Smurf-Herder
01-31-2009, 11:59 AM
You need to read both articles.
Obama wins union money vote - Sunday, August 31, 2008
Labor union's have lavished big bucks on the presidential campaign of Barack Obama since January of 2007 and only a piddling amount on the campaign of presumptive Republican nominee John McCain.
On the eve of Labor Day, a Times analysis of Federal Election Commission data shows Obama scooped up $8.1 million from union political action committees through July 2008 while McCain garnered just $54,100 from organized labor and employee PACs so far in this presidential election cycle.
The all-or-nothing bet unions are placing on Obama repeats the strategy of heavily backing Democratic candidate John Kerry in the 2004 election.
"There is that huge split because there is a huge split in what Obama and McCain represent," said Tom Balanoff, President of Chicago-based Service Employees Union Local 1. "Barack Obama understands the needs of working families."
During and immediately after the primary season, SEIU political action committees were by far the largest organizational contributors to the Obama campaign, dropping a combined $7.26 million in his campaign war chest.
Of all the political action committee donations made to the Obama campaign, 89.3 percent were from unions. Of all the political action committee donations made to the McCain campaign, just 2.9 percent came from unions and employee PACs.
In fact, union political action committees made $1.6 million in donations to anti-McCain efforts, the election commission records show.
Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton had broader support from unions than Obama during the primary season, garnering $4.4 million in donations from 35 union PACs. Obama's money came from just eight union PACs.
Unions cannot make direct donations to federal candidates' election campaigns. Instead, union members contribute to the unions' political action committees through authorized payroll deductions.
The United Steelworkers are using the same logic as SEIU in throwing all their weight behind Obama now that he is the Democratic nominee, according to Jim Robinson, USW District 7 director.
"If we gave money to McCain, that wouldn't change the positions he's had for many years," said Robinson. "It would be like the chickens getting together and giving a donation to Colonel Sanders."
The United Steelworkers backed former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards in the primaries.
"He was the most energetic and aggressive on trade policy," said USW public affairs director Gary Hubbard of Edwards.
But now the USW is backing Obama wholeheartedly, Hubbard said.
Obama's policies on universal health care, trade, and the Employee Free Choice Act make the Illinois Senator the choice of most every union, Robinson said.
Unions believe the Free Choice Act, which would give employees union representation if a majority signed cards signalling union membership, will increase union numbers. Unions claim the current regime of National Labor Relations Board elections for union recognition allows employers to stall unionization.
McCain opposed the Free Choice Act when it was introduced in Congress. The steelworkers also believe McCain's health care plan will actually drive workers out of employer programs and into the arms of private insurance companies, Robinson said.
In addition to their campaign donations, unions are working to increase their clout through get-out-the-vote and ongoing political campaigns, according to Michelle Ringuette, SEIU assistant director of communications.
Local 1 SEIU members were in Gary this weekend conducting a voter registration drive.
SEIU will have members make 10 million calls to members of Congress in support of universal health care and other issues important to working families, Ringuette said. The union will put up $10 million to make sure members of Congress deliver on their promises and dedicate 50 percent of its organizing budget to political action.
"We will keep the heat on so things get done," Ringuette said.
Big labor, big issues, big money
Union PACs and employee PACs were big givers during the presidential primary season and after, donating millions to the campaigns of presidential hopefuls.
John McCain
Total donations: $54,100
Total PACs contributing: 12
Barack Obama
Total donations: $8.1 million
Total PACs contributing: 8
Hillary Clinton
Total donations: $4.4 million
Total PACs contributing: 34
http://nwitimes.com/articles/2008/08/31/business/business/doc6e74f9caf9786580862574b400546300.txt
Barack Obama welcomes union leaders to the White House - 31 Jan 2009
Promising to "level the playing field" for workers, he offered the most pro-union sentiments heard from a US president for many years.
"I do not view the labour movement as part of the problem. To me, it's part of the solution," said Mr Obama, who was accused of being a Socialist by the Republican Right during the election campaign.
He was speaking at the launch of a Task Force for Middle Class and Working Families that will be led by Joe Biden, the US Vice President.
Mr Biden said: "For too many years we have had White House that has failed to put the middle class front and centre of economic policy."
Mr Obama praised American workers as "the most productive in the world" but said working families were being hit hardest by a crisis not of their making.
Tens of thousands have been laid off this week as the economy has gone from bad to worse. Friday brought more bad news, as it was revealed the US economy shrank at a 3.8 per cent pace at the end of 2008, the worst showing in a generation.
