John Edwards just formally accepted the endorsement of two big industrial unions, the United Steelworkers (USW) and the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) at a labor day rally in Pittsburgh PA. The USW is a BIG one with 1.2 million members and is the largest private industrial union, and the UMWA is a good size one too, with over 100,000 members.
Edwards statement and my analysis over the break.
Edwards released this statement:
"I am especially honored to receive the support of the Steelworkers and Mine Workers unions," said Edwards, "These are the workers who built the middle class in America, and they are the backbone of the American labor movement. They understand how important it is to fight back when jobs, safety, standards and our values are at risk--and they know what's at stake in this election.""These workers have felt the negative impact of a broken system in Washington that is rigged against America's working families for far too long--whether it's the tragic lack of oversight in mine safety, trade agreements written to benefit multinational corporations while they ship American jobs overseas, or the millions of working Americans who still can't afford health insurance," added Edwards. "As president, I will proudly lead the fight on behalf of working families with their support--and together we will win."
(Emphasis Mine).
This means that Edwards has the largest bloc of union support to endorse so far, which ought to quiet the 'Edwards isn't closing the deal,' concern. More than that these are two strong unions with symbolic importance as representatives of America's working class. Steel workers are a group most American's recognize as hard working productive workers who have been hurt, but are unbowed, by unfair trade practices such as dumping.
We all know what a dangerous job mine workers do. A job too often made more dangerous than it needs to be by inadequate safety measures by employers and lax safety regulation by the government (currently in the pocket of management).
Both the President of the USW and UMWA released statements praising John Edwards, here's UNMA President Cecil Roberts:
"Senator Edwards' positions on the issues of importance to UMWA members make him the best fit of all the candidates for president," UMWA International President Cecil E. Roberts said. "We need a president who cares about ordinary working people instead of the richest Americans and the big multinational corporations. We believe John Edwards is that person, and we will work as hard as we know how on his behalf anywhere and everywhere we can."
The Steelworkers and Mine workers join Carpenters and joiners in endorsing Edwards. The Steel workers and UMWA tend to be geographically concentrated in the industrial Midwest and the Mid-Atlantic, and so may not aid as much directly in the early states, but these big unions give Edwards organizational strength in some of the big February Five states, such as Pennsylvania and Ohio. This puts him in a great position to be able to springboard out of of Iowa.
No candidate believes more in the value of work and the need for us to place more value on workers than John Edwards. With these endorsements, it's a great Labor day for John Edwards and a great opportunity for American workers.
[Ed] Cross posted at Boston for Edwards|
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