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President's Perspective
By Ron Lind
Obama is
the Clear Choice
For Working Families
President Lind with Brack Obama at a UFCW conference in
Chicago in April.
It's always easy
to draw contrasts between Democratic and Republican
presidential candidates. The party platforms are very
different and the candidate's views on high-profile
issues like abortion, gun control, foreign policy and
taxes are well publicized and debated.
But for working
families, the differences between Barack Obama and John
McCain on issues that directly impact us have never been
clearer or more critical. Obama is not only with us, he
has committed to lead the fight for workers rights and
most notably, the passage of the Employee Free Choice
Act. McCain is one of the most anti-union members of the
U.S. Senate who would not only oppose our efforts, but
would use the office of the president to further erode
the strength of the American labor movement.
On health care,
McCain's plan would undermine existing employer-based
programs and push workers into the private market to
fight big insurance companies on their own. He has also
proposed to make union-provided health benefits taxable,
a plan that could cost UFCW members thousands of dollars
a year.
McCain supports
privatizing Social Security and raising the Medicare
eligibility age. He voted for NAFTA and CAFTA and
supports more trade agreements that will continue to
undermine our economy and send good-paying jobs
overseas. He voted against a law that would ban the
permanent replacement of strikers. And most important,
he not only opposes the Employee Free Choice Act, he is
an outspoken advocate of a national Right-to-Work law
that would attempt to eliminate unions altogether.
Senator Barack
Obama has a 98% positive voting record on our issues. He
has supported workers not just on the Senate floor but
in the streets, on many occasions joining workers'
struggles in rallies and on picket lines. He has a real
plan for health care reform, will protect our retirement
security and is opposed to trade agreements that fail to
protect American jobs. And, he has assisted the UFCW
campaigns against Wal Mart and TESCO and will continue
to do so as president.
I have had the
privilege to speak with Senator Obama on several
occasions over the last several months. He understands
our issues, he is an experienced organizer and I am
convinced that he is not only sincere in his promise to
help rebuild the labor movement but that he has the
skills and the plan to deliver on that promise.
Our Active
Ballot Club has endorsed Barack Obama for president
along with dozens of other labor-friendly candidates for
local, state and national office. You will find our
recommendations throughout this issue of the newsletter.
Together, we can change our communities and our country
and improve our lives by voting for those who put the
interests of workers ahead of the interests of
corporations.
Ron can be
reached at rlind@ufcw5.org
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