◼ link - Phil Kerpen/Townhall
The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals emphatically smacked down the crazy idea that the president has the power to make recess appointments while the Senate is not in recess.
"An interpretation of 'the Recess' that permits the President to decide when the Senate is in recess would demolish the checks and balances inherent in the advice-and-consent requirement, giving the President free rein to appoint his desired nominees at any time he pleases, whether that time be a weekend, lunch, or even when the Senate is in session and he is merely displeased with its inaction," Chief Judge David B. Sentelle wrote. "This cannot be the law."
The decision means the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), which lacks a quorum to function without the improperly appointed members, should shut down until legitimate board members are confirmed by the Senate. But it won't. White House Press Secretary Jay Carney insisted the decision "does not have any impact, as I think the NLRB has already put out, on their operations or functions, or on the board itself."
So the administration is openly defying the courts and the Constitution. But why?
◼ GOP Senators to NLRB, CFPB: Take Down the ‘Open for Business’ Sign
A trio of Republican senators today introduced a bill to block NLRB actions in the wake of a D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that President Obama’s recess appointments to the labor authority were unconstitutional.
The Restoring the Constitutional Balance of Power Act of 2013 would prohibit the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) from enforcing or implementing decisions and regulations without a constitutionally confirmed board or director.
It would also block CFPB’s next transfer of funds from the Federal Reserve to carry out any actions that require the approval of a director.
It was introduced by Sens. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), Mike Johanns (R-Neb.), and John Cornyn (R-Texas).
“If they won’t take down their ‘Open for Business’ sign and put up one that says ‘Help Wanted,’ then the Senate will,” said Alexander. “The president created this problem but the Constitution provides him with a way to fix it—send the Senate acceptable nominees to fill these important positions.”
