Wisconsin union holding federal funds hostage
Governor Dayton’s Baleful Influence on Labor Relations
By Raven Clabough, The New American
Now that Congress has come to a compromise on the payroll tax cuts, Republicans are embarking on the next big battle with Democrats: blocking unconfirmed appointments to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Republican lawmakers are refusing to adjourn for the year in the hopes that they can discourage President Obama from making unconfirmed appointments while Congress is on vacation.
As President Obama’s 2010 controversial recess appointee Craig Becker’s (left) term is about to expire, the NLRB will be without the three board members necessary to operate. Fox News explains, “Senate Republicans and the president can’t agree on new National Labor Relations Board members, leaving only two chairs on the board filled going into the new year.”
Without that third chair being filled, the board will be forced to shut down, unless President Obama makes recess appointments to keep the board running. And he has the constitutional authority to do so without congressional approval if the Senate is not in session. A President generally makes recess appointments when he is aware that his nomination does not have the necessary 60 votes to beat a filibuster.
