Censored Whig Letters

Trumka: Obama Strong on Guns, Conservation Issues

by Seth Michaels, Sep 19, 2008

http://blog.aflcio.org/2008/09/19/trumka-obama-strong-on-guns-conservation-issues/

At a union roundtable discussion in Johnstown, Pa., yesterday, AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Richard Trumka met with a panel of 15 union sportsmen from 12 different western Pennsylvania unions to discuss Sen. Barack Obama’s positions on issues ranging from trade to guns.

Trumka says Obama is offering the right solutions for what’s wrong with our economy. He told the assembled union members that talking with their friends and neighbors about Obama and the important issues is the best way to make sure we have a pro-worker president next year.

This election is going to decide the direction of the economy, where we go. Whether the economy is going to help you, or hurt you. Whether it’s going to be changed or it isn’t going to be changed. It’s up to you, it’s very, very important for you and for your future, the future of our communities and our children, to know the facts, where the candidates stand on the issues and then vote what’s best for the country.

Trumka, an avid hunter and fisher, says corporate interests will again seek to exploit the issue of gun ownership this year, hoping to distract gun-owning voters from real issues like jobs, health care and retirement security. This election is too important to let distortions and falsehood affect it, Trumka says.

Obama gets it. Not only is he crystal clear in his support of the Second Amendment, he is light years ahead of John McCain on habitat conservation and hunting and fishing access issues important to sportsmen. Attacks on Sen. Obama’s position on guns are nothing more than right-wing rhetoric meant to distract working people from the critical pocketbook issues that affect our daily lives.

Participants at the roundtable said that while protecting the traditions of sportsmen is important, the focus of this election is squarely on the economy.

Kenneth Peterson, president of IBEW Local 459 in Johnstown, said trade tops the issues leading him to vote for Obama this fall.

There is a lot of nonsense out there about Barack Obama taking our guns. Workers from our area are more worried about John McCain exporting our jobs.

Lisa Stark, a National Rifle Association member and organizer for the National Union of Hospital and Health Care Employees (NUHHCE), says the real threat to responsible gun ownership comes from the stagnation of workers’ paychecks.

The truth of the matter is that George W. Bush and his failed economic policies have taken away more guns from average Americans than any gun control law ever passed in the history of the United States. The economic policies of George Bush—which McCain supported 90 percent of the time—have turned pawn shops into gun shops because struggling workers have to hock their guns to pay their mortgages.

Michael Fedore, a member of the Pennsylvania Federation of Teachers who grew up in New Castle, Pa., says he’s voting for Obama because all workers’ rights deserve respect.

We come from an area where schools close on the opening day of deer season. Hunting is a way of life for us and Barack Obama respects that. Sen. Obama also respects our rights to decent jobs that pay fair wages, health care and pension protection.

Pennsylvania will be a decisive state in this fall’s election, and union volunteers will be working hard to make sure every union member knows what issues are really at stake this year.

Let me see if I have this straight…..
* If you grow up in Hawaii, raised by your grandparents, you’re “exotic, different.”
* Grow up in Alaska eating mooseburgers, a quintessential American story.

* If your name is Barack you’re a radical, unpatriotic Muslim.

* Name your kids Willow, Trig and Track, you’re a maverick.

* Graduate from Harvard law School and you are unstable.

* Attend 5 different small colleges before graduating, you’re well grounded.

* If you spend 3 years as a brilliant community organizer, become the first black President of the Harvard Law Review, create a voter registration drive that registers 150,000 new voters, spend 12 years as a Constitutional Law professor, spend 8 years as a State Senator representing a district with over 750,000 people, become chairman of the state Senate’s Health and Human Services committee, spend 4 years in the United States Senate representing a state of 13 million people while sponsoring 131 bills and serving on the Foreign Affairs, Environment and Public Works and Veteran’s Affairs committees, you don’t have any real leadership experience.

