[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 181 (Tuesday, November 7, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Page S7033]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              NOMINATIONS

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, as we all know, the Senate has been 
quite busy. Legislatively, we have been hard at work on everything from 
budgets, to disaster relief, to consumer protections, to tax reform.
  On the nominations front, we have taken strong action to strengthen 
the judiciary, including confirming a slate of very-well-qualified 
nominees in recent days. This week, we are continuing our work to staff 
up the rest of the government as well. This is one of the Senate's most 
important functions and one we take seriously.
  We are currently considering men and women who have been nominated to 
serve in many different roles at many different agencies. The one thing 
they all share in common is this: They are ready to get to work, and 
the sooner we confirm them, the sooner they can get on the job for our 
country.
  First, we will vote to confirm John Gibson as Deputy Chief Management 
Officer at the Department of Defense. He will be responsible for 
increasing efficiency throughout the Department's business operations.
  Afterward, the Senate will continue its consideration of Steven 
Engel, who will, as I discussed yesterday, serve as the Deputy Attorney 
General in the Department of Justice Office of Legal Counsel.
  The next nomination we will consider is that of Peter Robb to serve 
as the General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board.
  For most of its 80-year existence, the NLRB has had the important 
responsibility of supporting stable labor relations by acting as a fair 
and impartial umpire in the resolution of labor disputes. 
Unfortunately, that changed under the previous administration, which 
wielded its Board majority as an anti-worker political cudgel at the 
behest of special interests and union bosses. Instead of the Board's 
historic commitment to impartially applying the law, the NLRB's Obama-
appointed Democratic majority put forward policies that diminished the 
rights of employees, hurt small businesses, and rewarded entrenched 
political elites at the expense of workers and the middle class.
  Thankfully, this Senate recently confirmed a new majority to the NLRB 
that is already beginning to undo the damage of the past 8 years. Now 
we have the opportunity to build upon that good work with the 
nomination of Mr. Robb.
  The NLRB's General Counsel is responsible for investigating cases of 
unfair labor practices and for advancing cases before the Board and its 
members. Mr. Robb will fulfill these duties under the aegis of a new 
Board majority that is returning the NLRB to its true mission once 
more.
  Labor policy is not simply some theoretical abstraction for Mr. Robb; 
he knows what it means to work as a hospital orderly or a construction 
worker, welder, truckdriver, forklift operator, or highway sign maker 
because he himself has worked in all of those jobs before. After law 
school, Robb gained valuable experience in employment law. His previous 
leadership roles, including as an NLRB regional field attorney and 
chief counsel to a Board member, contribute to making Robb an ideal 
candidate to serve as the Board's General Counsel.
  I look forward to voting to advance this nomination, and I urge my 
colleagues to join me in helping restore the NLRB to the neutral umpire 
of labor disputes it was meant to be.

                          ____________________