Presidential Nominations Sent to the Senate

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For Immediate Release May 16, 2013 Presidential Nominations Sent to the Senate

NOMINATIONS SENT TO THE SENATE:

Robert James Grey, Jr., of Virginia, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the Legal Services Corporation for a term expiring July 13, 2014.  (Reappointment)

Richard T. Metsger, of Oregon, to be a Member of the National Credit Union Administration Board for a term expiring August 2, 2017, vice Gigi Hyland, resigned.

Daniel R. Russel, of New York, to be an Assistant Secretary of State (East Asian and Pacific Affairs), vice Kurt M. Campbell, resigned.

Blog posts on this issue May 17, 2013 6:08 PM EDTWeekly Wrap Up: “What Our Families Deserve”

Here’s a quick glimpse at what happened this week on WhiteHouse.gov.

May 17, 2013 5:50 PM EDTA Stronger and Sustainable Military for the 21st Century

The President and the Department of Defense are taking unprecedented steps to protect our environment, achieve significant cost savings, and give our military better energy options.

May 17, 2013 5:28 PM EDTComing Together to Stop Slavery

Today at the White House, we convened the 10th annual meeting of the President’s Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons.

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Presidential Nominations Sent to the Senate

Presidential Nominations Sent to the Senate | The White House Skip to main content | Skip to footer site map The White House. President Barack Obama Get Email UpdatesContact Us Go to homepage. The White House Blog Photos & Videos Photo Galleries Video Performances Live Streams Podcasts 2012: A Year in Photos

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Browse White House visitor logs

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Immigration Reform

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For Immediate Release April 23, 2013 Presidential Nominations Sent to the Senate

NOMINATIONS SENT TO THE SENATE:

David Michael Bennett, of North Carolina, to be a Governor of the United States Postal Service for a term expiring December 8, 2018, vice Thurgood Marshall, Jr., term expired.

Roberto R. Herencia, of Illinois, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation for a term expiring December 17, 2015.  (Reappointment)

Carlos Pascual, of the District of Columbia, to be an Assistant Secretary of State (Energy Resources), vice John Stern Wolf.

Yvette Roubideaux, of Maryland, to be Director of the Indian Health Service, Department of Health and Human Services, for the term of four years.  (Reappointment)

Blog posts on this issue April 25, 2013 6:15 PM EDTPresident Obama Honors Those Lost and Injured in West, Texas Explosion

President Obama travels to Waco, Texas to speak at a memorial service for those lost and injured in the deadly explosion at a fertilizer plant in nearby West, Texas.

April 25, 2013 1:45 PM EDTPresident Obama Participates in the Dedication of the George W. Bush Presidential Library

President and Mrs. Obama joined all the former living Presidents -- and four previous First Ladies -- for the event in Dallas, Texas.

April 25, 2013 1:00 PM EDTSupporting Local Communities by Building Capacity and Cutting Red Tape

Shaun Donovan and Cecilia Munoz highlight the impact of the Strong Cities, Strong Communities initiative.

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Support for gun control slips below 50 percent after Senate vote

Fewer than 50 percent of Americans say they support stricter gun controls, according to a survey released Tuesday, the first time since December's Newtown, Conn. elementary school shooting than less than half of those surveyed say they would back a new gun law.

According to the USA Today survey, 49 percent of Americans say they support passing a new gun control law while 45 percent oppose new legislation. That's down from 55 percent who supported new regulations in April and 61 percent in February. 

Last week, Senate Democrats failed to win the 60 votes necessary to move forward on a compromise bill that would have expanded background checks and instituted new penalties on so-called straw purchasers. Senate leaders had already acknowledged they were unlikely to win enough votes on an assault weapons ban or legislation limiting the size of magazine capacities — two suggestions of President Obama's gun violence commission.

Those who support new gun reforms are likely to be disappointed with the Senate's votes. Sixty-one percent of those who support new gun laws say Congress "should only agree to a stronger version of the bill, even if it might not pass," while just three in 10 say they should back a weaker law they know can win approval. Individual measures that comprise the totality of proposed gun control tend to poll higher than the overall bill, although the USA Today survey did not break out specific provisions. A Washington Post / ABC News poll earlier this month found that 86 percent of all Americans backed an expansion of background checks to cover gun shows and online sales.

On Monday, White House press secretary Jay Carney said Obama would "continue to push" for new gun restrictions.

"So the fact is this is hard because there are institutional reasons, there are political reasons, and there are other, I'm sure, personal reasons for why senators chose to vote against the vast majority of the American people," Carney said. "But we will continue to press the case. And this President made clear on Friday that this is just round one of this fight, that this will happen because it's the right thing to do and it's entirely common sense, and it would result in lives being saved."

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Schumer: Senate immigration bill would make country safer

The Gang of Eight member said their package would help prevent attacks on the homeland.

The Senate's immigration reform package would make the country safer from attacks on home soil, a leading author of the bill said this week.

With Americans still reeling in the aftermath of Monday's Boston Marathon bombings, some Capitol Hill lawmakers are warning that the tragedy should make Congress even more wary of attempts to overhaul the immigration system.

But Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), a member of the so-called "Gang of Eight" that negotiated the sweeping proposal, said Friday that their package would help prevent attacks on the homeland.

"Our bill, while certainly it gives a path to citizenship and legalizes people right away, we will know the identities of everybody. And that makes the country safer," Schumer said in an interview with Univision set to air Sunday. "So I think our bill would actually – it's too early to tie it to any specific incident – but overall, it'll make the country a lot safer."

Law enforcement officials say the chief suspects in the Boston bombings are ethnic Chechens who have been living in the United States for years. One suspect, 26-year-old Tamerlan Tsarnaev, was killed in a shootout with police in the early hours of Friday morning. His brother, 19-year-old Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, was captured outside Boston Friday night after an intense manhunt that lasted nearly 24 hours and shut down much of Greater Boston.

Schumer and the other members of the Gang of Eight – four Democrats and four Republicans – unveiled a proposal this week to revamp the nation's immigration system after months of delicate, closed-door talks. The issue has divided Washington politicians for many years, but the senators are hoping their compromise package will be more successful by striking the right balance between strengthening border security, favored by conservative Republicans, and granting new immigrant protections, urged by liberal Democrats.

Still, in the first Senate hearing on the issue, conducted Friday in the Judiciary Committee, there were clear signs that the bill has a tough road ahead. And Sen. Charles Grassley (Iowa), senior Republican on the panel, wondered aloud if holes in the immigration system opened the door for the Boston bombers to pull off their attacks. 

"Given the events of this week, it’s important for us to understand the gaps and loopholes in our immigration system," Grassley said in his opening statement of a Judiciary hearing on reform. "While we don’t yet know the immigration status of the people who have terrorized the communities in Massachusetts, when we find out, it will help shed light on the weaknesses of our system.

"How can individuals evade authorities and plan such attacks on our soil?" Grassley asked. "How can we beef up security checks on people who wish to enter the U.S.?  How do we ensure that people who wish to do us harm are not eligible for benefits under the immigration laws, including this new bill before us?"

Schumer said he's confident there's enough support for immigration reform this year – including endorsements from the strange bedfellows of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the AFL-CIO – that the Boston tragedy won't quash the effort. 

"So many groups are behind us. I don't think that this incident would derail the immigration bill," he told Univision.

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Presidential Nominations Sent to the Senate

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

NOMINATIONS SENT TO THE SENATE:

Henry J. Aaron, of the District of Columbia, to be a Member of the Social Security Advisory Board for a term expiring September 30, 2014, vice Jeffrey Robert Brown, term expired.

Henry J. Aaron, of the District of Columbia, to be a Member of the Social Security Advisory Board for a term expiring September 30, 2020. (Reappointment)

Ben S. Bernanke, of New Jersey, to be United States Alternate Governor of the International Monetary Fund for a term of five years. (Reappointment)

Avril D. Haines, of New York, to be Legal Adviser of the Department of State, vice Harold Hongju Koh, resigned.

Andrea Levere, of Maryland, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the National Consumer Cooperative Bank for a term of three years, vice Nguyen Van Hanh, term expired.

Gloria Valencia-Weber, of New Mexico, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the Legal Services Corporation for a term expiring July 13, 2014. (Reappointment)

President Obama speaks at in interfaith service dedicated to those who were gravely wounded or killed at the Boston Marathon bombing.

President Obama will deliver remarks this morning at Healing Our City: An Interfaith Service which is dedicated to those who were gravely wounded or killed in Monday’s bombing near the finish line of the Boston Marathon.

The Kaiser Foundation hosts an event for the launch of EMPOWERED, Alicia Keys' new campaign to help end the HIV/AIDs epidemic.

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Working Majority Of United States Senate Now Supports Marriage Equality

Sen. Mark Kirk (R-IL)

Sen. Mark Kirk (R-IL) has endorsed marriage equality, making him the second Republican in the Senate to do so. With Vice President Joe Biden the tie-breaker, this marks the first time that a majority in the U.S. Senate has endorsed same-sex marriage.

Kirk posted on his blog Tuesday: “When I climbed the Capitol steps in January, I promised myself that I would return to the Senate with an open mind and greater respect for others. Same-sex couples should have the right to civil marriage. Our time on this Earth is limited, I know that better than most. Life comes down to who you love and who loves you back– government has no place in the middle.”

Though Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts claimed that week that “political leaders are falling all over themselves” to support marriage equality, Kirk and Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) are the only sitting Senate Republicans to date who have done so. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) said last week she is “evolving” on the issue.

With Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE)’s endorsement earlier Tuesday, 48 members of Senate Democratic caucus have announced their support for marriage equality.

Meet the 50 Senators who support marriage equality:

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U.S. Senate may back symbolic repeal of medical device tax

WASHINGTON, March 21 (Reuters) - Opponents of a 2.3 percent tax on medical device companies will likely win passage this week in the U.S. Senate of a largely symbolic resolution calling for repeal of the tax, with some Democrats likely to join all Republicans.

The tax helps to fund President Barack Obama's 2010 healthcare law. It applies to a range of medical products - from bedpans to expensive heart devices - many manufactured in the home states of the senators backing the repeal.

