McConnell Backs Down, Submits to Up-or-Down Vote on Solis

A few minutes ago Harry Reid announced that there will be a final confirmation vote at 4:30 EST today.  That means that Republican leader Mitch McConnell—husband of Elaine Chao, George W. Bush's secretary of labor, whose appointment was never subject to a cloture vote—determined it was futile to try to block the confirmation of Secretary of Labor designate Hilda Solis.  

This is great news for at least two reasons.  First, with the economic crisis, we need a strong Department of Labor led by a strong progressive with the right priorities.  Second, as  Meteor Blades described yesterday, Hilda Solis could turn out to be a great Secretary of Labor:

Solis would arguably be the most liberal appointee in Obama's Cabinet. Daughter of immigrant father who became a Teamster organizer at a battery recycling factory and an immigrant mother who worked a factory line, she's never been one to give mere lip service to labor issues. She was a key player in a hard-won voter-initiative fight over the California minimum wage, an increase of which then-Gov. Pete Wilson had vetoed. She's been solidly behind environmental protections, particularly in the arena of environmental justice. Having been raised near a landfill east of Los Angeles, she authored 1999 state legislation that called for “the fair treatment of people of all races, cultures, and incomes with respect to the development, adoption, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws,” the first such law in the nation.

For that effort, in 2000, she was the first woman to receive the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award. Reading the citation at the time, Caroline Kennedy said:

Hilda Solis has authored landmark legislation in the areas of work conditions and environmental protections. She has been a strong advocate for women's rights, a leading author of measures pertaining to women's health, and she co-chaired a successful initiative to raise the minimum wage in California. Senator Solis also took on entrenched economic interests as she sought relief for minority communities that suffered the ill effects of haphazard enforcement of environmental laws. The oldest daughter of immigrant parents, Hilda Solis gives deep meaning to President Kennedy's words, "Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country."

A strong advocate willing to take on "entrenched economic interests" as Secretary of Labor.  After the abomination that was the Bush administration, with business lackey Elaine Chao in charge of the Department of Labor, it's enough to make one giddy to think about a supporter of unions, workers and American families taking over at Labor.

But the vote hasn't happened yet.  So, keep up the pressure on the Senate to do the right thing.  The Service Employees International Union have set up a website that allows you to contact your Senator. Take a moment to let your Senator know that Hilda Solis should be confirmed today as our next Secretary of Labor.