Obama Picks Rep. Henry Waxman's Longtime House Investigator to Head WH Legislative Affairs Office

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Phil Schiliro will be Assistant to the President for Legislative Affairs, the Obama-Biden presidential transition office announced today.

Schiliro has been working as the transition team's director of congressional relations and was previously a senior advisor to Obama's presidential campaign, where he also worked on congressional relations.

In Schiliro, Obama gets an experienced aide whose Washington career -- and connections -- stretch back decades. Before joining the Obama team, Schiliro was chief of staff to Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) and the House Oversight Committee.

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2008/11/15/phil_schiliro_takes_on_key_con.html


(AP)- Much of Schiliro's career has been spent investigating allegations of wrongdoing under Waxman and the House Oversight Committee.

He has been credited with bringing the issue of steroids in Major League Baseball to Waxman's attention in 2005 after reading Jose Canseco's book, "Juiced," which said he and other players had used performance-enhancing drugs. Congress investigated the allegations and subpoenaed baseball stars, including retired slugger Mark McGwire.

[JDPriestly]

1. After picking BIden, this is the first move that really suggests change.

And I am very pleased about this one. Very, very pleased.

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2. It's a brilliant pick, I think

good sign, yes.

[GregD]

3. This gets better and better. Elections.Do.Have.Consequences

[gristy]

4. .

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x7873963

[Merlot]

5. Anything Waxman related is a good thing!

He's my (represenative) hero.

[patrice]

6. Does this mean that there is a CHANCE that they'll tell us HOW the "Intelligence" for Bush's War

was created?

Democrats in Kansas would LOVE that.

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8. Schiliro's very pro-active, I wouldn't be surprised . . .

some Schiliro:


"Phil Schiliro, an aide to Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif. on Capitol Hill, helped push for Congressional funding for the LI cancer studies. “We’d go door-to-door in the district all day long and then compare notes at the end of the day, and it was remarkable how often voters would talk about breast cancer. It came up over and over and over again, in all parts of the district.""
http://www.chicagotribune.com/topic/ny-cancergallery,0,7958589.photogallery?index=ny-cancer05


"The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee was holding a hearing to investigate “political interference in the work of government climate change scientists.” In the days leading up to the hearing, the committee requested documents from the White House Council on Environmental Quality “hoping to use them to underscore the suggestion that the administration has a habit of editing scientific reports to downplay the effects of global warming.” The White House refused to turn over the documents:

By presstime Monday, documents that were requested as recently as last week and as far back as six months ago had not been provided to the committee.

“Right now, the administration’s reaction doesn’t make a whole lot of sense,” Waxman’s chief of staff Phil Schiliro said. “We’ve been trying to get information that we believe the committee should have for six months now. We don’t understand why it hasn’t been provided; this isn’t top secret information.”
http://thinkprogress.org/2007/01/30/waxman-climate-reports/

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11. You may know our Senator, Pat Roberts, chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee during the

development of HR114.

I know we're a "red" state, and ergo ir-relevant according to DLC lights, but it sure would be good to see Democrats take on one of these supposed verboten (and supposedly un-winnable) topics and just simply STAY ON MESSAGE about Truth and Transparency in Government. And I'd LOVE to embarass Pat Roberts.

[rucky]

7. Just hearing the words "House" and "Oversight" together

makes me all tingly.

[Marr]

9. Here's one pick that doesn't leave me feeling skeptical, at least.

[barbtries]

10. this could be really really good

my heart beat faster reading this. could the obama administration be planning JUSTICE?

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12. I can't see this fellow operating with indifference to that effort

I'd think that prospect would be the first thing on his mind as he accepts the position.