Before I address the aforementioned list, it is important to point out that the czar title is an extremely subjective term and that President Obama, as Republicans would have you believe, did not create the czar role in the United States government. (Couldn't you refer to anyone serving as a department Secretary as a "czar" of some type? You could but it just wouldn't make sense.) As a matter of fact, the media has referred to appointed executive branch officials as czars since the early 1940s and President Richard Nixon appointed his drug czar in 1971. However, conservatives want you to believe that President Obama has drastically overstepped the boundaries in this area when compared to previous administrations. (By the way, for a portion of my research, I utilized the list published on Wikipedia. Now while I am definitely not taking the word of Wikipedia as gospel, I must emphasize that so-called czars are only included in the web site's list if, first and foremost, a political opponent or member of the media have referred to these individuals as czars in a citable publication. With all of that out of the way, let's take a look at the czar list from Brainroom, as well as czars from the Bush administration:
1. Afghanistan Czar--Richard Holbrooke
NOTE: It certainly seems to be an enormous stretch to label the Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan as a "czar". This is highlighted even more by the fact that, in 2001, Mr. Bush appointed Zalmay Khalilzad as his Special Presidential Envoy for Afghanistan but Khalilzad was never labeled as any type of czar. According to the web site for the previous administration, the Special Presidential Envoy is "a representative to the Afghan people". Well, that sounds completely different.
2. AIDS Czar--Jeffrey Crowley
NOTE: This role and the Office of National AIDS Policy (ONAP) were both created in 1993 by President Bill Clinton.
Bush: During his two terms in the White House, Mr. Bush appointed three individuals to the role of Director of the ONAP and all three have been criticized for, among other things, their poor performance.
3. Auto Recovery Czar--Edward Montgomery
NOTE: See below in information for Car Czar.
4. Border Czar--Alan Bersin
NOTE: Holding an extremely similar position under President Clinton, Bersin serves as the Assistant Secretary for International Affairs and Special Representative for Border Affairs within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). And although Bersin was appointed to his post by President Obama, confirmation by the United States Senate was also required.
Bush: Numerous members of the Texas State Senate spoke with the White House in 2001 about the idea of creating a border czar. However, the Bush administration decided against the border czar role and instead assigned the tasks of this particular individual within the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) and then eventually within the DHS. Thank goodness Bersin won't be working under the DHS. Hey, wait a minute!
5. California Water Czar--David Hayes (not on Wikipedia's list)
NOTE: Hayes serves as the Deputy Secretary of the Interior, which is the same position that he held during the Clinton administration. Therefore, labeling Hayes as the "California water czar" just because that will be one of his major focuses during the Obama administration is absolutely ridiculous. And while Hayes was appointed to his post by President Obama, confirmation by the Senate was also required.
Bush: The Bush administration was and continues to be consistently criticized for its lack of support for California in the state's struggle to fix the water supply and environmental crises it has been experiencing.
6. Car Czar--Ron Bloom
NOTE: Nothing underscores how truly absurd this czar list truly is than if you conduct any sort of research on the "car czar". Multiple sources will name Ron Bloom as that individual while others will mention Edward Montgomery (the aforementioned "auto recovery czar").
Bush: At the end of last year, the Bush administration (specifically former Secretary of the Treasury Henry Paulson) was considering the adoption of a plan which would select a car czar with oversight responsibilities concerning the financial troubles of the American automobile industry. Sounds awfully familiar, doesn't it?
7. Central Region Czar--Dennis Ross
NOTE: Ross previously served as the Director of Policy Planning under President George H.W. Bush and then the Special Middle East Envoy under President Clinton. Due to his knowledge of that particular area of the world, Ross recently joined the staff of the National Security Council as a Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for the Central Region (encompassing the Afghanistan, the Middle East, Pakistan, the Persian Gulf and South Asia). Seriously? Are we now labeling members of the National Security Council as "czars"?
