AFL-CIO may reduce support to Democrats

[The Northerner]

Prominent labor leaders, frustrated that Democrats in Washington aren't aggressively pursuing the union agenda, are threatening to limit their campaign support for Democrats, an act that would hamper the party's bid to regain control of the House next year and keep a majority in the Senate.

AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka's threat of a pullback Friday was the latest warning to a party that has long relied on labor's cash and grass-roots support. If it makes good on its threat, labor probably would spend more time and money combating union-busting efforts by state officials.

"We will change the way we spend, the way we do things and the way we function that creates power for workers," Trumka said.

In a speech at the National Press Club, Trumka called for "an independent labor movement" and said unions were not responsible for building the power of any political party, but for improving the lives of working families. He promised that unions would spend the summer holding leaders in Congress and the states accountable.

Read more: http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/national/politics/afl-cio-may-reduce-support-to-democrats/article_1c50a56e-28ac-5a4d-865c-f2178c3bd3b0.html

[proud2BlibKansan]

1. Long overdue

:thumbsup:

[ClarkUSA]

2. lol! Talk about cutting off your nose to spite your face.

I'm sure the Koch Brothers are happy to hear it. Petulant threats like these are not going to change the dynamics in Congress.

[DJ13]

4. The Koch brothers also contributed to the DLC

They arent exclusively Republican, just exclusively conservative.

Its a good idea for the unions to support people who are on their side regardless of party.

[ClarkUSA]

5. Who did they contribute to? All I hear is they have pledged at least $80M to defeat Pres. Obama.

If unions don't want to support Democrats in the next election cycle, then I hope they don't whine about the results: a Republican President, Senate and House, ready to do the Koch Brothers bidding. If that happens, unions won't get a drop of sympathy from me. Shit, if Trumka wants to play these games, then I'll stop buying union and contribute my money to supporting Democrats in office.

[DJ13]

6. Koch Industries gave funding to the DLC and served on its Executive Council

August 25, 2010

http://www.americablog.com/2010/08/koch-industries-gave-funding-to-dlc-and.html

[ClarkUSA]

8. No surprise. What is surprising is the level of support the DLC Clintons get around here.

I thought you meant they supported members of Congress. I do know they contributed to NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo's campaign, which is enough to make me retch.

[DJ13]

15. I do know they contributed to NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo's campaign

That explains a lot!

[tavalon]

16. And the DLC,

or whatever new name the sneaky bastards have come up with, are the cancer within the Democratic Party, something we will have to challenge head one sooner rather than later.

We have fun watching the Republicans turn on one another but we would do well to clean up our own house.

[robinlynne]

12. We'll see about that. Time for the Dems to act like Dems.

[TheKentuckian]

17. What will then? Job like patience has paid zero dividends, begging is ineffectual, throwing millions

at Democrats isn't doing the trick, voting isn't doing shit, demands are ignored.

What do working people have to do to be put first in Washington?

[Tesha]

21. "Petulant threats"? I'm sure insults like that will bring them back around.

It's long since time for Democratic politicians to
return to DEMOCRATIC values (like support for labor).

Tesha

[Brickbat]

3. Good. I see no reason to support someone who takes my support for granted.

K&R.

[pintobean]

9. Same here.

We've been giving mass amounts of money and a volunteer forces for decades. What are we getting in return? Broken promises and a huge shaft.

[Starry Messenger]

7. k&r

[ProSense]

10. The media

spin on Trumka's speech is ridiculous. "AFL-CIO may reduce support to Democrats"

The speech has nothing to do with pulling support from Democrats.

Here is Sam Stein at HuffPo: Richard Trumka Threatens To Abandon Democrats In 2012 Unless They Fight Harder For Labor

<...>

Trumka also says in the prepared remarks that party affiliation alone won't determine how the federation allocates its resources in 2012. If Republican lawmakers embrace parts of the AFL-CIO's agenda, the union federation will respond in kind. If Democrats abandon the union community's principles -- or if they fail to protest as those principles are attacked -- they can expect similar treatment.

We will spend the summer holding elected leaders in Congress as well as the states accountable on one measure: Are they improving or degrading life for working families?”

We are looking hard at how we work in the nation’s political arena. We have listened hard, and what workers want is an independent labor movement that builds the power of working people -- in the workplace and in political life … Our role is not to build the power of a political party or a candidate. It is to improve the lives of working families and strengthen our country.

