Gerald McEntee, President of the largest public-sector union has long looked for a Democratic presidential contender who can be a winner, and two months ago he was leaning towards General Wesley Clark.
Mr. McEntee, whose 1.4 million members are a formidable political force, even asked Clinton Chief of Staff Harold Ickes to run the Clark Campaign according to Democratic insiders, but over time McEntee soured on Gen. Clark and today he plans to announce that his union, The American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees will endorse Howard Dean.
"Gery weighs electability very high on the scale of things," said Andrew Stern, Service Employees President (whose 1.3 million member union is also endorsing Dean today).
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/11/12/politics/12LABO.html