News is suddenly moving so fast that it's becoming hard for me to keep up; that's why we're not finishing the story today that we just began Tuesday. You know, the one about Titan Cement suing two North Carolina residents who appear to be doing nothing more than speaking the truth.
Unfortunately, other important news has forced itself to the front of the line, and it's going to demand that we break schedule, whether we like it or not.
That's why today we're going to be talking about Wisconsin, and how workers there are fighting back against the State's Republican legislators and Governor, who seem to have gone out of their way this past three weeks to govern without the consent of the governed.
It's kind of chilly today in Wisconsin...but I can assure you, things are heating up fast-and it ain't because of spring.
Sometimes stories happen because of planning; other times serendipity intervenes, which is how we got to the conversation we'll be having today.
In an exchange of comments on the Blue Hampshire site, I proposed an idea that could be of real value to unions, workers...and surprisingly, employers.
If things worked out correctly, not only would lots of people feel a real desire to have unions represent them, but employers would potentially be coming to unions looking to forge relationships, and, just to make it better, this plan bypasses virtually all of the tools and techniques employers use to shut out union organizers.
Since I just thought this up myself, I'm really not sure exactly how practical the whole thing is, and the last part of the discussion today will be provided by you, as I ask you to sound off on whether this plan could work, and if so, how it could be made better.
It's a new week...so let's all put our heads together and rebuild the labor movement, shall we?
The SEIU is putting a full-page version of this ad in tomorrow's Staten Island Advance to pressure S.I. congressman McMahon to vote for the final HCR bill. The implicit message is a threat to leave McMahon out in the cold in future elections if he votes against HCR. Let us double-down on this threat. Don't expect to find any love from the NY progressive blogosphere in the form of funds or boots on the ground this November if you vote nay on health care.
SEIU launched a new TV spot in the NY-20 race today. I guess it shouldn't surprise anyone that they are working the Obama endorsement as well. Not sure of the points on the buy, but I have a feeling that plenty of people in the district will be seeing this ad as well as the DNC's "Obama Supports Murphy" ad over the final weekend of the race.
1199 S.E.I.U. United Healthcare Workers East and the Greater New York Hospital Association have launched a ferocious ad campaign against Governor Paterson's proposed cut. The Times had the story yesterday:
At a time when Gov. David A. Paterson can ill afford more negative attention, the state's most powerful health care interests are mounting a multimillion-dollar media campaign that excoriates the governor and his plans to cut funding for hospitals and other health care facilities.
In television commercials that will begin broadcasting statewide on Monday, nurses and patients take a personal swipe at the governor, imploring, "Why are you doing this?" At one point, a nurse says, "I can't believe Governor Paterson is the one making this proposal." Then a man, blind and in a wheelchair, asks the governor, who is legally blind, "Why are you doing this to me?"
I haven't yet seen one of the ads, but they do look to be rather brutal. The Governor's folks are not taking this lying down, however. They have scheduled a 2pm news conference to address and rebut the ads.
The Director of State Operations Dennis Whalen, Deputy Secretary for Health and Human Services Joe Baker and State Health Commissioner Dr. Richard Daines will be appearing to make the Governor's case and you can watch it live online at this link.
This could be quite interesting. I'll be watching.
With the downfall of Gov. Eliot Spitzer and an approaching state election that has senators of both parties desperate for support, labor unions are flexing their muscles in the capital to a degree not seen in years....
The unions want their pensions sweetened and their health benefits set in stone. They want local school districts to continue to increase their budgets without interference from the state, and they want to force some nonprofit groups to pay higher wages.
They have already scored a victory by stripping language out of state law that linked decisions on teachers' tenure to their students' performance on standardized tests.
The unions are moving aggressively on their legislative agenda in part because Mr. Paterson is viewed as a relatively weak governor, whereas Mr. Spitzer battled some of the most powerful unions in the state. In fact, there is no effective counterweight to the unions' clout, given the limited influence of the state's business lobby and how close the state's top Republican, Senator Joseph L. Bruno, is to labor leaders.
Balancing the needs of employees with the needs of taxpayers is always a difficult dance, especially since the state has no profits that could be given to workers instead of shareholders.
