Re: DISCUSSION: rejecting candidates

[Scott Brim <swb@employees.org>]

On Tue, Apr 23, 2002 06:47:57PM -0400, John C Klensin wrote:
> Harald, there is another case, which I think we should classify
> as part of scenario 1, but might fall into one of the others as
> you characterize them.  And I think this is an area that Dave
> belives the confirming bodies should not be permitted to tamper
> with.  I have a bias about the right answer, but it doesn't
> count; that the community explicitly address the question and
> decide does.
> 
> The scenario: Nomcom makes a selection.  The confirming body
> considers it and decides that, while the candidate would be fine
> if viewed in isolation, there are compelling reasons why the
> appointment is unsuitable and, to quote your scenario 1, "which
> it thinks that the nomcom cannot possibly have considered".
> 
> Some examples: 
> 
> (i) the candidate is ok, and would be an ok match with the
> prospective co-AD on the IESG, but is involved in a blood feud
> with two other IESG members, one of whom is the IETF Chair.
> 
> (ii) the candidate is ok, but the particular area into which he
> or she is being inserted contains a range of WG interest areas,
> and the combination of that candidate and the continuing AD(s)
> would leave no effective technical coverage for a number of
> those WGs.
> 
> The first of these is more relevant to the IESG, but may have
> some IAB analogies.   The second is also more relevant to the
> IESG, but, for the IAB, is related to the "balance" thread that
> has been started earlier.

If the process has failed, and the NomCom either didn't know about these
issues, or didn't consider them ... then the confirming body does
deserve a voice.  The NomCom is going away, but the IESG|IAB, and all
the rest of us, are going to have to live with the resulting situation.
If the process has failed, they have the right to push back and not
confirm.

If the process has not failed, and the NomCom did consider these issues
but still came out with a different viewpoint, then ideally the
confirming body does not get to reject, since for better or worse the
NomCom is the voice of the people.  If in fact the process hasn't failed
then the confirming body won't be inclined to reject anway.

..Scott