs from Continuing: dowing it. They are an outstanding Des the two czars who served under former As presidential assistants and advisers, Moines business family, and they have President George W. Bush: these White House staffers are not account- endowed this. President of the World Bloom is a former union official, remain- able for their actions to the Congress, to Food Prize is the former Ambassador ing close to leaders in organized labor. Cabinet officials, and to virtually anyone but to Cambodia, Dr. Ken Quinn. The Bush’s manufacturing czars were placed in the president. They rarely testify before con- World Food Prize has been the Commerce Department. Bloom, on the gressional committees, and often shield the information and decision-making process be- headquartered in Des Moines since 1992, other hand, was entrusted with a high profile Presidential task force on autos, and will op- hind the assertion of executive privilege. In about 4 or 5 years after its founding. too many instances, White House staff have An extraordinary man, with a bril- erate within an office that has broad author- ity over domestic policy. He will head the been allowed to inhibit openness and trans- liant vision and Iowa common sense auto task force which is in the Treasury De- parency, and reduce accountability. who turned his dreams into reality— partment. More recently, one of the senior Re- that was Dr. Norman Borlaug. According to the policy director for the publicans, Senator KAY BAILEY I yield the floor. AFL–CIO, Mr. Bloom is expected to have a HUTCHISON of Texas, who is the senior The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- major role in the development of climate Republican on the Senate Committee pore. The Senator from Tennessee. change legislation. So-called buy American provisions that favor home-grown products, on Commerce, Science and Transpor- Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, tation, said in an op-ed in the Wash- how much time is remaining? and tax credits for domestic industry need to be included, said the policy director for the ington Post: The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- AFL/CIO, in the climate change provision. If I oversee legislation and agencies that pore. There is 30 minutes remaining in it’s not done right, the President could lose cover policy areas as vast and varied as morning business, with Senators hav- votes, said the AFL/CIO Policy Director. trade, technology, transit, consumer protec- ing a 10-minute limit. The Senate goes In other words, Mr. Bloom may end tion and commercial regulation. As many as out of morning business at 3 o’clock. up being the protectionist czar as well. 10 of the 32 czars functionally fall under my Mr. ALEXANDER. Will the Chair Then there is the health czar, a very committee’s jurisdiction. Yet neither I nor please let me know when 1 minute is distinguished Tennessean, Nancy-Ann the committee chairmen have clear author- ity to compel these czars to appear before remaining—after 9 minutes? DeParle, a very able woman I know The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- our panel and report what they are doing. well. But who is in charge of health The Obama administration presented only pore. The Chair will so advise. care policy? Is it the Secretary of two of these officials for our consideration f Health and Human Services, confirmed before they assumed their duties. We have PUSH OUT THE CZARS by the Senate, accountable to the Con- had no opportunity to probe the others’ cre- gress, accountable, therefore, to the dentials. Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, ac- people of the country? Or is it someone That is Senator KAY BAILEY cording to news accounts, there are ap- in the White House who, an adminis- HUTCHISON of Texas. I ask unanimous proximately 32 or 34 so-called czars in tration official says will ‘‘wake up consent to have printed in the RECORD the Obama White House and govern- every morning focused on health care following my remarks the comments of ment. Respected voices in the Senate— reform, and she is going to be focused Senator ROBERT BYRD and the op-ed of Senator BYRD, a senior Democrat and on that the entire day through?’’ Senator KAY BAILEY HUTCHISON. Senator HUTCHISON, a senior Repub- There have been czars in the White The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- lican—have pointed out that these House, at least since President Frank- pore. Without objection, it is so or- czars are an affront to the Constitu- lin D. Roosevelt. Of the 32 or 34 we have dered. tion. They are anti-democratic. They today—and I am using those two num- (See exhibit 1). are a poor example of a new era of bers because there are different reports Mr. ALEXANDER. As the Senator transparency, which is what was prom- and 2 or 3 czar positions are vacant— said, many of these czars have no vet- ised to this country. I would add that only 8 are confirmed by the Senate. We ting by the Senators, no appropriation they are a poor way to manage the gov- have had czars before, but there has requests to be considered by us, no tes- ernment, and they seem to me to be never been anything quite like this. timony given, and answer no hard VerDate Nov 24 2008 00:15 Sep 15, 2009 Jkt 079060 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 0624 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\G14SE6.013 S14SEPT1 jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with SENATE September 14, 2009 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S9305 questions. Who is making the policy, election. He continues to demonstrate done. We have a lot of very talented then, on health care, on climate that with his speeches. That is not the people in and around the President. change, on energy? issue.