Executive Branch Appointments

In my last post before the break, I directed readers to the National Constitution Center's page explaining how Supreme Court Justices are selected. Another selection process that has been underway since January and continues is the appointment of officers of the Executive Branch. While most of the various department heads have now been appointed and confirmed, there remain a large number of lower, yet important positions that remain to be filled. Many blame the President himself for the number of vacancies that still remain, but the process for filling these positions could arguably be equally to blame.

As the National Constitution Center (NCC) points out:

The Constitution, in Article II, Section 2, says that the President “shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the Supreme Court, and all other Officers of the United States, whose Appointments are not herein otherwise provided for.”The Appointments Clause allows the President to make nominations for appointed positions like cabinet officers, but the Senate controls the process, including the rules that allow a nomination vote to get to the full Senate floor. 

 Read the rest of the NCC post to learn more about this process.