This makes sense. There’s no reason to force moderate Democrats to vote for the Employee Free Choice Act, otherwise known as Card Check, before the Senate tackles it. The real fight will be in the Senate.
Blue Dog Democrats in the House have asked House Dem leaders to postpone a vote on the Employee Free Choice Act until after the Senate votes on it, and the Democratic leadership has agreed, a senior House Dem aide tells me.
The discussions are likely to disappoint some in the labor movement, who see Employee Free Choice as their top priority and had hoped the House would act quickly and pass a strong bill before the Senate passes a weaker version. Proponents and foes of the measure alike say the Senate is expected to be the major battleground over the bill because of the tight Dem majority.
I think we might see a compromise here. Labor wants their bill, but it will be very difficult to get it through the Senate. That said, the current rules are stacked in favor of employers. There’s plenty of room to craft a compromise that makes it easier for unions to organize yet doesn’t go as far as this proposal.
