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Sens. Susan Collins(R-Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) said Wednesday that they intend to vote against the confirmation ofPresident Trumps education secretary nominee, Betsy DeVos, givingDemocrats two of at least three Republican votes they would need to block her appointment.

Republican leaders said that despite the defections, they are confident DeVos will be confirmed.

Shell be confirmed you can take that to the bank,Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), the majority whip.

Both Collins and Murkowski said on the Senate floor that while they appreciate DeVoss efforts to help at-risk children through advocating for vouchers and charter schools, they are concerned that DeVos lacks the experience needed to serve as education secretary and improve public schools, particularly in rural areas. DeVos has no professional experience in public schools, and she did not attend public schools herself or send her own children to them.

The mission of the Department of Education is broad, but supporting public education is at its core, Collins said. Im concerned that Mrs. Devoss lack of experience with public schools will make it difficult for her to fully understand, identify and assist with those challenges, particularly for our rural schools in states like Maine.

[Senate panel votes in favor of Betsy DeVos, Trumps education pick]

Murkowski said children in remote communities across Alaska depend on a strong public school system, and that she isnt persuaded that DeVos has the background to strengthen that system. As she left the Senate floor, Murkowski said that her decision was the result of an outpouring of responses from Alaskans as well as her own research. I was trying to get to yes. I just couldnt, she said.

A final confirmation vote is expected on the Senate floor either over the weekend or early next week, according to aides to Republican leadership.

There are 48 senators in the Democratic caucus. If they vote as a bloc against DeVos, and if they are joined by Murkowski and Collins, the vote to confirm would be 50-50. In that event, Vice President Pence a staunch DeVos supporter would cast the tiebreaking vote. It would mark the first tiebreaking vote by a vice president since Richard Cheney did so nine years ago. Joe Biden, Cheneys successor, went eight years as vice president without ever breaking a tie.

[DeVos questionnaire appears to include passages from uncited sources]

If a third Republican senator votes against DeVos, she could lose the confirmation vote. Several are facing constituent pressure to oppose the nominee, including Patrick J. Toomey (R-Pa.) Im all for her, Toomey told The Washington Post on Wednesday.

Alaskas junior senator, Dan Sullivan (R),would not say whether he will vote yes or no on DeVos. But his tone suggested he would lean toward support.

He detailed concerns similar to what Sen. Murkowski was talking about. We have very almost frontier-type education environments where theres only one school in the communities. Theres no choice at all.

But Ive had very good meetings with the nominee, he added. From my perspective I think shes going to be adequately focused on those issues.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer said the Trump administration has zero concerns that DeVoss nomination will be voted down.

I am 100 percent confident she will be the next secretary of education, Spicer said at Wednesdays news briefing.

[Six astonishing things Betsy DeVos said and refused to say at her confirmation hearing]

Trumps nomination of DeVos, a Michigan billionaire and major donor to Republican causes,has triggered a sharp partisan battle, and she has faced an unprecedented level of opposition for a prospective education secretary. Both of the nations largest teachers unions mounted campaigns against her immediately after her nomination, but opposition broadened after she stumbled over basic education policy questions during her Jan. 17 confirmation hearing. Parents and teachers have flooded the Senates phone lines and email inboxes in recent weeks, urging senators to vote against DeVos.

The nation is speaking out. [S]enators need to listen, said Lily Eskelsen Garcia, president of the National Education Association.

Several previous nominees were confirmed on a voice vote or by unanimous consent. The deepest divisionto date was over the nomination of John B. King Jr., who was confirmed in March 2016 on a 49-40 vote. Even then, key Republicans including Lamar Alexander (Tenn.), chairman of the Senate Education Committee, and Mitch McConnell (Ky.), the majority leader voted in Kings favor, giving his confirmation a bipartisan blessing.

Kelsey Snell, Paul Kane and Ed OKeefe contributed to this report.

Read more here:
Two Republican senators say they will vote against DeVos for education secretary - Washington Post

Todd Spangler, Detroit Free Press , WZZM 2:58 PM. EST February 01, 2017

DeVos speaks during her confirmation hearing for Secretary of Education before the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee on Capitol Hill January 17, 2017 in Washington, DC. (Photo: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON - What previously appeared to be a near-certain chance of Michigan's Betsy DeVos becoming President Donald Trump's education secretary took a hit today as two Republican U.S. senators said they would vote against her.

