Nevadan’s foreign aid job on hold in Senate

WASHINGTON -- Henrietta Holsman Fore's nomination to become director of foreign assistance at the State Department was delayed Tuesday in the Senate, with the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee saying the Nevadan was likely to be controversial.

As the committee met to pass bills, approve treaties and confirm nominees, Sen. Benjamin Cardin, D -Md., said he needed more information on Fore, and her nomination was set aside.

Sen. Joseph Biden, D-Del., the panel chairman, noted Fore's nomination was the only "controversial" item on the agenda.

A Nevada businesswoman, Fore was a State Department undersecretary until May, when she was tapped by President Bush to become director of foreign assistance and administrator of the Agency for International Development, the organization that distributes U.S. foreign aid.

Democrats questioned her closely at a confirmation hearing In July, where she acknowledged she was among State Department officials who underestimated the demand for passports under a new law.

As a result, passport applicants were faced with long delays through the spring, prompting lawmakers to hold hearings.

Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., said Tuesday that Fore took too long to accept blame, and he planned to vote against her confirmation.

"We had her come in and I asked her in private whether she would accept responsibility, but she would not answer," Nelson said.

Nelson said he threatened to block Fore's confirmation unless he got a letter from her on the passport delays. He said Fore eventually produced a letter, but he found it unacceptable.

Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind., the committee's ranking Republican, defended the nominee.

"This is too heavy a burden to place on Fore," Lugar said, noting the passport problem was broader than one person.

Fore's record on minority hiring also had been challenged by Democrats, notably Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill. He did not attend the meeting.