Secret Ballot Watch

That’s the question Roll Call tried to answer in a report Tuesday. The congressional newspaper says Senate leaders are considering an idea to rush the bill through the chamber as fast as possible to avoid debate and opposition:   

“As Senate Democrats struggle to hammer out a compromise bill on union organizing, Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) is sketching a process for railroading the bill through the floor as quickly as possible to prevent Republicans from rallying a major campaign against it, senior Democratic aides said.

“Talks on the bill are ongoing, and with health care on the Senate’s plate, Democrats said no deal on the labor bill is expected until September at the earliest — if at all. …

“As [Iowa Sen. Tom] Harkin tries to build a consensus Democratic bill, Reid has been thinking through a strategy to pass it that would require not only the support of all 60 Democrats in the Senate, but also the physical presence of ailing Sens. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) and Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.) for floor votes, since Republicans are likely to filibuster the legislation.

“Cutting off debate on the bill would likely ignite a major partisan firestorm, and top Democrats will look to make their move as fast as possible, according to the Democratic aides.

“‘This is not the kind of thing where we could have a long, drawn-out rollout. We’d have to say, ‘Here’s the deal,’ and then get to the floor and get it passed before anyone can mobilize against it,’ one leadership aide said.”

Stanton, “Speed May Be Key to Labor Bill,” Roll Call, 07.28.09 

If anything, this strategy shows that the act’s supporters are running scared. They can’t win on the act’s merits, so instead they go for speed.

But don’t they know that “speed kills”? In this case, the victims would be jobs, a worker’s right to a secret ballot, and possibly America’s ability to compete in the global marketplace, among other casualties. Debate is needed for everyone’s sake – especially during this lengthy recession. Senate leaders should slow down on the Employee Free Choice Act, or better yet: Stop.

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