U.S. Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska delivered statements from the floor of the U.S. Senate saying they could not support DeVos' nomination, questioning both her experience and commitment to public schools.

"Mrs. DeVos is the product of her experience," said Collins. "She appears to view education through the lens of her experience of promoting alternatives to public education in Detroit and other cities." She went onto say that "concentration on charter schools and vouchers ... raises the question about whether or not she fully appreciates that the secretary of education's primary focus must be on helping states and communities strengthen our public schools."

"I think Mrs. DeVos has much to learn about our nation's public schools," said Murkowski, who, like Collins raised concerns that her lack of experience with public schools could have a particular impact in rural areas in states like hers. She has been so involved in one side (of school vouchers and school choice), she may be unaware of what actually is successful within public schools and what is broke and how to fix them."

With Collins and Murkowski saying they will vote against DeVos -- and earlier indications that all of the 48 Senate Democrats and the two independents who caucus with them would likely vote against her -- her nomination could result in a 50-50 tie when it goes to the floor. That tie would be broken on DeVos' behalf by Vice President Mike Pence in his role as Senate president -- though both sides will be looking for members of the other party to pick off in the meantime.

On Tuesday, both Collins and Murkowski voted in the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee to allow DeVos' nomination to proceed to the floor for a full vote out of deference to the new president but refused to commit to a final vote for her. A date for her final vote has not yet been set.

2017 Detroit Free Press

WZZM

Betsy DeVos' confirmation moves ahead after fractious debate

WZZM

Hundreds rally against Betsy DeVos in her hometown

WZZM

Calvin College alumni sign letter opposing DeVos nomination

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2 Republicans say they oppose Betsy DeVos as Education pick - WZZM13.com

MATTHEW DALY and KEVIN FREKING

AP,

1:07 PM

WASHINGTON (AP) The Republican-led House has voted to overturn a regulation from President Barack Obamas tenure that requires companies to disclose payments made to the U.S. and foreign governments relating to mining and drilling.

The House is using an arcane tool that allows a simple majority of both GOP-led chambers to invalidate regulations issued in the final months of Obamas presidency.

The vote for repeal was 255-187.

The rule was intended to promote transparency so that citizens in some of the worlds most impoverished countries can hold their governments accountable for the wealth generated through mining and drilling.

But Republicans countered that the regulation requires U.S. companies to hand over key details of how they bid and compete while many foreign competitors are under no obligation to do the same.

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Congressional Republicans move to dismantle Obama rules - Boston.com

Arizona Republicans are tired of being covered by one of the most liberal courts of appeals in the nation, and now they want a court they hope will more accurately reflect the conservative attitudes of the Mountain West.

Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) has introduced legislation to create a new federal court of appeals to cover district courts in Arizona, Alaska, Idaho, Montana and Nevada. The new 12th Circuit would carve up the 9th Circuit, the busiest of the 11 circuit courts in the nation.

Another proposal, from Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho), would add Washington and Oregon to the 12th Circuit, along with the Mountain West states.

The court has also blocked several Arizona state laws, including measures to require English-only education, an immigration enforcement ban and restrictions on abortions. In 2016, the 9th Circuit blocked an Arizona ban on ballot harvesting, which limited outside groups from collecting absentee ballots and submitting them to state elections boards.

The 9th Circuit covers about 40 percent of the U.S. population. Its mammoth, Biggs said in an interview. California basically is the big dog in that circuit, and they certainly have more judges, which are reflective of Californias values and not necessarily the values of noncoastal states.

Sen. Jeff FlakeJeff FlakeWestern Republicans seek new federal appeals court Republican leadership: The new silent majority Republicans who oppose, support Trump refugee order MORE (R-Ariz.) and then-Rep. Matt SalmonMatt SalmonWestern Republicans seek new federal appeals court Arts groups gear up for fight over NEA What gun groups want from Trump MORE (R-Ariz.), Biggss predecessor, proposed a measure in the last Congress to split up the 9th Circuit as well. Flake is considering a similar measure this year. Arizonas governor, Doug Ducey (R), has asked congressional leaders to carve his state out of the existing circuit scheme.

