Earlier this week, the U.S. Senate confirmed Lauren McGarity McFerran (D) to take the place of Member Schiffer (D), whose term expires next week. As readers of this blog will recall, the move came after President Obama withdrew the controversial nomination of Sharon Block (D), who became caught up in the unconstitutional appointment issue the Supreme Court resolved in Noel Canning.
While Ms. Block’s nomination generated controversy, it is not as if the nomination of Ms. McFerran generated a tidal wave of bipartisan support. The vote broke down strictly along party lines, with Ohio’s senators splitting according to their party. Senator Brown (D) voted to confirm Ms. McFerran and Senator Portman (R) voted against.
With the vote, the NLRB will remain at its full complement of members going into 2015 and the new, Republican controlled Senate. The next vacancy on the NLRB will occur in August 2015 when Member Johnson’s (R) term expires.