Marathon Pundit: Obama’s agencies usurping Congress’ authority

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Obama’s agencies usurping Congress’ authority

President Obama campaigned on "change." This is not change I can believe in.

From Townhall:

In the last session of Congress, members of both the Senate and House spoke loudly and clearly through their actions on various pieces of legislation, including the Employee 'Forced' Choice Act (EFCA). EFCA would have eliminated the secret ballot in union organizing elections and given to government arbitrators the authority to determine wages and other terms and conditions of employment. Even though this anti-worker, job-killing legislation was introduced, it was never called to a vote because it lacked the support of the American people.

Union bosses pushed and pulled in every direction to get this massive labor union bailout – which would have made organizing easier but at the expense of workplace democracy and jobs – but were unable to succeed even in a Congress controlled by Democrats with whom they were closely aligned.

Yet, Big Labor is undeterred. Despite a weakened economy that could slip into a double dip recession, 14 million Americans seeking work and credit rating agencies downgrading for the first time in modern history the nation's rating, union bosses continue to seek "payback" for their political support of the Obama Administration, without regard for the consequences. President Obama’s regulatory agencies are more than willing accomplices.

Never before has a little-known agency in government named the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) attracted so much attention and disdain for its actions, heavily skewed in favor of increased power for labor bosses to the detriment of employers and their employees. The White House disingenuously tries to distance itself from the NLRB by repeatedly referring to it as an "independent" agency over which it has no control. But it is President Obama who put unabashed union partisans in charge of the agency. Obama appointed Lafe Solomon, the architect of the Boeing complaint, as the agency's acting general counsel to take the place of a long-term agency employee who was already serving in that position. And Obama recess-appointed Craig Becker, a labor radical in favor of micro-units and quickie elections, after he failed to receive sufficient support in the Senate due to his extreme views.