* If your total resume is: local weather girl, 4 years on the city council and 6 years as the mayor of a town with less than 7,000 people, 20 months as the governor of a state with only 650,000 people, then you’re qualified to become the country’s second highest ranking executive.

* If you have been married to the same woman for 19 years while raising 2 beautiful daughters, all within Protestant churches, you’re not a real Christian.

* If you cheated on your first wife with a rich heiress, and left your disfigured wife and married the heiress the next month, you’re a Christian.

* If you teach responsible, age appropriate sex education, including the proper use of birth control, you are eroding the fiber of society.

* If , while governor, you staunchly advocate abstinence only, with no other option in sex education in your state’s school system while your unwed teen daughter ends up pregnant , you’re very responsible.

* If your wife is a Harvard graduate lawyer who gave up a position in a prestigious law firm to work for the betterment of her inner city community, then gave that up to raise a family, your family’s values don’t represent America’s.

* If you’re husband is nicknamed “First Dude”, with at least one DWI conviction and no college education, who didn’t register to vote until age 25 and once was a member of a group that advocated the secession of Alaska from the USA, your family is extremely admirable.

OK, much clearer now.

GEORGE W. BONSER
VP, USW LOCAL 2599
BETHLEHEM, PA.

Sept. 4, 2008

Who benefits from John McCain’s tax agenda? The same people who have done so well under the Bush economy–the wealthy and big corporations. But, according to unbiased, just-the-facts analyses from economists and mainstream media, the overwhelming majority of taxpayers–especially those in the lower- and middle-income range–would see a bigger tax cut under Barack Obama’s plan than McCain’s. Your choice. More of McSame or more in your pocket?

*****

Quick Poll: Are the candidates and media paying enough attention to working family issues?
http://www.unionvoice.org/ct/bda31_F1bqGn/

Got comments? Post them at:
http://www.unionvoice.org/ct/b1a31_F1bqGh/

*****

Obama’s Tax Plan Better for Working Families Than McCain’s
http://www.unionvoice.org/ct/g7a31_F1bqGU/

TV Ads Promote Employee Free Choice Act
http://www.unionvoice.org/ct/g1a31_F1bqGm/

‘Wall Street Journal’ Columnist Takes on Corporate ‘Hypocrisy’ over Employee Free Choice
http://www.unionvoice.org/ct/gda31_F1bqGE/

Sick and Fired: U.S. Workers Struggle Without Paid Sick, Parental Leave
http://www.unionvoice.org/ct/tpa31_F1bqGj/

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08246/908668-432.stm

The Private Sector: One CEO’s case for the power of unions

By Roger Smith

Another Labor Day has come and gone, and while our economy continues its downward spiral, we have a unique opportunity to reflect on the relationship between companies that are trying to stay afloat and their workers, who are also struggling to make ends meet — as prices continue to skyrocket for everyone.

As the president and CEO of a major insurance company, some might call me an anomaly. I am an ardent supporter of the Employee Free Choice Act — national legislation that would make it easier for workers to organize unions.

I can speak firsthand about how managing a unionized workforce makes my life easier and saves me money. More than 40 years ago, the workers at American Income Life formed a union with the Office and Professional Employees International Union. While working together to grow the business over the years, we have developed a productive relationship.

I have never understood why CEOs spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on high-priced legal consultants to keep unions out. Letting anti-union consultants absorb company resources just isn’t responsible financial stewardship. I’d rather put that money into raises for those who do the real work at our company. At the hourly rates those anti-union firms charge, I’ll probably save money.

The collective bargaining agreements at American Income Life and National Income Life provide the economic stability that workers want, particularly during these tough economic times. The contract ensures fair compensation, benefits and working conditions for our workers.

But the peace of mind goes both ways– a work force with experience, professionalism and longevity creates the stability that I want, too. Workers stay at my company because they get a fair deal — and I save the cost of training employees that other companies incur because of high turn-over rates.

