SO… NICHOLAS WASN’T REALLY THE LAST OF THE CZARS…

[Interesting happenings in Washington, DC, lately.  The fifth in our series of WHAT IN THE WORLD IS GOING ON IN WASHINGTON? deals with the modern-day successors of Nicholas, the last Czar of Russia.  We all know what happened to him.  Does anybody have any ideas how we can rid ourselves of these NEW American Czars?

This is an informal list of the czars appointed since Obama took office.  Their "official" titles are below their names.  Be careful as you read it; you may feel a shudder down our collective spines.]

• AIDS Czar – Jeffrey Crowley

Director of the Office of National AIDS Policy

• Auto Czar, Car Czar – Ron Bloom

Treasury Advisor, Head of the Auto Task Force

• Auto Recovery Czar, Autoworker Czar – Ed Montgomery

Director of Recovery for Auto Communities and Workers

• Bank Bailout Czar, TARP Czar – Herbert Allison

United States Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Financial Stability

• Border Czar – Alan Bersin

Assistant Secretary for International Affairs and Special Representative for Border Affairs

US Department of Homeland Security

• Climate Czar – Todd D. Stern

Special Envoy for Climate Change

• Compensation Czar – Kenneth Feinberg

Pay Czar Special master for TARP Executive Compensation

• Cyber Security Czar, Cyber Czar – Melissa Hathaway – RESIGNED IN AUGUST

Director of the White House Office of Cybersecurity

• Domestic Violence Czar – Lynn Rosenthal

White House adviser on Violence Against Women

• Drug Czar – R. Gil Kerlikowske

Director National Drug Control Policy (cabinet rank removed)

• Economic Czar, big-picture economic Czar – Paul A. Volcker

Chairman, Economic Recovery Advisory Board

• Energy Czar, Climate Czar, Global Warming Czar – Carol Browner

Assistant to the President, White House Office of Energy and Climate Change, Energy Coordinator

• Faith-Based Czar – Joshua DuBois

Director of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships

• Great Lakes Czar – Cameron Davis

Special Advisor to the EPA Administrator

• Green-Jobs Czar – Van Jones – RESIGNED 9/5/09

Special Advisor for Green Jobs, Enterprise, and Innovation in the White House

• Guantanamo Base Closure Czar – Daniel Fried

US Department of State Special Envoy

• Health Care Czar – Nancy-Ann DeParle

Director of the White House Office of Health Reform

• Information Czar, Infotech Czar – Vivek Kundra

Chief Information Officer of the United States

• Intelligence Czar – Dennis Blair

Director of National Intelligence

• Iran Czar – Dennis Ross

Special Adviser for the Persian Gulf and Southwest Asia (which includes Iran)

• Middle East Czar – George Mitchell

Special Envoy for Middle East Peace

• Performance Czar – Nancy Killefer (WITHDREW HER NOMINATION IN FEBRUARY, 2009 – TAX PROBLEMS)

United States Chief Performance Officer and Deputy Director for Management at the Office of Management and Budget

• Performance Czar – Jeffrey Zientz

United States chief Performance Officer and Deputy Director for Management at the Office of Management and Budget

• Regulatory Czar – Cass Sunstein

Director of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs

• Science Czar – John Holdren

Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy

• Stimulus Accountability Czar, Stimulus Oversight Czar – Earl Devaney

Chairman, Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board

• Technology Czar, Chief Technology Czar — Aneesh Chopra

Chief Technology Officer (CTO), Associate Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, Assistant to the President

• Terrorism Czar – John O. Brennan

Deputy National Security Advisor for Homeland Security

• Urban Affairs Czar – Adolfo Carrion

Director of the White House Office of Urban Affairs Policy

• Weapons Czar – Ashton Carter

Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics (AT&L)

• Weapons of Mass Destruction Czar, Nonproliferation Czar – Gary Samore

Special Assistant to the President and White House Coordinator for Arms Control and Weapons of Mass Destruction, Proliferation, and Terrorism

• Weatherization Czar – Gil Sperling

Program Manager, Office of Weatherization and Intergovernmental Program, U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE)

[They all have hefty paychecks as well, I’m sure.  Enter Representative Jack Kingston (R-GA) and his H.R.3226.]

Czar Accountability and Reform (CZAR) Act of 2009 (Introduced in House)

HR 3226 IH

111th CONGRESS

1st Session

H. R. 3226

To provide that appropriated funds may not be used to pay for any salaries or expenses of any task force, council, or similar office which is established by or at the direction of the President and headed by an individual who has been inappropriately appointed to such position (on other than an interim basis), without the advice and consent of the Senate.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

July 15, 2009

Mr. KINGSTON (for himself, Mr. CARTER, Mr. ALEXANDER, Mr. BRADY of Texas, Mr. BROUN of Georgia, Mr. LATTA, Mrs. BACHMANN, Mr. POE of Texas, Mr. PITTS, Mr. FLEMING, Mr. LINDER, Mr. CAMPBELL, Mr. CHAFFETZ, Mr. KING of Iowa, Mr. HOEKSTRA, Ms. FALLIN, Mr. SHADEGG, and Mr. LAMBORN) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

---

A BILL

To provide that appropriated funds may not be used to pay for any salaries or expenses of any task force, council, or similar office which is established by or at the direction of the President and headed by an individual who has been inappropriately appointed to such position (on other than an interim basis), without the advice and consent of the Senate.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Czar Accountability and Reform (CZAR) Act of 2009′.

SEC. 2. LIMITATION.

(a) In General- Appropriated funds may not be used to pay for any salaries or expenses of any task force, council, or similar office–

(1) which is established by or at the direction of the President; and

(2) the head of which–

(A) is appointed to such position (on other than an interim basis) without the advice and consent of the Senate;

(B) is excepted from the competitive service by reason of its confidential, policy-determining, the policy-making, or policy-advocating character; and

(C) performs or delegates functions which (but for the establishment of such task force, council, or similar office) would be performed or delegated by an individual in a position to which the President appoints an individual by and with the advice and consent of the Senate.

(b) Definition- For purposes of this section, the term `competitive service’ has the meaning given such term by section 2102 of title 5, United States Code.

[The senior Senate Democrat, Robert Byrd (D-WV) who is third in line for the U.S. Presidency after Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi, wrote a letter to Obama February 23, 2009 saying that these czar appointments are a power grab by the executive branch and violate both the constitutional system of checks and balances and the constitutional separation of powers. He said they are a clear attempt to evade congressional oversight.

Please contact your U.S. Representative's office by phone and ask that he /she co-sponsor H.R. 3226 introduced by Rep. Jack Kingston of Georgia.  This bill would cut off funding of Obama's 36 czars, that We the People are paying for with our tax dollars.  You can find your representative's phone number here in the gray banner near the top left of the page.  The bill currently has 34 co-sponsors but needs more.]