Tauscher in hot seat for key State Department post

Rep. Ellen Tauscher (D-CA) is seeking Senate confirmation for the position of undersecretary of state for arms control and international security, a key State Department post.  If confirmed, Tauscher will become a leading adviser to President Obama and Secretary of State Clinton.  John Isaacs of the Ploughshares-funded Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation commented, "We now have a new situation where the president has said these are important issues with which we have to deal, and Congresswoman Tauscher will be in the heart of the president's very advanced agenda."  Rep. Tauscher is widely expected to be confirmed.