The nature of our contract also encourages us to listen and value each others’ perspectives. Respect for the contributions of our employees has become an integral part of our corporate culture, and it enhances our ability to make a profit for stakeholders. In fact, involving workers in times of significant change or restructuring has been vital to our success and growth.

Working through our collective bargaining agreement has forced us to manage better because we have a process for taking employees’ opinions into account as part of the decision-making process. Unions give credibility and standing to employees in a way that cannot be achieved with a nonunion work force.

Even as the economy slumps, we’re showing significant gains right now in monthly production records, and we’re even seeing projections of double-digit growth in annual sales. I am convinced that we would never have achieved this outcome without the involvement and feedback of our employees.

Unions also are good for the communities in which we live. Experience has taught me that fair wages and good benefits are paramount to keeping our communities healthy. In the insurance business, we deal with bread-and-butter issues. When we go to workers’ homes, we see the reality of the middle-class struggle — fear of foreclosures, lack of health care, declining wages and buying power.

It’s worth noting that a union worker earns 30 percent more in wages, has better access to health care and is more likely to have a 401(k) or pension plan. The truth is, everyone in the community wins when there are workers with enough buying power to provide for their families.

When we celebrated Labor Day yesterday, we didn’t just mark the unofficial “last day of summer,” but the beginning of a new opportunity to do what is right for workers, for our companies and our communities. I invite you to stand with me on one of the wisest decisions I have made — honor a worker and their freedom to form a union by supporting the Employee Free Choice Act.

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Roger Smith is chief executive officer of American Income Life Insurance Company.

Dear Friends,

I am writing to share the news that I have decided to endorse Frank Kratovil for Maryland’s First Congressional District seat.

This is a decision that I do not make lightly, and I have indeed given a great deal of thought to what it is that makes our region special, the important issues we as a nation will face and most importantly, which candidate is better suited for this important job. You probably know that during my 18 years in Congress, I sometimes cast votes which were not in step with my party. And although you might not have always agreed with my choices, I think you know that I always weigh my decisions based on people, intellect and truth, not partisanship and politics.

It is through that same process that I came to the decision to support Frank Kratovil for this Congressional seat.

Frank Kratovil brings to Maryland’s First District that same sense of duty, responsibility and truthfulness. As a tough prosecutor and States’ Attorney he recognizes the importance of distinguishing rhetoric versus facts. He is an independent, thoughtful voice with a drive to lead and serve his country. Just as important, Frank lives in Queen Anne’s County with his wife Kimberly and four young sons. They face the same everyday challenges as us, attend the same schools, fill up at the same gas pumps and shop at the same stores. Frank understands this district and its people, and you can be sure that when he goes to Congress, he will have our interests at heart.

Our country faces many challenges, from a looming energy crisis, illegal immigration, climate change, uncertain foreign policy issues, and rising health care costs. Our Congress finds itself mired in partisan conflict year after year, and we are all tired of the same old empty promises. Now more than ever before in this country, we need more leaders with bold ideas, who have the courage to stand up for their constituents and make decisions based on facts, not rhetoric and not party politics as usual.

Frank Kratovil is that type of leader, and come next year, I’ll be proud to call him my Congressman.

Wayne T. Gilchrest

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EDITOR’S NOTE: Gilchrest is the current Republican Congressman representing the 1st Congressional District. He was defeated by the extremely right wing State Senator Andy Harris in the Republican Primary.

Join the Movement

Please join Cecil Countians for Obama for our Headquarters Grand Opening. Meet local Obama supporters and learn how you can get involved. Change can’t happen without you!

The event will be held at:
Kevin Quinlan Photography Gallery
208 George Street
Chesapeake City, MD 21915
on September 10th, 2008 at 7:00 pm.

For more information, call Alissa 443-566-0212 or visit:
http://www.My.BarackObama.com/page/group/CecilCountiansforObama