McConnell Comments on Supreme Court Argument Regarding the President's Unconstitutional "Recess" Appointments

Statement

U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell issued the following statement today after attending the Supreme Court argument in a case regarding the constitutionality of President Obama's so-called "recess" appointments to the National Labor Relations Board in January 2012. McConnell and 44 of his Senate colleagues filed an amicus brief in the case and counsel for the Senators presented oral argument.

"The President made an unprecedented power grab by placing political allies at a powerful federal agency while the Senate was meeting regularly and without even trying to obtain its advice and consent. The President was dismissive of the Constitution's constraints on his power, saying he would "refuse to take no for an answer.' Three federal appeals courts have rejected this and similar abuses of power. The Court today was rightly skeptical of the Solicitor General's inconsistent argument that the Senate is in session if the President wants it to pass legislation he supports, but the Senate is not in session if he wants to circumvent the advice and consent requirement of the Constitution. Unfortunately, this is just one example of the Obama administration's tendency to abide by laws that it likes and to disregard laws it doesn't like. Whether it's recess appointments or Obamacare, this troubling approach does serious damage to the rule of law."

Background: The challenge to the recess appointments is being brought by Noel Canning, a local, family-owned business in Washington State that bottles and distributes soft drinks. The company is challenging the NLRB's determination that it must enter into a collective bargaining agreement with a labor union.

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