"It's like the American dream in reverse," said Mr Obama, adding that he disagreed sharply with the "policies towards organised labour that we have seen these last eight years" of the Bush administration.
The president signed three executive orders related to employment by the federal government which are likely to be only the beginning of a rise in union strength.
One will prevent federal contractors from being reimbursed for expenses intended to influence workers' decisions to form unions or engage in collective bargaining. Another requires contractors at federal buildings to offer jobs to qualified current employees when contracts change.
The president's remarks are likely to send a chill through business leaders who are already chaffing at "Buy American" clauses in the $820 billion (£569 billion) stimulus package working its way through Congress.
The clauses, which bar the purchase of foreign iron and steel for any stimulus-funded infrastructure project, are being loudly cheered by the unions.
Leading business interests warned that such measures could trigger trade wars that only will exacerbate the slump in trade volumes and economic growth stemming from the financial turmoil.
"Since 95 per cent of the world's consumers live outside the United States, American workers would be the first to suffer as 'Buy American' provisions trigger retaliation by other countries - that is, 'Buy German', 'Buy Chinese,' and so on," said Chris Braddock of the US Chamber of Commerce.
"We certainly aren't against companies and governments 'Buying American', but we are against the government arbitrarily mandating such a requirement, because it would harm our economy in numerous ways," Braddock said, citing the trade wars that eventually sparked the Great Depression.
"The Chamber is absolutely committed to avoiding a replay of that disaster," he said.
Canada, America's largest trading partner, joined the EU in opposing the Buy America provisions.
"We want to avoid protectionism in this economic slowdown," said Stephen Harper, the Canadian prime minister.
It is a "serious concern to us," he said, and so "we're joining with all countries in the world to insist that the United States respect its WTO (World Trade Organisation) commitments."
Under the North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta), Canada sells about 40 per cent of its steel to its southern neighbour.
Mr Harper intends to broach the Buy American issue with Mr Obama when the president makes his first foreign trip to Ottawa on Feb 19.
Leo Gerard, head of the United Steelworkers union, said: "It's time for economic patriots to stand up in our country. We need to ensure that our laws are aggressively implemented to ensure that American taxpayer dollars are used to put Americans back to work and help renew our economy."
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/barackobama/4401782/Barack-Obama-welcomes-union-leaders-to-the-White-House.html
Obama wins union money vote - Sunday, August 31, 2008
Labor union's have lavished big bucks on the presidential campaign of Barack Obama since January of 2007 and only a piddling amount on the campaign of presumptive Republican nominee John McCain.
On the eve of Labor Day, a Times analysis of Federal Election Commission data shows Obama scooped up $8.1 million from union political action committees through July 2008 while McCain garnered just $54,100 from organized labor and employee PACs so far in this presidential election cycle.
The all-or-nothing bet unions are placing on Obama repeats the strategy of heavily backing Democratic candidate John Kerry in the 2004 election.
"There is that huge split because there is a huge split in what Obama and McCain represent," said Tom Balanoff, President of Chicago-based Service Employees Union Local 1. "Barack Obama understands the needs of working families."
During and immediately after the primary season, SEIU political action committees were by far the largest organizational contributors to the Obama campaign, dropping a combined $7.26 million in his campaign war chest.
Of all the political action committee donations made to the Obama campaign, 89.3 percent were from unions. Of all the political action committee donations made to the McCain campaign, just 2.9 percent came from unions and employee PACs.
In fact, union political action committees made $1.6 million in donations to anti-McCain efforts, the election commission records show.
Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton had broader support from unions than Obama during the primary season, garnering $4.4 million in donations from 35 union PACs. Obama's money came from just eight union PACs.
Unions cannot make direct donations to federal candidates' election campaigns. Instead, union members contribute to the unions' political action committees through authorized payroll deductions.
The United Steelworkers are using the same logic as SEIU in throwing all their weight behind Obama now that he is the Democratic nominee, according to Jim Robinson, USW District 7 director.
"If we gave money to McCain, that wouldn't change the positions he's had for many years," said Robinson. "It would be like the chickens getting together and giving a donation to Colonel Sanders."
The United Steelworkers backed former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards in the primaries.
"He was the most energetic and aggressive on trade policy," said USW public affairs director Gary Hubbard of Edwards.
But now the USW is backing Obama wholeheartedly, Hubbard said.
Obama's policies on universal health care, trade, and the Employee Free Choice Act make the Illinois Senator the choice of most every union, Robinson said.