It doesn’t matter if candidates and parties are controlling the wrecking ball or simply standing aside -- the outcome is the same either way. If leaders aren’t blocking the wrecking ball and advancing working families’ interests, working people will not support them. This is where our focus will be -- now, in 2012 and beyond.

The labor community -- the AFL-CIO especially -- has been taking steps towards greater independence from the Democratic Party as its disappointments with the Obama administration and congressional Democrats have mounted. The typical response from party insiders has been dismissive assumptions that labor has nowhere else to go.

<...>

Trumka said nothing, not in the excerpt above nor his speech, about supporting Republicans.

He spoke about building an independent movement to target individual candidates. Remember, the organization pulled support from candidates who didn't support health care reform and a public option. Also, focusing resources at that state and local levels is going to be key in taking back governorships and legislatures. It's a smart move.

AFL-CIO: Trumka: Working People Want a Strong, Independent Labor Movement

In a major address at the National Press Club today, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka charted an aggressive independent approach by working people and their unions to build the power of working people in the workplace and in the political sphere. Trumka told the live audience and thousands of viewers on C-SPAN and other news outlets:

Working people want a labor movement strong enough to help return balance to our economy, fairness to our tax system, security to our families and moral and economic standing to our nation. Our role is not to build the power of a political party or a candidate. It is to improve the lives of working families and strengthen our country.

It doesn’t matter if candidates and parties are controlling the wrecking ball or simply standing aside—the outcome is the same either way. If leaders aren’t blocking the wrecking ball and advancing working families’ interests, working people will not support them. This is where our focus will be—now, in 2012 and beyond.

<...>

Instead of focusing on that, the media is making it about the Democratic Party.

From an interview before the speech.

<...>

“We’ll be less inclined to support people in the future that aren’t standing up and actually supporting job creation and the type of things that we’re talking about. It doesn’t matter what party they come from. It will be a measuring stick,” Trumka told POLITICO during an interview in his spacious eighth floor office.

Asked how President Barack Obama measures up, Trumka paused, gazed toward a window overlooking the White House and said, “I think the president has done a good job in articulating the problems and some of the solutions. I think scale has been the problem, the scale of the solutions. I don’t think the scale of the solutions have measured up.”

Worried that labor supporters will be tougher to mobilize than in 2008, Trumka said he is giving the speech to set the table for next year.

“Our national conversation right now is in a destructive place and the debate that we’re having is really over the moral character of the country . and it’s just going in the wrong direction with all of this cuts and all of this talk that we can’t afford secure jobs, good jobs anymore. We can’t afford health care. We can’t afford pensions,” he said. “The nation, right now, we feel poor. But we’re not, we’re a rich nation. We feel poor because most of the money is going to the people at the top. And yet the debate’s about how we can give more tax cuts to corporations who have had two years of record profits.”

Trumka said the union decided about a month ago to begin building a year-round mobilization effort to replace the traditional six-month pushes. Union officials will spend time educating their members on local, state and federal policy issues as well as tracking votes.

<...>

[Drahthaardogs]

11. Considering that Obama tossed the federal employee under the bus

but kept the Bush tax cuts for the rich and now Biden is trying to make the feds pay more for their pension does this come as a surprise?

[DevonRex]

13. I thought DU was in favor of donating to Democrats.

I guess not.

[leftstreet]

14. New Forum idea: GD: Under The Bus n/t

[tavalon]

18. Find me a Democrat who acts like a Democrat and they get my money

Alan Grayson sent me a fundraising letter last week. I didn't even notice what he was running for now, I just sent him money. He's a Democrat. These days, I think I can count actual Democrats on one hand.

[Drahthaardogs]

20. Would you donate to a democrat who routinely voted pro-life?

Because honestly, at one time, being a Democrat meant being pro-labor. Nowadays, that seems to be lost on our current administration and some of our fellow democrats. For me, I will certainly vote Obama but I will not donate Obama due to his failure to support labor or unions. His comfortable walking shoes my ass. He has my vote, but not my donation.

[frylock]

22. i thought democrats were in favor of the middle class..

i guess not.

[BlueIris]

19. No one should be surprised.

The unions have to protect themselves.