The resolution calling for repeal will be symbolic because it will come in the form of a non-binding amendment to a non-binding budget measure drafted by Senate Democrats. The resolution would not actually repeal the tax.

Full repeal of the tax may be difficult to achieve, given its $30 billion price tag and the opposition of key Senate Democrats, including Majority Leader Harry Reid.

"The industry has a fighting chance of getting the tax moderated or eliminated as part of a much larger tax reform bill, where the device levy becomes a rounding error," said Paul Heldman, a policy analyst at Potomac Research Group. "But major tax reform in this Congress is a long shot."

Nine Senate Democrats are signed up to back the symbolic amendment. More than a dozen Senate Democrats wrote to Reid last year seeking to delay the tax.

Reid does not support repeal. Nor does Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, who helped usher Obama's healthcare bill into law. The medical device tax is among several new industry levies in the healthcare overhaul law, which aims to provide health insurance for millions of Americans who lack it.

The law is being implemented. It was declared constitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court last year.

The medical device tax, which went into effect this year, is projected to raise about $30 billion over a decade. That government revenue would be lost if the tax were repealed.

Democratic Senators from Minnesota, Indiana and Pennsylvania, where some big medical technology companies are based, are among those who have been pushing for a repeal.

Industry officials and lawmakers against the tax say it will hurt innovation and job creation.

(Reporting by Kim Dixon; Editing by Kevin Drawbaugh and Jan Paschal)

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U.S. Senate may back symbolic repeal of medical device tax

WASHINGTON, March 21 (Reuters) - Opponents of a 2.3 percent tax on medical device companies will likely win passage this week in the U.S. Senate of a largely symbolic resolution calling for repeal of the tax, with some Democrats likely to join all Republicans.

The tax helps to fund President Barack Obama's 2010 healthcare law. It applies to a range of medical products - from bedpans to expensive heart devices - many manufactured in the home states of the senators backing the repeal.

The resolution calling for repeal will be symbolic because it will come in the form of a non-binding amendment to a non-binding budget measure drafted by Senate Democrats. The resolution would not actually repeal the tax.

Full repeal of the tax may be difficult to achieve, given its $30 billion price tag and the opposition of key Senate Democrats, including Majority Leader Harry Reid.

"The industry has a fighting chance of getting the tax moderated or eliminated as part of a much larger tax reform bill, where the device levy becomes a rounding error," said Paul Heldman, a policy analyst at Potomac Research Group. "But major tax reform in this Congress is a long shot."

Nine Senate Democrats are signed up to back the symbolic amendment. More than a dozen Senate Democrats wrote to Reid last year seeking to delay the tax.

Reid does not support repeal. Nor does Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, who helped usher Obama's healthcare bill into law. The medical device tax is among several new industry levies in the healthcare overhaul law, which aims to provide health insurance for millions of Americans who lack it.

The law is being implemented. It was declared constitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court last year.

The medical device tax, which went into effect this year, is projected to raise about $30 billion over a decade. That government revenue would be lost if the tax were repealed.

Democratic Senators from Minnesota, Indiana and Pennsylvania, where some big medical technology companies are based, are among those who have been pushing for a repeal.

Industry officials and lawmakers against the tax say it will hurt innovation and job creation.

(Reporting by Kim Dixon; Editing by Kevin Drawbaugh and Jan Paschal)

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Presidential Nominations Sent to the Senate

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

NOMINATIONS SENT TO THE SENATE:

Patricia E. Campbell-Smith, of the District of Columbia, to be a Judge of the United States Court of Federal Claims for a term of fifteen years, vice Lawrence Baskir, retiring.

Elaine D. Kaplan, of the District of Columbia, to be a Judge of the United States Court of Federal Claims for a term of fifteen years, vice Christine O. C. Miller, term expired.

Michael Kenny O'Keefe, of the District of Columbia, to be an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia for the term of fifteen years, vice Joan Z. McAvoy, retired.

Robert D. Okun, of the District of Columbia, to be an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia for the term of fifteen years, vice Linda Kay Davis, retired.

The first stop on President Obama's trip to the Middle East marks the first time the President has visited Israel since taking office, and comes as its citizens celebrate the 65th anniversary of a free and independent State of Israel.

On the third anniversary of the Affordable Care Act, Secretary Kathleen Sebelius lays out some of the ways in which the health reform has lowered costs.

We will be posting regular updates from the road and livestreaming several of the President's events on whitehouse.gov/live

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Presidential Nominations Sent to the Senate

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

NOMINATIONS SENT TO THE SENATE:

Patricia E. Campbell-Smith, of the District of Columbia, to be a Judge of the United States Court of Federal Claims for a term of fifteen years, vice Lawrence Baskir, retiring.

Elaine D. Kaplan, of the District of Columbia, to be a Judge of the United States Court of Federal Claims for a term of fifteen years, vice Christine O. C. Miller, term expired.

Michael Kenny O'Keefe, of the District of Columbia, to be an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia for the term of fifteen years, vice Joan Z. McAvoy, retired.

Robert D. Okun, of the District of Columbia, to be an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia for the term of fifteen years, vice Linda Kay Davis, retired.