Unions believe the Free Choice Act, which would give employees union representation if a majority signed cards signalling union membership, will increase union numbers. Unions claim the current regime of National Labor Relations Board elections for union recognition allows employers to stall unionization.
McCain opposed the Free Choice Act when it was introduced in Congress. The steelworkers also believe McCain's health care plan will actually drive workers out of employer programs and into the arms of private insurance companies, Robinson said.
In addition to their campaign donations, unions are working to increase their clout through get-out-the-vote and ongoing political campaigns, according to Michelle Ringuette, SEIU assistant director of communications.
Local 1 SEIU members were in Gary this weekend conducting a voter registration drive.
SEIU will have members make 10 million calls to members of Congress in support of universal health care and other issues important to working families, Ringuette said. The union will put up $10 million to make sure members of Congress deliver on their promises and dedicate 50 percent of its organizing budget to political action.
"We will keep the heat on so things get done," Ringuette said.
Big labor, big issues, big money
Union PACs and employee PACs were big givers during the presidential primary season and after, donating millions to the campaigns of presidential hopefuls.
John McCain
Total donations: $54,100
Total PACs contributing: 12
Barack Obama
Total donations: $8.1 million
Total PACs contributing: 8
Hillary Clinton
Total donations: $4.4 million
Total PACs contributing: 34
http://nwitimes.com/articles/2008/08/31/business/business/doc6e74f9caf9786580862574b400546300.txt
Barack Obama welcomes union leaders to the White House - 31 Jan 2009
Promising to "level the playing field" for workers, he offered the most pro-union sentiments heard from a US president for many years.
"I do not view the labour movement as part of the problem. To me, it's part of the solution," said Mr Obama, who was accused of being a Socialist by the Republican Right during the election campaign.
He was speaking at the launch of a Task Force for Middle Class and Working Families that will be led by Joe Biden, the US Vice President.
Mr Biden said: "For too many years we have had White House that has failed to put the middle class front and centre of economic policy."
Mr Obama praised American workers as "the most productive in the world" but said working families were being hit hardest by a crisis not of their making.
Tens of thousands have been laid off this week as the economy has gone from bad to worse. Friday brought more bad news, as it was revealed the US economy shrank at a 3.8 per cent pace at the end of 2008, the worst showing in a generation.
"It's like the American dream in reverse," said Mr Obama, adding that he disagreed sharply with the "policies towards organised labour that we have seen these last eight years" of the Bush administration.
The president signed three executive orders related to employment by the federal government which are likely to be only the beginning of a rise in union strength.
One will prevent federal contractors from being reimbursed for expenses intended to influence workers' decisions to form unions or engage in collective bargaining. Another requires contractors at federal buildings to offer jobs to qualified current employees when contracts change.
The president's remarks are likely to send a chill through business leaders who are already chaffing at "Buy American" clauses in the $820 billion (£569 billion) stimulus package working its way through Congress.
The clauses, which bar the purchase of foreign iron and steel for any stimulus-funded infrastructure project, are being loudly cheered by the unions.
Leading business interests warned that such measures could trigger trade wars that only will exacerbate the slump in trade volumes and economic growth stemming from the financial turmoil.
"Since 95 per cent of the world's consumers live outside the United States, American workers would be the first to suffer as 'Buy American' provisions trigger retaliation by other countries - that is, 'Buy German', 'Buy Chinese,' and so on," said Chris Braddock of the US Chamber of Commerce.
"We certainly aren't against companies and governments 'Buying American', but we are against the government arbitrarily mandating such a requirement, because it would harm our economy in numerous ways," Braddock said, citing the trade wars that eventually sparked the Great Depression.
"The Chamber is absolutely committed to avoiding a replay of that disaster," he said.
Canada, America's largest trading partner, joined the EU in opposing the Buy America provisions.
"We want to avoid protectionism in this economic slowdown," said Stephen Harper, the Canadian prime minister.
It is a "serious concern to us," he said, and so "we're joining with all countries in the world to insist that the United States respect its WTO (World Trade Organisation) commitments."
Under the North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta), Canada sells about 40 per cent of its steel to its southern neighbour.
Mr Harper intends to broach the Buy American issue with Mr Obama when the president makes his first foreign trip to Ottawa on Feb 19.
Leo Gerard, head of the United Steelworkers union, said: "It's time for economic patriots to stand up in our country. We need to ensure that our laws are aggressively implemented to ensure that American taxpayer dollars are used to put Americans back to work and help renew our economy."
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/barackobama/4401782/Barack-Obama-welcomes-union-leaders-to-the-White-House.html