The Wisconsin Senate had failed to have a quorom with Democrats traveling out of state to avoid a vote on the outlawing of unions and collective bargaining in the public sector. Republicans later forced through the bill outlawing collective bargaining. a photo by Pan-African News Wire File Photos on Flickr.
Saturday, March 12, 2011 10:14:00 AM EST
PROMISES, PROMISES: Obama shies away from protests
WASHINGTON (AP) — Union leaders urged Vice President Joe Biden during a White House meeting last month to go to Wisconsin and rally the faithful in their fight against Gov. Scott Walker's move to curtail
collective bargaining rights for most public employees.
Request rebuffed, they asked for Labor Secretary Hilda Solis. So far,
however, the White House has stayed away from any trips to Madison,
the state capital, or other states in the throes of union battles. The
Obama administration is treading carefully on the contentious
political issue that has led to a national debate over the power that
public sector unions wield in negotiating wages and benefits.
A few labor leaders have complained openly that President Barack Obama is ignoring a campaign pledge he made to stand with unions; most others say his public comments have been powerful enough.
The stakes are high as Obama looks toward a grueling re-election
campaign. Republicans have begun airing television ads linking Obama to "union bosses" standing in the way of budget cuts in Wisconsin, Ohio and other states.
As a candidate, Obama seemed to promise more to organized labor, among the Democratic Party's most loyal constituencies.
"If American workers are being denied their right to organize and
collectively bargain when I'm in the White House, I'll put on a
comfortable pair of shoes myself," Obama said at a speech in 2007.
"I'll walk on that picket line with you as president of the United
States of America because workers deserve to know that somebody is
standing in their corner."
Rose Ann DeMoro, executive director of National Nurses United, the
nation's largest nurses union, called Obama "largely a bystander" in
the debate over collective bargaining. "I think we're feeling a sense
of betrayal from him and not liking it much," she said.
Doug Schoen, a Democratic political strategist, said Obama's strategy
seems to be "keep your distance, avoid direct engagement, say most of the right things most of the time, and hope for resolution through
sources other than your own."
Walker on Friday signed a bill that strips most collective bargaining
rights from the state's public workers, except police and
firefighters. The measure passed the Legislature following more than
three weeks of protests that drew tens of thousands of people to the
state Capitol in opposition. The governor had announced his plan on
Feb. 11, saying his state was broke and there was no point negotiating
with the unions when there was nothing to offer.
The request for Biden to travel to Wisconsin came from Gerald McEntee, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, according to two union officials familiar with the Feb. 24 meeting. The officials requested anonymity because the meeting was private.
Five days later, during the AFL-CIO winter meeting, McEntee told Obama senior adviser David Plouffe that unions wanted more than words, the officials said. McEntee told Plouffe they wanted a high-profile emissary to stand with protesters to show that the president was by their side.
A spokesman for McEntee declined to comment. Biden's press secretary, Elizabeth Alexander, declined to elaborate on Biden's discussions with union leaders or say why he had not gone to Madison. She said Biden was "obviously very supportive" of labor, had a long history of fighting for collective bargaining rights and, along with Obama, has been "very involved in what has been going on in Wisconsin both privately and publicly from day one."
Obama has called Walker's proposal an "assault on unions" and urged
governors not to vilify public workers. After the state Senate relied
on a procedural move Thursday to pass the anti-bargaining rights
measure without any Democrats in the chamber, White House spokesman Jay Carney said Obama believes it is wrong for Wisconsin to use its budget troubles "to denigrate or vilify public sector employees."
Solis also pledged her support for public employees on a phone call
with thousands of members of the Communications Workers of America.
"Budget sacrifices are one thing but, demanding that workers give up
their voice is another," Solis told the union members.
But asked whether Solis would go to Wisconsin or any other state where protesters are rallying, spokesman Carl Fillichio said she's "keeping an eye on the situation."
DeMoro, from the nurses' union, has been reminding Obama about his
2007 campaign promise to walk with union members. She has even sent out press releases offering to buy the president a pair of shoes to
march with demonstrators.
"Standing with the embattled workers would be an important symbol," DeMoro said.
There's no question that Obama will keep getting strong re-election
support from organized labor. But he stands the risk that unions won't
be as enthusiastic if he is too aloof about the attack on bargaining
rights. On the other hand, it's possible that unions will be so
consumed with their own efforts to save bargaining rights, recall
governors or other issues of self-preservation that they won't have
the time to work on Obama's behalf with full vigor.
Schoen, the Democratic consultant, said Obama is "trying to have it both ways."
If the budget-cutting tactics of Walker and GOP Gov. John Kasich of
Ohio are successful, Obama doesn't want to be seen as aggressively
taking sides, Schoen said. If they fail, the president can say he was
always on the side of the unions.
Most union leaders have praised Obama in public for offering support
with his words. Some believe it may be better for him to stay out so
Republicans can't claim the protests are being organized in a grand
political move.
"Obama needed to hang back and let people fully understand this is
being run by the people of Wisconsin, not by the Democratic Party
leadership," said Greg Junemann, president of the International
Federal of Professional and Technical Engineers.
Both parties already are using Wisconsin to try to boost their
political fortunes.
Crossroads GPS, a group organized by former Bush advisers Karl Rove and Ed Gillespie, announced this past week that it would spend
$750,000 on national cable television ads supporting Walker and the
Wisconsin Republicans.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee on Thursday set a goal of raising $100,000 in 24 hours from angry voters opposing the
Wisconsin legislation.
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