There are few indicators more ominous for Uncle Joe's doomed state Senate majority than the fact that SEIU/1199 appears to be, shall we say, bailing on them. In yet another sign that more and more folks can see the writing on the proverbial wall, SEIU is giving significant coin to the Working Families Party, the folks who are essentially running field for Darrel Aubertine in the SD-48 special election. They've formally endorsed Will Barclay, but they are funding the Dem ground game. Oh, and the money spigot to the Senate GOP seems to be rather dry as they haven't given to Bruno's gang since last summer.
But recent campaign finance filings raise an intriguing question: Is the politically astute union now quietly hedging its bets?
In recent weeks, 1199 has been shoveling money into the Working Families Party, a labor-backed organization that has been mobilizing support for the Democratic candidate in a crucial State Senate special election in upstate New York on Tuesday. At the same time, the union has not contributed to the central campaign account maintained by Mr. Bruno's Senate Republican operation in about six months.
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At the same time, 1199 has poured $257,000 into the Working Families Party this year, nearly three times what they gave to the party in all of last year and more than in any year since 2003, according to state campaign finance records. In 2006 and 2007 combined, 1199 gave about $150,000 to the party, records show.
The Working Families Party has taken a leading role on the ground for the Democratic candidate in the race, Assemblyman Darrel J. Aubertine, and in providing money for his campaign.
"This isn't a token, tentative contribution," said Russ Haven, the legislative director of the New York Public Interest Research Group. "It could represent the margin of victory in a short-track winter contest in the north country that will turn on which side will get their voters to the polls."
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But, despite the denials, another trend is clear: 1199 has taken a noticeably softer tone with the governor. Last year, it led a multimillion-dollar campaign against Mr. Spitzer's budget cuts and exchanged hard-hitting television commercials with the administration, reinforcing its alliance with Mr. Bruno.
This year officials at 1199 have taken a much less aggressive tone - perhaps due in part to a change in leadership after Dennis Rivera, the longtime head of 1199, moved up to another job within the union.
Certainly not having Bruno's pal Rivera running the SEIU show in New York is a contributing factor here, but I think it's much more a case of the union getting on the good side of the Governor and the imminent Democratic Senate majority. They can see what's coming and and there's little that should trouble Uncle Joe and his crew more than this.
I was hoping that SEIU could see the long term writing on the wall and at least sit this one out. Looks like that's not going to happen. Bruno is their guy and they appear perfectly willing to go down with his ship. Liz has the goods:
The health care union SEIU/1199 has again demonstrated its loyalty to Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno and his GOP conference by announcing its endorsement of Republican Assemblyman Will Barclay in the 48th SD special election.
"Throughout his more than five years in the Assembly, Will Barclay has been a tireless advocate for the issues that upstate New Yorkers deeply care about - protecting quality healthcare and rebuilding the upstate economy," said SEIU/1199 President George Gresham.
"1199 caregivers are proud to endorse Will Barclay and we're confident that he'll be an excellent addition to a Senate Majority that has consistently protected access to affordable quality healthcare for all New Yorkers."
SEIU/1199 has long been a Bruno ally, contributing hundreds of thousands of dollars to the senator himself, as well as his fellow Republicans, and the majority's campaign committees.
An impressive coalition announced a major media and field campaign today targeting Members of Congress in hopes of overriding President Bush's recent veto f the SCHIP renewal. The coalition includes the AFL-CIO, AFSCME, SEIU, MoveOn.org, Americans United for Change, USA Action and True Majority and the campaign will target over 30 Reps, including our own Randy Kuhl and Tom Reynolds. From the press release:
Leading Groups Announce Major Paid Media and Field Campaign to Override Presidential Veto of Healthcare for 10 Million Kids
AFL-CIO, AFSCME, SEIU, MoveOn.org, Americans United for Change, USAction, and True Majority Launch Multi-Million Dollar Effort to Convince Members of Congress to Vote to Override Bush's Veto of Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act
Key Republican House Members Targeted in "Campaign to Save Children's Healthcare" for Their Support of Backwards Bush Policy of "Billions of Dollars for Iraq War, But Veto for Children's Health Care"
On the heels of President Bush's shameful veto this week of the Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act - meaningful legislation to provide health coverage for nearly 10 million kids - several leading groups including AFL-CIO, AFSCME, SEIU, MoveOn.org, Americans United for Change, USAction, TrueMajority announced a major, multi-million dollar "Campaign to Save Children's Healthcare" to convince enough member of Congress to vote to override the President's veto. The effort includes a national television ad campaign, targeted TV ads in key Republican U.S. House districts, and a massive online and grassroots mobilization blitz.
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AFSCME will also launch targeted TV ads next week pressuring key Republican lawmakers to stand up for families and kids in their districts by immediately changing course and voting to override the President's veto, including U.S. Reps. Marilyn Musgrave (CO-4), Sam Graves (MO-6), John "Randy" Kuhl (NY-29), Thomas Reynolds (NY-26), Timothy Walberg (MI-7), Joe Knollenberg (MI-9), Steve Chabot (OH-1), and Tom Feeney (FL-24).
SEIU will launch TV ads as well, also starting next week, targeting U.S. Reps. Tim Johnson (IL-15), Rodney Alexander (LA-5), John Boozman (AR-3), Kay Granger (TX-12), Thelma Drake (VA-2), Robin Hayes (NC-8), Barbara Cubin (WY-AL) John "Randy" Kuhl (NY-29), Thomas Reynolds (NY-26), and radio ads targeting Reps. Michele Bachmann (MN-6), Robert Aderholt (AL-4).
The first TV ad of the campaign will start running next week. It's called "Abby".
Liz Benjamin has a great rundown of early fundraising numbers in key state Senate districts. One thing that really stands out are the contributions from SEIU/1199 to Democrats. This come after years of staunch support from the union (and especially from now departed union head and close Bruno friend, Dennis Rivera) for Senate Republicans.
Two cases really stand out. SEIU has made contributions to two freshman Democratic Senators after fiercely supporting those Dems opponents in hotly contested races last cycle.
In the 7th SD, lost by the GOP in a Feb. 6 special election, Democratic freshman Craig Johnson has raised $63,750 since his last filing, spent $49,783 and has $102,213 on hand.
Among Johnson's contributors was SEIU/1199 ($8,500), a longtime ally of the Republican Senate majority, which backed his opponent, Nassau County Clerk Maureen O'Connell, in the special election.
- In the 35th SD, where freshman Democratic Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins ousted Republican Nick Spano in her second attempt (she came within 18 votes of beating him in 2006), she has raised $34,825 since January, spent $32,107 and has just $12,843 on hand.
SEIU/1199, which backed Spano, contributed $5,000 to Stewart-Cousins.
Could it be that SEIU sees the writing on the wall? I mean, they went all out in a truly ugly campaign, one which the Daily News described thusly:
The leaders of this union of mostly black and Hispanic workers did everything they could to defeat a progressive black woman Democratic candidate in Westchester. They did so even as their Republican allies in that race were intimidating black voters.
And lets not forget that in the special election that Craig Johnson won back in February, SEIU not only contributed to his opponent, Maureen O'Connell, but produced a series of TV spots on her behalf. (spots that were far superior in quality than anything produced by the O'Connell campaign, btw.)
Is it a matter of Bruno buddy Dennis Rivera moving on to greener pastures? Or does SEIU see change on the horizon and want to begin a healing process with the Governor and Senate Dems as soon as possible?
AFL-CIO President Denis Hughes just released a statement of support for Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno, R-Brunswick, saying the senator has "proven himself time and again to be a man of honor and unquestionable integrity."
"The labor movement has no better friend than Senator Bruno," Hughes continues. "He has consistently fought to protect and enhance the lives and well-being of working people, often at great political risk.
"Senator Bruno's lengthy and distinguished career speaks volumes to his character. As such, there should be no rush to judgment regarding his ability to lead.
"The New York State AFL-CIO fully supports Senator Bruno's leadership and looks forward to continuing to work with Senator Bruno, Speaker Silver, all members of the state legislature and Governor-Elect Spitzer in our efforts to further the cause of working men and women across this state."
Liz goes on to say that she wouldn't be surprised to see a similar statement from Dennis Rivera and SEIU in the next few days. I agree. Rivera's willingness to sell out SEIU's founding principles to protect Bruno and his job has a long and sordid history.
Welcome to Westchester County, the Deep South of New York State.
That's the message supporters of powerful Republican State Sen. Nick Spano gave to hundreds of black and Hispanic Westchester residents on Election Day with an ugly campaign of voter intimidation at several polling sites.
"For most of the day, it felt like I was in the South," said one Democratic Party lawyer.
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Stewart-Cousins, Westchester's best-known black leader, was ahead by more than 2,100 votes. Spano, however, has refused to concede. He is clinging to the hope that a tally of absentee and affidavit ballots will erase his opponent's lead - one that withstood questionable tactics on Election Day.
