AFL-CIO Set to Endorse Kerry Next Week

[Khephra]

WASHINGTON -- The AFL-CIO will endorse Democratic front-runner John Kerry for president in a meeting next week, according to a memo sent Friday to the federation's employees.

AFL-CIO President John Sweeney has scheduled a meeting of the federation's general board for Thursday "to officially endorse" Kerry for president, according to the memo obtained by The Associated Press.

An AFL-CIO spokeswoman did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

The presidents of all of the federation's 64 affiliate unions sit on the general board, which is the only body that can endorse.

more.............

http://www.newsday.com/news/politics/wire/sns-ap-labor-kerry,0,2413732.story?coll=sns-ap-politics-headlines

[davsand]

1. Did Gep's former endorsements go to Kerry?

The AFL-CIO CAN'T endorse anybody until they have some kind of majority of the member unions on board with it. I know Kerry has pulled a fair number of enodrsements of late--but has he got THAT many now from the various unions? He must have, if the AFL-CIO is gonna endorse. SOMEBODY must think they have the votes to do it!

I'm wondering if Gep's endorsements have somehow been given over the Kerry now that Gep is out of the race...

Laura

[hedda_foil]

2. Yes

[NewYorkerfromMass]

3. Thanks for the good news

it keeps on coming...

[goobergunch]

4. Resistance is futile

The AFL-CIO has been assimilated into the Kerry bandwagon....

[NewYorkerfromMass]

5. Thanks for the good news

it keeps on coming...

[Debi]

6. That's right...

Get in line.....don't have a mind of your own.

[blm]

8. Seems to me that while many were jumping on the Dean bandwagon, there were

just a few of us who stayed true to a quest for a Kerry presidency and loyal to our beliefs. We suffered quite a bit of abuse here while maintaining our steadfastness.

It would have been so easy to be "assimilated" and popular here at DU by becoming a Dean supporter.

My mind and my heart were not so easily available to someone as dishonest as Dean and his campaign.

Karma.

[Debi]

10. Did you just send me BAD karma?

My husband just said the other day of the NEW Kerry supporters.....NOW we know who will be in the lifeboats when the Titanic sinks.

Rather be and HONEST Dean supporter than a sheep.

(Not that you are a sheep - sounds like you were with Kerry from the get-go, and good for you for being loyal to your candidate)

But...did you really have to say Dean was dishonest?

[Darth_Kitten]

15. Karma?

Explain. I would like to know which is more dishonest, speaking one's mind when it wasn't politically correct to do so, or taking on another candidate's ideas as your own because hey if it got him somewhere it may get me somewhere, and hey, you have the added plus of having the media on your side?




"Truth cordially invites anyone who searches for it, no matter
how awkward the search."

[jsw_81]

7. It's over, people

Barring a meltdown of historic proportions, John Kerry will be the 2004 Democratic nominee for President.

[LiberalFighter]

9. They should wait until after the nominee has been officially determined

Then AFL-CIO should make their endorsement between Dem nominee and Repug nominee.

[revcarol]

11. Why, oh why, would they want to cut their own throats to endorse

the worst of all the candidates on labor issues????

God, I just don;'t see it.

Edwards against NAFTA
Dean won the Wellstone award
Sharpton for jobs for minorities
Kucinich against NAFTA, WTO, and absolutely makes labor rock!!Walks the walk with the workers.

And they are going to choose KERRY?? tHE PRO-FAST TRACK, GATT, NAFTA,WTO whore who would "change it " when there are NO PROVISIONS IN NAFTA OR WTO FOR CHANGE,..... JUST LEAVING.

[54anickel]

12. It's the AFL-CIO - stay with the insiders. n/t

[Mairead]

14. I agree with you and 54anickel, Carol. The AFL-CIO leadership are part

of 'management' and have been for decades. They're not up for rocking the yachts, because their yachts are moored among the others. That's why unions have so steadily lost ground--the days of the hellraising leaders are long past. The last guy who looked like he was going to turn that around--I can't remember his name right now, Ron something? Teamsters boss, anyhow--was framed up on campaign-finance charges, remember that? Forced to resign his post and, to stay out of prison, to agree not ever to stand for election again. A real takedown.

I've lived in Massachusetts since before Kerry was elected Senator--I helped elect him Senator!--and for almost all that time, he was a predictable, platitude-filled liberal. He could be counted on to vote the party line.

Regretably, he can STILL be counted on to vote the party line even though the party line is now being written by the Republicans via their DLC sockpuppets.

The DLC are cheap-labor elites, which means Kerry is no friend of working people either regardless of his rhetoric. The DLC promises are lies, and their reality NAFTA-CAFTA-EFFUSTA, the WTO, locked factory gates, breadlines, dead business districts filled with the corpses of small shops, dead hopes for the future, and swelling prison populations.

Maybe Kerry will prove us all wrong and emerge from the phonebooth on election day having ripped off his bespoke suiting to reveal a pro-labor-anti-EFFTA superhero costume. Maybe he'll merit the AFL-CIO endorsement. But his recent history is against it, so I'd suggest we none of us hold our breaths while waiting.

[corporatewhore]

13. gee lets see Workers of the World Unite

against opposition to NAFTA/WTO/GATT/FTAA.....