The first stop on President Obama's trip to the Middle East marks the first time the President has visited Israel since taking office, and comes as its citizens celebrate the 65th anniversary of a free and independent State of Israel.

On the third anniversary of the Affordable Care Act, Secretary Kathleen Sebelius lays out some of the ways in which the health reform has lowered costs.

We will be posting regular updates from the road and livestreaming several of the President's events on whitehouse.gov/live

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National Security Brief: Top Senate Democrat Wants Greater U.S. Role In Syria

Senate Armed Services Committee chairman Carl Levin (D-MI) said on Monday that the United States should play a more active role in bringing about Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s downfall. “I would go further than the President,” Levin said, adding that President Obama should consider establishing so-called “safe zones” for Syrian rebels within the country. Levin also said the U.S. should consider taking out the Syrian military’s anti-aircraft batteries and other Syrian Air Force assets.

Meanwhile, House Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Member Rep. Eliot Engel (D-NY) introduced legislation on Monday giving Obama that authority to provide “lethal equipment” to Syrian rebels fighting Assad’s forces. In a statement, Engel said the U.S. is “long past due to arm friendly rebels and turn the tide to allow for a more hopeful Syrian future.”

While U.S. officials mull whether and how much to intervene in Syria, the Syrian opposition coalition elected a Syrian born U.S. citizen to be the first prime minister of an interim government there should Assad fall. The group chose Ghassan Hitto, an information technology executive who lived in Texas until recently.

In other news:

Former Pentagon top counsel Jeh Johnson criticized the idea of any secret court to oversee the Obama administration’s targeted killing program, saying it would simply act as a “rubber stamp” for anything the executive wants to do. Johnson said that instead, the program should be brought within the auspices of the Defense Department in order to ensure its legality.

The AP reports: A hunger strike at the Guantánamo Bay prison has grown and now involves at least 21 men, a U.S. military official said Monday while denying reports trickling out from prisoners through lawyers that there is a more widespread protest and lives are in danger.

The Washington Post reports: Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has ordered the Pentagon to reconsider a sweeping military strategy that the Obama administration unveiled just last year to determine whether it is still affordable in light of recent budget cuts.

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Statement by the Press Secretary on the Senate Democratic Budget

Statement by the Press Secretary on the Senate Democratic Budget | The White House Skip to main content | Skip to footer site map The White House. President Barack Obama Get Email UpdatesContact Us Go to homepage. The White House Blog Photos & Videos Photo Galleries Video Performances Live Streams Podcasts 2012: A Year in Photos

A unique view of 2012

Briefing Room Your Weekly Address Speeches & Remarks Press Briefings Statements & Releases White House Schedule Presidential Actions Executive Orders Presidential Memoranda Proclamations Legislation Pending Legislation Signed Legislation Vetoed Legislation Nominations & Appointments Disclosures Visitor Access Records Financial Disclosures 2012 Annual Report to Congress 2011 Annual Report to Congress 2010 Annual Report to Congress on White House Staff A Commitment to Transparency

Browse White House visitor logs

Issues Civil Rights It Gets Better Defense End of Iraq War Disabilities Economy Jobs Reform and Fiscal Responsibility Strengthening the Middle Class A Plan for Refinancing Support for Business Education Energy & Environment Ethics Foreign Policy Health Care Homeland Security Immigration Immigration Reform Taxes Tax Receipt The Buffett Rule Rural Urban Policy Veterans Joining Forces Technology Seniors & Social Security Service Snapshots Creating Jobs Health Care Small Business PreK-12 Education Women Violence Prevention Now Is The Time

To do something about gun violence

Immigration Reform

Creating an Immigration System for the 21st Century

The Administration We the People

Create and Sign Petitions Now

President Barack Obama Vice President Joe Biden First Lady Michelle Obama Dr. Jill Biden The Cabinet 2010 Video Reports White House Staff Chief of Staff Denis McDonough Deputy Chief of Staff Rob Nabors Deputy Chief of Staff Alyssa Mastromonaco Counselor to the President Peter Rouse Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett Executive Office of the President Other Advisory Boards About the White House White House On the Go

Download our mobile apps

Easter Egg Roll

Be Healthy, Be Active, Be You: April 1, 2013

Inside the White House Interactive Tour West Wing Tour Video Series Décor and Art Holidays Presidents First Ladies The Oval Office The Vice President's Residence & Office Eisenhower Executive Office Building Camp David Air Force One White House Fellows President’s Commission About the Fellowship Current Class Staff Bios News and Newsletters White House Internships About Program Presidential Department Descriptions Selection Process Internship Timeline & FAQs Tours & Events 2013 Easter Egg Roll Kitchen Garden Tours Take a Virtual Tour of the White House Mobile Apps Our Government The Executive Branch The Legislative Branch The Judicial Branch The Constitution Federal Agencies & Commissions Elections & Voting State & Local Government Resources /* Maximize height of menu features. */if(typeof(jQuery)!='undefined')jQuery.each($('#topnav'),function(i,v){var o=$(v),oh=o.height(),sh=o.siblings().height();if(oh Home • Briefing Room • Statements & Releases   The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release March 13, 2013 Statement by the Press Secretary on the Senate Democratic Budget

The Senate Democratic budget is a concrete plan that will grow our economy and shrink our deficits in a balanced way, consistent with the President’s belief that our economy grows best from the middle-out, not the top-down, while reducing the debt as a share of the economy.  It’s a plan that doesn’t dwell on ongoing debates, but rather moves our country forward by making investments critical to our middle-class security – like education, manufacturing, and rebuilding our crumbling roads and bridges – while looking for waste, fraud, and savings throughout government.  This budget makes tough spending cuts and leaves no sacred cows, but it also makes sure that seniors and the middle class aren’t forced to bear the full burden of deficit reduction by eliminating wasteful loopholes through tax reform,  so that the wealthiest Americans pay their fair share.

