WASHINGTON, Nov. 23 (UPI) -- In his first political victory as Senate Minority Leader, Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., has secured a spot on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a former aide.
With the prospect of Reid stalling almost 200 nominees for staff positions in Bush's second term, president Bush agreed this weekend to appoint Reid's science aide, Greg Jaczko, to the commission.
In return for the move, Reid has lifted his objection to a host of Bush nominees, allowing the Senate to approve 172 Bush nominations for a variety of positions.
An opponent of the federal plan to store nuclear waste in Yucca Mountain, Nev., about 100 miles from Las Vegas, Jaczko was being blocked from confirmation by Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chairman Pete Domenici, R-N.M., who supports the facility.
