Could this could be the end of the Battista era? President Bush just issued a statement designating National Labor Relations Board member Peter Schaumber to be chairman of the Board.

What happened to former Chairman Robert Battista, whose renomination to the NLRB as chairman is pending at the Senate?  Perhaps Bush recognized that Battista’s confirmation was dead in the water, given his controversial and extremist anti-worker record as head of the Labor Board from 2002 to 2007.

Now the Board, comprised of just Republican Schaumber and Democrat Liebman, can continue to issue run-of-the-mill rulings — and we can all sleep a little better.