On Friday the DC Circuit made public its ruling in the lawsuit involving the recess appointments President Obama made to fill the National Labor Relations Board. The three conservative judges found a novel interpretation of the Founding Fathers intent as to recess appointments and ruled against the Obama Administration.
The ruling finds that the power to make recess appointments refers only to vacancies that occurred during an inter-session recess. Any vacancies that carried into the inter-session recess (from intra-session vacancies or in-session vacancies) doesn't count. The inter-session recess occurs for a couple of weeks every two years after an election at about Christmas/New Years.
President Reagan made 240 recess appointments. Most of them would be improper under this interpretation. How many of those appointments (especially judges) are still on the job. Can they be removed for improper appointment. Would every decision they made in the last 30 years be voided out?
Bush2 also made more than 100 recess appointments. How many of them are still on the job? Can they be removed? And replaced by an Obama appointee? (assuming the Senate bothers to confirm anyone in the next four years)
The filibuster problem just exploded in Harry Reid's face. (it makes one wonder if the court delayed the release of this decision until after Reid capitulated on filibuster reform, or if the timing is just coincidental.)