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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (June 19, 2015)
PAGE 4 | June 19, 2015 | NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS Congressman Schrader calls AFL-CIO president a ‘bully’ Oregon Democratic Congress- man Kurt Schrader called na- tional AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka a “bully” in an interview with a Washington, D.C., blog—because the AFL- CIO has begun campaigning against Democrats who support trade promotion authority, also known as fast track. Fast track is legislation to make it easier to pass more NAFTA-style trade deals, and its defeat has been the AFL- CIO’s top priority for months. In March, the labor federation de- clared a moratorium on political campaign contributions until the issue is settled, and in June, the AFL-CIO began running televi- sion and online ads criticizing Democrats who support fast track. Trumka has even threat- ened to withhold support from Democrats who vote for fast track. Apparently, Schrader consid- ers that bullying. [Schrader an- nounced May 8 that he supports fast track, and voted for it on June 12.] “We’re solid on labor issues,” Schrader told CQ Roll Call, a publication for Washington, D.C., insiders. “To have this be- come a litmus test for one indi- vidual issue, I think that’s de- meaning. ... To actively cam- paign against you when you’re with them 80 percent of the time—I don’t take kindly to bul- lying. That gets my dander up. And I hope it gets the dander up of most every single member of my party.” In fact, Schrader has a life- AFL-CIO Summer School Aug. 7-9 in Eugene EUGENE—The annual AFL-CIO Summer School will be held Aug. 7-9 at the University of Oregon in Eugene. The weekend event, coordinated by the Labor Education and Re- search Center (LERC) of the UO, offers courses on organizing, collec- tive bargaining, labor issues and strategies, and more. Participants also will have lots of opportunities to connect with union members from around the state to share insights and ideas. There will be a solidarity picnic, music, and ice cream social. Summer school courses and workshops qualify for a maximum of eight hours toward LERC’s Union Leadership Education and Devel- opment (U-LEAD) certificate. For more information or to register, go online to http://pages. uore- gon.edu/ lerc/. 360-695-5555 U.S. Rep. Kurt Schrader time record of voting in accord with AFL-CIO recommenda- tions 84 percent of the time, as of 2013. But some of his votes that the AFL-CIO called “wrong” were doozies: • In 2009, he voted against the Dodd-Frank financial reform bill, which passed in response to massive Wall Street fraud. That’s the bill that created the Con- sumer Financial Protection Agency, and regulated financial derivatives for the first time. • In 2010, he voted against a bill giving federal employees four weeks of paid parental leave. He also voted against the DREAM Act, which gives a path to citi- 9300 NE Vancouver Mall Dr., Suite #100, Vancouver, WA - 98662 www.elitedentistrywa.com Unionized Dental Office by the Vancouver Mall Now Accepting New Patients!!! FREE electric tooth brush or FREE sweatshirt at the completion of treatment • Flexible office hours: Late evening and weekend appointments available • Same day emergency treatment Lifetime FREE Teeth Whitening • No insurance, no problem. We offer up to 35% cash discount • We will match any competitor’s coupons or discounts • All major dental insurance accepted • Win a chance for a FREE trip to Las Vegas. Call our office for more details zenship to children of undocu- mented immigrants who gradu- ate from high school and serve in the military or attend college for two years. • In 2011, he voted for a bill that the AFL-CIO said would cripple ef- fective workplace safety regula- tion by adding years of delay to the rulemaking process of agen- cies like the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Mine Safety and Health Administration. • In 2013, he introduced legislation directing President Obama to fol- low the unofficial “Simpson- Bowles” recommendations. The recommendations included cut- ting Social Security benefits, shifting Medicare costs to bene- ficiaries, lowering tax rates for the wealthy and corporations, and increasing tax incentives for shipping jobs overseas. In each of those cases, Schrader voted with Republi- cans and against the over- whelming majority of Democ- rats. In the House, he’s co-chair of the Blue Dog Coalition, a group of moderate Democrats who want to “transcend partisan politics.” Schrader’s “bully” charge came in an interview with Roll Call’s politics blog, At the Races —after a group of 20 House Democrats met June 3 with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi to discuss their worries about labor’s fast track threats. But not every Democrat thinks withholding contribu- tions is bullying. “Here’s the deal,” Congress- man Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.) told the blog. “Everybody goes to the well of labor when they’re running for office in terms of contributions. … Early on in this process, anybody around in the last session knew that with [trade] coming up, that was go- ing to be a litmus test, and so to say now that labor is being mean or over the top in terms of their criticisms of Democrats who are going to vote for [TPA] is kind of like a late realization when you’ve already taken the money and the support.” ONLINE EXTRA The Roll Call article: http://bit.ly/1S7T4ec Schrader’s labor voting record: http://bit.ly/1FVjEyM
