Despite ‘Powerful Rebuke’ from Supreme Court, Reid Says Ruling Shows Need for Nuclear Option

PJ Media ^ | June 26, 2014 | Bridget Johnson

[jazusamo]

Republicans on the Hill cheered the 9-0 Supreme Court decision that found President Obama’s January 2012 appointments to the National Labor Relations Board were unconstitutional, while the top Democrat in the Senate maintained that the White House was in the right.

Obama branded them “recess appointments,” but the Senate was actually in pro-forma session at the time.

In September of that year, 41 GOP senators filed an amicus brief in support of the case brought against the presidential appointments. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled the appointments of Sharon Block and Richard Griffin were unconstitutional in February 2013.

“The unanimous Supreme Court decision today is a powerful rebuke to the Obama administration and a reminder to others that the Constitution gives the Senate powers the executive branch cannot usurp,” said Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.). “Our founders wanted a president, not a king, and our Constitution is written to protect against precisely the kind of overreach this president demonstrated with his so-called recess appointments to the National Labor Relations Board.”

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said “all Americans should be grateful for the Court’s rebuke of the administration—and the Democratic Majority in the Senate should be embarrassed by its failure, yet again, to stand up to the President and to defend the Senate’s uniquely important role under our Constitution.”

“I was proud to lead the effort to defend the Senate against the president’s unprecedented power grab,” McConnell added.

The challenge to the recess appointments was brought by Noel Canning, a family-owned business in Washington state that fought the NLRB’s determination it must enter into a collective bargaining agreement with a labor union.

“This administration has a tendency to abide by laws that it likes and to disregard those it doesn’t. In this case, that disturbing and dangerous tendency extended to the Constitution itself,” McConnell said. “Whether it’s recess appointments or Obamacare, this troubling approach does serious damage to the rule of law, and the Court’s decision is a clear rebuke of the administration’s behavior.”

“This administration’s efforts to turn the NLRB into a pro-union, anti-business clearinghouse has made it that much harder for our economy to turn the corner and more difficult for folks to get back to work,” said Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.).

“For too long, our president has operated by fiat, bypassing Congress and overriding the will of the American people,” added Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas). “Today’s ruling sends a clear message against President Obama’s power grabs and restores more constitutionally-required accountability for all nominations going forward.”

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said the ruling just underscored how important it was for him to drop the nuclear option last fall and lower the cloture threshold for approving Obama’s judicial nominees.

“Since President Obama took office, Senate Republicans have done everything possible to deny qualified nominees from receiving a fair up-or-down vote. President Obama did the right thing when he made these appointments on behalf of American workers. The National Labor Relations Board had ceased to function due to Senate Republican obstruction of these three qualified nominees, threatening the livelihood and safety of working men and women throughout the country,” Reid said in a statement.

“More than anything, today’s Supreme Court ruling underscores the importance of the rules reform Senate Democrats enacted last November,” Reid continued. “Without that reform and with today’s ruling, a small but vocal minority would have more power than ever to block qualified nominees from getting a simple up-or-down vote on the floor. Since the November reform the Senate has been confirming qualified nominees at a steady pace and today’s ruling will have no effect on our ability to continue ensuring that qualified nominees receive an up-or-down vote.”

[jazusamo]

If and when the shoe is on the other foot Dingy Harry will squeal like a stuck pig about the "up-or-down vote" if the Republicans don't cave and restore the filibuster.

[Logical me]

Reid better watch his step from now on. His butt will be a target when we get the Senate. Career over and a target for criminal activities he has committed in Nevada.

[BigEdLB]

“Since President Obama took office, Senate Republicans have done everything possible to deny qualified nominees from receiving a fair up-or-down vote. President Obama did the right thing when he made these appointments on behalf of American workers. The National Labor Relations Board had ceased to function due to Senate Republican obstruction of these three qualified nominees, threatening the livelihood and safety of working men and women throughout the country,” Reid said in a statement.

Thuggish evil hack.

[morphing libertarian]

pookietoons ran a great cartoon today. A Redskins helmet with a picture of Reid. Team name Washington Reidskins

[b4its2late]

Reid makes my skin crawl.

[jazusamo]

The only thing I’d like to see more than Reid behind bars is 0bama there with him.

[GSWarrior]

If only Reid was talking about energy exploration...

[PLD]

George Soros is a foreign-born billionaire who is the single largest funder of many Anti-American groups: Move-On.org, Democracy Alliance, Media Matters, Health Care for America Now, Center for American Progress, and Campaign for America’s Future, just to name a few. Soros wants to destroy the principles America was founded upon and turn it into a “socialist paradise.” Soros is a convicted inside trader who supports open borders, gay rights, abortion rights, increased union power and is hostile to the free enterprise system, even though he made billions off of it. He made his money in a very unethical and, many believe, illegal way – international currency speculation and manipulation. Some believe his fortune was made from drug smuggling since his empire is based offshore in the Netherlands Antilles; the CIA describes this location as “a transshipment point for South American drugs bound for the US and Europe; money–laundering center.” (9) But Soros’s shady background did not dissuade Reid from taking money from him. Since becoming the Senate Minority leader in 2005 and then the Majority leader in 2007, Reid has had operational control of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. While fundraising for the DSCC, Reid took over $220,000 from Soros, the Soros Fund Management, and various Soros family members. Reid answers to Soros and Obama and we all know those two put out their little worms to say nothing is right but what Obama says and does..so the worm Reid makes the statement he did..

[chiefqc]

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said the ruling just underscored how important it was for him to drop the nuclear option last fall and lower the cloture threshold for approving Obama’s judicial nominees.

Who paid reid to say this? His voice is always for sale if the price is right.

[b4its2late]

True.

[BuckeyeTexan]

FReepmail me to subscribe to or unsubscribe from the SCOTUS ping list.

[jazusamo]

Worm is a most appropriate description of Reid.

He, Soros, NV organized crime and unions are one slimy family.

[wku man]

I agree there should be the "nuclear option"...let's start with Hemorrhoid Reid's office.

Scouts Out! Cavalry Ho!

[MrB]

I’m sure this bass turd is on record denouncing the nuclear option when Bush was in office and the dems in the minority in the Senate.

Of course, they are never embarrassed by their hypocrisy.

[RIghtwardHo]

One has nothing to do with the other. All POTUS did is say that a pro-firma session is a session. This is a case of first impression.

Look. As I have made clear I’ve got nothing but contempt for the Dims and ODimwit ... but we way too often just go with a headline and fail to understand a ruling or implication of a ruling. If we ever (in the short window remaining) hope to “take our nation back” we need to understand fact and nuance, even the one(s) we don’t like.

Analysis is much more than a headline or slogan or exclamation and CERTAINLY much more than spin.

[jazusamo]

Yep the hypocritical turkey is on record denouncing it.

excrpt:

” The Washington Free Beacon reports that in 2008, Reid denounced Republican consideration of the “nuclear option” and vowed that he would never use it:

“As long as I am the Leader, the answer’s no,” he said. “I think we should just forget that. That is a black chapter in the history of the Senate. I hope we never, ever get to that again because I really do believe it will ruin our country.”

http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/reid-2008-nuclear-option-will-ruin-our-country_768018.html

[MrB]

He’ll never be asked about it by any major news organization,
and even if he was asked, he could lie and they wouldn’t follow up.

[jazusamo]

Whether one has nothing to do with the other or not this article is about what Dingy Harry said regarding this SCOTUS ruling.

[jazusamo]

You’re exactly right.

[EDINVA]

Not kidding, especially because my mother died of Alzheimers, but I think Harry Reid is in its relatively early stages. He certainly is developing dementia of some variety.