The two senators most responsible for keeping many of Joe Biden's radical plans from being realized have one parting gift for the departing president.
Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) are leaving the Senate when their terms expire shortly after the new year. Neither senator wanted to risk running in what surely would have been a losing campaign given Trump's overwhelming strength in West Virginia and a strong Democratic challenger for Sinema in Arizona.
For most of the last four years, Sinema and Manchin have blocked the most radical aspects of the Biden legislative program, including removing several radical proposals in the $2 trillion "Build Back Better" bill. Both have also stood steadfast against enormous pressure to get rid of or dramatically weaken the Senate filibuster.
Now, the two "mavericks" are blocking the renomination of a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) Chairwoman Lauren McFerran. This will open the door for Donald Trump to name his own candidate for chair plus fill one more vacancy on the five-person board and give Republicans control.
Democrats are unhappy.
“It is deeply disappointing, a direct attack on working people, and incredibly troubling that this highly qualified nominee — with a proven track record of protecting worker rights — did not have the votes,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said.
Business groups were strongly opposed to McFerran's renomination.
“In her time serving as Chair of the NLRB, Lauren McFerran has failed to be an impartial arbiter of labor disputes as required under federal law,” said Adam Temple, National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB) senior vice president for advocacy. “Instead, she has consistently tipped the scales in favor of organized labor over the interests of small business owners through decisions and regulations that increase red tape, compliance costs, and uncertainty for Main Street."
The Senate vote to reconfirm McFerran came down to Democrats needing either Manchin or Sinema to vote in favor. In the end, Schumer came up empty.
Prior to the vote, Schumer tried some good old-fashioned class shaming.
"If you truly care about working families, if you care about fixing income inequality in America, then you should be in favor of advancing today's NLRB nominee," Schumer said. He added, "you can't say you're for working families and then go and vote no today, because the NLRB protects workers from mistreatment on the job and from overreaching employers."
Who's going to protect companies from corrupt, grasping unions?
Manchin took it all in stride. Schumer tried to pull a fast one and scheduled the vote for when Manchin was out of the chamber on a speaking engagement. Manchin rushed back to cast his "no" vote.
New: Manchin says he told Dems he was a no on NLRB nom ahead of time (“Hell yes, they know"). Vote was scheduled during a speaking engagement but he beat VP back to Senate: “The only thing they could do is catch me when I’m not there"
— Burgess Everett (@burgessev) December 12, 2024
More in Principalshttps://t.co/kB0kY70UZn
Schumer gambled that he had the votes without knowing how Sens. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) and Joe Manchin (I-W.Va.) would vote on the nomination for Lauren McFerran.
Both voted "No" on a crucial procedural vote that would clear the way for confirmation.
Republicans had nearly perfect attendance on the roll call, with only Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kansas), who has strong union ties, not voting.
Driving the news: Democrats thought they could install McFerran, the current chair, for another five-year term.
That would ensure Democrats had a 3-2 majority on the board, which helps referee disputes between employers of workers across the economy, from Amazon to Starbucks.
Both Senate moderates — among the last of their breed — resisted a lot of arm-twisting to vote the way they did knowing that their colleagues would vilify them.
That's courage.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member