The 9th Circuit is by far the most overburdened court in the country, with a turnaround time that averages 14 months. Its pending cases are more than double the caseload of the next busiest court, Ducey said in his State of the State address last week. Arizona, and other states in the 9th Circuit, deserve better.

Biggs and his staff are working with House Judiciary Committee staff to schedule a hearing on the bill. Committee Chairman Bob GoodlatteBob GoodlatteWestern Republicans seek new federal appeals court GOP chairman defends staff who helped draft Trump travel order Ryan: Trump travel ban confusion 'regrettable' MORE (R-Va.) has not said whether he would back a measure to add a new circuit court.

Thirteen of the 44 judges in the 9th Circuit are based in states that would move under the jurisdiction of the new 12th Circuit under Biggss proposal, including Chief Judge Sidney Thomas, based in Billings, Mont., who was first appointed to the bench by President Carter.

Biggss legislation would allow judges in states that would be covered by the 12th Circuit to decide which circuit they wanted to serve going forward. Only three of those 13 judges were appointed by Republican presidents.

Biggs said there are no firm plans for where the 12th Circuit would be based, though Phoenix would be the largest city by far in states his legislation covers.

Link:
Western Republicans seek new federal appeals court - The Hill

House Republicans plan to introduce a bill Wednesday that would institute right-to-work policies in the entire country if it became law, delivering a severe blow to the labor movement.

Right-to-work laws give workers the option to stop supporting unions whilestill enjoying the benefits of representation. Theres nothing new about such proposals being made in Washington whats different now is the political climate, which should alarm labor unions and their allies.

Republicans who back such laws control both chambers of Congress and the White House for the first time in years. Meanwhile, more and more states under GOP control continue to pass their own right-to-work measures, increasingly making them the norm rather than the exception.

Republicans and business groups would still face a Democratic filibuster in the Senate. But they have all the momentum on this issue, and theres no reason to think that will change anytime soon.

A spokeswoman for Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.), a sponsor of the legislation, said as much in a note to reporters Tuesday.

Similar legislation has been introduced in the past, but we believe that this year, the legislation could garner more support than ever before, Leacy Burke wrote.

Under U.S. labor law, a union must represent all the employees in a workplace it has unionized, even those who may not want to be in a union. Unions argue that its only fair for all workers to contribute money to help cover the costs of bargaining.

But right-to-work laws make such arrangements illegal, allowing workers to opt out of paying fees to a union that will have to represent them anyway. Unions call the phenomenon free riding. Supporters of right-to-work laws argue that no worker should be required to support a union, regardless of whether it bargains on his behalf.

Republican lawmakers and business groups have had startling success with right-to-work legislation in the last few years. Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, West Virginia and Kentucky have all gone right-to-work since 2012; in Kentucky, it was essentially the first order of business last month when the GOP assumed full control of the statehouse for the first time in nearly a century.

Twenty-seven states are now right-to-work, and Missouri and New Hampshire could soon follow suit. Union-dense, Democratic-leaning states on the coasts are highly unlikely to pass their own right-to-work laws, but a federal statute could take care of that for them. The passage of national a right-to-work bill would make it the law of the land in all states, regardless of their own statutes.

A Democratic filibuster is currently the only sure firewall against a federal right-to-work law. Although President Donald Trump has tried to play nice with certain unions, he voiced support for such policies while on the campaign trail.

I love the right to work, he said last February. It is better for the people. You are not paying the big fees to the unions.

Even if Democrats can beat back such proposals in Congress, right-to-work may spread anyway thanks to the Supreme Court. Unions narrowly dodged a bullet last year when the case known as Friedrichs died with a split decision following Justice Antonin Scalias death. A conservative majority could have ruled in favor of the plaintiffs, a group of public school teachers in California who argued that workers in public-sector unions should not be required to pay any union fees.

A ruling against unions would effectively make the entire public sector right-to-work throughout the country, regardless of state laws. Although they did not success with Friedrichs, right-to-work backers plan to try again once a solid conservative majority is in place on the Supreme Court.

Trump put forth a conservativenominee, Neil Gorsuch, on Tuesday.

Original post:
Republicans Want To Pass A National Right-To-Work Law - Huffington Post