Gina McCarthy — Environmental Protection Agency
 Gina McCarthy stands on stage in the East Room of the White House in Washington, Monday, March 4, 2013, as President Barack Obama announced he would nominate McCarthy to head the EPA. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) |
Status: Approved by the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on May 16; Awaiting Senate confirmation.
The Washington Post calls McCarthy a fair-minded official “who relies on data” to make decisions. She’s earned the respect of both environmentalists and some industry officials. Still, many expect she will face a filibuster. She has already been asked to answer nearly 1100 questions — ranking member David Vitter (R-La.) alone submitted a record-breaking 653. Republicans say they aren’t satisfied with her answers and have other concerns about transparency at the agency. “It’s kind of holding somebody hostage until you get an answer that you want to have,” Sen Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) told U.S. News & World Report. Exploiting a seldom-used rule earlier this month, Republicans staged a boycott in order to delay the committee vote on McCarthy. After consulting her Senate rulebook, committee chair Sen. Boxer asked Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) to leave his sick bed and travel to Washington so that the vote could go forward. McCarthy’s nomination was approved on a party-line vote and now moves to the full Senate. |
