Working Life

Going back to NAFTA more than two decades ago (wow, time flies when Administration after Administration screws workers year after year, eh?), deals have been made by presidents to buy votes. With Bill Clinton and Robert Reich promising a whole host of goodies, NAFTA passed narrowly–my favorite deal struck in memory was Clinton’s promise to establish a North American Development Bank with $3 billion…which bought the votes of a few Democrats like Rep. Esteban Torres (D-CA) and Rep. Ed Pastor (D-AZ). The bank? Ooooopppppssss…didn’t happen beyond a trickle.

You see, the sale of one’s soul–and the livelihoods of millions of people–for a piddling appropriation turns out to be a bad deal just on the narrow merits of what’s promised:

Most deals are broken.

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It’s always been the case that the vote for fast track would be close, close of course being in the eye of the beholder. But, with a vote possible on Friday, there are A DOZEN DEMOCRATS worth calling today. I suggest this list of a dozen based on two things: a little bit of intel […]

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Where or where is Nancy Pelosi in fast track? Inquiring minds want to know.

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The gloves are off, the sides have been clearly drawn. It’s the president, the Republican Party and business versus the people, workers, labor and most of the Democratic Party. And a top House Democrat, who is at the forefront whipping the votes against fast track and the Trans Pacific Partnership, is making it clear: the president stands with multi-national corporations against workers.

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I guess it’s a no-brainer to point out that The New York Times is basically in the tank for so-called “free trade” (I need to underscore I’ve always written “so-called” going back to NAFTA because these deals have nothing to with “free trade” theory, at least if you bother to read David Ricardo). The paper […]

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I meant to write this up a couple of weeks ago when Elizabeth Warren released a report called, “Broken Promises: Decades of Failure to Enforce Labor Standards in Free Trade Agreements” but, well, stuff got in the way. But, here’s a hint: there will always be a spineless Democrat who gives you a chance to come back to an important topic. And that topic is: trade enforcement never works, it’s a scam and should not be allowed to be used as a reason to vote for fast track or any of these so-called “free trade” deals.

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Oh, seriously. Democrats are whining about, heaven forbid, a bit of pressure from unions to actually vote correctly on fast track and the Trans Pacific Partnership. Grow up–and if you can’t cast a vote for workers, go be a lobbyist.

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This is a picture I’d turn into a “Wanted” poster, maybe circulate in every election district in the 13 states represented by these folks. It says it all–thanks to the AFL-CIO.

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The Senate has voted to proceed to debating fast track, which essentially ensures its eventual passage. The vote is still taking place but with 60 votes needed to invoke cloture and pass the motion, there are already 62 votes SUPPORTING THE MOTION to proceeding. Final vote 62-38 (Vote specifics in a moment).

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Now it boils down to this: can the White House and its corporate supporters find a sliver of votes in the House to pass fast track and, close on its heels, the Trans Pacific Partnership? To do that end, the president and his allies are going to rely on tried-and-true phony promises conjured up by Bill Clinton and Robert Reich when they squeezed NAFTA through by a handful of votes in 1993–the Clinton-Reich playbook is back on display again.

Today’s false promise: retraining.

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