Labor’s election plan: Turn up the turnout! (unprecedented $40 million)

[Omaha Steve]

FULL story: http://www.pww.org/article/articleview/9726/1/337



“George Bush isn’t on the ballot this November, but his agenda is and the representatives in Congress who have rubber-stamped his priorities are,” AFL-CIO President John Sweeney told reporters at a national press conference Aug. 30.

Indeed, rather than an off-year effort, the extensive election mobilization plan laid out by Sweeney and federation Political Director Karen Ackerman as the election season enters the home stretch is worthy of a presidential campaign. The AFL-CIO is spending an unprecedented $40 million solely on its member-to-member mobilization efforts. No contribution to candidates or campaigns will come out of this fund.

Despite a split in the federation last year which saw seven affiliated unions leave to form a new labor federation, Change to Win, Sweeney reported that at the local level, where the mobilization takes place, “we are finding that labor is as united as in the past.”

“I think we will have a very united political effort,” he said.

The effort will be concentrated on 56 House, 15 Senate and 14 gubernatorial races in 21 states. The goal is to improve turnout from union households by 10 points over the last midterm election, which took place in 2002. Sophisticated data analysis techniques will identify voters who voted in the 2004 presidential race but were absent at the polls in 2002, Ackerman said.

There are 12.4 million union-related voters in these 21 states, including 5.3 million active members, 1.5 million retirees, 4.6 million spouses and adult children of union members and 1.5 million members of Working America. Working America is the new AFL-CIO affiliate that allows people who are not in organized work places to be part of the AFL-CIO.

The emphasis of the mobilization will be on “pocketbook” issues, Sweeney said. The census data he cited reveals median earnings for full-time workers falling in 2005, “out of sight” household debt, 5 million more Americans without health care and 5 million more falling into poverty since 2001.

[Stargazer99]

1. Even if you normally do not belong to a union you'd better pay

attention...if not you might experience more giving back of hourly wages and benefits. In the 1950s there were strong unions. A man could support a family, buy a house, car, take a vacation and save for retirement. What do you think you have now? Now even if the boss smokes and drinks this administration has given him the ability to fire you if you do the same on the premise that the health insurance costs would rise...WAKE UP slaves!