NYT: The Union Pressure to Oust Penn (McEntee telephoned her on Friday to urge her to fire Mr. Penn)

[Omaha Steve]

Cross posted in GD. Gerry has taken a lot of heat on his stand for Senator Clinton. This was a good move.

OS

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/04/07/the-union-pressure-to-oust-penn/

April 7, 2008, 11:26 am
The Union Pressure to Oust Penn

By Steven Greenhouse

More details are emerging on how the Clinton camp came under pressure from unions before Mark Penn, the pollster who has advised Bill and Hillary Rodham Clinton since 1996, was let go by the campaign.

Gerry McEntee, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, widely viewed as the union that has campaigned most aggressive for Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, telephoned her on Friday to urge her to fire Mr. Penn, a top union aide said. Mr. Penn apologized last week for meeting with officials from Colombia, which hired him to help secure passage of a bilateral trade treaty with the United States that Mrs. Clinton, a senator from New York, opposes.

Larry Scanlon, Afscme’s political director, said Mr. McEntee and other Afscme officials were convinced that Mr. Penn had become a liability, especially in Pennsylvania, where trade is an important issue.

“We said, ‘He’s got to go.’ ” Mr. Scanlon said.

“We had a political concern,” Mr. Scanlon said. “Obviously she’s taking a stand on the Columbia trade agreement and he’d wearing a private sector hat saying that they should have it.

“We said, ‘It’s time. You can’t serve two masters.”

Mr. Scanlon said that even though his union is a public-sector union, “We do care about trade. We were out on the steps of the capital the day of the Nafta vote. Trade is our economy, and we need to have a good economy.”

Meanwhile, President Bush on Monday sent Congress the free trade agreement with Colombia, a move that will force a vote within 90 days.

Related article: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/07/washington/07cnd-trade.html?_r=1&oref=slogin