Taking Care of Business

The Senate is heading out of town, a week after the House, and while may of the majority's priorities, like health care reform and a climate bill remain unresolved, Senators knocked off a whole bunch of appointments by unanimous consent. Among them, Julia Clark and Ernie DuBester, who will become general counsel and chair of the Federal Labor Relations Authority. I'd imagine their nominations moved so quickly because of bipartisan concern about the state of the agency, which has shrunk dramatically over the last 8 years while acquiring a backlog that, if not more impressive than those at Social Security or EEOC, is considerable given the size of the agency and the limits of its mandate. August may be a dead time in DC. But it's probably as good a time as any to assess the agency's needs, and prepare a list of things that Congress might be able to help with to be ready come September.