AFL-CIO Leader: Labor Might Not Support Specter

[Omaha Steve]

Source: ABC

ABC News' Rick Klein reports:

The Democratic establishment may be lining up behind Sen. Arlen Specter -- but some who control the ground troops aren't so ready to fall into line.

On today's "Top Line," Richard Trumka, the secretary-treasurer of the AFL-CIO, warned that union leaders may drop their longstanding support for Specter, D-Pa., if -- as he has promised to do -- he votes against them on their legislative priority, the Employee Free Choice Act.

"Those decisions will be made by people in the state, and our members in the state know who will stand with them. And if Arlen Specter -- he stood with them in the past -- if he continues to stand with them, they'll support him. If he doesn't, they won't support him," Trumka told us.

Trumka said the Democratic Party establishment won't prevent labor leaders from making their own decision on Specter, even though President Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, and Gov. Ed Rendell, D-Pa., have all pledged to support Specter.

Read more: http://blogs.abcnews.com/thenote/2009/05/abc-news-rick-k.html

---

Full story and video at link.

Video only here: http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=7498493

[JVS]

1. Bust his balls, Trumka!

[Phred42]

2. Why the hell would Labor even THINK about supporting Specter?

Can we get a phucking grip here?

[Demit]

3. Labor is being quite clear here: if Specter supports labor issues the way he has in the past

labor will stay with him. That's a pretty identifiable gauntlet.

[roguevalley]

11. if he doesn't, I hope they club his ass. union folx never forget or

forgive.

RV, AFSCME, AFT, NEA, Teamster, etc. in the career

[rhett o rick]

12. I agree. we need to take a stand some time. I say Frig Specter.

By the way phred do you chat on Thom Hartmann's site?

[Norrin Radd]

4. kr

[GentryDixon]

5. Nor should they,

He has demonstrated over the years he is in this game for his best interests only. It is particularly evident with his recent votes against his new found party.

He reminds me of a parent who always promises a child they will do "such and such" then never follows through. I have no respect for someone whose word I cannot trust.

I say throw the bum out!

[saigon68]

15. The way he trashed Anita Hill

And serviced clarence "long dong" thomas like the prostitute he is.

[democrat2thecore]

6. Support for labor in the past be damned. I agree with them on this.

His flip-flop on EFCA is betrayal of the highest order. Of course, I worry about a Toomey in the Senate too, but a Democratic primary challenge should not be out of the question; all deals aside. Chris Matthews - reconsidering?

[damntexdem]

7. Well, if Specter doesn't support labor, why should labor support him?

And this year, EFCA is where the action is -- and Specter isn't.

[Dappleganger]

10. +1

[tomm2thumbs]

8. you don't support us? but we should support you? - such a simple idea

I think this Specter thing may be remembered as a slow motion time bomb going off for the Democratic Party.

[8 track mind]

9. they have an opportunity here

they could say support the EFCA and we will back you. If you don't we are going to pour all of our resources into another Democrat.

[xchrom]

13. recommend

[Canuckistanian]

14. +1

[radfringe]

16. Specter would do well to pay attention to PA unemployment numbers

Our little northeast corner of PA (Wilkes-Barre / Scranton) has been a blackhole for jobs, even in better times.

We've lost a lot of manufacturing jobs and losing more every day. Local papers that once had 3 or 4 columns of employment ads can now scarcely fill 1 column, and you are lucky if you see more than one of those big block ads.