Republicans and Democrats have now put their plans on the table.  And while there are differences, both sides share some common goals.  The President looks forward to seeking compromise and common ground with Congress so we can grow the economy, create jobs, and cut the deficit in a balanced way.

Blog posts on this issue March 14, 2013 6:45 PM EDTNominate a Hero for the 2013 Citizens Medal

Do you know someone whose exemplary deeds are an inspiration for others to serve? If so, we want to hear from you.

March 14, 2013 1:53 PM EDTVice President Biden Launches Audio Series "Being Biden"

Listen to a new audio series from Vice President Biden.

March 14, 2013 1:19 PM EDTA Visit with Ordinary Heroes

The DC Volunteer Lawyers Project provides free legal service to victims of domestic violence.

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Obama: Assault weapons ban 'deserves a vote' in full Senate, House

President Obama on Thursday applauded the Senate Judiciary Committee's approval of a renewed assault weapons ban and called for a vote on the proposal in the full Senate and House, hours after Senate Majority leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said he wasn't sure if he would include the ban in his gun control package.

"The full Senate and the House need to vote on this bill, as well as the measures advanced in the past week that would impose serious penalties on anyone who buys a gun as part of a scheme to arm criminals, improve school safety, and help keep guns out of the hands of criminals, people with a severe mental illness, and others who shouldn’t have them," Obama said in a statement released by the White House. "Each of these proposals deserves a vote."

Reid, who has opposed a renewed assault weapons ban in the past, said Thursday he has not yet decided whether the package he brings to the floor for a vote will include restrictions that would ban the sale and manufacture of 150 semi-automatic weapons with military-style features.

"I'm going to talk to [Sen. Patrick] Leahy [(D-Vt.)] about that," he told reporters after a leadership press conference. "I'm not going to worry about it here. Everybody will have their chance."

Some Democrats have said that omitting the assault weapons ban, which is strongly opposed by Republicans and some Democratic members, would improve the chances of other gun controls -- including expanded background checks and new laws governing the trafficking of firearms -- being passed.

But in his statement Thursday, Obama again left little doubt that he wanted a vote on the assault weapons ban.

"These weapons of war, when combined with high-capacity magazines, have one purpose: to inflict maximum damage as quickly as possible. They are designed for the battlefield, and they have no place on our streets, in our schools, or threatening our law enforcement officers," Obama said.

The ban, sponsored by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), passed the Judiciary Committee in a 10-8 party-line vote.

- Jonathan Easley and Alexander Bolton contributed.

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Maryland Senate Committee Kills Transgender Nondiscrimination Protections

Though the success of marriage equality in Maryland was an important achievement, the state still lacks nondiscrimination protections for its transgender community, and it seems that won’t be changing anytime soon. Today the Maryland Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee voted 6-5 to kill the Fairness for All Marylanders Act, which would have prohibited discrimination based on gender identity in housing, employment, and public accommodations.

One of the Democrats who voted against the protections was Sen. Norman Stone, who in 1967 voted to maintain the state’s ban on interracial marriage and who opposed same-sex marriage in 2012. Another was Sen. James Brochin, who was actually convinced to vote for marriage equality because of how “appalling” opponents’ testimony was. Apparently when the Family Research Council’s Peter Sprigg testified that trans people are “suffering” from a “delusion” and require therapy instead of protections, it just wasn’t appalling enough.

Only 16 states protect trans people from discrimination, and Maryland is apparently not becoming the 17th anytime soon.

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President and Senate must overcome GOP obstructionism on NLRB

By John Logan, professor and director of Labor and Employment Studies, San Francisco State University - 03/14/13 03:35 PM ET

This week may prove critical to the future of the National Labor Relations Board and the protection of workers’ fundamental rights. On Tuesday the NLRB announced that it would ask the Supreme Court to review the D.C. Circuit Court’s January 2013 Noel Canning decision, which ruled unconstitutional President Obama’s recess appointments to the Board in January 2012. And on Wednesday, the president met with Senate Democrats to discuss how to tackle ongoing Republican obstruction of his nominees to federal agencies, the courts and others.

There’s no doubt that the Noel Canning decision – which would invalidate well over 300 recess appointments since President Reagan’s first term -- has been a disaster for the enforcement of workers’ rights. Dozens of employers have petitioned the D.C. Circuit for review of adverse decisions issued by the board since January 2012.  

