Great Divide: Landrieu and President Obama

Pres. Obama at Grand Canyon

The standoff between the Obama administration and Democratic Senator Mary Landrieu over an offshore drilling moratorium also is creating hurdles for White House officials putting together the next budget. The Louisiana senator is blocking the confirmation of Jacob Lew, President Barack Obama’s choice to be White House budget director, to protest the administration’s temporary ban on deepwater oil and gas drilling, put in place after the BP Plc oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The Office of Management and Budget has been without a director since the end of July, disrupting or at least delaying administration decisions on spending levels, taxes, budget cuts and the overall budget direction for fiscal 2012.

 “This is an absolutely key time to have a very top-rate budget director in place,” said James R. Horney, a budget expert at the Center on Budget Policy and Priorities in Washington. “This is such a delicate time and so many big issues.” Lew’s nomination was approved 22-1 last week by the Senate Budget Committee, clearing the way for a vote by the full chamber. Under rules that let any senator block a presidential nominee for any reason, Landrieu put a “hold” on Lew’s nomination Sept. 23. She said the drilling moratorium was having “such a devastating impact on working people and small businesses throughout the Gulf Coast.” Read more here:

Great Divide: Landrieu and President Obama