[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 48 (Tuesday, April 22, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S3409]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        ALEXIS HERMAN NOMINATION

  Mr. DODD. Mr. President, first of all, let me address if I can--and 
there are a couple matters I want to speak on--the issue of Alexis 
Herman. I have listened here to my colleagues address their concern 
about the Executive order regarding project labor agreements. My hope 
is that we would not be holding Alexis Herman hostage over a particular 
matter that Members have some concern about. And I respect that. I note 
my good friend and colleague from Oklahoma is still on the floor. It 
was back in I think 1991 when President Bush issued an Executive order 
to prohibit project labor agreements. I do not recall a similar outcry 
that this was acting without legislative authority.
  I do not disagree, I say to my colleague, by the way, with his 
concern where executive branches, regardless of party, try to exceed 
their authority here. But nonetheless, I hope that despite the 
legitimacy or illegitimacy, whatever one's point of view is, on project 
labor agreements, Alexis Herman's nomination can go forward. She was 
proposed in December. The election was in November. This is almost May. 
We are missing a Secretary of Labor. And whether it is organized labor, 
unions, management, it is important there be someone at that table to 
represent the interests of management and labor. And the Secretary of 
Labor needs to be there.

  My colleague from Pennsylvania, Senator Specter, I think addressed 
this issue appropriately back, as the Presiding Officer will recall, 
when there was some question of whether or not the nomination was going 
to move through the committee which the Presiding Officer and I sit on 
together, the Labor and Human Resources Committee. There, the Senator 
from Pennsylvania noted we ought to vote on these people up or down, 
but we ought to at least vote.
  The committee voted unanimously to send Alexis Herman's name to the 
full Senate for consideration. As I said a moment ago, now it is 
getting to be late April. I am told her nomination will not be 
considered until something is worked out on these project labor 
agreements. I think that is regrettable. Again, I will discuss in a 
moment the project labor agreement issue. Six months after an election, 
to be missing yet a meaningful and important member of the President's 
Cabinet, I think is an unfortunate use of our power here, to deny the 
Senate even a vote on this nomination. So I hope we would have that 
nomination come sooner rather than later, so we could have that 
individual sitting at the Cabinet table.

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