In what will be seen as yet another blow to the Obama administration, TSA nominee Erroll Southers has withdrawn his name from consideration. From The Washington Post:
Southers's nomination had faced fierce opposition from Republicans, especially since revelations that he may have misled Congress about an incident in the late 1980s involving a background check of the boyfriend of his ex-wife.
As The Eye was the first to report in November, Southers told the Senate that he asked a co-worker's husband who worked for the San Diego Police Department at the time to run a background check on his ex-wife's boyfriend.
The incident did little to stop his unanimous confirmation by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. But a day after the panel referred his nomination to the Senate, Southers told lawmakers that he twice conducted the database searches himself, downloaded confidential law enforcement records about the boyfriend and then passed the information on to the police department employee.
“I was extremely excited about the opportunity to lead the Transportation Security Administration and fulfill Secretary Napolitano’s objective to develop it into the best organization of its kind in the world," Southers said in a statement released by the White House Wednesday morning. "However, it is apparent that this path has been obstructed by political ideology. I have decided, after deep reflection and in consultation with my family and friends to respectfully withdraw my name from consideration for confirmation as the assistant secretary for the TSA.
Another one bites the dust.