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Romney, DeMint call for NLRB lawyer to be fired
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11/10/11 04:07 PM ET
Mitt Romney and Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) on Thursday called for the dismissal of a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) attorney following the revelation of internal emails that seem to joke about the NLRB’s negative influence on the economy.
Romney, a contender for the GOP presidential nomination, called for NLRB General Counsel Lafe Solomon to be fired, saying in a statement that Solomon’s emails revealed “a disturbing and cavalier attitude about job losses that are a direct result of NLRB policies.”
“If President Obama is serious about getting America back to work ‘right now,’ he should start by immediately dismissing Mr. Solomon and sending a message throughout his administration that our country’s jobs crisis isn’t a laughing matter,” Romney said.
The NRLB is involved in a lawsuit with Boeing over a factory the company opened in South Carolina, a right-to-work state. The court case has become a huge issue in the state, which is an early-voting state in the GOP nominating contest. Romney, and his presidential rivals, have expressed support for Boeing and criticized the NLRB.
DeMint, when asked, said he agreed with Romney's stance.
"I appreciate Mitt saying that," DeMint said on Fox News. "I do agree."
The public interest firm Judicial Watch obtained internal emails this week of the agency’s attorneys discussing a lawsuit against Boeing, some of which seemed to joke about the economic impact of the case. Another email reportedly mocked DeMint as “Sen. Dement.”
DeMint and other South Carolina officials have often criticized the independent federal agency for their lawsuit against Boeing after the aerospace giant moved its expansion project to South Carolina from Washington state following a labor strike. On Thursday, DeMint said board members are “playing the role of pirates” and added he can’t see any reason why not to hold the attorneys accountable for the actions of the board.
"We've got to take a stand here against these folks," he said. "They're gleeful about costing jobs in South Carolina."
He also called on Obama to address the NLRB criticism.
"[It is] unacceptable that the president doesn't respond to this; he's clearly very involved with it himself," he said.
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