Obama Gains Major Union Endorsement And, Potentially, $100 Million War Chest

[monmouth]

WASHINGTON -- The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees formally endorsed President Barack Obama's reelection on Tuesday, beginning an extensive and expensive process to, in part, shore up the president's support among white working class voters.

AFSCME officials said they're looking to spend more on the 2012 elections than the $93 million spent in 2010, hinting that the figure would top $100 million. The early plans, according to those officials, are to capitalize on the politics of the moment -- centered on the issue of income inequality and propelled by important victories for union workers in Ohio and Wisconsin -- and undertake one of the more comprehensive field operations in election history.

"We want to go from a base of 58 percent or so to try and get it up to 70 percent in terms of support for Obama," said Larry Scanlon, AFSCME's political director. "You have to start early, which is one of the reasons we did the endorsement today. There is work to be done."

Atop that to-do list is bringing back into the fold disaffected Obama supporters and the white working class voters who, according to a much-discussed recent New York Times article, are being all but written off by Democratic Party operatives.

Complete article: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/06/obama-union-endorsement-afscme_n_1132488.html

[Tarheel_Dem]

1. YAY! My deceased dad's old union.

:bounce:

[monmouth]

2. They are a strong union. My mother worked for Monmouth (NJ)

county government for years and she worked hard. No union offered at that time and she made low wages. Nice thought for your dad.

[Tarheel_Dem]

3. My dad & stepmom both worked in Far Rockaway, NY government.

:hi:

[Number23]

4. Wow! Rec'd

[great white snark]

5. Great, isn't it? First SEIU now this.

Someone should really tell the Unions that Obama hates them.
:sarcasm:

[Tarheel_Dem]

6. !

:rofl:



:thumbsup: