March 25th, 2010
02:09 PM ET

Republicans warn Obama against bypassing Senate

All 41 Republican senators have signed a letter warning President Barack Obama not to appoint a controversial nominee to a federal agency overseeing relations between unions and employers.

Led by Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch and Arizona Sen. John McCain, the GOP senators urged the president against putting union lawyer Craig Becker on the National Labor Relations Board during Congress' upcoming Easter break.

"We are writing to urge you not to overturn the bipartisan vote against the nomination of Craig Becker to be a Member of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) through a recess appointment," the senators state in the letter. "To do so would bypass the advice and consent traditions of the Senate."

Senate Republicans, along with Sen. Ben Nelson, D-Nebraska, and Sen. Blanche Lincoln, D-Arkansas, effectively blocked Becker's nomination to the NLRB on February 9.

Becker previously served as a lawyer for the Service Employees International Union and the AFL-CIO.

The GOP senators cast Becker as a radical whose past writings, their letter states, "clearly indicate that he would use his position on the NLRB to institute far-reaching changes in labor law."

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Filed under: Barack Obama • Politics
soundoff (4 Responses)
  1. max anderson

    To bad for the republicants, bush made recess appointments all the time and shoved it down the throats of the Dem's. A little of their own medicine is good for these teabaggers that call themselves senators. Another temper tantrum on the way from the rightwing teabagger nazi party, I mean GOP.

    March 25, 2010 at 2:45 pm | Report abuse |
  2. t-bagger

    Go Big "O" Go! Hey GOP, this is what happens when you act like crap and then have to EAT the same crap!

    March 25, 2010 at 4:49 pm | Report abuse |
  3. BushImpoverishedAmerica

    The Republicans had a year to co-operate on these appointments and obviously had no intention of ever doing so, and therefore, Obama being responsible did what he needed to do. Spin is called spin for a reason, it does not change the fact that these appointments need to be filled one way or another, that is what is called being responsible. I know the word responsible is one that is foreign to Republicans, so it is no small wonder they don't understand. Great job Obama, you're doing it, keep it goin', don't back down, believe.

    March 28, 2010 at 3:53 am | Report abuse |
  4. The Voice of Reason

    The repubs feel like they own the U.S.A. and how dare anyone go against them? We have seen this kind of attitude in the past and it did NOT do the world any good! (Just ask the World War II veterans!)
    Thank the Lord he sent an honest person like President Obama to help America! We should stand behind him instead of listening to the very party that got us involved in such a terrible financial mess while they paid off their banker friends.
    Keep up the good work, President Obama! The people need you!

    March 30, 2010 at 9:15 am | Report abuse |
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