It's About Time

While I have been a lifelong supporter of the union movement in this nation, one aspect of labor unions really galls the heck out of me. No matter how much or how severely the Democratic Party turns its back on organized labor, unions always can be counted on to throw around their muscle and financial resources to back Democratic Party candidates!

As I and many others have pointed out numerous times, if labor grants the Dems a free pass every two years, then the Dems have no reason to take the needs of organized labor seriously. Why fight for union members, if you know they will support you regardless of what you do?

Finally, one union has gotten the message loud and clear. According to a recent article posted at PR Watch,

Remember when the fight broke out in Wisconsin over the right to collectively bargain and President Obama and a phalanx of national democratic leaders spread out across the country fighting for the rights of American workers?

Right, we don't remember that either.

As unions battled for their very existence, the thunderous silence from Washington, D.C. did not go unnoticed by working families fighting for their livelihoods or by powerful political players. At least one organization has decided to hold a few of their former friends accountable.

The International Association of Fire Fighters, announced yesterday it would no longer be giving money to federal candidates. Rather, the 300,000-member union said it would put its energy and resources into the fight at the state level over collective bargaining.

The announcement sent a shock wave through the Washington Democratic establishment, because in recent years the union has given much more to Democrats than Republicans. It donated $1.9 million to Democratic candidates in national elections during the 2010 campaign cycle and only $408,000 to Republicans...

Needless to say, the Fire Fighters aren't completely turning their backs on the Democrats. You can be sure that the money they contribute in state races typically will not go to GOP candidates! Still, this represents an important first step. It says that this union is tired of being taken for granted!

While this announcement warms my cockles, I am not going to get overly excited about it. Why? I realize it could be nothing more than a stunt -- a political statement. It's easy to say that you won't back federal candidates financially when there are few, if any, official candidates yet. Let's see if they stick to it or if they walk it back as the campaign season draws near.

If I was a betting man, I would bet the house on the latter...unfortunately.