Trumps nominee for National Labor Relations Board general counsel, Crystal Carey, could be derailed by pro-union Republicans in the Senate.
Carey, who was nominated March 25 by President Trump, has a record as a union-busting attorney that has led many to believe that, if confirmed, she will promote pro-employer practices. Before entering the private sector, Carey worked at the NLRB during the Bush administration, where she helped shape legal strategies against union organizing. Currently, Carey is a partner at Morgan Lewis & Bockius, a firm that specializes in representing employers such as Amazon and Apple in labor disputes, including those related to union organizing, collective bargaining, and labor law compliance.
Sen. Josh Hawley has significant leverage in this situation. Hawley has expressed pro-union sentiments in the past, introducing the Teamster-endorsed Faster Labor Contracts Act in March and advocating for a “pro-labor framework” that strengthens unions. Recently, Hawley went as far as endorsing the proposal for a $15 federal minimum wage. According to Axios, Hawley is “aiming to be the first Republican in decades to sponsor major, pro-union labor reform.”
In a statement to RCP, President Mark Mix of the National Right to Work Committee emphasized the importance of Hawleys vote and indicated that he may use it to block Trumps nominee:
As the twelfth Republican on a Committee with eleven Democrats, Senator Hawley has the power to sink any nomination or piece of legislation he does not like, and credible rumors report that he is threatening to use that power. Its an indication that Senator Hawleys current allegiance is to Teamsters President Sean OBrien and the other union bosses, not to President Trump, his party, or the vast majority of Americans who oppose Big Labors forced unionism legislative agenda.
The General Counsel of the NLRB acts as the agencys top prosecutor, overseeing which labor law cases are brought forward and shaping enforcement priorities. Acting General Counsel William Cowen, who was appointed by Trump in February after Biden-appointee Jennifer Abruzzo was dismissed, rescinded many of his predecessors memoranda, indicating a shift in labor policy.
The Teamsters, the largest union in the U.S., released a statement rejecting Careys nomination as a blow to workers: “Carey has spent her entire professional career backing Big Business to the detriment of working people. On behalf of her corrupt corporate clients, she wants to decimate labor unions and destroy American families – and she has no place serving as NLRB general counsel.”
Similarly, the Economic Policy Institute, a pro-worker think tank, said in a statement to Sludge that “Careys nomination as NLRB General Counsel is certainly another example of Trumps attacks on workers and the right to organize.”
The Coalition for A Democratic Workplace, a business-aligned advocacy group, endorsed Careys nomination in a letter to the Senate. CDW Chair Kristen Swearingen stated that “shell help steer the Board towards more common-sense application of the National Labor Relations Act.”
G. Roger King, senior labor and employment counsel at HR Policy Association, told RCP that Carey is “qualified and has excellent experience but, that said, she faces potential headwinds.”
The Senate HELP Committee, where Hawley holds a seat, is the first hurdle that Careys nomination has to pass before moving to the Senate as a whole. There is currently no scheduled hearing within the committee on Careys nomination.
Another senator on the HELP Committee, Roger Marshall, has expressed support for Hawleys pro-union tendencies. Losing the support of either Marshall or Hawley would likely end Careys nomination chances.
Hawley has been explicit about leading the GOPs shift toward pro-worker policy, saying in a recent RCP interview that “[If] were not interested in being a majority party, then well keep doing the things that the partys done for decades.”
Hawleys position marks a notable departure from traditional GOP orthodoxy. While most Republican senators have historically aligned with business interests in labor disputes, Hawley has increasingly leaned into populist rhetoric. Figures such as Hawley are part of a small but growing pro-worker realignment in the Republican Party. This comes after Trump received an increasing proportion of voters without a college education in the 2024 election.
Careys confirmation, or lack thereof, could serve as a key test of how far the GOP realignment reaches. A failed nomination could signal deepening fractures within the party ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, as GOP candidates attempt to navigate a base increasingly made up of blue-collar workers.
James Eustis is an intern at RealClearPolitics. He studies politics at Washington & Lee University.
