Impasse continues on Mark Green nomination



Sen. John Kerry said today he is still trying to decide if he wants the White House to withdraw the nomination of former Rep. Mark Green as U.S. ambassador to Tanzania. "I haven't made the judgment yet. I'm planning to talk with Sen. Biden (Foreign Relations Committee chairman) and see how to proceed," Kerry, D-Mass., said. Kerry is blocking Green's nomination because he is a political appointee and not a career diplomatic officer.

Impasse continues on Mark Green nomination

Kerry holds judgment while Green nomination on hold

By Ellyn Ferguson
Press-Gazette Washington bureau

WASHINGTON - Sen. John Kerry said today he is still trying to decide if he wants the White House to withdraw the nomination of former Rep. Mark Green as U.S. ambassador to Tanzania.

"I haven't made the judgment yet. I'm planning to talk with Sen. Biden (Foreign Relations Committee chairman) and see how to proceed," Kerry, D-Mass., said.

Kerry is blocking Green's nomination because he is a political appointee and not a career diplomatic officer.

Green, a Republican, is supported by Sen, Russ Feingold, D-Wis.

Feingold, a Foreign Relations Committee member, said Green is more qualified than his two predecessors, who were political nominees.

Green, a Hobart resident who served as a volunteer teacher in east Africa, was active on African issues while a House member.

"I am trying to make a judgment about whether or not it is possible to let (the nomination) go forward," Kerry added.

Kerry said his timetable for reaching a decision on Green's nomination depends on when Biden, a Democratic presidential candidate on the go, has the time to talk.

Contact Ellyn Ferguson at eferguso@greenbaypressgazette.com.

Links to Related Topics (Tags):

Headlines: July, 2007; Peace Corps Tanzania; Directory of Tanzania RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for Tanzania RPCVs; Diplomacy; Congress

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