Counting to 60 on Card Check is No Easy Task
WASHINGTON, D.C.,
July 6, 2009
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Alexa Marrero
((202) 225-4527)
With Al Franken scheduled to be sworn in this week as the 60th Senator who will caucus with Democrats, speculation has exploded about legislative prospects for the card check ploy.
Congressional observers are well-versed on the political pitfalls that have so far stymied card check’s enactment. The plan – which requires union certification without the protection of a secret ballot election and could put federal bureaucrats in charge of wages, benefits, and work rules – has never been able to garner the necessary 60 votes in the U.S. Senate, and in the face of widespread controversy, it hasn’t even been brought up for consideration in the U.S. House of Representatives. The special interest groups advocating for card check have always viewed Senator-elect Franken’s vote as crucial to enactment of the controversial plan. But various news reports have thrown cold water on the notion that card check is imminent, proving that the elusive 60 votes for this anti-worker plan may not materialize as expected. Roll Call first reported last week that a so-called compromise on the card check plan may not be ready as early as originally expected:
Jessica Brady, “‘Card Check’ Compromise Still Elusive, but Fight Continues to Heat Up,” Roll Call, 07.02.09 The Hill carried the story as well, explaining why Democrats’ supposedly filibuster-proof majority may be unable to force through such a controversial plan:
Kevin Bogardus, “Five key Senate Democrats on card-check,” The Hill, 07.03.09 Thankfully for workers, when it comes to card check, counting to 60 is proving to be no easy task. # # # |