Sheard: Nelson is Working Against Labor

I believe U.S. Sen. Ben Nelson has betrayed Nebraska’s working families. The work of the National Labor Relations Board has been stalled because three of its five seats have been vacant. The NLRB protects the rights of workers and management.

Sen. Nelson voted to kill the nomination of Craig Becker, a widely respected labor lawyer, to the NLRB, damaging the board’s ability to resolve labor disputes. Sen. Nelson said Becker would pursue a personal agenda, rather than that of the administration.

Sen. Nelson has apparently forgotten what he wrote in a Nov. 17, 2005, essay, regarding President George W. Bush’s nomination of Samuel Alito to the U.S. Supreme Court:

“The president’s nominees, especially to the Supreme Court, deserve an up-or-down vote, even if the nominee isn’t popular with the special-interest groups in Washington.”

Nelson wrote that prior to his confirmation hearing, Alito assured him that he was “carrying no political agenda to the bench.” So, Nelson was willing to take Alito at his word but not Becker.

Perhaps Sen. Nelson’s real reason for opposing Becker is a fear of antagonizing anti-worker elements within the business community.

By Jim W. Sheard Jr., Omaha
Secretary-Treasurer
Teamsters Local 554

Published in the Omaha World-Herald on March 1, 2010