October 15, 2003—After a boycott prevented a decision two weeks ago, the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works Committee voted to advance the nomination of Utah Gov. Michael O. Leavitt, as Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The Committee approved the measure by a margin of 16-2, with Senators Hilary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) and Joseph Lieberman (D-CT) the only opponents. The full Senate can now schedule a vote on President Bush's nominee to succeed Gov. Christine Todd Whitman as head of EPA. Marianne Horinko will continue serving as Acting EPA Administrator until the Senate confirms a permanent replacement.
On October 1, the eight Democratic committee members and Independent Sen. James Jeffords (VT) refused to attend a vote on the Leavitt nomination, preventing the quorum necessary to decide whether the nomination should be forwarded to the full Senate. The absent Senators expressed concern over Bush's environmental record, and demanded that the Administration address their questions on a number of environmental issues before they would approve his EPA nominee. "The Bush administration is weakening the Clean Air Act, it is weakening the Clean Water Act and it is not cleaning up Superfund sites. We have a right to know why. These are life-and-death issues," said Jeffords at the October 1 hearing. He continued, "This is the only time we have the leverage, when we have something like this, and we intend to use it."
At least five Democrats have committed to blocking Leavitt's nomination in the full Senate until the Administration provides the environmental information they have requested.
