Nearly every time I heard a Democratic candidate speak to a
progressive audience last year, there was a line about how "We
need to once again have a Labor Department that is actually
pro-labor," which was typically met with thunderous applause.
Well, it looks like Obama has granted progressives' wishes. The
left is absolutely ecstatic over Obama's choice of
California Rep. Hilda Solis as Labor Secretary. "Hilda Solis is
great," the American Prospect's Harold Meyerson beams in
a
fawning post. SEIU president Andy Stern has declared the pick
"extraordinary,"
noting that she has stood with big labor on every important
issue. And based on her voting record, she has received pristine
ratings from virtually every major union, which isn't surprising,
because she owes her Congressional seat to
union backing. As Jim wrote
in our print edition last year, the Labor Department has been one
of the few conservative success stories in the Bush
administration, and now it's looking like it will be a long four
to eight years for the business community.
For a taste of what's to come, here's a speech she gave in favor
of card check legislation that is
making the rounds on
liberal blogs,in which she discusses coming from a union
family:
About the Author
Philip Klein is The American Spectator's Washington correspondent. You can follow him on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/Philipaklein
