One day after the constitutionally-challenged NLRB member Richard Griffin was supposedly ousted as part of Senate Republicans’ giving in to Harry Reid’s threat to use the “nuclear option,” Griffin was nominated to become the NLRB’s general counsel. One might wonder, how many were in on the deal before it was made and at what price?
The surprise announcement of Griffin’s new nomination was made on the heels of Barack Obama having nominated, based on the advice of AFL-CIO boss Richard Trumka, two new members to the NLRB–one of whom is a recently retired associate general counsel for the AFL-CIO.
As the former general counsel of the International Union of Operating Engineers, Richard Griffin’s union has close ties with NLRB chairman Mark Pearce, whose former Buffalo, NY law firm once had the IOUE as a client.
However, what is more curious is the abnormally high amount of political expenditures the IUOE’s political action committee spent on lawmakers in the month of June.
[via Rollcall]
The political action committee of an international union gave $900,000 to members of Congress during the month of June.
The Engineers Political Education Committee (EPEC) of the International Union of Operating Engineers, reported it contributed $905,000 in June with 251 contributions. Most of the contributions were either $2,500 or $5,000. One contribution of $5,000 was returned. [Emphasis added.]
While it is currently unknown which lawmakers received IUOE’s political action committee’s donations, thanks to remarks by Iowa Senator Tom Harkin’s remarks, it is looking more and more like Griffin’s nomination to become the NLRB’s general counsel is the result of a behind-the-scenes deal worked out either amongst Democrats (or among Democrats and Republicans).
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“Truth isn’t mean. It’s truth.”
Andrew Breitbart (1969-2012)
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