Yesterday President Obama announced that he will make recess appointments to fill four vacant administration positions. President Obama appointed Richard Cordray as director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Cordray currently serves as Chief of Enforcement at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and previously was the Attorney General of Ohio and Ohio’s state Treasurer. Jay Carney, White House press secretary said of Cordray’s appointment, President Obama “nominated Richard Cordray six months ago. He won a majority of support in the Senate, yet Republicans refused to allow an up-or-down vote. This is a shame.”
President Obama also appointed Sharon Block, Terence Flynn, and Richard Griffin to serve as Members of the National Labor Relations board. Block works as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Congressional Affairs at the US Department of Labor, and from 2006 to 2009, she served as Senior Labor and Employment Counsel for the Senate HELP Committee under Senator Edward M. Kennedy. Terence Flynn currently works as Chief Counsel to NLRB Board Member Brian Hayes. Richard Griffin is the General Counsel for International Union of Operating Engineers and is on the board of directors for the AFL-CIO Lawyers Coordinating committee.
President Obama stated, “The American people deserve to have qualified public servants fighting for them every day – whether it is to enforce new consumer protections or uphold the rights of working Americans. We can’t wait to act to strengthen the economy and restore security for our middle class and those trying to get in it, and that’s why I am proud to appoint these fine individuals to get to work for the American people.”
White House Statement 1/4/12; New York Times 1/4/12
