There’s some mystery building in Washington, where the senatorial confirmations of Lisa Jackson and Nancy Sutley have been held up by an unknown opponent.

CQ Politics reports that Environmental Protection Agency chief nominee Jackson, and Sutley – named to chair President Obama’s White House Council on Environmental Quality – have been delayed, but no one seems to know why. "The identity of the senator holding up the nominations and the reason for blocking them could not be immediately determined," CQ says. It only takes one senator to object to delay a vote on a nominee.

The two women together went before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee to answer questions for four and a half grueling hours.

During that hearing, Jackson of New Jersey promised to put science before politics — a direct slap to the Bush administration, which came under heavy fire for perceived political interference at the agency and for being too close to industry. But the 46-year-old evaded questions — some of which came from Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-CA, on whether she would immediately grant authority to California and 16 other states to regulate vehicle tailpipe emissions. She also failed to answer questions on whether and how the agency would address regulation of carbon dioxide under the Clean Air Act.

For her part, Sutley vowed that if confirmed, she would ensure that "there is a strong science and policy basis for our environmental policy, to move the nation to greater reliance on clean energy and increase energy security, to combat global warming while growing the green economy, to protect public health and the environment, especially in vulnerable communities, and to protect and restore our great ecosystems."

Now, if only these women could get the green light and get to work!