Republican presidential candidates and members of Congress applauded the National Labor Relation Board‘s decision to drop its complaint against aircraft manufacturer Boeing on Friday. And South Carolina GOP Senator Lindsey Graham is calling for a congressional investigation into the matter, said he would block Obama administration nominees to the NLRB until his questions are answered.
Sen. Graham said in a press release Friday that Congress should investigate possible collusion between the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers union against Boeing’s decision to relocate one of its assembly plants to South Carolina.
The NLRB claimed Boeing’s motive in selecting South Carolina — a right-to-work state — was to retaliate against union workers in the state of Washington for past strikes.
“I’m glad the ridiculous complaint against Boeing has gone away, but there are disturbing questions about possible collaboration between the Machinists union and the NLRB against Boeing,” Sen. Graham said in a statement. “These questions must be answered.”
“A congressional investigation to answer questions about the NLRB’s role, attitude, and relationship with the parties is definitely warranted,” Graham continued. “I would urge the appropriate Senate committees to look closely into this matter. If the Senate refuses to act, I would strongly encourage the House of Representatives to move forward.”
Fellow South Carolina Sen. Jim DeMint called the NLRB a “tool of union bosses” and said the board members should resign.
“The NLRB’s dismissal of charges against Boeing only after union approval of their new contract only confirms the charges were a politically-motivated negotiation tactic, not a serious complaint based on merit,” Sen. DeMint said. “Unfortunately, real and serious damage to America’s competitiveness has already been done. A precedent has been set by the NLRB that they will attack businesses in forced-unionism states that try to create jobs in right-to-work states. Those on the NLRB board who led this attack on workers’ rights should resign immediately.”
GOP presidential candidate and former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich called the NLRB decision a “a victory for South Carolina and all right-to-work states, and a reminder that the American people will not be dictated to by out-of-control bureaucrats in Washington.”
“The NLRB’s suit was a politically motivated assault on the rule of law by President Obama and his big labor allies,” Gingrich said. “The founding fathers warned that when government grows too big the law would be usurped for political purposes. This case was an example of that.”
Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, another GOP presidential hopeful, tweeted: “NLRB’s decision to drop suit against Boeing is [a] welcome step, but acting at [the] request of union bosses tells us who is calling [the] shots.”
In a longer statement, Romney said, “Thanks to President Obama’s appointees, the NLRB has become a rogue agency that tramples on the rights of American workers and businesses, injecting job-killing uncertainty into the economic climate.”
Former Utah governor Jon Huntsman also slammed the NLRB.
“Their action against Boeing in South Carolina was an unprecedented attempt to interfere in the free market,” Huntsman said, “and an attempt to politicize companies’ decisions as how and where they create jobs. We never should have reached this point; President Obama should have ordered the NLRB to stand down months ago. But instead, his lack of leadership allowed a rogue agency to threaten thousands of South Carolina jobs.”