Secret ballot hypocrisy from Sherrod Brown

Sherrod Brown is an Ohio buckeye with a cockeyed-view on secret ballot elections.

For example, here he favors a secret ballot, one of course he will participate in:

Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, said Monday he has enough backing to change the way Senate committee chairmen are picked to a secret ballot, a major shift that would hand influence to newer senators. "I do expect leadership to adopt it," said Brown, who said he has been pushing for the change for about a year and now believes he has enough support to convince Democratic leaders to back the change. Currently, Senate Democrats are given a yes-or-no choice – which they must make aloud in front of their entire caucus – on whether the senior committee member who is expected to either become or remain chairman should receive that post. That means chairmen are elected by affirmation unless a member objects. Many members believe that process limits them to an only-symbolic role in ratifying leadership choices for chairmen. "It's not even a vote," Brown said. "Nobody stands up and says 'no.'" Allowing the secret ballot votes would democratize the process, forcing chairmen to seek support from their colleagues. It would also mark another victory for a group of Democrats elected in 2006 and 2008 who have been pushing for a bigger voice in caucus decisions."
(Dan Friedman, "Brown Says He Has Backing For Secret Ballot," National Journal, 12/13/10)

But when it comes to workers, Brown wants to take away their right to a secret ballot election.

A key Senate negotiator trying to advance a contentious union-organizing bill said a modified version could pass the upper chamber this year, despite his reservations with the changes. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) is one of a half-dozen senators trying to craft a compromise on the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), which if passed would make union organizing much easier. The labor movement considers the measure one of its top legislative priorities this Congress, but business associations have mounted an all-out lobbying offensive against the bill. (Kevin Bogardus, "Key Dems Confident Card-Check Will Pass," The Hill, 10/1/09)

At the heart of EFCA is card check, a free-to-peek petition method that replaces the secret ballot in union organizing elections.

Technorati tags: labor politics unions card check efca ohio ohio politics sherrod brown