The Chamber of Commerce and influential management law firms are encouraging employers to challenge the Board at any point in the proceedings, rather than wait for an adverse decision, and to question the authority of at least 10 NLRB regional directors appointed by the Board. Firms that have cited Noel Canning to take on the Board include Starbuck, McDonald’s, CNN America, LabCorp, and Domino’s Pizza. But employers of all sizes are challenging the Board and resisting its enforcement orders, and Republicans contend that the Noel Canning ruling invalidates all future decisions that the current Board might make.
Congressional Republicans have claimed that Board has “gone rogue” by adopting a radical pro-union agenda, but the actual evidence suggests otherwise. When President Obama first took office, the Chamber of Commerce commissioned a management law firm to report on what to expect from the new Board. The firm predicted that it would reverse at least twenty important decisions made by its predecessor; so far it has reversed only four of these twenty. And the Board’s actions in other areas have been similarly unremarkable. The high-profile Boeing dispute was settled long before it reached the national Board. And the Board’s two attempts at rule-making – requiring employers to post notices and streamlining union elections, both of which would be considered moderate proposals in any other developed democracy – are currently being held up in the courts.
Collegiality among Democratic and Republican Board members has broken down, but that is largely the result of the poisonous external political environment. For the past three years, Congressional Republicans have relentlessly attacked the Board, attempting to discredit, defang, defund, and destroy both it and the rights it enforces. Appointments to the NLRB were never intended to be a battleground, but the anti-union extremism of the GOP has turned them into one. Republicans filibustered the nomination of former AFL-CIO lawyer Craig Becker in 2010, and then vowed to block the future nominations and keep the Senate in session, via phony pro-forma sessions, to prevent recess appointments. This is why the President was forced to make the January 2012 recess appointments in the first place.
But the current conflict is not over the validity of the recess appointments; if it were, Republicans would be lining up to defend the warped reasoning of the DC Circuit’s sweeping decision. It is not even about the alleged “hyper-partisanship” of the current Board; in private, Republicans know that this Board is no more partisan than previous Republican Boards and that “policy oscillation” at the Board is routine when a new Administration assumes office. Rather, the real reason that Republicans and their allies want to destroy the NLRB is that they no longer believe in the fundamental workers’ rights that the agency is charged with enforcing.
Employer obstructionism in the wake of Noel Canning means that workers’ rights are being violated with no clear legal recourse. Employers are, among other things, attempting to block or overturn the results of union elections, and are refusing to reinstate and pay workers who have been fired illegally.
The NLRB is correct to request Supreme Court review of the D.C. Circuit’s outrageous decision. Noel Canning is a tour de force of textualism. The D.C. Circuit apparently cares nothing about a century of past practice or about the real world consequences of its decision, which is just as well because empowering the Senate to unilaterally eliminate the President’s recess appointment authority, even when it is unavailable to advise and consent, makes no practical sense.
But American workers cannot wait for over a year for basic justice. President Obama and Senate Democrats must overcome Republican obstructionism and act quickly to confirm the President’s nominees to the Board. If they fail to do so, the GOP may finally succeed in killing off not only the labor board but also the rights it enforces.

Logan is professor and director of Labor and Employment Studies at San Francisco State University.

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Senate Democratic Budget Reduces Deficit By $1.85 Trillion, Half From Revenue

Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA)

A day after House Republicans outlined their budget proposal for fiscal year 2014, Senate Democrats unveiled a broad outline of their budget, which Senate Budget Committee Chair Patty Murray (D-WA) said will reduce the deficit to less than three percent of gross domestic product while bringing total deficit reduction to $4.2 trillion over the last four years.

The Democratic budget would replace the automatic budget cuts, known as sequestration, that took effect on March 1 with a different set of cuts that will achieve $1.95 trillion in total cuts and revenues. Here are the main provisions of the Democratic budget as outlined by Murray:

$1.85 trillion in total deficit reduction: The Senate budget achieves $1.85 trillion in total deficit reduction split evenly between spending cuts and new revenues and bringing total deficit reduction since President Obama took office to more than $4 trillion once combined with past spending cuts and tax increases. It includes $493 billion in domestic spending cuts, $275 billion of which would come from health savings determined by the Senate Finance Committee. The other $240 billion would come from defense and the end of the war in Afghanistan, and the budget would save $242 billion in interest savings.

$975 billion in new revenues: The budget would achieve half of its deficit reduction from new revenue increases derived from the elimination of tax expenditures and loopholes, though it does not include specifics on which would be eliminated. That would be left to the Senate Finance Committee as part of a broader tax reform bill. A report from the Center for American Progress found that there were more than $1 trillion in tax expenditures that could be eliminated. Those include subsidies for oil and gas companies, a loophole that benefits hedge fund managers, ending tax breaks for corporations that move jobs overseas, and limits on deductions for wealthy taxpayers.

$100 billion in stimulus spending: The budget also includes $100 billion for programs meant to boost the economic recovery, including $50 billion for infrastructure projects. The rest would go toward worker training programs and other forms of stimulus spending, according to Murray.

The Democratic budget would not achieve balance over the 10-year budget window, a point the Budget Committee’s Republicans repeated throughout the markup today. The House GOP budget, by contrast, claims to balance in 10 years, though those claims are built almost entirely on unrealistic revenue projections.

