December 13, 2024

Revenge of the Moderate Senators

Manchin and Sinema vote with Republicans against Biden’s NLRB nominee, making it now Trump’s pick.

Senators Joe Manchin (WV) and Kyrsten Sinema (AZ) have always been the moderate wild cards of the Senate. On the one hand, both have left the Democrat Party. On the other hand, they still lean to the left despite the former being from a deep-red state and the latter hailing from a purple state.

The Democrat Party has treated them like garbage.

Manchin and Sinema are the reason we still have a filibuster in the upper chamber. Eliminating the filibuster — that is, eliminating minority-party concerns by disposing of the 60-vote threshold on most legislation, a.k.a. mob rule — is a big agenda item for the Democrats. The supermajority-vote requirement prevents the Senate from making big changes on controversial issues. Of course, now that Donald Trump is the president-elect, the Democrats have temporarily changed their tune.

As far as Democrat bullying toward the two senators, for Joe Manchin, it was an outright betrayal of a deal he thought he made with the Democrats when they wanted to push through the misnamed Inflation Reduction Act. For Sinema, it was the harassment from radical leftists that culminated in an incident wherein some activists followed her into a bathroom.

Revenge, they say, is a dish best served cold. So when a crucial vote for National Labor Relations Board (NRLB) nominee Lauren McFerran — who has been chair of the NRLB since 2021 — came up this week, both senators voted with the Republicans against her; the vote failed 49-50. Had McFerran’s nomination been approved, she would have been on the NRLB for another five-year term — or the entirety of Trump’s second term.

The NRLB was one of President Barack Obama’s favorite agencies that he used to circumvent the will of the people and promote the interest of big unions. With the nuking of McFerran’s nomination, Trump will have an opportunity to put another member on the board who is more pro-business.

Senate Majority (soon to be minority) Leader Chuck Schumer was upset by the result of the vote, saying, “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.” Perhaps he should have treated the moderate senators with a little more respect.

Senator Bill Cassidy was elated at the opportunity given to the American people by Manchin and Sinema, saying, “This NLRB seat should be filled by President Trump and the new incoming Senate. Not a historically unpopular president and a Senate Democrat Majority that has lost its mandate to govern. I am glad the Senate rejected Democrats’ partisan attempt to deny President Trump the opportunity to choose his own nominees and enact a pro-America, pro-worker agenda with the mandate he has from the American people.”

This was a kind parting gesture from the independent senators toward the American people. It is appreciated and a fitting end to their tenure in the Senate.

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