Gregg Emerges as Top Commerce Choice

SIOBHAN GORMAN

Republican Sen. Judd Gregg of New Hampshire has emerged as President Barack Obama's top choice for commerce secretary, with an announcement coming as soon as Monday, an Obama administration official said Sunday.

Sen. Gregg's appointment would fill the final positions open in President Obama's cabinet. The president' original choice for the post, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, withdrew due to concerns over a grand jury investigation into how state contracts were issued to political donors in New Mexico.

Associated Press

Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H.

Leading Republican senators voiced support for Sen. Gregg's possible appointment. "It shows a great deal of perspicacity on the part of President Obama to select a guy like Judd Gregg, who is just a phenomenal senator, very bright," Sen. Jon Kyl of Arizona said on "Fox News Sunday."

"He's our ranking member on the Budget Committee, gives sage advice to us…he could make a significant contribution to the Obama administration."

Democrats and Democrat-friendly independents control 58 seats in the Senate, two short of a filibuster-proof majority. One seat, Minnesota, remains unresolved, but the Democratic candidate appears to be ahead. Sen. Gregg's potential departure could give Democrats a shot at 60 seats, as New Hampshire's governor, who would appoint Sen. Gregg's replacement if he were to become commerce secretary, is a Democrat.

But several Republican lawmakers voiced confidence Sunday that a Gregg appointment wouldn't alter the balance of power in the Senate.

"Sen. Gregg has assured me that if it were to happen, it would not change the makeup of the Senate," said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky on CBS's "Face the Nation." "It would have no effect on the balance of power in the Senate."

Sen. Kyl said the balance-of-power issue has "been thought through," but he declined to say whether a deal had been struck to ensure that New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch would appoint a Republican to finish out the balance of Gregg's term, which is up next year, if Gregg were to become commerce secretary.

Obama's original choice for commerce secretary, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, withdrew due to concerns over a grand jury investigation into how state contracts were issued to political donors in New Mexico.

Meanwhile, Democrats on Sunday reiterated their support for former Sen. Tom Daschle as Obama's nominee for secretary of health and human services. Daschle recently disclosed that he failed to pay $128,203 in back taxes and only repaid them with interest in January.

Sen. Richard Durbin of Illinois called Daschle's failure to pay some of his taxes "a mistake," but said he took the proper steps to repay them. "Tom Daschle's one of the most honest people I've ever known or worked with in public life," Durbin said on "Fox News Sunday."

Republican criticism was tempered, suggesting that the tax issue was unlikely to derail Mr. Daschle's nomination. Sen. Kyl, however, expressed concern over Obama's vetting process for nominees; Daschle is the second nominee to admit to a failure to pay some of his taxes, after Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, who was confirmed after admitting he had failed to pay $34,000 in taxes.