GSA nomination mired in Senate muck

A busy Senate schedule, not further questions, is apparently holding up the confirmation of Martha Johnson to be administrator of the General Services Administration.

Johnson’s is not the only confirmation vote awaiting the Senate’s attention, said a spokeswoman for the Secretary of the Senate. But despite the backlog, action on the nominees could come within days and without a vote, she said.

It’s likely “that noncontroversial nominations will be confirmed by consent,” she said, adding that senators from both sides of the aisle have agreed to confirm noncontroversial nominees and waive a vote in the full Senate to move the process along.

Speeding the process would be welcome; Johnson would be GSA’s fifth administrator in 14 months. During her hearing before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, she said she would bring much-needed stability to the agency’s top office.

After a congenial confirmation hearing June 3, Johnson won the committee’s stamp of approval June 8. The committee submitted the nomination for a confirmation vote by the full Senate, which had been expected by the end of that month.