Surprise Appearance

Obama: Stop Blocking My Nominees

Drops in on press corps.

President Obama surprised the White House press corps on Tuesday by dropping by. He had tough words for the Senate, where several of his appointments have been stalled due to GOP holds. “In our meeting I asked the congressional leadership to put a stop to these holds in which nominees for a critical job are denied a vote for months," Obama said. "If the Senate does not act, and I made this very clear. I will consider making several recess appointments during the upcoming recess because we can't afford to let politics stand in the way of a well-functioning government." A recess appointment is when the president fills a position while the Senate is in recess; the nominee can then serve until he is approved by the Senate by the end of the next session of Congress.