Well, I was off on vacation–eh, it was just a week so I barely got the head cleared out–and got back in time to see that we’ve had a little action on the labor front on endorsements for president. I’m going to say a lot more about this tomorrow, with more detail, but for the time being, just to mark the events:
UMWA Endorses Edwards for President
The United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) announced today that it is endorsing former Senator John Edwards (D-N.C.) for President of the United States.
“Senator Edwards’ positions on the issues of importance to UMWA members make him the best fit for UMWA members of all the candidates for President,” UMWA International President Cecil E. Roberts said. “We are proud to support him and excited about the potential of an Edwards presidency for American working families.
“Senator Edwards believes, as we do, that the best way to rebuild America’s middle class is to expand union membership, not shrink it,” Roberts said. “He also believes, as we do, that the searing poverty that still grips many Americans is a stain on our great nation that must be eliminated.
That was today and it’s just part of the official release.
And my Canadian friend Leo Gerard brought the Steelworkers behind Edwards, too:
The United Steelworkers (USW) today endorsed Senator John Edwards as the Democratic nominee for President.
The USW, the nation’s largest private sector union, was joined in making its endorsement by the United Mineworkers of America (UMWA), giving Edwards the largest bloc of union support so far among the field of eight presidential candidates.
In making the announcement, USW President Leo W. Gerard said, “All of the Democratic candidates in the field share our values, and any one of them would be a major improvement over the current administration. "But none of them is a more forceful advocate for those values than John Edwards. Senator Edwards is committed, as he has been throughout his life, to going to bat for everyday Americans and to changing a broken political system that leaves millions of Americans without a voice in their government."
As I said, this is just for the record. A lot more tomorrow…
And thanks to Natasha for keeping the blog posts going last week.
