Gregg is the second Obama Commerce Secretary nominee to withdraw. Governor Bill Richardson, D-NM withdrew after some legal issues surfaced.
Sen. Gregg, in his statement, said:
“However, it has become apparent during this process that this will not work for me as I have found that on issues such as the stimulus package and the Census there are irresolvable conflicts for me. Prior to accepting this post, we had discussed these and other potential differences, but unfortunately we did not adequately focus on these concerns. We are functioning from a different set of views on many critical items of policy."
The stimulus issue is self-explanatory, as many Americans are aware of. But the Census issue is one that not too many people are familiar with.
The Obama Administration, under Chief-of-Staff Rahm Emanuel, is planning to take the administration of the Census Bureau away from Commerce and transfer it to White House direction.
The Wall Street Journal wrote:
Anything that threatens the integrity of the Census has profound implications. Not only is it the basis for congressional redistricting, it provides the raw data by which government spending is allocated on everything from roads to schools. The Bureau of Labor Statistics also uses the Census to prepare the economic data that so much of business relies upon.
There's only one reason for this power grab by the Obama Administration: politics! This would enable them to monkey with Census data to their political advantage.
I am pleased to see Sen. Gregg withdraw for reasons of principle. He made the correct decision.
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