Bush: As was the case with my earlier mention of Zalmay Khalilzad and his role as Special Presidential Envoy to Afghanistan, Mr. Bush named other individuals (Anthony Zinni, for example) for similar roles who handled the same region with which Ross is supporting.
8. Climate Czar--Todd Stern
NOTE: Once again, this czar list proves its absurdity if you conduct research on the "climate czar". Multiple sources will name Todd Stern as that individual while others will mention Carol Browner (the soon to be discussed "energy and environment czar"). With that being said, Stern served in a similar role as the Coordinator for Climate Change under President Clinton.
9. Domestic Violence Czar--Lynn Rosenthal
NOTE: During the announcement of Rosenthal's appointment, Vice President Biden, who spearheaded the Violence Against Women Act of 1994, stated that this topic "has not been a front and center issue for the last eight years on the national agenda".
10. Drug Czar--Gil Kerlikowske
NOTE: The term "drug czar" was first used when Jerome Jaffe was named as the Chief of the Special Action Office for Drug Abuse Prevention (SAODAP) by President Nixon. And although Kerlikowske was appointed to his role by President Obama, confirmation by the Senate was also required.
Bush: John Walters served as the Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) for all eight years of Mr. Bush's presidency. Otherwise known as the "drug czar", Walters eventually allocated more than $100 billion to the war on drugs. At the same time, illegal drug use among American adults during the Bush administration remained virtually unchanged. In fact, during his testimony in May of this year before the Subcommittee of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, John Carnevale, the former Director of Planning and Budget at the ONDCP, remarked that "The strategy totally failed to achieve any progress in this key goal area established by the previous administration".
11. Economic Czar--Paul Volcker
NOTE: It is certainly a stretch for someone in an unpaid, part time position to be viewed as a "czar". Nonetheless, that is the title that has been bestowed upon Volcker is in his role as Chairman of the newly formed Economic Recovery Advisory Board.
Bush: When Mr. Bush appointed the Directors of the National Economic Council (four separate Directors during his presidency) and the Secretary of the Treasury (Henry Paulson, who was the last of three to hold this post during Mr. Bush's administration), multiple media sources referred to all of these individuals as "economic czars".
12. Energy and Environment Czar--Carol Browner
NOTE: See above in information for Climate Czar.
Bush: Despite his approach towards the environment and smart energy, I should point out that the two individuals who ironically served as Secretary of Energy during Mr. Bush's presidency were referred to as "energy czars".
13. Faith Based Czar--Joshua DuBois
Bush: This term started to be utilized after Mr. Bush created the Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives (OFBCI) in January 2001. By the way, four separate individuals served as Director of the OFBCI by the time Mr. Bush's presidency thankfully ended.
14. Government Performance Czar--Jeffrey Zients
NOTE: Aside from the fact that he needed to be confirmed by the Senate, Zients's official position is Deputy Director for Management of the Office of Management and Budget.
15. Great Lakes Czar--Cameron Davis
NOTE: Davis was actually appointed by Lisa Jackson, the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, to manage President Obama's initiative to clean up the Great Lakes.
16. Green Jobs Czar--Van Jones (resigned on September 5th)
NOTE: As I stated in my comment regarding President Obama's supposed "climate czar", we certainly would not have expected Mr. Bush to have anyone focusing on jobs which improve energy efficiency and utilize renewable resources.
17. Guantanamo Closure Czar--Daniel Fried
NOTE: As the Special Envoy to Guantanamo, Fried serves as a member of an interagency committee chaired by Attorney General Eric Holder and responsible for reviewing the cases of the remaining captives in the prison at Guantanamo Bay. Appointed by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Fried's position has a rank equivalent to that of an ambassador. However, that has not stopped conservatives such as Rep. Eric Cantor (R-VA) from labeling him as a "czar". By the way, please keep in mind that, as I have pointed out in previous postings, the base established at Guantanamo Bay by the U.S. military is completely illegal.
Bush: This Pandora's box was opened by Mr. Bush so he, of course, never designated an individual to concentrate on closing the prison.
