SEIU Warns Dems: If You Don’t Back Reform, We Won’t Back You

[kpete]

The Plum LineGreg Sargent's blog
Posted at 03/12/2010, 04:06 PM EST
SEIU Warns Dems: If You Don’t Back Reform, We Won’t Back You

Hardball time.

In what seems intended as a shot across the bow of House Dems wavering on health reform, top officials with the labor powerhouse SEIU have bluntly told a Democratic member that they will pull their support for him — and will likely field a challenger against him — if he votes No on the Senate bill.

Dem Rep Mike McMahon of New York met yesterday with a top SEIU official and told him he’s likely to vote No, the official tells me. The official: Mike Fishman, president of SEIU 32bj, the largest property workers union in the country, with 120,000 members in eight states.

Fishman told McMahon that the union would not support him if he voted No — and suggested the hunt for a primary or third-party challenger would follow.

“He let us know he’s not supportive of the health care plan,” Fishman says. “We’ve let him know that we can’t support somebody who doesn’t support it.”

more:
http://theplumline.whorunsgov.com/labor/big-union-warns-dems-if-you-dont-back-reform-we-wont-back-you/

[BrklynLiberal]

1. I second that emotion.

[elocs]

2. Whether it is the HCR bill or something else, it is time to let the Blue Dogs and DINOs know

"here is the line", cross it and we can no longer support you. There need to be core values that bind us together as Democrats, values we need to support for the greater good of the party. The days when we hear, "you have to vote for us, you have no other choice" should be gone. If it means risking a Republican or Republican wins then it is worth the risk to eventually have a party that really stands for its beliefs.

[FiveGoodMen]

3. Here's hoping they stick to it.