In a blow to Joe Biden's lame duck efforts to obstruct the Trump administration, the Senate voted 50-49 to block a Democratic majority on the National Labor Relations Board.
The tie-breaking vote was cast by Ohio senator and future vice president J.D. Vance, who flew to Washington D.C. to sink the nomination of Lauren McFerren, a Biden loyalist known for her pro-labor agenda.
The National Labor Relations Board has significant power to set the agenda on labor law enforcement, and under McFerren, the scales have been tipped heavily in favor of organized labor.
If she had been confirmed to another five-year term, Democrats would have retained control of the board through 2026.
"Make no mistake: This vote had nothing to do with stopping Chair McFerran’s renomination and everything to do with reversing generations of progress workers have made toward building a fairer and more just economy,” Liz Shuler, president of AFL-CIO, said.
Also helping to sink the nomination were Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, who are both retiring from the Senate. The former Democrats were frequently a thorn in Biden's side throughout his term.
The duo's role in blocking McFerren sparked fresh outrage from the left, as Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer (D-Ny.) who lost his majority in November, decried the vote as an attack on the working-class.
“It is deeply disappointing, a direct attack on working people, and incredibly troubling that this highly qualified nominee — with a proven track record of protecting worker rights — did not have the votes,” Schumer said.
While McFerren's failure is seen as a win for business groups, President-elect Trump is ensuring that unions have a seat at the table in his administration by nominating a union-friendly Republican to lead the Labor Department, Lori Chavez-DeRemer.
Trump's historic re-election victory was powered by a political realignment that saw him erode the Democrats' traditionally working-class base. In his latest show of support for workers, Trump said Thursday that he is siding with the dock workers' union against automation at America's ports.
"The amount of money saved is nowhere near the distress, hurt, and harm it causes for American Workers, in this case, our Longshoremen," he said.
Trump's labor outreach hasn't come without controversy as some Republicans argue that embracing unions is a mistake.
In any event, the failure of Biden's push to continue controlling the NLRB will ensure that Trump is able to set his own agenda on labor relations.