18. Health Czar--Nancy-Ann DeParle
NOTE: Holding the position of Director of the Health Care Financing Administration under President Clinton, DeParle currently serves as the Director of the Office of Health Reform.
19. Information Czar--Vivek Kundra
NOTE: Kundra is the first individual to serve as the Federal Chief Information Officer after being appointed by President Obama. With that being said, this position was created during the Bush presidency through the E-Government Act of 2002. Kundra will also serve as the E-Government and Information Technology Administrator.
20. Intelligence Czar--Dennis Blair
NOTE: In the role of the Director of National Intelligence, Blair is responsible for heading the sixteen-member Intelligence Community and managing and directing the National Intelligence Program, while serving as a principal advisor to the President, the National Security Council and the Homeland Security Council. Does this sound like someone who should simply be labeled a "czar" to you? And although Blair was appointed to his post by President Obama, confirmation by the Senate was also required.
Bush: While the Director of National Intelligence position was not created until Bush signed it into law in December 2004, Bush also issued an executive order in July 2008 to expand the role.
21. Mideast Peace Czar--George Mitchell
NOTE: Appointed by Secretary of State Clinton, Mitchell is currently serving as a Special Envoy to the Middle East. As I have pointed out with other entries on this list, individuals (Khalilzad, Zinni, etc.) in similar envoy roles during the Bush administration were not labeled as czars.
22. Pay Czar--Kenneth Feinberg
NOTE: Following his appointment by the Secretary of the Treasury Timothy Geithner, Feinberg was tasked with examining the executive compensation practices of companies which received funds from the federal bailout program. As is the case with Paul Volcker, Feinberg is performing his responsibilities as an unpaid employee. Feinberg also served in a pro bono role during the Bush administration when he was appointed by Attorney General John Ashcroft as the Special Master of the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund.
23. Regulatory Czar--Cass Sunstein
NOTE: Even though Sunstein was appointed by President Obama to the post of the Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), confirmation by the Senate was also required.
Bush: Susan Dudley, the second individual to hold the position of the Administrator of the OIRA, was originally nominated by Mr. Bush in July 2006. The Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs conducted a hearing on Dudley's nomination in November of the same year but did not vote on her confirmation. Mr. Bush then re-nominated Dudley in January 2007, appointed her as a senior advisor to the OIRA later that month and then granted Dudley with a recess appointment as the Administrator of the OIRA in April 2007.
24. Science Czar--John Holdren
NOTE: Aside from being the Co-Chairman of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, Holdren will serve as the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy. And although Holdren was appointed to his post by President Obama, confirmation by the Senate was also required.
25. Stimulus Accountability Czar--Earl Devaney
NOTE: As the Inspector General for the Department of the Interior, Devaney has been responsible for "overseeing the administration of a nationwide independent program of audits, evaluations and investigations" of the agency's programs and operations since 1999. Therefore, Devaney was appointed to his role as the Chairman of the Recovery Act Transparency and Accountability Board in order to manage the $787 billion from the American Recovery and Re-Investment Act.
26. Sudan Czar--Scott Gration (not on Wikipedia's list)
NOTE: Despite the fact that Mr. Bush appointed three individuals to the post of Special Envoy to Sudan, President Obama's selection (Gration) is the only one of the four labeled as a czar.
27. TARP Czar--Herbert Allison
NOTE: As a member of the Department of the Treasury, Allison serves as the Assistant Secretary for Financial Stability. So yes, the right has attempted to describe a high ranking official within the Department of the Treasury as a "czar". And similar to the individual performing the same role during the Bush administration, Allison was required to be confirmed by the Senate following his appointment by President Obama.
Bush: The post of the Assistant Secretary for Financial Stability was created in October 2008 while Mr. Bush was still in the White House.
28. Technology Czar--Aneesh Chopra
NOTE: Chopra serves as the Federal Chief Technology Officer and the Associate Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy. And although Chopra was appointed to his post by President Obama, confirmation by the Senate was also required.
