Legislative Watch: Senate Committee Subpoenas Hall
Senate Republicans just can’t wait to spend more time fighting with the governor over his executive appointment powers.
Despite a court order that makes clear that the governor has until May 15 to submit cabinet nominations to the Senate, and the fact that Governor Cooper has not submitted any nominations to them, the Senate Commerce Committee tried again to hold a hearing on a nomination they don’t have. When Secretary of Military and Veterans Affairs Larry Hall again declined to appear, they issued a rare legislative subpoena seeking to compel him to come to their “hearing.”
The legislative subpoena attempts to direct Hall to appear at the Senate Commerce Committee meeting this Thursday, March 2. On Friday, the Governor responded to this latest round of Senate Political Theater by asking the court to block the subpoena.
Cooper has made clear that he will not submit his Cabinet appointments to the Senate for review while the courts hear his challenge to the constitutionality of the law which says he has to do so. The General Assembly passed that power-stripping law during a special session in December, after former Governor Pat McCrory conceded defeat in the November election. It was clear at the time that the legislature’s move was part of a hyperpartisan strategy to try to block the newly elected Cooper from governing effectively and implementing new policies they oppose.
While Hall’s nomination itself is considered noncontroversial, the anti-environmental leadership of the NC Senate has scheduled a hearing on Environmental Quality Secretary Michael Regan among the last cabinet appointments to be debated. Senate GOP leaders have publicly attacked his work with the Environmental Defense Fund, and clearly anticipate attempting to delay and block his appointment.
It comes down to the fact that Governor Cooper and his appointees believe in protecting public health and our state’s clean water, air, and land. The current NC Senate leadership has passed reams of legislation indicating that they do not. They lost their get-along, go-along governor in November, and they are using every partisan trick in the book to interfere with a strong new governor’s policies that they don’t like.
The courts will ultimately decide who’s right in the fight over whether a governor gets to select his/her own cabinet appointees. We already know who’s fighting for public health and our environment.
Next: Governor Cooper appoints conservationists to key state board >>