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Presidential Nominations and Withdrawal Sent to the Senate

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

NOMINATIONS SENT TO THE SENATE:

Deborah Kay Jones, of New Mexico, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to Libya.

James Knight, of Alabama, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Chad.

Stephen Crawford, of Maryland, to be a Governor of the United States Postal Service for the remainder of the term expiring December 8, 2015, vice Alan C. Kessler, resigned.

James J. Jones, of the District of Columbia, to be Assistant Administrator for Toxic Substances of the Environmental Protection Agency, vice Stephen Alan Owens, resigned.

Kenneth J. Kopocis, of Virginia, to be an Assistant Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, vice Peter Silva Silva, resigned.

Olga Viso, of Minnesota, to be a Member of the National Council on the Arts for a term expiring September 3, 2018, vice William Francis Price, Jr., term expired.

WITHDRAWAL SENT TO THE SENATE:

Elissa F. Cadish, of Nevada, to be United States District Judge for the District of Nevada, vice Philip M. Pro, retired, which was sent to the Senate on January 4, 2013.

The First Lady met today with the Business Roundtable to talk about Joining Forces, her initiative that supports veterans and military families.

As part of our Sunshine Week series, Macon Phillips discusses We the People.

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Appellate vacancies must be filled by Senate

Now that the 113th Senate has entered its third month, the upper chamber must immediately address the looming judicial cliff, which comprises 17 vacancies in 179 appellate judgeships. Until February 13, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) had maintained the June 2012 blockade which he imposed on all circuit nominees of President Barack Obama until after the November elections, ignoring pleas for post-election votes from Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and the nominees’ Republican and Democratic home state senators.

Three actions are necessary so judges can deliver justice. First, the Judiciary Committee must reapprove, and the full Senate confirm, First, Third, Tenth and Federal Circuit nominees William Kayatta, Patty Shwartz, Robert Bacharach and Richard Taranto. All four earned the best ABA rating and awaited floor votes since committee approval last spring. The panel did reapprove Shwartz on February 14 and the last three a week earlier, while the full Senate confirmed Kayatta on February 13 and Bacharach on February 25. Second, the Senate should expeditiously process D.C. Circuit nominees Caitlin Halligan, whom the committee approved on February 14, and Sri Srinivasan and Eleventh Circuit nominee Jill Pryor who received 2012 nomination and January 3 renomination with the first four nominees. The chamber should also promptly review Eighth Circuit nominee Jane Kelly and Tenth Circuit nominee Gregory Alan Phillips whom Obama tapped on January 31 and Federal Circuit nominees Raymond Chen and Todd Hughes who received February 7 nomination. Kelly had a February 27 hearing. Third, Obama must rapidly proffer, and the Senate quickly consider, nominees for the remaining nine vacancies.

Before nominations, Obama has robustly consulted both parties’ senators from states with empty seats. He tapped many exceptional uncontroversial nominees of balanced temperament, who are smart, ethical, industrious and independent. Leahy has swiftly arranged hearings and votes, moving nominees to the floor where most have languished. For instance, in December, the Senate confirmed 13 district judges, even though the chamber could easily have voted on 11 other nominees, including the four circuit possibilities, having panel approval. The Senate recessed without considering those excellent nominees, most of whom the committee reported with minimal opposition, because the GOP would not vote.

Republicans should cooperate better. The major bottleneck has been the floor. McConnell has rarely entered time accords for votes. Most problematic has been GOP refusal to vote on talented noncontroversial nominees, inaction that contravenes Senate traditions. When the Senate eventually voted, it overwhelmingly approved many nominees like John Dowdell, who captured appointment 95-0 in December.

The 17 appellate vacancies are critical because the 12 regional circuits and the Federal Circuit serve as courts of last resort for practically all appeals and resolve vital economic and social issues. Obama should continue cooperating with Leahy and Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), who sets floor votes, and their GOP analogues to foster smooth action on the seven current nominees while proposing superb candidates for the ten vacancies lacking nominees.

In June, McConnell invoked the “Thurmond Rule,” blocking appellate nominee votes until the elections. Because Obama won and the Democrats increased their chamber majority over three months ago, Shwartz, Taranto and Halligan deserve speedy up or down Senate votes, which Taranto will finally have today. Shwartz received October 2011 nomination, enjoys strong bipartisan support of New Jersey’s Democratic senators and Republican Governor Chris Christie and has waited on a final vote since March 2012, while two experienced Third Circuit judges indicated last week that they will assume senior status this summer creating new vacancies. Letting Taranto languish concomitantly required that the Federal Circuit function with vacancies in 25 percent of its judgeships. Halligan is highly qualified and has waited more than two years for a yes or no vote, while the D.C. Circuit has vacancies in four of eleven judgeships. The Judiciary Committee has approved Shwartz, Taranto and Halligan, but Democrats and Republicans have yet to agree on final votes for Shwartz and Halligan. If GOP leaders fail to agree on timely final votes, Democrats must pursue cloture, as they did on Halligan Wednesday, and Republicans should join them. Despite Halligan’s prolonged wait and her stellar abilities, only one GOP senator favored cloture.