29. Terrorism Czar--John Brennan
NOTE: In his role as the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism, Brennan reviews options for the Homeland Security Council, including the council's responsibility for preparing for and responding to natural and terrorism related domestic disasters. However, despite the fact that the title of Assistant to the President is the highest rank any staff member of the White House staffer can hold, the right wing has decided to label Brennan as a czar.
Bush: Two separate individuals, Richard Clarke (who also served under President Clinton) and Wayne Downing, were referred to as "terrorism czars" during the Bush administration. As a matter of fact, along with his position as Deputy National Security Advisor, Downing also served as the National Director for Combating Terrorism, which was a new role created by Bush.
30. Urban Affairs Czar--Adolfo Carrion
Bush: Considering the assistance his administration provided to the residents of New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina, Bush should have at least entertained the idea of creating an "urban affairs czar".
31. Weapons Czar--Ashton Carter
NOTE: As the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquistion, Technology and Logistics (AT&L), Carter is the principal staff assistant and advisor to both the Secretary of Defense and Deputy Secretary of Defense for all aspects of the AT&L area. And although he was appointed to his role by President Obama, confirmation by the Senate was also required.
Bush: Carter replaced John Young, who was the second individual to hold the same post during the Bush administration.
32. Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) Policy Czar--Gary Samore
NOTE: Prior to his current role as the Coordinator for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation at the National Security Council under President Obama, Samore served as an arms control negotiator during the Clinton administration.
Bush: Despite signing a Congressional mandate for the creation of a "WMD czar" into law in August 2007, Bush never appointed anyone to this post. Suggested by leading members of the 9-11 Commission, the provision, which was passed in Congress by a large margin and with bipartisan support, called for a Coordinator for the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction and Proliferation. This individual would serve as "the principal advisor to the President on all matters" relating to WMDs.
After analyzing the list from FOX News, my subjective research determined that only six of the thirty-two "czars" could actually be pinned with that label. Due to various reasons (the actual role and duties, the appointment/confirmation process, the existence of the role in previous administrations, etc.), the other twenty-six individuals (in red) were deemed to be simply high ranking officials in the Obama administration. For example, the Federal Chief Technology Officer (Aneesh Chopra) should not be described as the "technology czar". No CTO at a corporation would be described in a similar fashion so the same should apply to Chopra.
Aside from the Brainroom's list, other individuals at FOX News have continued this charade regarding these so-called czars. On the shining example of absurdity otherwise known as "FOX & Friends", co-anchor Gretchen Carlson falsely claimed that "Even though these advisors are not Cabinet positions, they don't answer to Congress because...they don't have to be confirmed". And then in a subsequent interview with Carlson, Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC) displayed his intelligence by remarking that a line "should have been drawn in the sand a long time ago" because "the advice and consent of the Senate is required for high ranking administration officials". Later in the same interview, Carlson uttered: "I have really been sitting back and waiting for Republicans to stand up and speak out about this. You seem to be the first person to bring it to national attention that you actually have a problem with it." Do you know why that is, Gretchen? Because both you and McHenry are complete idiots who have no idea what you are talking about!
One final point: In response to information published by FOX News and other conservative media sources concerning Obama's supposed czars, more liberal organizations have produced their own lists regarding czars from the Bush administration. (As is the case with the Brainroom's list, these lists from the left wing are purely subjective.) At the same time, a list on FactCheck.org (a project from the Annenberg Public Policy Center, whose founders have served under former Republican Presidents and supported Republican candidates), included these titles for czars during the Bush White House:
- Abstinence Czar (a position confirmed by the Senate)
- Bird Flu Czar
- Birth Control Czar (Isn't this the same as an abstinence czar?)
- Democracy Czar (But just not in the United States.)
- Gulf Coast Reconstruction Czar (Should we ask the residents of the Gulf Coast how that turned out?)
- Homelessness Czar
- Mine Safety Czar
- Reading Czar (Laura Bush previously worked as a school teacher and librarian, for Christ's sake. Couldn't she focus on this topic?)
- World Trade Center Health Czar (Czar or not, this individual completely failed in this role.)
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