By MATTHEW DALY The Senate confirmed former Washington Gov. Gary Locke as commerce secretary Tuesday, handing President Barack Obama an easy victory after his first two nominees for the post withdrew.Locke, 59, was the nation's first Chinese-American governor, serving two terms from 1997 to 2005. He has promised to focus on job creation and to closely oversee the 2010 census.Some Republican lawmakers have been critical of Obama administration comments indicating that the White House might seek greater control over the census.Locke sought to dampen GOP concerns about the census at a hearing last week and fielded a barrage of questions and comments about digital television, broadband Internet connections and oceans policy.The Commerce Department has broad responsibilities, including the census, many aspects of international trade, oceans policy and weather forecasts.