[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 155 (Friday, November 5, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Page S14078]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                      CONSULTATION ON NOMINATIONS

  Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I have sent a letter to the majority 
leader requesting that I be consulted on certain nominations. I am 
asking to be consulted on the nominations of Anthony Harrington to be 
United States Ambassador to Brazil, Calendar No. 364, and for Charles 
Manatt to be United States Ambassador to the Dominican Republic, 
Calendar No. 361. Further, I ask to be consulted on all the promotion 
lists for career State Department foreign service officers.
  I take this step reluctantly but believe it is necessary. The 
administration is required by law to submit to Congress on 1 November 
every year the so-called Majors' List, the list of major drug producing 
and trafficking countries that the President intends to certify on 1 
March of the following year. The administration has never met this 
deadline, despite the fact that Congress extended it several years ago 
from 1 October to 1 November in order to give the administration more 
time in which to meet the requirement. Last year the list was over a 
month late. Despite repeated messages that this deliberate flouting of 
the law was not acceptable, the administration has again failed to 
submit the list or to offer any explanations. The list has yet to leave 
the State Department and must still wait for the laborious interagency 
review process. There is every likelihood that the list will be 
significantly late again this year.
  With this as background, I have asked to be consulted on any 
unanimous-consent requests involving consideration of the nominations I 
have indicated until such time as the administration complies with the 
law. I will consider additional requests depending on the delay that is 
involved in the administration complying. I regret this course but I 
regret more the administration's failure to comply with the law.

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