Political: Obama pledges labor support

[Omaha Steve]

By KENDRA MARR | 8/4/10 1:26 PM EDT

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0810/40642.html#ixzz0vmVNhDbw

President Barack Obama vowed Wednesday to keep fighting for union-friendly legislation, as he urged labor leaders to go to the polls for Democrats in the upcoming elections.

“You have to remind them for the next three months this election's a choice,” he told the AFL-CIO Executive Council at the Washington Convention Center. “You've got these folks who drove America's economy into a ditch. And for the last 20 months, we put on our boots and we got into the mud.”


President Obama promise to keep supporting union-friendly legislation during an address to labor leaders on Wednesday. | AP


Obama pointed out that his administration has “consistently” carried out policies to strengthen workers’ salaries and benefits. He passed the Fair Pay Act to end wage disparities between men and women doing the same jobs, extended unemployment benefits and reversed Bush-era executive orders designed to bust up organized labor.

“And we are going to keep on fighting to pass the Employee Free Choice Act,” said Obama, as union leaders gave him a standing ovation for his commitment to a controversial “card check” bill that would make it easier to create unions in non-union workplaces. Acknowledging that pushing the legislation through the Senate will “continue to be tough,” the president again pledged to “keep on pushing.”

But workers around the country are angry with the pace of changes the president promised on the campaign. Many states continue to grapple with double-digit unemployment, while crumbling rust-belt towns are still waiting for Obama’s vision of new jobs in old factories, manufacturing clean-energy components like windmill parts or solar panels.

The president said he understands how they feel.

“They're frustrated,” he said. “They've got every right to be frustrated. And I am happy as president of the United States to take responsibility for making decisions now that are going to put us in a stronger position down the road. And they need to know that – that we're going to be working with you to make sure that we're putting ourselves in a position where folks are working and working for a good wage and good benefits.”

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0810/40642.html#ixzz0vmVCg7UN

[katandmoon]

1. "...as he urged labor leaders to go to the polls for Democrats..." - finally some transparency!

Cause I can see right through him. He remembers labor exists when election time rolls around. After the election it'll be labor who? again.

[Little Star]

2. Fool me once ..............................

[Marr]

3. Was this statement made after the AFL-CIO said they intend to let corporate shill Democrats sink?

They've got the right idea.

[MilesColtrane]

4. Don't Lucy van Pelt us, Mr. President.

[zipplewrath]

5. Good thing this wasn't the teachers union

They probably would have booed him out of the room.