Secret Ballot Watch

Union leaders have never been shy about their expectation that card check legislation would be delivered by Democrats in Washington as payback for their political and financial support in the last election. But now, The Hill reports that even the White House is spelling out the quid pro quo: 

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“The Obama administration owes organized labor a lot for its victory in the presidential election, Vice President Biden said Tuesday, and will continue to push for the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) and other union-backed measures.

“‘Everybody looks back on the election now and says it was a piece of cake,’ Biden said during a speech before a conference of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME). ‘But let me tell you: You made it cake.’ …

“Biden said there is ‘no way’ for the administration to work to restore the middle class without strengthening organized labor.

“‘That's why we need to pass the Employee Free Choice Act,’ the vice president said.”

O’Brien, “Biden to labor group: We owe you,” The Hill, 05.12.09 

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There’s “no way” to support the middle class without strengthening organized labor?

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2008, union members accounted for 12.4 percent of employed wage and salary workers. By extension, that means 87.6 percent of workers are not members of a union. Surely some of them consider themselves a part of the middle-class. Yet this administration believes there is simply no way to help middle-class Americans without strengthening organized labor?

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