You Really Got A Hold On Me

The "hold" is an informal Senate custom that allows any lawmaker to delay action on any bill or nomination at any time for any reason. It is essentially a threatened filibuster. And it is usually anonymous -- senators allow their colleagues to place secret holds as a tradition and courtesy. The majority leader can try to move ahead despite a hold, but doing so can mean days of lost time on procedural votes and debate. A president can overcome holds on nominations by making short-term appointments while Congress is away on recess. President Obama made 17 such appointments in March. But as of June 23, there were holds on 69 executive and judicial nominees, all but a handful anonymous. Democrats say they have placed no secret holds.

It used to be rare that nominees would linger on the Senate’s list of pending confirmations for days, weeks and months. Most were approved within hours of being referred out of committee to the full Senate. But during much of the Obama administration, dozens of nominations have been stalled for long periods. On the eve of a June 23 hearing on abolishing secret holds, however, Republican leader Mitch McConnell agreed to allow the confirmation of 63 stalled nominees, clearing close to half the backlog. The nominations below are those who were not cleared.