Republicans flex new power, block Obama nominee

[undeterred]

Source: Reuters

By Thomas Ferraro

WASHINGTON, Feb 9 (Reuters) - U.S. Senate Republicans flexed their new political muscle on Tuesday and blocked President Barack Obama's nomination of a union lawyer to help referee labor disputes. Obama's fellow Democrats in the Senate fell far short of the needed 60 votes, 52-33, to end debate and clear the way for a confirmation vote on Craig Becker, who the president wants to put on the National Labor Relations Board.

Republicans prevailed with the help of two Democratic senators from conservative states, Ben Nelson and Blanche Lincoln. Nelson, like a number of Republicans, voiced fear that the union attorney would take a "personal agenda" to the NLRB.

While Democrats still hold the Senate majority, 59-41, Republicans have a stranglehold on the chamber -- thanks to Scott Brown's win in a special Senate election in Massachusetts last month. With Brown sworn in last week as the 41st Senate Republican, Democrats no longer hold the 60 votes needed to clear Republican procedural roadblocks.

The new balance of power puts much of Obama's agenda, including his bid to revamp U.S. healthcare, in dire trouble unless the president can win rare bipartisan support in a divided Congress. To be sure, even before Democrats lost their 60-vote supermajority, they were often unable to stick together.



Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN0910262820100209

[Mz Pip]

1. recess appointment

C'mon Obama. Just do it.

[Uncle Joe]

3. I agree, Mz Pip.

This "personal agenda" B.S. spouted by Nelson is a betrayal against the people's best interests.

Corporate supremacy seems to have a stranglehold on "We the People's" government.

[saigon68]

23. Another scum bag

[Vincardog]

2. rare bipartisan support MY A$$. Unless Obama LEADS and makes the congress follow.

[BunkerHill24]

4. Blanche might be doing this as a political cover, but Ben is his usual douchebag. n/t

[UpInArms]

9. Blanche is a douchebag, too

this is not "new" behavior.

I spit in her general direction.

[BunkerHill24]

11. She's just as bad, I concur. n/t

[OHdem10]

18. Agreed, she is just as bad.

[emsimon33]

19. When does he come up for election again

The state needs to get a real Democrat to run against him.

[Wabbajack_]

24. Why should ARK DEMS bother to support her?

Bill Halter for Senate.

[pokercat999]

5. Rethugs flex, Obama kisses their bare ass. What a wuss.

Only three more years.

[KamaAina]

6. So even without Brownnose, it would have failed

thanks to the DINOs and especially Lincoln (D-Wal-Mart). :eyes:

Yet they spin it as though Brownnose somehow flipped the DINOs' votes.

[SpeechlessDem]

7. Hi DU

I just want to say that this isn't right!
And also I would like to ask

If Dems have more power in the senate than repubs then how did this happen?
Did some Dems sell out?

Please answer, I watn to know as I am not very happy about this!

[UpInArms]

10. welcome to DU, SpeechlessDem!

and there are plenty of D(emocrats)I(n)N(ame)O(nly) or DINOs - so sellouts? well, not really.

What has happened is that what was once a needed 50 votes to make something clear the Senate (half) with VP Biden breaking a tie as a majority - no longer works.

The Republicans (at 41) are now the party of blockade - cool-aid - strangle-aid

no cloture - no vote - only the threat of filibuster is needed to STOP all discussion and make everyone run for cover of darkness and nothing happens.

There is no dark side of the moon - it's all dark.

[wroberts189]

8. "personal agenda"? That is his explanation? Nelson should just admit he is a republicon. nt

[glinda]

12. Nelson and Lincoln must go

[bluedigger]

13. Not to worry, folks!

I'm sure they can find an agenda-less corporate labor lawyer to fill the spot.

[hollowdweller]

14. Ain't that the truth

It's OK to have corporations in charge of labor or polluters in charge of the EPA but put a pro labor person or an environmentalist in there and we're afraid of their agenda. What BS!

[high density]

15. New power?

It's been like this since the Democrats supposedly got a majority.

[No Elephants]

16. What is the alleged "personal" agenda? Shouldn't Nelson at least have to be more specific?

[emsimon33]

17. Stop blaming Scott Brown--they were doing nothing before he was elected

Democrats need to let Republicans filibuster--for months on end if that is what it takes. The government is grid locked. Bush had far fewer senators and pushed through whatever he damn well pleased.

Stop the lies about the need to have some super majority. If there were 100 Democrats in the Senate, I suspect that the people's work would still be grid locked.

[FailureToCommunicate]

25. Agreed. The OP is misleading. This is not one new Repub from Massachusetts

causing this! Tell your representatives that you would like it if they actually made them filibuster - instead of just the threat

[wisteria]

20. Please. I am getting tired of these doom and gloom articles simply

because Downtown Scotty Brown has been elected. Like someone else said, make him a recess appointment. It is Lincoln and Nelson I question. How can a Democrat not support unions?

[Hulk]

21. We NEVER had 60...that's a myth, and YOU KNOW IT!!

With liberwurst, nelson, and lincoln....we NEVER had 60, NEVER!! Why do we keep sweating that like brown made some sort of difference?? We have never had much more than the majority, and the repukes and those wolves in sheeps clothing are NOT going to let the Democratic Party politicians get anything done.....amen!

It isn't "over". It NEVER BEGAN!!

[DarthDem]

22. Time For . . . .

(1) Recess appointments;

(2) A PR campaign designed to show the American people what the Thugs do with the Senate, which should include a change to the rules that requires them to filibuster physically, not just be announcing it; and

(3) Eliminating the filibuster in January my majority vote. I'm relatively certain, actually virtually certain, that the Democrats will still have the majority then. But (2) may be a prereq for (3).

[SlingBlade]

26. Recess Appointment and a Big Fuck You !

[Name removed]

27. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Zoeisright]

28. Good work, Massachusetts.

Thanks a whole heap.

[JDPriestly]

29. Congressional Democrats vote against the nominees of a Democratic president,

because the leadership in the Democratic caucus in Congress is broken. Nancy Pelosi is able to manage the House well, but Harry Reid is unfortunately, a nice guy but not a capable leader. Reid does not know how how to push buttons and pull levers and make the Democratic Caucus in the Senate work.

One or two failures can be excused. But Harry Reid, unfortunately, has a long list of failures just in the past year. We need change now, not after November. Unless we see a change in the holder of Harry Reid's position in the Senate, we will not see change, not now, not ever.

This is a sad fact because as I said, he is a likable guy.