> These OSHA rules are probably the most important ones passed since the
> 1970s. It's not symbolic but a critical close to life-and-death issue for a
> lot of workers. Unfortunately, it's also too important to business profits
> not to do everything they can to kill the rules. They don't care about
> "worker health"-- if they did, they wouldn't cripple their workers and kick
> them to the curb.
>
> Again, what timidity? Even if all the conservative Dems were solidly on
> board (which a lot were not fully), there were not the votes because the GOP
> controlled the majorities and the rules. So they ran it through the
> executive branch, one of the perks of controlling it which those who voted
> for Nader too easily dismissed.
>
> And workers will pay for it now, unless the Dems in the Senate can hold
> their folks and pull a GOP Senator or two to their side.
>
> -- Nathan Newman
It IS a life and death issue, and there IS a way of shutting this kind of legislation down, even without control of the executive branch--filibustering. 44 Democrats did vote against it, and if they were solid, that's enough to sustain a filibuster even without the conservative defectors. Same with the Ashcroft and Norton nominations. They don't HAVE to allow these things to happen--but they do.
Gary Ashwill