You may have heard in the last few days that the AFL-CIO issued a statement at the executive council meeting threatening to demand that the Democratic Party move its 2008 nominating convention from Denver because of the veto cast last month by DEMOCRATIC Governor Bill Ritter that torpedoed legislation that would have made union organizing easier and more fair. Good for the AFL-CIO.

What I like about the resolution was, first, that it happened. The Federation is willing to publicly take on the Democrats. High time, I say–and more needs to happen in that vein. Ritter pledged during his campaign–which was heavily supported by labor–to sign the legislation. Then, he reneged. As the AFL-CIO says:

Gov. Ritter publicly supported the reform legislation while running for
office and actively seeking the support of Colorado’s working
families. His veto at the behest of moneyed interests is a betrayal of
the working men and women who devoted countless hours to help elect him
by going door-to-door, working in phone banks, passing out leaflets at
worksites to mobilize their co-workers and showing up on election day
to vote for him.

The Federation says it will first send a delegation to meet with Ritter. But:

Union members and working people will make up more than a quarter of
the delegates to the Denver convention. These delegates and working
Americans across the country will be looking in the months ahead to see
whether Gov. Ritter supports working families. Unless we can be
assured that the Governor will support our values and priorities, we
will strongly urge the Democratic Party to relocate the convention.

Yes…now where is the same outrage on this issue that Democratic activists and the netroots generated around the proposed FOX-sponsored debate in Nevada?