Charles Krauthammer repeats the familiar Republican complaint that Craig Becker, President Obama's new appointment to the National Labor Relations Board, is an unacceptable pick because he's an "advocate":
But the one that really I think is offensive in the group is … this guy [Craig] Becker [who] is essentially an agent, an advocate of the unions in what is — the NLRB — a quasi-judicial body.
So it's like having a prosecutor on the jury. You really ought not do that. ...
In Krauthammer's metaphor, the NLRB is like a "jury," and the board members ought to be impartial. Except the vision he's describing bears absolutely no relation to the way NLRB has functioned under presidents of either party. Yes, Becker is a union guy. Republican presidents have filled the GOP seat with hard core advocates of management, experienced union-fighting experience at places like the National Association of Manufacturers and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Indeed, President Obama agreed with Republicans to fill the GOP seat with a management lawyer and GOP staffer. Krauthammer's complaint is almost exactly like blasting Obama for installing a Democrat to run the Democratic National Committee.