GOP Blocks Obama Nominee Craig Becker

Senate Republicans have succeeded in blocking President Barack Obama's choice of a union lawyer for the National Labor Relations Board.

The 52-33 vote to move forward with the nomination of Craig Becker fell short of the 60 needed to overcome a GOP filibuster.

Republicans have held up Becker's confirmation for months. They say Becker would push an aggressive union agenda at the agency that referees labor disputes between unions and management.

Business groups, lead by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, lobbied hard against Becker, who has argued that "employers should be stripped of any legally cognizable interest in their employees' election of representatives."

"By any objective or reasonable standard, Craig Becker is a labor radical who would force unionization on Americans," wrote Katie Packer of the business-backed Workforce Fairness institute, which opposes the Employee Free Choice Act or "card check" legislation that would make it easier for workers to form unions.

Democrats leaders argued the nominee is qualified, but their task turned more difficult when at least two Democrats joined Republicans in opposing the lawyer.

[smoknmirrors]

52 for to 33 against in favor of moving the nomination forward sounds pretty much like a majority vote to me. But he failed to get the nomination, not because he did not have a majority of votes but, because of the 8 votes separating him from a filibuster-free 60. Without the parliamentary fubar "60 rule," he would be sitting on the NLRB tomorrow morning. So would that make 8 greater than 52? A system of minority rule is what we had in this country before the revolution. Consent of the governed was not predicated upon rule by the party receiving the fewest votes. This is becoming a very strange country.

[the74blaster]

All I have to say is the comfortable politicians of both parties and big business better wake up.

I read this morning that the unemployment rate of the working poor(making less than 20K per year is on the order of 30 percent).

If our elected representatives continue to live the fantasy of trickle down economics, and fail to create jobs for these people change will follow.

All it took in Germany was little man with comic mustache to rally the people who had been dispaced by the global depression to vote out a "democracy".

Have we learned nothing from history?

Putting 99 percent of the wealth into the hands of 1 percent and hope for trickle down to satify 99 percent of the people is not a solution.

[zloh]

(If our elected representatives continue to live the fantasy of trickle down economics, and fail to create jobs for these people) How does the government "create" jobs vs the private sector. Excluding hiring people to work in government or bureaus.

[endurorob_5]

Yes the repubs in this case are the party of no as in no corrupt SEIU lawyer running the LRB.

[redwilma]

Geez! The Pubs care only about obstructing Obama! They do this only because they believe it will help them politically -- not because they care about the middle-class. I'm sick of them!

[ffoulkes-2009]

Wrong. The Republicans are against what Obama is wanting to push onto America. Would you vote for something YOU are diametrically opposed morally?

[jckbrn-2009]

- - Only sisck of Republicans ? ? ?
Sounds like a closed mind - -

[starving1968-3]

by jimmyc1955 February 9, 2010 10:22 PM EST
Lets face it - this guy once said that employees should only be given a choice of which union to work for - not a choice to be in a union or not. He also said that employers should not be present at any labor disputes and the NLRB should not have any companies or non-union representation on it. He is a lawyer for the SEIU and for the AFL-CIO and is going to pursue a union first, union last and union in between policy. That is not the purpose of the NLRB. It is to be an unbiased umpire. This guy is totally biased and therefor unqualified for this position.






Right.

We should turn our backs on the American middle class, working people, and ENCOURAGE the employers to ship ALL of our manufacturing jobs overseas, because less jobs in America, hurts the middle class, but increases wages at the top of the pay scale.



Why do you hate the American people so much, and want to see our economy irreparably crippled?

[jimmyc1955]

Starving - I am and American and I believe people should have a choice to join or not join a union? You don't think people should be allowed to choose? You think people should be FORCED to join the union?

DO you think maybe the likes of the UAW and their healthcare plans, pension funds and expensive hourly wages had something to do with the collapse of the American auto industry? What about all those steel workers I knew who had two house, a boat, a car, a truck, three guns and who refused to allow companies to upgrade or retrain them to become competitive had something to do with the decline of the steel industry? I know I do - because many of my friends were steel workers and until they closed the plants the union refused to allow retraining for more flexible employers.

Your myoptic view of unions good/ company bad is naive, smiple and dangerous. I believe YOU and your kind are the greatest threat to America's future competitiveness. It is a gloabal economy and every nation that has high union work is watching their economies slowly slide down.

I love American's. I think they are innovative, creative and energetic. I think unions destroy all that. I think Andy Becker cares about the unions, not about the union members. I think Andy Becker knows that the union heads throw around big money - their union members money - and he is well compensated for his efforts.

[jckbrn-2009]

Any personal agenda is not good for the public ! ! ! !

[jimmyc1955]

The Andy Becker that this article doesn't talk about:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124226652880418035.html

[starving1968-3]

by RobAla February 9, 2010 8:41 PM EST
Since there are only 41 Republicans, it looks like there were a number of Democrats who rejected this guy - as, well. Let's tell it like it is.





Correct.

There are conservatives in BOTH parties, that hate the middle class, blue collar, "Joe Lunchbucket", working people of America, and will do EVERYTHING they can to harm them.

[jimmyc1955]

Lets face it - this guy once said that employees should only be given a choice of which union to work for - not a choice to be in a union or not. He also said that employers should not be present at any labor disputes and the NLRB should not have any companies or non-union representation on it. He is a lawyer for the SEIU and for the AFL-CIO and is going to pursue a union first, union last and union in between policy. That is not the purpose of the NLRB. It is to be an unbiased umpire. This guy is totally biased and therefor unqualified for this position.

[starving1968-3]

And the republicans continue their war against the middle class, blue collar, working men and women of America, while their idiot supporters will continue to vote for them time and again, even though the republicans have their boots on their constituents throats. Go figure.

[jimmyc1955]

Dude- most republicans ARE middle class - that is pure bs when you make that statement. I for one don't want to be in a union. I work in a town that is very strongly union and what you don't seem to see is how many of those "union" guys hate their union and would get out if they could keep their jobs. The union keeps raising the dues, uses their dues for political purposes they don't support and protects the lazy workers they spend their time working hard to fix the problems the union protected jerks create.

Why don't you get out and meet some real union guys, and you will find a lot of them don't like the union any better than they like Obama.

[jckbrn-2009]

Your "side" is not pure or saintly - - stop being partisan in your thinking and try to be intelligent

[CBSisCommunist5]

another CZAR ?

[slownewsday_____]

You haven't actually researched the number of czars past presidents have had, nor how long they've been a fixture in our government.

Have you?

[starving1968-3]

The czars wouldn't be necessary, if the republicans would quit playing games and start working FOR America - not in spite of us.

[nearl451]

Could someone please give Ben Nelson some Ex-Lax or mineral oil.

Please, he hasn't had a decent movement in months.