Wednesday, January 18, 2006

Brussels get muscled

King George takes Belgium seriously:

PRESIDENT BUSH: You're probably wondering what the [Belgian] Prime Minister is sharing with me. First of all, welcome. We're talking mountain biking -- actually, he's talking about the Tour de France. He's a huge advocate and a follower of the bike scene around the world. He's also an avid mountain biker. And one of these days he and I are going to ride; he's going to give me a lesson on how to ride a mountain bike.

Seriously enough to decisively deal with the long-stalled nomination of C. Boyden Gray -- one of his favourite judicial nomination fixers, but with no obvious credentials to be Ambassador to Belgium the European Union, based in Brussels:

The President recess appointed C. Boyden Gray, of the District of Columbia, to be the Representative of the United States of America to the European Union, with the Rank and Status of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary.

As a recess appointment, Gray can only serve for one Tour de France. Aside from the slight to BelgiumBrussels, could it be that Dubya knows he really needs Gray for something special in 2007?

UPDATE: Note that Gray's previous and presumably future job is being a partner at Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale & Dorr, which has offices in Brussels.

FINAL UPDATE: Bush seeks to get Gray's recess appointment extended in the new Democratic Senate. It's unlikely that ill-will towards his management of Bush's judicial nominees has faded sufficiently for it to go through.

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