Because the 17 appellate openings undermine justice, President Obama must swiftly nominate, and senators expeditiously confirm, many fine judges.

Tobias is the Williams Chair in Law at the University of Richmond.

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The 1996 Illinois Senate Campaign And How Candidates Can Win On Gun Safety

A look at the 1996 United States Senate campaign between then Democratic U.S. Rep. Dick Durbin and Republican Illinois State Rep. Al Salvi sheds an all-too-familiar light on how the effort to prevent gun violence has become a make-or-break issue for Illinois voters in next Tuesday’s special election to fill former Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr’s seat.

After edging out the moderate Republican candidate Lt. Gov. Bob Kustra in the 1996 GOP primary, Al Salvi represented the most appealing, convincing candidate the Republican Party had presented in Illinois and was believed to have a legitimate chance at winning the Senate seat. The young NRA poster boy for Illinois spent his time on the campaign trail asserting the ’94 federal assault weapons ban was “silly,” calling the ’93 Brady Handgun Bill “cosmetic,” and offering to legalize concealed weapons in order to cut crime.

Meanwhile, Salvi’s opponent, then Representative Durbin was actively campaigning for sensible gun violence prevention measures. After co-sponsoring the ’93 Brady Handgun bill and supporting the ’94 assault weapons ban, he told Illinois voters, “We will not be a safer nation, a safer state, if people are carrying guns around shopping malls and restaurants.” Durbin joined forces with President Reagan’s former press secretary and gun-control activist Jim Brady to film a campaign ad that portrayed Salvi as an extremist on gun issues. In a Sunday radio interview just days before the election, Salvi responded by falsely charging that Jim Brady “used to sell” machine guns. Salvi later apologized and conceded, “Turns out that was a different Jim Brady.”

Salvi’s last-minute gaffe and extreme stance on guns proved to fracture the Illinois Republican party and rally Illinois voters around candidates who supported gun violence prevention. In one example, the Chicago Fraternal Order of Police opted to support Democratic House candidate Rod Blagojevich over the Republican incumbent, U.S. Rep Michael Flanagan, who earlier that year had supported an attempt to repeal the federal assault weapons ban. In his endorsement, the union’s president, Bill Nolan, said, “(It’s) almost a one-issue thing, and that is the guns.”

Salvi’s extreme stance on guns cost him the election. Durbin won the race by a landslide, leading Salvi 57 percent to 40 percent. Durbin acknowledged in his victory speech how important gun violence prevention was to Illinois voters: “I hope this victory tonight is a message that no political official in this state should ever, ever be cowered by the gun extremists.”

Salvi learned his lesson and two years later completely reversed his position, coming out in support of commonsense gun violence prevention measures, including the Brady law and the federal assault weapons ban. He wrote a guest editorial in the Chicago Sun Times making the about face in the hopes of positioning himself for another Senate run. Salvi explained: “I’m a solid conservative who recognizes I made a mistake on presenting my position on the gun issue. I lost the big picture. I was wrong.”

Seventeen years later, the gun debate, yet again, takes center stage in the Chicago-area congressional race to fill former Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr.’s vacated seat.

New York City mayor, Michael Bloomberg, a vocal advocate for commonsense gun violence prevention measures, has shown a considerable interest in the first election since the shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. His super PAC, Independence USA, has already spent $2.1 million in TV ad buys attacking former Congresswoman Halvorson and other candidates who refuse to take a stand on gun violence prevention measures. The Independence USA ad endorses former state Rep. Robin Kelly who released her own video highlighting her support for sensible gun measures, including bans on assault weapons and high capacity gun magazines.

While Halvorson was the expected frontrunner as a result of her previous time in Congress and earlier rise to state Senate majority leader, her extremist stance against commonsense gun laws and “A” rating from the gun-manufacturing sponsored NRA may cost her the election, much like it did Al Salvi. There is no doubt that the Independence USA spending has put Halvorson at a disadvantage and sets an example for NRA-backed candidates in future elections.

In a race to represent a district severely shaken by gun violence, the movement to prevent gun violence again proves to be a critical issue. If history is any indication of which candidate Illinois voters will elect, Debbie Halvorson’s extremism may cost her.

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Maryland Senate Committee Votes To Repeal Death Penalty

A bill to repeal the death penalty in Maryland cleared the state Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee last night. The bill, a major priority for Gov. Martin O’Malley (D-MD), is expected to pass the state senate, where 26 of the body’s 47 members have said they will support the bill.

If the bill also passes the state house, where it is expected to have an easier road than it did in the senate, Maryland will join a growing national trend away from executions. According to a 2011 study by the Death Penalty Information Center, thirty-two U.S. jurisdictions executed no one in the proceeding five years. Moreover, although the death penalty is still technically legal in most states, executions themselves are rare outside handful of mostly Southern states. More than one third of all executions occurred in Texas:

The increasing rarity of the death penalty has constitutional implications. The Eighth Amendment to the Constitution forbids “cruel and unusual punishments.” Thus, as the death penalty becomes more and more unusual — or, as the Supreme Court has put it, as it no longer comports with “evolving standards of decency that mark the progress of a maturing society” — it stands on weaker and weaker constitutional footing.

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